In our study on the Holy Spirit we have seen that the Holy Spirit is not some impersonal force like the wind or electricity, but a person. And not only a person, but the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is God!

Now we have seen that the work of the Holy Spirit is to come alongside us and draw us to Christ. He is to be WITH us, or PARA in the Greek. The Holy Spirit will then come inside us once we have come to Christ, and He will be IN us, or EN in the Greek.

In this study we are going to be looking at the third Greek preposition related to the Holy Spirit, which is the Greek word EPI and speaks of the Holy Spirit coming upon us or over us, empowering us. We see this in Acts 1:8, which says "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."

Many in the church today like to discredit this and say that there is no such thing as the Baptism with the Holy Spirit. Maybe that is why the church is lacking in its power for service. It is interesting the way A.W. Tozer saw this. His perspective of the situation was this: "If the Holy Spirit was completely taken out of the work of the first century church, 90% of what they did would come to a screeching halt. If the Holy Spirit was completely taken out of the work in the church today, only 10% of what the church was doing would come to a halt." You see, the first century church was not only directed by the Holy Spirit, but also empowered by the Holy Spirit!

Now some like to point to what Paul said in Ephesians 4:5, where he speaks of "One baptism" and they say that there is only one baptism, for that is what the Scriptures teach. There are no other baptisms, like the baptism of the Holy Spirit. That is not true, as we will see in a minute.

The word "baptism" means to "immerse", and in the New Testament we can see several examples of baptisms that are spoken of. In Luke 3:3 we see the baptism of John, which was a baptism of repentance. We read "And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins." In Matthew 20:22-23, Jesus is speaking of the work He was to do at Calvary, and said "...‘You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?’ They said to Him, ‘We are able.’ So He said to them, ‘You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.’" And in I Corinthians 12:13 we see Paul speak of a baptism into the body of Christ, our salvation, and the Holy Spirit is the one doing the baptizing here. We read "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body-- whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free-- and have all been made to drink into one Spirit."

Then, in Matthew chapter 3, John the baptist said this, "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." Matthew 3:11.

We have already spoke of the baptism of John, which was a baptism of repentance. But here we are told that Jesus is going to baptize us with the Holy Spirit. Now don’t get confused and think the fire is the tongues of fire spoken of in Acts chapter 2. In fact we don’t see the tongues of fire mentioned any more in the Scriptures after the day of Pentecost. But what John was speaking of here in Matthew chapter 3 is the fire of judgment, for as we continue to read in Matthew chapter 3, we are told in verse 12, "His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

You see, the fire speaks of God’s judgment and not something for the church. John Walvoord put it this way when he said: "While the church age is introduced with the baptism of the Spirit, the kingdom age is introduced with the baptism of fire." In other words, he is saying that as we enter into the kingdom age, God will judge those who have rejected Him and cast them into Sheol, judging them for their rejection of Him until the great white throne judgment, or the second death, the final judgment where punishment will be put forth as they are cast into the outer darkness for eternity.

Now we have seen two important baptisms. One into the body of Christ, our salvation, which is done by the Holy Spirit, I Corinthians 12:13. The other baptism is that of empowerment for service, which is done by Jesus Christ, Matthew 3:11.

Now understand this, prior to the Holy Spirit coming into the disciples, indwelling them, they still were Old Testament saints in a sense. But in John chapter 20, after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, something very interesting happened to them as they were hiding for their lives behind locked doors. We read of this event happening in John chapter 20, beginning in verse 19. We read, "Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ Now when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. So Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.’ And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’" John 20:19-22.

Up to this point the Holy Spirit was WITH the disciples. Remember what Jesus said in John 14:16-17 in regards to the Holy Spirit. He said that "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever--the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you." It is at this point, when Jesus breathed on them, that the Holy Spirit was now indwelling them. They are now New Testament Christians at this point.

Now it is amazing to me to see commentators and Bible teaches just pass over this as if nothing happened here in John Chapter 20. Let me say this, when Jesus breaths upon you and tells you to "Receive the Holy Spirit", something is going to happen, and something did happen here in the lives of these disciples! The Holy Spirit has indwelt them, you can’t ignore that fact, nor can you miss it unless it goes against some preconceived ideas you might have on this subject. But lets try to remove our biases and preconceived ideas and just see what the Scriptures say, and lets receive all that God has for us.

Now at this point in their lives, the disciples had all the information. They had spent a little over 3 years walking with Jesus and being taught by Jesus. And thus, you would think it was time for them to go out and spread the good news of Christ. Not yet! They had all the information at this point, but they lacked the dynamic power to take that information to a world lost and dying in their sins. They are saved at this point but not empowered. And thus, Jesus tells them in Luke 24:49 what they need to do. He said "Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high."

The disciples were told to wait until they were empowered by the Holy Spirit and the reason is simple. If they did not wait they would be working in the power of their flesh instead of by the Spirit of God, and they will only become frustrated and unfruitful in the endeavor. They needed to wait in Jerusalem until they were empowered for service.

