As we continue to examine the concept of the Great Exchange we will look at the following exchange: Jesus took our weakness and gave us His strength; “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” (Acts 1:8; Eph 3:14-16). Show More
The beginning of the Christian Church started on the day of Pentecost. The term Church means “the called-out ones” these are the believers in Jesus Christ. The Church started in a powerful explosive way with the Holy Spirit being released into the Believer. In the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit was “on” or “with” a person. Now in the New Covenant the Holy Spirit “lives in” the Believer.
The Church, as we know it today, did not start until the Day of Pentecost, 40 days after Jesus rose from the grave. Before the crucifixion, Jesus ministered in the synagogues as an Old Testament Prophet. He preached that the Kingdom of God was present in the hearts of Believers, which, as you can imagine, did not go over well with Jewish teachings. In the beginning, they tolerated Jesus, but as time passed and the followers of Jesus grew, the Jewish leaders felt threatened, and they looked for ways to expel Him.
What Jesus taught was “new wine,” but it was received in “old wineskins” and, therefore, rejected. This means that God was doing a new thing, and the religious Jews preferred the old familiar ways! As Jesus said in Matthew 21:42, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” This verse was a reference to Psalm 118:22 and meant that the devout Jews who trusted in their religious practices stumbled over the message of Grace and Faith that Jesus taught.
Prelude to the Baptism of the Holy Spirit
The gift of the Holy Spirit did not happen without prior notice. It was foretold in the Old Testament (read Jeremiah 31:31) and foretold by Jesus beginning in John 7:37, “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. 39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”
Then in Acts 1:4, Jesus said, “And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; 5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
- The term “promise of the Father” is found in Luke 24:49. Jesus said, “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued (put on) with power from on high.”
Let’s take a look at the term “Baptized with or in the Holy Spirit.” The word Baptized means to be totally immersed or submerged. In the case of Water Baptism, you are fully submerged in water. In Spirit Baptism, you are immersed in the Holy Spirit. In other words, you are surrendering to the work of the Holy Spirit in your life.
While Jesus ministered with His Disciples, He spoke of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. After His resurrection, He mentions it again in Acts 1:9, “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.”
Baptism of the Holy Spirit
“you shall receive power“
Dynamis; force, miraculous power, a miracle itself: — ability, abundance, meaning, mighty deed, worker of miracles, power, strength, violence, mighty wonderful work. We get the word dynamite from Dynamis.
We are referring to supernatural works of God. No matter how talented or gifted you are, your natural ability can only take you so far. When your natural ability has run-out, that is when the power of God takes over.
“when the Holy Spirit has come upon you“
Eperchomai (Gk); to arrive, come, occur, impend, attack, or influence. The Holy Spirit of God somehow invades the person and empowers that person to do supernatural acts.
1 Corinthians 12:8-10 describes the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit, all of which are supernatural in origin.
“The word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.”
There are other gifts as well such as the ministry gifts of the Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, and Teacher.
That’s all we have time for now. I will be continuing this message in my next post. Until then keep this in mind. The work of the Holy Spirit in sharing, witnessing, preaching the Gospel is best done under the leading and the influence of the Holy Spirit.
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is the commitment you make to God to allow Him to direct your path in your personal life and in your ministry life.
All believers are called to the Great Commission, which is to make Jesus Christ known by words and deeds.
