Biblios_Baptism With the Holy Spirit

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Baptism with the

Holy Spirit



Baptism with the Holy Spirit

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Biblios.org.uk / May 2011



3.3.

Introduction

01 What is baptism with the Holy Spirit?

02 Why is it important for me?03 How can I be baptised with the Holy Spirit?

Voices

Baptism with theHoly Spirit






04.

Introduction

‘Be lled with the Holy Spirit’ was Paul’s exhortation to the

church in his day (Ephesians 5: 18) and it is still God’s call

to us today. The gift of the Holy Spirit is not only helpful, it is

essential to us as we seek to live for God. Worship, holiness,evangelism, spiritual gifts and so many other areas are

completely dependant upon the Spirit’s work in us and through

us as he helps, lls and anoints us.

Particularly now, society is looking for more than religious

words, they are looking for faith that is matched with

evidence of a supernatural reality. It is the moving of the

Spirit that creates that reality, so it is vital that every one of us

experiences the baptism with the Holy Spirit - not just oncebut as an ongoing encounter - as a way of life that we choose

to pursue daily.

Hugh Grifths

LifePoint Church

www.lifepoint.org.uk





Biblios.org.uk / May 201105.

A powerul and overwhelming experience o the Holy Spirit that isdistinct om salvation but may beexperienced at the same time

‘Baptism with the Holy Spirit’ is referred

to many times in the New Testament.

It is signicant that every one of the

four gospel writers include John the

Baptist’s statement that it is a dening

characteristic of Jesus’ ministry:

He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit

and with re – Luke 3: 16

The gospel of Luke in then lled with

many references to the operation of

the Holy Spirit, showing how the Spirit

overowed through Jesus’ life and

ministry. Following his resurrection,

Jesus was clear that the Holy Spirit was

not unique to him but would be a gift

for all who followed him. He gave hisdisciples very direct instructions about

what they should do next:

He ordered then not to depart om

Jerusalem, but to wait or the promise o the

Father, which, he said, ‘ you heard om me;

or John baptised with water, but you will

be baptised with the Holy Spirit not many

days om now’

Acts 1: 4-5

Shortly afterwards all of the disciples

who were gathered in Jerusalem

experienced the reality of what Jesus

had promised.

Tey were all lled with the Holy Spirit

and began to speak in tongues as the Spirit

gave them utterance

Acts 2: 4

All of those present were already

followers and disciples of Christ but

together they each received the gift of

the Holy Spirit.

Filled with the Spirit

This rst outpouring of the Spirit at

Pentecost was a unique moment for

those earliest disciples, but it was also a

gift given for the whole church.

Acts 2: 39 says it very directly - the Holy

Spirit was a promise made ‘for you and

for your children and for all who are far

off, everyone whom the Lord our God

calls to himself’. So, it is not surprising

to read in the rest of Acts, there are

many instances of Christians having thesame experience:

The household of Cornelius

(Acts 10: 44-47 and 11: 15-17)

Converts in Samaria

(Acts 8: 5-25)

The apostle Paul

(Acts 9: 17-19)

Disciples in Ephesus

(Acts 19: 1-7)

The example of the disciples in Samaria

and Ephesus as well as Paul’s own story

(Acts 9: 4-19) show us that baptism

with the Spirit and conversion are not

the same event. Although we are ‘born

of the Spirit’ (John 3: 5-7) when we

come to faith in Christ, there is a further

experience to be gained. This event or

its subseqent experience is described in

What is baptism with the Holy Spirit?01.





several ways in the book of Acts:

an ‘outpouring’

(Acts 2: 33, 10: 45)

a ‘falling upon’

(Acts 8: 16, 10: 44, 11: 15)

a ‘coming upon’

(Acts 1: 8, 19: 6)

a ‘baptism with’

(Acts 1: 5, 11: 16)

a ‘lling’

(Acts 2: 4, 4: 8, 4: 31, 9: 17, 13: 52)

The terminology varies but each

one points towards a powerful and

overwhelming experience of the Holy

Spirit that is distinct from the experience

of salvation. Baptism with the Holy Spirit

is a visible evidence of the presence

of God that comes from outside the

individual. The term ‘baptism’ indicates

a thorough immersion in the Spirit andnot just an inner awareness of God’s

presence.

Speaking with other tongues

These examples from Acts also show

that the primary evidence of being

baptised with the Spirit is speaking in

tongues. As the disciples encountered

the Holy Spirit in this way, they began

overowing with words they could not

understand, speaking in a language

given by the Holy Spirit. They were

given ‘various kinds of tongues’ (1

Corinthians 12: 10) that made no direct

sense to their own mind (1 Corinthians

14: 14). This was not ecstatic nonsense

or over-excited babbling, instead it was

Spirit-inspired speech or ‘utterances’

(Acts 2: 4).

Speaking in tongues was not evident

in the Old Testament although the New

Testament shows that it is a normal part

of the baptism with the Holy Spirit. Paul

speaks of this reality in 1 Corinthians

14: 21 when he shows that the gift of

tongues is a fullment of what Isaiah

prophesied (28: 11-12).





