The Promise of the Holy Spirit

The Christian faith is a life of growth.

In this lesson I will teach you about the baptism in the Holy Spirit as a distinct event in the life of a New Testament believer.

As a child grows by taking many steps, God matures us by many steps. Jesus presented the spiritual life of a Christian as a parallel to physical birth. The term “born again” implies infancy in spiritual matters. In several places in the apostolic writings the continuing immaturity of the believer is criticized when growth does not follow the birth.

We rejoice when an infant takes her first step, and we must rejoice when a Christian receives the baptism in the Holy Spirit like a first walking step.

No one disparages a baby’s first step but cherishes it. The baby may take a first step any time, usually between twelve months of age and fifteen months. The first walking step is only one of many milestones of growth. It is not the beginning at conception, nor is it taking the first breath of air in the lungs, but we rejoice nevertheless at this new development. We do not try to detract from the first step because it is not a different milestone, but we allow it to have its own glory.

This should be our attitude for the immature Christian receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit. It is not the first confession of faith in Jesus Christ, and it is not the first testimony of faith in public, and it is not the first answered prayer. But it is a cherished milestone of growth between birth and adulthood.

Do not make the mistake of many people that God must be limited according to what you personally understand. The best practices of scientific research are based upon an openness to new discoveries. Sadly, many who are scientific become unwilling to learn new things, because almost always a new discovery falsifies an old idea. Some Christians are like this in their theology. The apostle Peter was slow to understand God’s acceptance of Gentiles into the church without first following Jewish Old Testament laws. Jesus was criticized for allowing a repentant prostitute to wash his feet with her tears because people did not think she could change. The apostle James wrote that it is not correct to talk about having faith in Jesus if you do not produce good works. He said, Faith apart from works is useless.

1.     What is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit?

A.  Some claim that the Holy Spirit is automatically and silently received.

There are many who teach that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is received automatically by each person who believes in Jesus Christ. They say, Faith in Jesus is all you need. But consider that Jesus told the disciples, You believe in God, believe also in me (John 14:1). Jesus did not say, You believe in God so you automatically believe in me. Why then do people criticize us who believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit because we say, “believe in the works of Jesus and also believe in the works of the Holy Spirit”?

If all of the Holy Spirit is automatically received when an individual receives Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, then we would be instantly and completely mature in Christ. But we all know that when Jesus spoke of being "born again" he made a comparison of a human baby and the baby believer. Babies need to grow up.

Many people are limiting God’s presence in their life by not seeking personal baptism in the Holy Spirit.

B. The biblical doctrine is that we grow in steps.

Some people say the Holy Spirit is automatically and silently received when a person believes in Jesus, and we have need of nothing else. Then why did Paul write to the Corinthians that we only have the down-payment of the Spirit in 2 Corinthians 5:5? And He who has worked in us for this same thing is God, who also is giving to us the earnest of the Spirit (2 Corinthians 5:5 MKJV). A down-payment is only a small part of the full amount.

Also, why did Paul write, We prophesy now in part and not in the whole? (1 Corinthians 13:9). God teaches the churches through prophecy step by step. The Spirit of God has many levels of workings and giftings. That argument, that we already have the fullness of the Spirit and will never need more of the Spirit, is not true.

Paul clearly taught that Christian maturity was a process, and that the process applies to every person. In Ephesians 4:15 he wrote that we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.

In Ephesians 4:13 Paul said that God’s will is that we should mature into the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. If we can be saved through faith in Jesus Christ but still be required to grow into his fullness, then we can certainly be born again by the working of the Holy Spirit in us but still be required to grow in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. The baptism in the Holy Spirit is one step in a deeper relationship with God; and it is one step that is very important.

Growth from immaturity to maturity is the reality we face. If this were not true, Jesus would not have taught so much. He expected people to listen to him and change their behaviors. He taught us “Be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

As Paul gave instruction for believers to grow in Christ, it was an admission of immaturity in his readers.

If Paul clearly said that we need to grow in Jesus Christ, then a maturing process in our relationship with the Holy Spirit is also true. We are correct to expect a growth by steps in our relationship to the Holy Spirit. Because God is One divine Being, the Holy Spirit will not promote himself, but glorify Christ, even as Christ glorifies the Father. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you (John 16:14-15 ESV).

C.  The Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a deeper relationship with God.

As we have already discussed, there are many steps in the process of maturity in every Christian’s life. In John 14, after Jesus said to the disciples, You believe in God, believe also in me, he then taught them to believe in the working of the Holy Spirit in their lives. He said, And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you (John 14:16-17 ESV).

