Chapter 15
Baptism of the Holy Spirit
Acts 2
Under
the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit was given to just a remnant few – usually to
prophets, priests and kings. Joel prophesied that a time would come when the
Holy Spirit would be poured out upon all flesh.
Joel
2:28-29 says, “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My
Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your
old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also upon the
servants and upon the handmaidens in those days will I pour out My Spirit.”
Before
Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection, He said that after He ascended to heaven
that He would not leave us comfortless. But He would send the Comforter, the
Holy Spirit, to be with us forever. Jesus said that He would baptize us with
the Holy Ghost and with fire. He told His disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until
they be endued with power from on High.
Ten
days after Jesus ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God,
there were 120 people in the Upper Room waiting on the Lord. Included among the
120 were Jesus’ disciples and His mother Mary. When the Day of Pentecost was
fully come, they were gathered together in one accord waiting to be endued with
power from on High. Pentecost was a Jewish feast, which was observed fifty days
following Passover.
And
suddenly there came a very loud sound, like the sound of a powerful rushing
wind. The place shook and it filled all the house. Then there appeared to be
cloven tongues of fire resting upon each of them. They were all filled with the
Holy Ghost and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them
utterance. They began to praise God in languages that they had never learned
before, by the divine enablement of the Spirit.
Many
Jews from many nations were gathered in Jerusalem that day to observe the
Festival of Pentecost. When they heard the roaring in the sky above the house
where the 120 were gathered, the crowds came running to see what it was all
about. They were stunned to hear Galileans fluently speaking their native
language or the language of other nations who were present at the feast.
Acts
2:7-11 says in the Living Bible, “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “For these
men are all from Galilee, and yet we hear them speaking all the native
languages of the lands where we were born! Here we are—Parthians, Medes,
Elamites, men from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia Minor, Phrygia,
Pamphylia, Egypt, the Cyrene languages areas of Libya, visitors from Rome—both
Jews and Jewish converts—Cretans and Arabians. And we all hear these men
telling in our own languages about the mighty miracles of God!”
Others
in the crowd began to mock saying that they were all drunk. Peter stood up and
told them that they were not drunk.
And besides, even drunks did not get drunk that early in the morning, as it was
only 9:00 am.
Peter
went on to say that what was happening was prophesied by the prophet Joel: “And
it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, that I will pour out of My
Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and
your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. And on
My servants and on My handmaidens I will pour out in those days of My Spirit,
and they shall prophesy” (Acts 2:17-18). Verse 21 says, “And it shall come to
pass, that whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved.”
In
Acts 2:30-39, it says that David prophesied of the coming Messiah.
Acts
2:30-39 NKJV
30
Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him
that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the
Christ to sit on his throne,
31
he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His
soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption.
32
This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.
33
Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the
Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and
hear.
34
“For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The Lord said
to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand,
35
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.’”
36
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this
Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
37
Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the
rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
38
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the
name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift
of the Holy Spirit.
39
For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as
many as the Lord our God will call.”
The
following Scriptures are cross references that say that the Father exalted
Jesus and seated Him at His right hand:
Romans
8:34
Acts
7:55-56
Ephesians
1:20
Colossians
3:1
Hebrews
3:1,13
Hebrews
8:1
Hebrews
10:12
Hebrews
12:2
1
Peter 3:22
Matthew
26:64
Mark
14:62
Mark
16:19
Luke
22:69-70
For
with stammering lips and another tongue will He speak to this people (Isaiah
28:11, xref 1 Corinthians 14:21).
Three
Kinds of Baptisms
The
New Testament mentions three baptisms:
1.
Baptism in water (Matthew 28:19, Acts 2:38, Matthew 3:16-17, Romans
6:3-4)
2.
Baptism into the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13-14, 15-31)
3.
Baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5-8, Matthew 3:11, Luke 3:16, John
1:32-34)
Acts
1:5-8 says:
“For
John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit
not many days from now.” Therefore, when they had come together, they asked
Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And
He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father
has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit
has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all
Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Jesus
is the One who baptizes born again believers in the Holy Ghost and the fire of God.
John
1:32-34 says:
And
John bare record, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from Heaven like a dove,
and it abode upon Him. And I knew Him not: but He that sent me to baptize with
water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending,
and remaining on Him, the same is He which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I
saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.”