Te Holy Spirit is intended or everyChristian to empower and equip us

or daily living

Perhaps the most important reason is

that it is part of Jesus’ ministry towards

you and the fullment of his promise to

‘baptise ... with the Holy Spirit and with

re’ (Luke 3:16, Acts 1: 4-5, 2: 4).

However, the book of Acts shows

several practical reasons why the Holy

Spirit is a necessary and fundamental

part of Christian experience:

The Holy Spirit empowers your

Christian lie

Even in the Old Testament, there are

instances where the Holy Spirit would

come upon individuals to empower

them, usually for a specic task. It wasdescribed either as an anointing¹ (see

1 Samuel 16: 12-13) or an enduement

of power (see Judges 6: 34). Although

this empowering was restricted and

temporary, the prophets (Isaiah 32: 14-

17, Joel 2: 28-29) anticipated the time

when the Holy Spirit would be poured

out on all believers:

Te promise is or you and your children, or all who are ar o, everyone whom the Lord calls to himsel.

Acts 2:39

The baptism with the Holy Spirit

is intended for every Christian, to

empower and equip us for daily living. It

allows us to experience the supernatural

through our lives. Just as in the book

of Acts, the Spirit gives us the ability or

power (Gk. ‘dunamis’, Acts 1: 8) to do

the works of God.

The Holy Spirit enables you to

witness

A key part of that empowerment is to

enable you to witness to the world for

Christ. It was the purpose for whichJesus promised ‘power’ to those rst

disciples:

You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be mywitnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end o the earth

Acts 1: 8

As we are lled with the Holy Spirit,

the life of God will overow to those

around us, demonstrate the reality of

Jesus Christ and motivate us to reach

our friends, colleagues, neighbours and

communities.2

Why is it importantfor me?02.

¹“The anointing

symbolised equipment

for service and is

associated with the

outpouring of the

Spirit of God.” J.D.

Douglas (editor),

The Illustrated BibleDictionary

². John Wimber’s book

‘Power Evangelism’

provides helpful

insights and examples

about the place

of the Holy Spirit

in evangelism,

particularly regarding

signs and wonders as

they accompany the

gospel.





The Holy Spirit equips you with

spiritual gits

Supernatural events are common

throughout Luke’s account of the

early church. The Holy Spirit equipped

the apostles and believers with the

ability to perform amazing works that

demonstrated the power of God to

those around them.

There are examples of God guiding

through visions and revelation, healings

and deliverance, miracles and other

supernatural phenomena. These

dynamic interventions were examples

of the operation of the gifts of the Spirit

described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 12

and elsewhere. When we are baptised

with the Holy Spirit, we are able to move

in these various gifts as God gives

them to us - something that Scripture

encourages us to very strongly:

Pursue love and earnestly desire the

spiritual gifs, especially that you may prophesy.

1 Corinthians 14: 1

The Holy Spirit enlarges your worship

Our worship is powerfully enabled

when we are lled with the Spirit. Jesus

described proper worship as being

‘in spirit and in truth’ (John 4: 23-24)

and so the Holy Spirit can help us. The

connection between baptism with the

Spirit and worship can be seen as the

rsts disciples overowed with praise

(Acts 2: 8-11) and also in the example of

those gathered round Peter:

...the gif o the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God.

Acts 10: 46

The Holy Spirit santifes

and shapes us

Paul is very clear about the role of theHoly Spirit in our lives - we should know

a living, vital experience that produces

profound change and personal

transformation. For example:

The Spirit santies

(1 Peter 1:2, 2 Tessalonians 2:13)

He produces the ‘fruit of the Spirit’

(Galatians 5: 16-18)

We ‘walk by the Spirit’ and are ‘led by

the Spirit’

(Galatians 5: 16-17, Romans 8: 14)





Te Spirit comes to us as an act o God’s grace towards us rather than as anything we can work or or otherwise earn

How can I be baptised with the Holy Spirit?03.The Holy Spirit is referred to in the Bible

as a gift and so, in one sense, there is

nothing we can do to obtain him. The

Spirit comes to us as an act of God’s

grace towards us rather than anything

we can work for or otherwise earn (see Acts 8: 18-20). Instead baptism with the

Holy Spirit is something that we receive

through faith (Galatians 3: 3-5).

Here are some of the principles¹ that

show us how we can best seek the Holy

Spirit:

Prayer and asking

The act of prayer is basic to seeking

anything from God, but it is especiallyimportant in connection with seeking a

greater experience of the Holy Spirit:

I you then, who are evil know how to give good gifs to your children, how much morewill the heavenly Father, give the HolySpirit to those who ask him.

Luke 11:13

Prayer is therefore an essential context,

something that was also evident while

the disciples waited in Jerusalem (Acts

1: 14) to receive baptism with the Spirit.

Prayer was also the backdrop to Paul’s

receiving the Holy Spirit (Acts 9: 11) and

a characteristic of Cornelius (Acts 10:

2, 4).

Obedience and surrender

When we seek God for the Holy

Spirit, we should be living in practical

holiness. That is, yielded and submitted

to God in our attitide and lifestyleand also walking in obedience. If

we are consciously harbouring sin or

disobedience, that will be a barrier or

obstacle to the further moving of the

Spirit in our lives.