Now information is important, especially the truth, but without the power to properly use it, it is basically empty. Think of it this way for a minute. You can buy the top of the line power tool, one of those battery operated ones. And they look great and have the potential to work great. But as good as those tools look and are, if the power supply is not plugged in or charged up, they are worthless. A drill won’t work. A saw will stand still. The nail gun will just sit there. And you can try very hard to use them without the power, but through all your efforts you will only become frustrated, discouraged, and unfruitful. You need the power to run the tools, just as the disciples needed the power of God’s Spirit in their lives. And just as we need the power of God to take the information we know, and as we are empowered by the Holy Spirit, we will be witnesses of Him!

And so, in Acts chapter 1, we read "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; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’...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 1:4-5, 8.

Now weren’t they already believers, as John chapter 20 pointed out? Yes they were, but here is something that is completely different. They are going to be baptized in the Holy Spirit for the Holy Spirit will come UPON them and they shall receive power to be witnesses of Him!

The Greek word for "power" is DUNAMIS, from which we get our English words "dynamic" and "dynamite" from. Now what kind of power did they receive? Is it that explosive power to speak in tongues? No, not at all! Then maybe it is the power to roar like a lion, bark like a dog, hop like a kangaroo, or convulse on the floor uncontrollably? Not even close! Or maybe it is the power to be slain in the Spirit? Not at all! How about the power will be so strong that the people will be worked into a chaotic frenzy in the church, running all around, doing back flips, being drunk in the Spirit. That has to be the ultimate moving of God’s Spirit in power, right? Wrong! None of these foolish things reflect what Jesus was speaking of when He told us we shall receive that explosive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon us. Now some of you may be offended by what I have just said, and that is not my intention at all. I am not trying to put people down that do this, all I am saying is that this is not what Jesus was speaking of.

In fact, Jesus makes it very clear what He is talking about. He tells us that this power in your life will be used in such a way so that you will BE WITNESSES of Christ! Notice that it doesn’t say to go out and witness, but to be witnesses of Christ. That burning love we have for Christ in our hearts is manifested in our actions and as people look at us, they see something vastly different. They see God working in us, they see Christ in us! We are to be witnesses of Christ!

For those that are into this power trip thing, I want you to think about this for a minute. The Greek word used for "witness" is MARTUS, which has been transliterated into our English word "martyr". It originally spoke of a witness and the meaning was solidified when thousands upon thousands of Christians were put to death, martyred for their faith in Christ. In their death they prayed for those who were killing them, praised God as they were dying, and by their witness many of the Roman soldiers and those who were watching these killings became believers. Their life and their death was a witness of Christ! They were martyrs for their faith!

Thus, a witness or martyr is someone whose faith is totally committed to the Lord and they won’t let anything stand in their way, not even death! The only way you can do that is by the empowering of God’s Spirit. Human nature would strike back in anger, but God’s grace upon us reaches out in love, even in death, undeserving death! You see, your life must back up your words you speak, or your words will become meaningless. As Chuck Smith has said, "Saying it doesn’t make you a witness, living it does!"

This may be very different from what you have been taught about the power of God in a persons life. The power they are speaking of many times exalts self, and the power that God is speaking of brings glory to Him!

And, again, it would be very difficult to live that kind of life without the empowering of God’s Spirit in our lives. You see, without it we are ill-equipped to be witnesses in which God has called us to be. Thus, why would we want anything less than what God wants to give us. We should desire all He has for us, for to be a witness of Christ we not only need the tools, but the power to run them, the power to live that kind of life!

Now we have talked about those that have abused this power by misinterpreting what Jesus was saying, but there is always the other end of the spectrum, those that like to argue that this empowering in the Holy Spirit was only for the first century church, the first century believers. You see, they needed help to get the church started and built up. And after it was established and the Holy Scriptures completed, there was no further need of this empowering by God. We have all we need to do the work that God has called us to do without the power, or so they say.

I totally disagree, as you can well imagine. I don’t understand their reasoning. To think we don’t need the help of God’s Spirit to empower us for the work that is ahead of us, is just plain foolishness. Just look at this nation and how it thinks of itself as a Christian nation, but it is in word only, for their deeds, their actions speak the opposite truth. And thus, do you think we can turn this nation upside down in the power of our flesh? Be real! We need just as much help today to be witnesses of Christ as they did when the church first got started in the first century!

Again, as some say that the Scriptures do not support this empowering, but it was only for the first century church, that this was only a promise to them, not to us or any other generation. They feel that there is nothing to support the view that this baptism of the Holy Spirit is for any generation after the first century, that the Scriptures don’t support that idea. Well, lets not take man’s word, lets look at the Scriptures and let them speak for themselves in this matter, for man has been wrong before, God hasn’t!

In Acts chapter 2, on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came upon the believers who were waiting in Jerusalem for this event, the church got started with a bang. That day 3,000 souls were added to the kingdom of God as Peter, empowered now by the Holy Spirit, spoke boldly the things of God.

As they heard the truths of God, they asked Peter what they needed to do. The Holy Spirits conviction upon their lives cut through the hardness of their hearts. And Peter tells them that they needed to repent, get right with God, and turn their lives over to Christ to be their Savior. That was the inward action that took place. Then, to show the world that they have forsaken all and have separated themselves unto Christ, they were baptized. You see, baptism is an outward display of an inward feeling, an inward change of heart, moving towards God and away from the world.

