WHEN WE HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT - Embracing Grace
WHEN WE HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT
Embracing Grace
After we receive Christ as Savior, we may be confused sometimes, because many of the old temptations have not disappeared. We still sin. Sometimes we lose our tempers. Sometimes we give into temptations. Pride, anger, fear, negativity and jealousy may still creep [crop] up from time to time. This is not only confusing . . it is discouraging . . it can be [sometimes] overwhelming and sometimes leads to spiritual depression. Sometimes this can really confuse the Newcomers [Beginner/New/Baby Christians] and lead them astray, IF their not careful. Sometimes when in the moment . . it can even seem impossible. We may even have some particular “besetting sin” that plagues us that we do not seem to be able to conquer.
But the moment we receive Christ, we receive the Holy Spirit and are given a new nature that contends with our old nature. By the old birth we are children of the flesh; [but] by the new birth we are children of God. This is why Jesus [Yeshua] told Nicodemus that he “must be born again” (John 3:3).
[See] Whenever the old nature asserts itself, we may begin to doubt whether or not we are really saved. Satan [our true enemy] wants us to doubt our salvation to make us ineffective [among MANY other destructive and equally damning things], but we must remind ourselves that the Holy Spirit gives us assurance that we have been born again.
How do we remind ourselves?
By reading and studying the Word of God, DAILY. The MORE we commune with God by reading His word and spending time in prayer daily [every single day], the less we want of our old ways [wants, nature, desires, etc..]. The NEW nature, begins to take over by the power of God’s Word that speaks into our hearts and puts our minds on Him and sets our feet on the right path.
We must let the Bible become central to life, for we cannot grow spiritually strong . . nor flourish . . without it.
It is ESSENTIAL, CRUCIAL, NECESSARY, CRITICAL and VITAL.
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{AIGGM Q&A Piece}
The short answer is this: The Spirit enters you the moment in which you are baptized into Christ – after you have cleaned house to make room for the Spirit by repenting of your sins and declaring Jesus [Yeshua] as Lord.
Let’s take a look at a few scriptures.
The first is Acts 2:36-41, and it takes place on Pentecost, just after Jesus [Yeshua Hamashiach] had spent 40 days with His disciples post-resurrection – sharing about the Kingdom of God – and after He was taken back up to heaven. The Spirit [The Comforter, The Holy Ghost, The Holy Spirit] came upon the apostles (and I’ll talk more about this in a minute), so that they were able to preach the news in the languages of men coming from ALL different countries [nations]. This is the end of Peter’s discourse:
“Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus [Yeshua], whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ [Yeshua Hamashiach] for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
There are Two (2) Key Points, I think. The First Key Point- is that many of these people had been in Jerusalem for the Passover and had witnessed Jesus’ crucifixion, without understanding what they were participating in. When they heard that they had crucified God Himself, they were cut to the heart and wanted to know how to make amends. Brothers! What should we do?
Peter’s answer was to repent and be baptized, for both forgiveness and the Holy Spirit.
The Second Key Point- to this scripture is that it’s a promise for their children. For succeeding generations . . meaning for ALL generations. [Christ sacrificed Himself for ALL of us . . for EVERY single person . . for ALL, and He paid our sin debts and made atonement for us]. For us whom the Lord our God will call. We can trust it to answer the question, “What should I do?”
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I think that scripture is incredible and gives illumination to how the first century church lived out their faith. But it doesn’t exactly explain "HOW" the Holy Spirit comes in baptism. So let’s take a look at Romans 6:1-4:
What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus [Yeshua Hamashiach] were baptized into His death? We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
What this scripture says, is that baptism participates in Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection. Just as Jesus [Yeshua] died on the Cross for our sins, we die to our sinful life through repentance.
Just as Christ was buried in the tomb, until the third day when GOD ALMIGHTY [God The Father, Yahweh] raised Him [Yeshua Hamashiach, Jesus Christ] from the dead, we too are buried when we go under the waters of baptism.