John
the Baptist declared in Matthew 3:11:
“I
indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but He that cometh after me is
mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He shall baptize you with
the Holy Ghost, and with fire.”
Greek
words and definitions of “baptize”:
1.
NT:907 baptizo.
A. Literally, to dip
repeatedly, to immerge, submerge.
B. To cleanse by dipping or
submerging, to wash, to make clean with water.
C. metaphorically, to
overwhelm or “to be identified with”.
2.
NT:908 baptisma, baptismatos.
A. immersion, submersion.
We
can see by these Greek definitions that New Testament baptism was administered
by complete immersion, rather than sprinkling.
When
Jesus was baptized in water by John the Baptist, He was completely submerged
under the water and then rose up out of the water.
Water
baptism by immersion signifies identifying with Christ’s death, burial and
resurrection. Your old self has been buried with Christ and your new self has
risen up to newness of life.
Romans
6:4 says, “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that
just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we
also should walk in newness of life.”
When
the Holy Spirit fell on the Day of Pentecost in the Upper Room where the 120
were gathered, the Holy Spirit totally overwhelmed them, and there appeared to
be flames of fire (they were baptized or immersed in the fire of God).
When
believers are spiritually baptized into the Body of Christ, that means they are
immersed or saturated into the Body of Christ. They become one with each other
(in spirit) in Christ.
Tongues
– Galileans
Jewish
people from throughout the Roman and Parthian worlds gathered for the three
main feasts of Israel (Tabernacles, Passover and Pentecost). Because Pentecost
was only fifty days after Passover, some who had spent much to make a rare
pilgrimage to Jerusalem stayed between the two feasts. Pentecost was probably
the least popular of the three pilgrimage festivals, but Josephus attests that
it was nevertheless crowded. (From IVP Bible Background Commentary: New
Testament by Craig S. Keener Copyright © 1993 by Craig S. Keener. Published by
InterVarsity Press.)
Coming of the Holy Spirit
1.
When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one
place.
2.
And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and
it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3.
Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each
of them.
4.
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other
tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
The Crowd's Response
5.
And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under
heaven.
6.
And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused,
because everyone heard them speak in his own language.
7.
Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not
all these who speak Galileans?
8.
And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born?
9.
Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and
Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
10.
Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors
from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,
11.
Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works
of God.”
12.
So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could
this mean?”
13
Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.”
Peter's Sermon
(Joel 2:28-32)
14.
But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, “Men
of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my
words.
15.
For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the
day (9:00 am).
16.
But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17.
‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That
I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your
sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your
young men shall see visions,
Your
old men shall dream dreams.
18.
And on My menservants and on My maidservants
I
will pour out My Spirit in those days;
And
they shall prophesy.’”
The
fact that these were Galileans who were speaking in other tongues is very
significant.
The
Adam Clarke’s Commentary says that the Galileans were persons who knew no other
dialect, except of their own country. The Galileans were wholly uneducated, and
consequently, naturally ignorant of those languages which they now began to
speak so fluently.
The
Barnes’ Notes Commentary says that it was remarkable that the Galileans should
speak in other languages so eloquently and fluently because “they were
ignorant, rude and uncivilized.” The term “Galilean” referred to in John 1:46
(“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”) was used as an expression of the
deepest reproach and contempt.
Their
dialect was proverbially barbarous, crude and corrupt, Mark 14:70; Matthew
26:73.
They
were regarded as an outlandish people, unacquainted with other nations and
languages, and hence, there was amazement that they could address them in the
refined language of other people.
Their
native ignorance was the occasion of making the miracle more striking. The
native weakness of Christian ministers makes the grace and glory of God more
remarkable in the success of the gospel. “We have this treasure in earthen
vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us,” 2
Corinthians 4:7. God has “chosen the foolish things of the world to confound
the wise,” 1 Corinthians 1:27.
Joel
prophesied that God was pouring His Spirit out upon all flesh (not just the educated, elite, kings, elders, religious
leaders, or the men only—but on all flesh).
Most
of Jesus’ disciples and followers were from Galilee, and Jesus grew up in the
Galilee region and His ministry headquarters was in Capernaum. Even though most
of His disciples were not formally educated, and were rough around the edges in
their mannerisms, after they were filled with the Holy Spirit God used them to
turn the world upside down. It is remarkable that three of Jesus’ twelve
disciples wrote books of the New Testament, including Matthew, John and Peter.
