servant101
Jan 19, 2011
How did you receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit?
How did you receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit?
Brother,
I just read a great chapter on this in the book "Against The Wind" by K.P. Yohannan. One of the best books I have ever read on this subject is "Power From On High by John Greenfield." These will help you see a more biblical view of this. On a practical word I encourage you to just cry out to God for the filling of the Spirit that God promises for us. We are commended to continue to ask for this in our walk with Him. You must confess your lack and your desperate need before God for His glory in your life. It also takes perseverance of waiting on Him and praying much. There are no shortcuts in spirituality and God is more concerned with our maturity to handle blessings from Him then the actual giving of His gifts and Spirit.
Christianity Without The Spirit Of God Is Impossible! You Can't live it!
Jesus said " If we being evil know how to give good gifts to our children, How much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask?
Ask without fear. He knows we desperately need the Holy Spirit and you will receive what you ask for.
Ruf
Someone prayed for me. I didn't know they were praying for my baptism in the Holy Spirit, but that's what I got!How did you receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit?
Greg, excellent word!!! Russ
After I was converted, someone said, "Now when are you going to get the Holy Ghost?" I went home and got into my bible to see what in the world they were talking about and I read and studied every instance of the words, Holy Spirit, Holy Ghost, Spirit, tongues, gifts, etc and then asked God my Father for his Spirit. And something a woman said while preaching caught my attention, she said just what rufnrust said but she added, "Christmas is coming, if you want something from the Lord, ask Him. He gives gifts too!!!" So I did!
I was so bummed when Dec 25th came and went. Then a bunch of us from the church got together at someone's house and after dinner began worshiping the Lord. And there dressed in jeans, tee-shirt under a flannel shirt with tennis shoes (but it was 1978!) with arms raised on Dec 29th, I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit!
God is good!!
Lisa
I agree with Greg: There are no shortcuts.
Often, I have found people who claim to be baptized with the Holy Spirit, but who seem incapable to live holy lives... there's a problem. Often, people will claim to be baptized with the Holy Spirit because they act strangely, actions that bear the mark of a counterfeit spirit.
We should always seek a greater closeness with the Lord Jesus Christ, and hence with His Spirit. The two go together. Bypassing one or the other is impossible.
Beware, many have been deceived. Someone can pray for power and excitement, and then receive something that looks like it... only it isn't from God. It turns out they didn't care to seek God in His Word, or seek His face in Christ Jesus, but wanted something else. In fact, the spirit they receive often will make them do things that contradict what is revealed about the Holy Spirit in the Bible, but they will dismiss this on the basis that "you can't limit God or put Him in a box".
Remember, God has spoken to us. Do you understand what that means? You want to know Him and be filled with the Spirit? Meditate on His Word! His Word is living and active. His Word revives the soul. His Word washes us. His Word has power. His Word is divine.
Meditate on His Word, and seek His face. Seek to understand His Word. Seek to be transformed by His Word. Seek to be soaked in His Word. Seek to know the mind of God. Seek to be conformed to His Word. Then, I guarantee you, that the Spirit of Christ will be so present in your life, that you will find no need for another kind of spiritual experience, because His Word and His Spirit will lead you into the power of a sanctified life of obedience.
Renoncer
God is more concerned with our maturity to handle blessings from Him then the actual giving of His gifts and Spirit.
God looks for this, I believe, and every year He shapes and forms us more and more to this image: that is, the gradual abandonment of self and all of its valor and potential with a divine and permament realignment instead to Christ and His imputed majesties. If you really boil it down, the reason we want the Spirit Baptism and gifts and power is to promote self. Cut away all the spiritual window-dressing and you'll see it to be true. We want to be used, we want God's power, we want to bring people into Kingdom of God and we want to be acknowldged in some shape of form for it. Nobody will admit this, but in your heart you know it to be somewhat true. If not here on earth, then we certainly want to be acknowldged at the Judgment during the dispensation of crowns. Any way you slice it - in one way or another - we want to promote self, for this is at the core of our Adamic nature as autonomous beings.
I believe it is God's aim to obliterate this polluted passion in us, and cause us to see that any gain or merit perferred upon us here or in eternity is from Christ's own treasury and given to us soley upon the basis of grace and mercy. It is when we come this understanding, this acceptance, that God can begin to make powerful headway with us, and entrust unto us His choicest gifts.
The notion that one has to strive for years to be baptized in the Holy Spirit is not a Biblical one. The gifts of the Spirit are clearly marked in Scripture and cannot be denied, unless one is a cessasionist and even they do not deny them, they just state that the sign gifts have ceased. While I thouroughly disagree with the cessasionist postion, I at least admire their honesty and the boldness of there position. And make no mistake, its a bold stance to make the claims that they do.
Now, men can build ministries without the Holy Spirit because it is simply the works of men. Brother Yun was astonished at what had been achieved in the West without the aid of the Holy Spirit. Yet in eternity, every ministry built on the wisdom of man and not the intitiation of the Holy Spirit is mere fodder for the fire, wood and hay and stubble. Without the power of God working in and through you by HIs Holy Spirit, nothing can be achieved. That is why the disciples were strictly warned not to do anything until they have been endued with power from on high.............brother Frank
Luke 11:13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall [your] heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
Father of everlasting, grace,
Thy goodness and Thy truth we praise,
Thy goodness and Thy truth we prove;
Thou hast, in honour of Thy Son,
The gift unspeakable sent down,
The Spirit of life, and power, and love.
The purchased Comforter is given,
For Jesus is returned to heaven
To claim and then the Grace impart:
Our day of Pentecost is come,
And God vouchsafes to fix His home
In every poor expecting heart.
