*SUNDAY APRIL 07, 2024*

*BAPTISM WITH THE SPIRIT (2)*

Acts 8:15 Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:
Vs 16 (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)
Vs 17 Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.

After preaching the gospel in Samaria, Philip called on the Apostles to come and pray for them that they might receive the Holy Ghost (verse 15), as he was fallen on none of them, only were they baptized in the name of the Lord (verse 16).

Then in verse 17, they (the Apostles) laid hands on them and they received the Holy Ghost. What did the receiving of the Holy Ghost here mean?

Recall that these men had believed the gospel, and therefore born again, i.e. born of the spirit. Thus it will not be in reference to the indwelling of the spirit (which was already a reality).

Peter’s response to the request of Simon, the sorcerer helps our understanding.

Acts 8:20 But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
Vs 21 Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.

The word “matter” used by Peter in verse 21 is one that has to do with speaking or utterance. Hence, what Simon must have seen was that by the laying on of the hands of the Apostles, there was supernatural speaking (which explains receiving the Holy Ghost or the Holy Ghost coming upon them).

Another account in the book of Acts with Paul at Ephesus buttresses this fact.
Acts 19:2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.
Vs 3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism.
Vs 4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.
Vs 5 When they heard this,they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Vs 6 And Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.

These men had been baptized with water, but Paul’s query above indicated that they were not yet saved. Hence Paul pointed them to how that John baptized with the baptism of repentance saying that they should believe on him who should come after him that is on Christ Jesus.

Now upon this, they believed (that is, were baptized in the name of Jesus in verse 5, which could not have been referring to water as they had already been baptized with water, being John’s disciples).

In verse 6, Paul then laid his hands on them, and the Holy Ghost came on them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied.

Thus the term “the Holy Ghost came on them” was used to refer to the fact that they spoke with tongues and prophesied.

Peter also employed the use of similar words when narrating what happened in the the house of Cornelius:
Acts 11:15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning.
Vs 16 Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.
Vs 17 Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God?

Let us observe some of the facts here:
He explained that as he spoke, the Holy Ghost “fell on them as on us at the beginning”. Thus pointing to a similarity of this with what happened in Acts 2.

In verse 16, he related this to the baptism with the Holy Ghost which Jesus had spoken of in Acts 1:5. He explained that God gave these folks the like (the same) gift as he did unto them.

Therefore we can see that the baptism with the Holy Ghost, receiving the Holy Ghost and “the Holy Ghost coming upon” were used to relate to utterances, that is, tongues and prophecy.

Hence the use of these terminologies were not to refer to the indwelling of the spirit, as this will imply (in the case of those at Samaria) that a man can be born again and yet not have the spirit in him, but we have since established that the new birth is to be born of the spirit. Such a man has the spirit, rather, these terms (“baptized with the Holy Ghost”, “receiving the Holy Ghost” and “the Holy Ghost coming upon”) point to an activity so described – supernatural utterances, in other words, tongues and prophecy.

Confession: “I am born of the spirit, the spirit of God lives in me. Based on this I can yield myself to function via supernatural utterances: to speak with tongues and to prophesy!”