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NASB | Luke 11:13 "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?" |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Luke 11:13 "If you, then, being evil [that is, sinful by nature], know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask and continue to ask Him!" |
Subject: What is to ask and receive the Holy Spir |
Bible Note: Hi Mitch, I’ve been following this thread, and a few things have caught my attention. I want to referrence Eph 4:4 “There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.” Since this says there is “one baptism”, I question whether we can call the experience of the disciples in Acts 2:4 a “secondary baptism”. That would seem to me to be in conflict with Eph. 4:5. I understand that the disciples received the Holy Spirit in John 20:22 “And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.” We understand that this refers to when the disciples were born again, but in fact, Scripture gives us no teaching about what happened here. At no other time in Scripture does Jesus physically breathe upon someone that they would receive the Holy Spirit. So I don’t know that we could call this “baptism of the Holy Spirit,” especially when you consider that what happened in Acts 2 specifically was called baptism. Remember what Jesus said in John 16:7 “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.” By “I go away,” we know Jesus meant His ascention, because of vs. 4 “I go to Him Who sent Me.” Jesus breathed on the disciples before He ascended. It was after He ascended that the Holy Spirit came during Pentacost. So I would suggest to you that the manner in which the disciples were saved and received the baptism of the Spirit was unique to them, again, because no one else has had Jesus physically breathe on them to receive the Spirit. At least, not to my knowledge. I am in full agreement with you that the Holy Spirit may, at any time during our lives, give us a new filling, (demonstrated in Acts, taught in the Epistles): Act 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. Eph 5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, But these things are not “secondary baptisms.” In Acts 19, do we know as a fact that these Ephesians were born again before Paul got there, and preached to them of Jesus? There is no indication that they had previously heard of Jesus. All they knew was John the Baptist. I agree with you that this baptism is for all believers. I also agree with you that the spiritual gifts continue until the church is brought to perfect maturity in Christ (Eph 4), but not all believe that, and we should not push it into debate. Let God be the One to persuade us of our errors. What do you think? Love in Christ, Mark |