Father, on Thee, whoever call
Confess Thy promise is for all,
While everyone who asks receives,
Receives the Gift and Giver too,
And witnesses that Thou art true,
And in Thy Spirit walks and lives.
Send us the Spirit of Thy Son,
To make the depths of Godhead known,
To make us share the life divine;
Send Him the sprinkled blood to apply,
Send Him our souls to sanctify,
And show and seal us ever Thine.
I clearly did receive him soon after conversion, but for many years I confined him to a backseat in my life. Now I understand that only submission to Christ in everything grants us his blessings.
Listened to this sermon that may help.
The Persistent Purpose Of God - T. Austin-Sparks
http://media.sermonindex.net/1/SID1190.mp3
He goes over Ez 47 and Acts 2.
"God will not commit Himself, where there is not righteous judgment."
"When the glorifying of Jesus is our only object, then God will come in with His Spirit"
"Our authority must get out of God's way, and God waits for that before He commits Himself."
"God will commit Himself where the cross governs everything!"
Anyways, there are many good valuable truths in this!
Amen!!Without the power of God working in and through you by His Holy Spirit, nothing can be achieved. That is why the disciples were strictly warned not to do anything until they have been endued with power from on high.............brother Frank
1 Corinthians 2:4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in DEMONSTRATION of the SPIRIT and of POWER:
1 Corinthians 2:5 That YOUR FAITH should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the POWER OF GOD.
Acts 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the HOLY GHOST AND WITH POWER: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for GOD WAS WITH HIM.
I received Him sometime after my first meeting with Jesus. All I knew was Jesus I never knew there was a holy Spirit to receive.
Ecclesiastes 8:4
Where the word of a king is, there is power; And who may say to him, “What are you doing?”
I would contribute by saying seek God through intense prayer and study of his word. Dont look for a mystical experience as this leads to deception. Remember he said "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled" hungry and thirsty people have a greater capacity to receive.
Get hungry and get filled
I forgot to answer the question of the original poster. I recieved the Baptism of the Holy Spirit six months after coming to Jesus. Although it came with tongues, my overwhelming memory was of an infilling of boldness. And I believe it was at that point the process of sanctification truly began. Just as Salvation was recieved as a free gift, likewise the baptism of the Holy Spirit. You cannot " earn,' it. God is no mans debtor. The easiest way to see how the Baptism is recieved is to simply read the book of Acts...........brother Frank
Who is the giver of the Holy Spirit?
John 14:16-17 And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
What day does Jesus Come into believers?
John 14:18-20 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
"I in you", The born again expierence.
Why do we receive the Holy Spirit?
John 14:26-27 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
We cannot have peace or understand the things of God unless we are born again and have the Holy Spirit.
This is the reason we receive the Holy Spirit;
John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of Me:
Christ had to return to the Father so the Holy Spirit could come;
John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
Without Christ' new birth in us we have no need of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit we cannot know Christ, They must come fully at the same time. Christ is the gifted One, The Holy Spirit is the One that gives us power to use Christs' gifts, as The Holy Spirit wills, just as The Holy Spirit did in Christ.
Jesus had many things to say even to the apostles, as He says to us now through the Holy Spirit, He and the Father are One as is the Holy Spirit One in all and in all.
John 16:8-12 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
This is the fullness of what Christ did on the Cross that we have Christ in us "the hope of Glory", Col 1:27=29, This is our perfection.
John sums it up in this; 1 John 5:1-15 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
Paul finishes it with this, and in all his epistles, he speaks 146 times, "IN CHRIST"; Colossians 1:26-28 Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:
Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Ephesians 1:3-12 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence; Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
IN CHRIST: Phillip
•Matt. 3:11, "As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
•Mark 1:8, "I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
•Luke 3:16, "John answered and said to them all, 'As for me, I baptize you with water; but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
•John 1:33, "And I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, "He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit."
•Acts 1:5, "for John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now."
•Acts 11:16, "And I remembered the word of the Lord, how He used to say, 'John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
Joh 20:22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:
Joh 20:23 Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.
This is obviously prior to Pentecost. Jesus then says......
Act 1:4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.
Act 1:5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
And the purpose of this pentecost? This baptism?........
Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
The very last words to the disciples from Jesus! With the Holy Spirit burning in the hearts of believers, they become eye witnesses to the power of God to change lives. This is no mere theolgy or philosophy, its a reality that only comes with being a witness to the power of God. Probably the definitive Scripture on this issue is this one........
Act 19:1 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples,
Act 19:2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.
Act 19:3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism.
Act 19:4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.
Act 19:5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Act 19:6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.
.............brother Frank
Christinyou,
Very good post. Indeed, until the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit had not been sent in fullness with power (although Jesus' disciples had experienced Him in some measure), so that many who had received the "baptism of repentance" since the days of John the Baptist and Jesus' ministry until the day of Pentecost had yet to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which would testify of Christ. However, the day of Pentecost marked a new era, where those who received Christ would now be baptized with the Holy Spirit, by which they would be included in the body of Christ.
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
(1 Corinthians 12:12-13)
Therefore, since the day of Pentecost, those who are included in the body of Christ are also baptized with the Holy Spirit. Those who belong to God are led by His Spirit. Indeed, we are saved through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit (2 Thessalonians 2:13).
Therefore, the command to be filled with the Holy Spirit is an exhortation to draw near to God through Jesus Christ, for there is no other way to experience God. And if we seek a special experience of power apart from Christ, this can only be another spirit.
"Act 19:2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost."
These people were believers, disciples, according to Scripture.........brother Frank
I have a quetion. Do you have to go to a pentecostal church. All the people I fellowship with are cessasionists and I feel alone in this. I prayed for the Holy Spirit many times but have not recived Him. As far as I know my motives are right. What is lacking?
This discussion is locked.