Just as the Holy Spirit resuscitated Jesus [Yeshua] and brought life back into His dead body, the Holy Spirit resuscitates us and gives us eternal life. We then share the same spirit as Christ.
(You can also read Ephesians 2:14-18 which elaborates on the Spirit we share)
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{F.Y.I. / Side Note - In case your looking for something good to read . . I spent an enjoyable almost two weeks reading (or re-reading? – I can’t remember ;) lol) an old book we had lying around, called The Spirit, by Douglas Jacoby. But while I read and upon examining the scriptures … I discovered that I had misread an initial question I received on this particular subject (blame it on lack of sleep or my blonde-ness lol). For some reason I thought she [fellow sister in Christ, anonymous Q&A] asked if we get the Spirit once, or does it come again and again? . . or something along those lines. But the study period certainly helped me to get my thoughts organised to answer the question that she actually asked. That's the one [of many] purpose(s) and reason(s) for including this Section and current subject [with]in this particular Blog.
Also, This Particular Section In My Blog . . Is Apart Of Our *NEW* Official #AIGGMSoundDoctrine Series, where you submit your questions [anonymous or not] about the Bible, and I answer them. If you want to know more about the series or to submit your questions, then please e-mail me at: PastorBlackburn.AIGGM@gmail.com and Subject it "#AIGGMSoundDoctrine Series" }
<----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->Three Exceptions:
* If . . we are to put aside the Spirit of God, entering people for His purposes before Jesus [Yeshua] came (which is another discussion), there are three (3) recorded exceptions . . to the Spirit entering people in the moment of baptism. *
1. The Apostles. They were not recorded as having been baptized after Jesus’ death. But they were given the Spirit in order to preach a new covenant.
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. [You can read more about this in Acts 2.]
2. The Samaritans. They had been baptized, but didn’t receive the Spirit until the apostles prayed and laid their hands on them.
WHY?!? . . The people from Samaria had a long history of being despised by the Jews, because the foreigners sent to re-colonise Israel after Assyrian captivity intermarried with the people there and worshiped foreign Gods. (2 Kings 17). [See] The Jews needed a visible sign that the Samaritans were also accepted by God, and this happened when they received the Spirit.
When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus [Yeshua]. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. [This is in Acts 8].
3. The Gentiles. They received the Spirit before they were baptized. The gentile conversion was even harder for the Jews to accept than the Samaritan’s. Peter had to be told three times (when in a trance) to go preach the Word to Cornelius’ household. And when he arrived, he wasn’t exactly enthusiastic about it.
He said to them: “You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean.
As he preached, the Gentiles received the Spirit, which validated their acceptance by God (which you’ll see just below). Only afterwards were they baptized.
While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.
Then Peter said, “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” [You can read about that in Acts 10].
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There’s also Acts 19, where disciples in Ephesus had not received the Holy Spirit because they had only undergone the baptism of John, not the baptism of Jesus. This is a quasi-exception because they did need to be baptized into Jesus [Yeshua] in order to get the Holy Spirit, but it manifested itself visibly when Paul laid [lay] his hands on them. See here:
While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
They answered, “No, we have not 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 [Yeshua].” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus [Yeshua]. When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. There were about twelve men in all.
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But I call it a 'quasi-exception' . . because it reinforces the idea that it’s the norm to receive the Holy Spirit when we are baptized into Jesus Christ [Yeshua Hamashiach].
For our intents and purposes, we as believers, should not focus on what occurred in the exceptions, but in the norm. We should focus our efforts on obedience in order to obtain “the promise for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
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I hope this was helpful. Feel free to keep the questions coming! I am thrilled to do the research and answer them, and I thank you for reading and being apart of Our ABIDING IN GOD'S GRACE MINISTRIES {AIGGM} FAM. 🙂
Love Always and God Bless Y'all,
Pastor Stephanie XoXoxoxoxo
Abiding In God's Grace Ministries
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