THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
We have considered the gift of various ministries which Christ gave to the church; now let us consider His other gift, the gift of the Holy Spirit. The gift of the Holy Spirit, the promise of the Father, was to be bestowed upon the church in the form of a baptism. In the New Testament this baptism began to be preached by John the Baptist, and his message is recorded in all the gospels and is quoted by Jesus and Peter in the Acts of the Apostles. Matthew and the other writers of the gospels record that John told his disciples:
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 (Matt. 3:11; Mark
1:7-8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33).
Jesus, as He was instructing the disciples after His resurrection about the necessity of waiting in Jerusalem for the promised Holy Spirit, reminded them not only of what John had said but also that He had spoken of the promise:
Wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he,
ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with
water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost
not many days hence (Acts 1:4-5).
Peter, giving his defense before the elders at Jerusalem for having preached to the Gentiles, reminded them of what John had said:
Then remembered I [when he saw the Holy Ghost fall
on the Gentiles] the word of the Lord, how that he
said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall
be baptized with the Holy Ghost (Acts 11:16).
On the Day of Pentecost , Peter answered the question, "What
meaneth this?" by affirming that Jesus
Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted,
and having received of the Father the promise of the
Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now
see and hear (Acts 2:33).
And he further admonished them when they asked, "What shall we do?":
Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the
name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and
ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the
promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all
that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God
shall call (Acts 2:38-39).
We may assume from the Scriptures that the promise of the Father, the gift of the Holy Spirit, or the baptism in the Holy Spirit are all ways of describing the infilling of the Holy Spirit which God had promised to give to His children through His Son Jesus Christ. In addition to the message of John, we have the words of Jesus concerning this experience in the Spirit.
Most of the teachings of Jesus about the Holy Spirit are recorded in the Gospel of John. At the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus stood and cried out, saying,
If any man thirst, let him come to me, and drink. He
that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out
of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this
spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him
should receive: for the Holy Ghost
was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet
glorified.) (John 7:37-39).
From this word of Jesus we learn that the Holy Spirit was to be given to those who believe on Jesus; however, He would not be given until after Jesus was glorified or raised from the dead, and the Spirit would be as rivers of living
water flowing from the innermost being of the believers. No one received this experience until Jesus had risen from the dead. This is verified by the words that Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost:
Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted,
and having received of the Father the promise of the
Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now
see and hear (Acts 2:33).
The experience of the disciples on the Day of Pentecost is a fulfillment of the promise of Jesus in John 7:37-38.
At the Feast of the Passover, Jesus gave His most complete teaching on the Holy Spirit. He promised another comforter:
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 (John 14:16-17).
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 (John 14:26).
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for
you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Com-
forter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will
send him unto you (John 16:7).
Jesus also taught them that the Comforter was the Spirit of Truth, and the Spirit would lead them into all truth, glorify Jesus, and reveal to them the things which God had given to them in Him.
Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will
guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of
himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he
speak: and he will shew you things to come. He
shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and
shall shew it unto you. All things that the Father
hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of
mine, and shall shew it unto you (John 16:13-15).
When speaking of the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples to pray, Luke relates the discourse of Jesus on receiving the Holy Spirit:
If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father,
will he give him a stone?....If ye then being evil know
how to give good gifts unto your childdren how much
more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit
to them that ask him? (Luke 11:11-13).
From this scripture we may assume that the gift of the Holy Spirit is given to those who ask God for Him. However, on the basis of other scriptures, some would say that the gift of the Holy Spirit is given by a sovereign act of God when one accepts Jesus Christ. Thus the question arises, "Is the gift of the Holy Spirit given when one accepts Christ as savior or is the gift of the Holy Spirit given subsequent to one's receiving Christ?" Almost all believers accept the fact that everyone who receives Jesus Christ receives the Holy Spirit:
Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is
none of his (Rom. 8:9).
However, the Pentecostal believes that the "gift of the Holy Spirit" is an experience separate from and subsequent to receiving the Holy Spirit in the new birth. He also believes that the "gift of the Holy Spirit" is given to the children of God who ask for it (Luke 11:13), and that the "gift of the Holy Spirit" empowers one for service.
Jesus spoke to His disciples about the Holy Spirit after He rose from the dead. He instructed the disciples to tarry at Jerusalem until they received the promise of the Spirit:
And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon
you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be
endued with power from on high (Luke 24:49).
[He] commanded them that they should not depart
from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Fa-
ther, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John
truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized
with the Holy Ghost not many days hence (Acts 1:4-5).
RECEIVE YE THE HOLY GHOST (John 20:21-22)
A most important reference to the Holy Spirit is recorded in the Gospel of John. As the disciples were gathered together, Jesus appeared in their midst and said unto them:
Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even
so send I you. And when he had said this, he
breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye
the Holy Ghost (John 20:21-22).
In order to place this scripture in proper perspective we must look at it in relationship to the account of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost.
| 