Acts
2:11 says that the Galileans spoke the wonderful works of God in earthly
languages they had never learned before.
Tongues
can be in the languages of men (earthly languages) or angels (languages spoken
in Heaven), according to 1 Corinthians 13:1.
In
the case of Acts 2, the Galileans spoke earthly languages they did not know. It
served as a sign and a wonder among all the Jews in Jerusalem. After Peter
preached to the crowd, 3,000 were saved in one day (Acts 2:41), and the early
church had its beginning.
Tongues: 20 Benefits of
1. Impartation
of wisdom and revelation.
2. To receive
word of knowledge.
3. When you
don’t know how to pray.
4. Builds you
up in your most holy faith.
5. Helps you
with your limitations and weaknesses.
6. Strengthens
you on the inside.
7. Your
physical body and mind are renewed and strengthened.
8. Your spirit
is edified (built up).
9. You pray
the perfect will of God.
10. It builds
your immune system, according to medical science.
11. Gives you
the victory.
12. Protection.
13. Spiritual
warfare.
14. Intercession.
15. Gives
understanding to questions you have.
16. To receive
comfort.
17. Magnifies
God.
18. Declare
mysteries of God.
19. The river
of God flows through your innermost being.
20. Tongues is the entrance into the supernatural.
42
Quotes by Dr. Leroy Thompson about the benefits of praying in tongues:
1.
Tongues pulls you from the past into your future!
2.
When praying in the Spirit you
are prophesying your God ordained future!
3.
When praying in the Spirit you
are declaring the secrets of God!
4.
Praying in the Spirit is a direct
line to the Almighty!
5.
Tongues reverses death and
demonic assignments in your life!
6.
Tongues will give you unstoppable
progress that your enemy can't deny!
7.
As you pray in tongues you will
reach higher and higher in a dying world!
8.
Praying in tongues is praying
things that have been concealed to be revealed!
9.
Praying in tongues keeps you
spiritually fit!
10. Praying in tongues piles up all the promises God has for you, and puts
you in the position to receive them!
11. When you pray in the Spirit, you enter into another zone!
12. Praying in tongues synchronizes us with the timing of God!
13. Praying in the Spirit arranges your present to receive your future!
14. When praying in the Spirit you are breaking yokes that exist, and
breaking future yokes before they can be put together!
15. Praying in the Holy Ghost enables you to live a yoke free life!
16. Praying in the Holy Spirit keeps you ministry fit!
17. Praying in the Holy Spirit gives you step by step plans for your life!
18. Praying in the Spirit cuts a path of blessings in tumultuous situations!
19. When praying in tongues secrets that were withheld from others are
revealed to you!
20. When you pray in tongues, secrets and plans will be made known to you!
21. Demons scream when you pray in the Holy Spirit because they can’t
understand or stop you!
22. When praying in tongues the enemy is helpless in sabotaging your prayer!
23. Speaking in tongues is the language of glory!
24. Praying in tongues is spiritual management!
25.
Praying in the Spirit paralyzes
fear!
26.
Praying in the Spirit is the
trigger to the supernatural!
27.
When you pray in the Holy Spirit
the devil is reminded of his defeat and begins to have fits!
28.
Praying in the Spirit is drawing
out secrets to life’s complicated issues!
29.
Praying in the Spirit will take
you into God’s miracle zone!
30.
Praying in the Spirit is a
supernatural weapon!
31.
When praying in the Spirit you
are bathing in the invisible and getting wet with the visible!
32. By praying in the Spirit
you are making a path of blessings and power for you to walk in and enjoy!
33. Praying in tongues is help
with your ultimate weakness!
34. When you pray in tongues
you are declaring the mysteries of God!
35. When praying in the Holy
Ghost you are searching Christ!
36. Praying in tongues has no
respect for your problem!
37. Tongues is the entrance
into the supernatural!
38. When you pray in the
Spirit, you are speaking divine coded secrets!
39. Praying in tongues takes
you into the realm of nothing being impossible!
40. Praying in tongues is a
direct line to God where there are no interruptions, no interference, and no
eavesdropping! Just you and Him!
41. Praying in the Spirit is
the way that you stir God up within you! 2 Timothy 1:6.
42. Praying in the Spirit
activates Power, Authority, and Dominion! Power means ability. Authority means
a capability of authorizing things from a divine perspective. Dominion is the
sovereign power of God!
