Acts 2:1-4
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled
with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues
as the Spirit enabled them.
In the past eight weeks we have been studying the various events and topics of what the four gospels tell us about what happened during the forty-day period starting with “Resurrection Day” or Easter and ending on the day of Pentecost. This week we are going to continue our study concerning what Jesus told the disciples about the coming of the Holy Spirit and the events that occurred on the day of Pentecost as we see Acts chapter 2.
In the gospel of John, we read that in the last Passover dinner that Jesus ate with His disciples, which was the night He was arrested, at various times He talked about the Holy Spirit.
- John 14:15-18, 15 “If you love me, you will obey what I command. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
- John 14:26, But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
- John 15:26, “When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me.
- John 16:13-15, 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
In the Gospel of Luke, who is also the author of Acts, Luke tells us what Jesus said concerning the Holy Spirit before His ascension into heaven.
- Luke 24:49, I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
In Acts 1:4-5 we see the specific instructions that Jesus gave to the disciples concerning the Holy Spirit.
- Acts 1:4-5, 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
Moments before Jesus ascended up to heaven, the last words He said to His disciples was concerning the Holy Spirit in their lives.
- Acts 1:8-9, 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
After reading these seven portions of scripture of what Jesus said concerning the Holy Spirit, do we fully realize how important the baptism of the Holy Spirit in our lives and our relationship with Jesus is? If we do, what are we going to do about it?
When we are reading, listening or talking to other believers about the baptism with the Holy Spirit, we always need to be aware of two beliefs both of which are based on Scripture. The author Dr. Steve Schell in his book, “The Promise of the Father” gives us a clear explanation of both views. Before we read what Dr. Schell wrote about this topic, there are two important points that need to be understood.
In John 20:21-22 Jesus said to the disciples, 21b “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. This should be understood as the Fire Bible explains to us. “When Jesus gave the Holy Spirit to his disciples on the day he rose from the dead, he was not “baptizing” them in the Spirit as they would experience later during Pentecost (Acts 1:5; 2:4). Rather, it was the first time the disciples actually received the spiritually renewing presence of the Holy Spirit–the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead (Romans 8:11). The Spirit would now live within them. The inner presence of the Holy Spirit is part of the new life that all Christ’s followers now receive at the time they accept Christ’s forgiveness and surrender their lives to him.
In addition, it is also important to understand that the Foursquare Church around the world follows and or agrees with this interpretation and application of John 20:22 for everyone who is born again. Furthermore, the Foursquare Church agrees with the second “perspective” that the author gives about, When does a person receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit?
“The Promise of the Father” – “A discussion about receiving the Holy Spirit has been going on in the family of God for a long time. People have been trying to answer a very important question: When does a person receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit? One perspective is that everyone who repents and believes on the Lord Jesus Christ receives the Holy Spirit immediately, and in most cases, imperceptibly (or gradually). This view expects no unusual phenomena to accompany the arrival of the Spirit, but firmly relies on the promises in the Bible that state that the Holy Spirit will be given to every believer. Whether or not there is any noticeable evidence of the Spirit’s indwelling, based on God’s promises, we can be confident that He has come.
Another perspective turns to the book of Acts and observes that every time the Holy Spirit baptized a person or a group of people there was visible evidence of His power coming upon them, and that evidence included miraculous speech, either speaking in tongues or prophecy. This view also observes that the reception of this gift did not always occur right away. For example, in Samaria water-baptized believers had to wait until Peter and John arrived and laid their hands on them before they received the baptism with the Holy Spirit with visible evidence. Acts 8:15-17, 15 When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. The apostle Paul was powerfully converted by a direct encounter with the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus, but he didn’t receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit until Ananias laid his hands on him three days later and prayed that he be “filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 9:17). Yet those in Cornelius’ household did not have to wait. They received the moment they believed. The Spirit’s power fell on them, and they immediately began to speak in tongues and exalt God. Acts 10:44-46, 44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45 The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. Many years later, when Paul encountered a group of disciples in Ephesus whom Apollos had led to repentance and faith in Jesus, Acts 18:24-25, 24 Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. He asked them this question: “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they replied, “No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit” (Ac 19:2). Then after baptizing them in water again to allow them to fully express their faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection, Paul laid his hands on them and prayed for them to receive the Holy Spirit, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. Acts 19:5-7, 5 On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. 7 There were about twelve men in all. So a view of the book of Acts teaches us that the baptism with the Holy Spirit is not necessarily automatic, nor is it imperceptible (or unnoticeable) when it is received. In fact, it’s a gift that may need to be sought for, and when it occurs, it will be miraculously confirmed. In particular, those who have been baptized with the Holy Spirit will be able to speak in tongues or prophesy.”
The baptism with the Holy Spirit is not a theological truth to be argued about, but it is a reality subsequent to salvation for every born-again believer in Christ. The baptism with the Holy Spirit is to be experienced as God attended as we have read in Acts.
In a report given in the International Bulletin of Mission Research in 2020, it stated that there were 644 million Pentecostals and Charismatic globally of which the majority having “been baptized with the Holy Spirit were be able to speak in tongues or prophesy.” Included with these millions is the Foursquare Church, of which in 2022 with over 67,500 congregations in over 150 countries and with 8.8 million members, the baptism with the Holy Spirit is a reality and experienced just as we read in the Book of Acts as “those who have been baptized with the Holy Spirit are able to speak in tongues or prophesy.”.
If the baptism with the Holy Spirit as we read in the Acts which is still “The Promise of the Father” for every believer today to speak in tongues and prophesy is not intended by God for the church today as some believe, then how can we explain the reality of this experience in the lives of the 644 million Pentecostals and Charismatic globally?
Pastor John