We are witnesses to these things, and so isthe Holy Spirit, whom God has given tothose who obey him.

Acts 5:32

Expectancy and aith.

The accounts recorded in Acts show us

that we can and should have a genuine

expectancy and faith to receive the

Spirit. For example:

Jesus’ commanded the disciples to wait

for the Spirit

(1: 4)

Peter boldly declared the promise of the

Spirit(2: 38-39)

prayer for the Samaritans and the laying

on hands

(8: 14-17)

Certainly the testimony of most people

who have received the baptism with the

Holy Spirit is that he came upon them

when they were most expectant for God

to move.

1. A much fuller

exploration of these

ideas is covered in ‘The

Reception of the Holy

Spirit’, a chapter in

volume 2 of J. Rodman

William’s ‘Renewal

Theology’ (Zondervan,

1990) p.271-306.





Laying on o hands

Laying on of hands² features

prominently in many examples of

baptism with the Spirit recorded in Acts

(8: 17, 9: 17 and 19:6). In each situation,

a believer already lled with Holy Spirit

laid his hands upon another and the gift

of the Holy Spirit was imparted.

Simon saw that the Spirit was giventhrough the laying on o the apostles’ hands

Acts 8: 18

Asking another to lay hands upon you

is a powerful act of faith and in many

cases enables you to receive the gift.

However, it is not essential since God

may choose to impart the Holy Spirit

without this taking place, just as he did

with the rst disciples in Jerusalem or

with the household of Cornelius (Acts

10: 44). It is also worth remembering

that it doesn’t have to be an apostle or

other ofcial leader that prays for you -after all, even the apostle Paul received

the Holy Spirit through the simple and

obedient laying on of hands by the

disciple Ananias.

Responsiveness

Once we begin to sense the moving of

the Spirit upon us, perhaps as others

are praying for us, it is important to

remain open and responsive to God. As

a new experience, it would be easy to

react against it rather than ow with it.

However, by our attitude, we can further

encourage the anointing of the Holy

Spirit.

Do not quench the Spirit.

I Tessalonians 5:19

1. The laying on of

hands was something

familiar to the early

church (Hebrews 6:

1-3). Not only was

it identied with the

initial receiving of the

Holy Spirit, it also

conferred (2 Timothy

1: 6) and conrmed (1

Timothy 4:14) spiritualgifting.





Voices

The word ‘baptism’ signies a great

immersion into the Spirit.

Tomas R Schreiner 1

One of the major functions of miraclesand supernatural living is to offer

immediate, irrefutable proof of what

God wants to happen on earth. It

demonstrates who God is by showing

what His reality looks like.

Bill Johnson 2

The Spirit is thus the empowering

Presence of God for living the life of

God in the present.

Gordon Fee3

If your doctrine of the Holy Spirit does

not leave any room for revival, then you

cannot expect this kind of thing. If you

say the baptism of the Spirit was once

and for all on Pentecost and all who are

regenerated are just made partakers

of that, then there is no room left for

this objective coming, this repetition,

this falling of the Holy Spirit in power

and authority on a church. But thank

God - there IS room left! The teaching

of Scripture plus the long history of the

Christian church shows this so clearly.

Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones4

Whatever the expression - ‘baptism’ or

outpouring’ or otherwise - reference is

thereby made to a dynamic movement

of the Holy Spirit which results in a new

sense of God’s Presence and power,

various charismata becoming manifestand the emergence of a different style

of life. These things are possible only

through the event of the Spirit.

J Rodman Williams5

When Jesus left his disciples and

went to heaven, he gave the best gift

he could, the Holy Spirit. He is more

remarkable than many believers know

and has much more to give than they

may anticipate.

Keith Warrington6

6. The Message of the

Holy Spirit (Inter-Varsity Press, 2009)

1. New Testament

Theology: Magnifying

God in Christ

(Apollos, 2008)

2. The Supernatural

Power of a

Transformed Mind

(Destiny Image, 2005)

3. Paul, the Spirit and

the People of God

(Hendrickson, 1996)

4. Joy Unspeakable

(Kingsway Books,

2000)

5. The Pentecostal

Reality

(Logos, 1972)




Biblios / June 2011

Biblios is produced by Hugh Grifths. He has been active

in a range of church leadership roles for more than 20

years, most recently serving as an elder of LifePoint Church,

Swansea. He has regularly preached and taught here in the

UK as well as ministered overseas in Europe and India.

For more information on how Biblios can be used in your

church contact: [email protected]

Unless stated otherwise, Bible

quotations are from the English

Standard Version (ESV) and are used

by permission of the publishers.

Cover image

‘Fire’ (public domain)

This issue:

WriterHugh Grifths

Editorial reviewers

Mick Walford

David Lavery

Biblios is written, edited and reviewed by a team of church

leaders and bible teachers with proven ministries wo work

together to communicate each subject with ‘one voice’. We

are passionately committed to providing you with a growing

library of resources to support your bible study or teaching.

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