Peter, at the end of verse 38 of Acts chapter 2 and in verse 39 makes a very interesting statement. He said "...and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 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." Acts 2:38-39.

Now the promise is "the gift of the Holy Spirit". The question is "What is this speaking of?" Some will say it is speaking of the Holy Spirit coming into a person once they are saved. That this Promise is for all believers for you can’t be a believer without the Holy Spirit indwelling you or living inside of you. I have to agree with that statement, you can’t be a believer without the Holy Spirit living inside of you. The Scriptures clearly tell us of this. Paul makes that point in Romans 8:9-11, when he said "But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you."

Now in saying all that, I don’t think that is what Peter was speaking of. I think his point is different, even though it is true that to be a believer the Holy Spirit must be in you. I think, and I believe the Scriptures support this, that the Promise of the gift of the Holy Spirit that Peter spoke of is the baptism of the Holy Spirit or the empowering of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

The key to understanding this section of Scripture is going back and checking out what the Promise was all about. We talked about this verse already in Luke, but it is important that we look at it again. In Luke 24:49 we read "Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high."

We said earlier that at this point they were already saved, Jesus breathed upon them and they received the Holy Spirit. And yet Jesus is telling them to go to Jerusalem and wait to be empowered by the power from on high, the empowering of the Holy Spirit. Notice, it speaks of "the Promise of My Father" that was to come upon them. That is the gift of the Holy Spirit, or again the empowering of the Holy Spirit for service.

If your still not sure, still not convinced about what this "Promise" is all about, turn to Acts chapter 1 and lets look at verses 4 and 5. We read "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; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’"

Again, they were to wait for the Promise of the Holy Spirit, they were already saved, already New Testament saints at this point, but they were waiting for the Promise of the Father, that empowerment for service.

In saying all that, as we look again to what Peter said in Acts chapter 2, we see that the Promise was not just for the first century church, not just for the early church, but for us and for our children and our children’s children until the Lord returns! Peter put it this way in Acts 2:38-39, "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. 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.’" That Promise is the gift of the Holy Spirit or the empowerment of the Spirit in our lives for service unto Him.

We are going to be looking at next time the examples found in the Scriptures for this baptism and the result it had in peoples lives. But for now, I want you to understand this. We receive this gift of the Holy Spirit not on the basis of our merit, or our good works, but because of God’s grace! Thus, if you ask God, and believe by faith, He will give you this empowerment for service. But don’t wait to feel electricity passing through your body as a sign. Although you may feel it. Don’t wait for some kind of spiritual sensation as proof that God has empowered you with His Spirit, but believe it by faith.

You see, God did not pour out the power of the Holy Spirit into our lives to make us feel something, but to help us accomplish something. God’s power is practical power, it is the power to live the life He has called us to live, Holy and separated unto Him for His service!

And the best sign that shows you have this power is not speaking in tongues, laughing uncontrollably, being drunk in the Spirit, roaring like lions or even barking like dogs, but the best sign in our lives is LOVE! You see, love is the fruit of the Spirit and it is out of that love we see the characteristics of this kind of love flow. We see it in 8 different ways. Paul put it this way in Galatians when he said "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another." Galatians 5:22-26.

You see, when that AGAPE love or sacrificial love flows from our lives, not because of our nature, but because of His flowing through our lives by the power of God’s Spirit working in us, we see JOY, PEACE, LONGSUFFERING, KINDNESS, GOODNESS, FAITHFULNESS, GENTLENESS, SELF-CONTROL, manifested in our lives! If you have the power of God’s Spirit in your life, then love will flow from you. If you don’t, then ask God to empower you for service and believe it by faith that what He has said and has promised He is able to do! As Jesus said in Luke 11:9-13 regarding our heavenly Father and what He desires to give us. We read "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"

In closing, I want to share with you a portion from Greg Laurie’s book "On Fire". He said:

"A town somewhere in the U.S. was battered one night by hurricane-force winds. In the morning, after the storm had abated, the citizens emerged from their homes and shelters to assess the damage. The power of the storm quickly became clear to one investigator who was dumbfounded by an incredible discovery. Mouths dropped open as people came to check out his report: a common plastic drinking straw driven deep into a telephone pole by the night’s vicious winds. Obviously, under normal circumstances, a flimsy straw could never penetrate a telephone pole. But the tremendous power of the wind had driven the straw into the wood like a spike."

"As believers living in an ungodly world, sometimes we wonder if we can ever make a difference. We wonder if we can effectively penetrate our cynical culture with the good news God has given us to proclaim. The answer lies in the source of our power. If we rely on our own strength and methods, then no, we cannot make much of a difference. But if we choose to be driven by God’s limitless power, we become like that straw in the hurricane where nothing can stop us. We can indeed make a dramatic difference." (pp. 21-22).

May others be able to say of us, as they said of Paul and his companions, "...‘These who have turned the world upside down have come here too.’" Acts 17:6.