So, do not be mad at me because I say the Holy Spirit can be dwelling with you, but he wants a deeper relationship that Jesus described as “in you.” Surely, our relationship with God must grow as a spiritual relationship that goes beyond human knowledge and understanding. Of course, we need to know more of the facts of the Bible to grow in our relationship with God, but a relationship is so much more than merely learning more facts about Jesus or being able to talk about theological ideas.

But do not think that you can understand the baptism in the Holy Spirit just by analyzing the two words, “with you” and “in you.” Look at how many different words are used in the Bible about the baptism in the Holy Spirit. I mentioned some of these in my last lesson.

Luke said they were “filled with the Holy Spirit.” Peter in his Pentecost sermon quoted the Old Testament prophecy that God would “pour out” his Spirit on all flesh. This blessing is called “the promise” of the Holy Spirit. Peter called this working of God “the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Jesus called this blessing being “baptized” in the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 1. And later in Acts chapter 19, When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying (Acts 19:6 ESV).

By using many different words to describe the baptism in the Holy Spirit, God wants us to see that this is not a question of having the Holy Spirit in your life or not. It is not all or nothing.

Theological constructs that criticize a baptism in the Holy Spirit experience, incorrectly claim that the Holy Spirit is either completely in you, or not at all in your life. With that dogmatism, they must on a logical basis conclude that they have the baptism in the Holy Spirit without having experienced it. The gift of the Holy Spirit should not be confused with personal regeneration. Paul kept the two ideas separate when he wrote, If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit (Galatians 5:25 ESV).

D. The Bible reveals a distinct experience with the Holy Spirit that must not be dismissed as “automatic” and “unseen.”

When the Spirit of God fell on the Gentiles in Acts 10, Peter rejoiced, because he said, As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning (Acts 11:15 ESV). We read nothing of tongues of fire or sound of wind in Cornelius’s house. In our day, people get fixated on the externals. Peter marveled at the spontaneous outburst of tongues in the persons who believed his preaching about Jesus. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' (Acts 11:16 ESV). The argument that Pentecost was a one time event is blown out of the water by this event.

There is no biblical argument for a “once only” Pentecost for the Church. Also, in Acts 8, those who believed in Jesus were baptized but did not receive the Holy Spirit until the apostles came and prayed for them. The coming of the Spirit was clearly a post-regeneration experience for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 8:16 ESV).

These descriptions in the Bible of the baptism in the Holy Spirit are descriptions of a specific experience of a deepening relationship with God in the person of the Holy Spirit. Jesus himself made the “with you” and “in you” distinction. It must mean something!

But many people resist asking God to fill them with His Holy Spirit because they say, The Holy Spirit is already working in me. O.K. that is fine. And yet Jesus told the disciples the Holy Spirit was with them, but there was a deeper relationship that God wanted to have in them.

Peter told the people to repent, believe in Jesus, be baptized in his name, and then to expect to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit because the promise is for everyone.

These varied expressions for the coming of the Spirit of God upon the New Testament churches break down the stereotypical caricatures of Pentecostalism and point to the complexity of a personal relationship with God.

A true baptism in the Holy Spirit is God’s gift of Himself upon the Church of Jesus Christ. The New Testament descriptions of this event are that it happens personally, providentially, and powerfully – but not in the traditional sense of power like lightning bolts and fireworks.

The Spirit of God comes with divine purpose to enable Christians to be the kingdom of God on the earth. Jesus said, nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you" (Luke 17:21 ESV).

Don’t look for the kingdom of God out there, but look inside, in your heart. Remember that Paul taught that the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you want more righteousness, peace and joy, then you need the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

E. Jesus taught a baptism in the Holy Spirit to be a special event for believers.

Jesus Christ himself taught that the coming of the Spirit was a coming special event to prepare the disciples for a new era of history. He said, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. (Matthew 10:16). And he said, if I do not go away, the helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you (John 16:7).

It is no accident that Luke began the book of Acts with the words of Jesus, who said, you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem in Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. The coming of the Holy Spirit with power in individual people’s lives is the central theme of the book of Acts.

Before those words, Jesus reminded them of previous teachings he had given them on this subject. Jesus said, wait for the promise of the Father which, he said, you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you’ll be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.

These were the instructions of Jesus after his resurrection while he met with them. Therefore, we know that the crucifixion alone was not enough. The resurrection of Jesus was not enough. Seeing and talking with Jesus after his resurrection was not enough preparation for them. They needed a deeper relationship with God through the Holy Spirit.

Do you remember what John the Baptist prophesied at the beginning of Jesus’s ministry? John told the people that he would baptize them with water but when Messiah comes, he will baptize them in the Holy Spirit.

