The Baptism of the Holy Spirit

Through belief in Christ, all believers have already received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This immersion empowers us to live just like Jesus did. We are born to live in intimacy with our heavenly Father and manifest His presence to the world. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is conscious, continual immersion in God’s Presence, made possible by the indwelling Christ.

The Holy Spirit, who is simultaneously the spirit of God the Father and the spirit of Jesus, is both the interior expression of God’s personality and the visible manifestation of God’s activity in the natural realm. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to empower believers to live supernatural, kingdom-advancing lives. The Spirit makes available to believers the many benefits and privileges of living in God’s salvation and grace.

In the Bible, baptism is not limited to water, but is mentioned in association with several other mediums -including death, John, Moses, the Cloud, Christ, fire, and the Name. A baptism, therefore, should be understood as a continual willful immersion into any mental, physical, or spiritual substance. John’s baptism, for instance, is a mental immersion into the spiritual teachings of John the Baptist, which focused mainly on repentance from sin.

Oftentimes, we think of baptism only as a one-time immersion into water. This confuses Christians who are unfamiliar with the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Adding to the confusion is Pentecostal doctrine that dictates the baptism of the Holy Spirit is a second event which occurs apart from our reception of Christ. The Biblical truth is this: if you have given your life to Jesus, you have already been immersed into the empowering presence of His Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13). Everything that God has for you - every spiritual fruit and every spiritual gift - has already been made available to you through your spiritual union with Christ.

It is our faith that makes us aware of the benefits and dimensions of Holy Spirit baptism. Faith, simply defined, is trust. It is trusting that I am who God says I am. The Bible says that I am a son who has been given access to everything and anything God has through relationship with Jesus (John 1:16; Romans 8:17: Colossians 2:10). We can experience the riches of our inheritance in Christ (Ephesians 1:18), the manifestations of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:7), and the fruits of His indwelling presence (Galatians 5:22) by believing (trusting) we already have full access to them.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit is a mental and spiritual immersion that empowers us to live every moment in the presence of God. Abiding in the baptism renews our minds and enables us to outwardly express Christ. The Christ-life within us finds external expression in our behavior. We become more and more like Jesus in mind, word, and deed. His living water comes from heaven and flows through us (John 7:38). Expressing Christ involves everything from the perfectly mundane to the miraculous and extraordinary (1 Corinthians 12:7). There is no limit to what is possible through the Spirit, it is just a matter of renewing our minds to become aware of what has already been given to us.

In Acts 19, Paul arrives in Ephesus and meets some believers who had not yet been made aware of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 19:1-6 (NIV) “While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?’ They answered, ‘No, we have no even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’ So Paul asked, ‘Then what baptism did you receive?’ ‘John’s baptism,’ they replied. Paul said, ‘John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.’ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.”

Many believers today, despite faith in Jesus, still only live in John’s baptism, focusing solely on repentance from sin. This passage tells us that at the moment Paul made them aware of a greater baptism, they were “baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” This is the baptism of the Holy Spirit - the mental and spiritual immersion into the authority, power, and presence of Jesus. Paul placing his hands on them was a prophetic gesture, activating what was already available to them in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit “coming on them” is a Hebraic way of saying His presence was made manifest. The key to understand is that these disciples were simply made aware of what was already freely available. It is their hearing of Paul’s words that immersed them into a new reality because faith comes by hearing (Romans 10:17).

Christians do not need to wait for a sovereign divine moment to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. At Pentecost, God poured out the Spirit for every believer, for all time (Acts 2:17-21). You do not need anyone to pray for you to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit - you already have it! Ask the Lord to show you how to step into this element of your inheritance.

Fear of the supernatural and unknown prevent many Christians from living in the fullness of God available to them. Trusting Jesus with our minds is key for living in the “more” of God. The baptism of the Holy Spirit allows us to live as Jesus did, expressing the kingdom of heaven on earth and living in intimate spiritual relationship with our Father.