The Baptism & Filling of The Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit Baptism:

This baptism is required for salvation as we will see from the following scriptures. This work of the, Holy Spirit places you into the body of Christ and happens as soon as True belief is exercised.

1 Corinthians 12:13 says; "For by one spirit we are all baptized into one body." Holy Spirit baptism places You in the universal church (IT’s NOT A DENOMINATION, IT IS the body of Christ since this body is made up only of saved people (2 Cor. 5:17) and since it is made of all the saved people (1 Cor. 12:13), it is implied that the Holy spirit baptism in tohis body is also associated with salvation

All The passages that definitely speak of Holy Spirit baptism associate it with salvation.

Cornelius: Cornelius and his associates received water baptism after they were saved (Ac. 10:25;44-48).

It is distinctly said of these that they were "baptized in the Spirit."

 

Look at (Acts 15:6-11) here we have the same event viewed from God's perspective and we have the Divine commentary on what took place in the hearts of those who believed the Gospel and in so doing, received the forgiveness of sin and the gift of the Spirit.

 

There are those that believe that Holy Spirit baptism has ceased. If that is true then God has ceased giving salvation to believers

Holy Spirit baptism is administered by God.

It is an impossibility for anyone to be a believer in the present time of Grace without receiving the Holy Spirit baptism. Rom.8:9 says this; "Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his"

The baptism of the Spirit, then, can be nothing else than the new birth. Jesus made this statement in Jn. 3:3;” Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." This is the one and only entrance to the company of the True believers in Christ Jesus.

The evidence of Spirit baptism is seen in the New lifestyle of the converted believer. II Cor. 5:17 states this; “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new”

Holy Spirit Filling

Spirit Filling is commanded in Ephesians 5:18b that says; “but be filled with the Spiirit:”

We should be so completely yielded to the Holy Spirit that HE can possess us fully and we are in His control and endued with Power to overcome the Attacks of the DEVIL/SATAN. We are so full of Him that nothing else can get in and in that sense He , fills us. Romans 8:9 and Ephesians 1:13-14 states that He dwells within every believer, but He can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30), and His activity within us can be quenched (1 Thessalonians 5:19). When we allow this to happen, we do not experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit's working and power in and through us. To be filled with the Spirit implies freedom for Him to occupy every part of our lives, guiding and controlling us. His power then can be exerted through us so that what we do is fruitful to God. The filling of the Spirit does not apply to outward acts alone; it also applies to the innermost thoughts and motives of our actions. Psalm 19:14 says, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable to you, O Lord my strength, and my redeemer”. Sin is what separates us from the filling of the Holy Spirit, and obedience to God is how the filling of the Spirit is maintained. Although our focus should be to be filled as Ephesians 5:18 commands, praying for the filling of the Holy Spirit is not what accomplishes the filling of the Spirit unless you are in obedience to God. Only our obedience to God's commands allows the Spirit freedom to work within us. Because we are sinful creatures, it is impossible to be filled with the Spirit all of the time. We should immediately deal with sin in our lives, and renew our commitment to being Spirit-filled and Spirit-led when an infraction occurs in us. I Jn. 1:9

It is interesting to note here that many don’t accept the fact that what happened on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2:4 was not Holy Spirit baptism but filling. How do I know? It says so read it. They had been given the Holy Spirit by Jesus in (Jn.20:22 In Luke 24:49) and they had been instructed to wait in the city for the power they needed.

Rev. George Pryor M.Th.

Pastor Emeritus.

revgap@gmail.com