When Jesus openly began his ministry and started training the disciples, he sent them out with the authority to heal sicknesses, to cast out demons, and to preach repentance because the kingdom of God was close. But he did not baptize them in the Holy Spirit at that time.

Jesus prophesied about the future of the coming of the Spirit of God during his preaching. For instance, in John, chapter seven, Jesus said, If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. John explained that this was the promise of the Holy Spirit. John wrote, Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (John 7:37-39).

The apostolic teaching about the baptism in the Holy Spirit is that it is a sign to the world that Jesus is Lord and Savior, exalted with the Father God in heaven.

This verse helps us to understand that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is a promise to every believer. Also, it helps us understand that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit would not begin until Jesus was glorified. “Glorified” meant that Jesus had to be resurrected first, and then to be honored to sit with the Father on the throne of God.

The resurrection of Jesus was not complete until he sat on the throne of God. The disciples talked and ate with Jesus for 40 days after his resurrection, and Jesus was still telling them to wait for the coming of the Spirit of God.

With God there is a divine order to events, and God has set a divine order for our spiritual growth. First there is repentance and baptism in water in the name of Jesus Christ. Second the promise and gift of the Holy Spirit is given to those who ask for it and will not stop asking until they receive a baptism in the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said in John 16 that if he did not go away then the Helper, who is the Holy Spirit, will not come. This is because Jesus had to be glorified to sit on God’s throne with the Father. The throne of God is the power and rule of God.

Therefore, in the days of his resurrection appearances Jesus said, “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me,” because his enthronement was only days away.

Jesus taught the disciples in John 16 that the Spirit of God would come into each one of them so that Jesus could continue to teach them and give them supernatural guidance. Through the Holy Spirit Jesus could be in his people, and his people in him, without bodily limitations, because God is One.

The plan of God was not to continue the earthly and bodily ministry of Jesus at that time. When Jesus first appeared in resurrection, it was to Mary Magdalene at the empty tomb. When she grabbed his feet he told her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father.”

He was telling her that his bodily presence must go away, so that the Helper, the Holy Spirit, may come. This is how focused Jesus was on bringing the baptism of the Holy Spirit to us! Jesus told the disciples in Acts chapter 1 that God has set a time for the reign of Jesus on the earth in the future when he returns bodily, but for the New Testament Church the plan of God is to fill his believers now with his own Spirit.

Peter finally understood this on the day of Pentecost when the baptism in the Holy Spirit first came 50 days after the crucifixion. As the sons of Abraham from many countries filled the streets of Jerusalem making their way to the temple to celebrate the feast of Pentecost, God poured out his Spirit in a dramatic scene of power. This included the sound of a mighty wind – but nobody felt the wind. This included flames in the air – but nobody was burned. Instead, the recipients of the Spirit spoke supernaturally in many languages. Luke mentions 16 nations by name. They heard the praises of God, and Jesus was preached as Lord and Savior risen from the dead.

Two months earlier Jesus made a triumphal entry into Jerusalem before his crucifixion. He said, if the people do not praise God, the rocks will speak out supernaturally by God’s power. On this day of Pentecost, the Spirit of God came upon the 120 believers in Jesus who prayed until the power came down from on high. When the Spirit came, their prayer meeting in private burst out publicly into the streets.

Meanwhile, what was happening in the heavenly places? Jesus was being glorified.

Jesus was making a triumphal entry to the throne of God at the Father’s right hand. The New Testament book of Hebrews said Jesus endured the sufferings of death because of the joy set before him – and this was that glory.

As this triumphant inauguration of Jesus took place in heaven, God supernaturally made Peter the rock cry out on the earth! And all the other faithful and believing “rocks” shouted with him in new tongues.

Peter now understood it all. He stood up to preach to the people. In Acts chapter two Peter preached about Jesus dying in God’s will, on purpose, although evil men did it. He said, God raised Jesus up out of death, and we are witnesses of his resurrection.

He said, This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing (Acts 2:32-33 ESV).

But despite this strong rebuke to the people for the crucifixion of Christ, Peter said, It is not too late to repent. It is not too late to believe in Jesus. It is not too late to be filled with the Spirit of God!

The outpouring of the Spirit of God is God’s purpose for all believers because Jesus now sits in the throne of God.

The Church is called to be a demonstration of the glorification of Jesus Christ. The pouring out of the Spirit of God as a gift to all believers is a proof of the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

This is the Spirit-filled Church of Jesus, as Paul described in 1 Corinthians 14. But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you (1 Corinthians 14:24-25 ESV).

And so, Peter said to all the people that day, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.

Amen and amen.                                                 

Message # 20240407