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Jesus' Baptism

    Yesterday I concluded my posts on the trinity, ending with the Holy Spirit. Today, I thought I would go into further detail on the topic of the Holy Spirit - specifically the baptism of the Holy Spirit. As I mentioned yesterday, the ministry of the Holy Spirit is a frequently debated and misunderstood topic. Many Christians are unaware there is a baptism in the Holy Spirit! This is nothing new.  In fact, scripture tells us that it's been that way since Paul's day.

Acts 19:1-7 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 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.” 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. There were about twelve men in all. (NIV)

    Paul says, there is a difference between "John's baptism" (water baptism, the baptism of repentance) and "Jesus' baptism" (baptism in the Holy Spirit). As I explained yesterday, the Holy Spirit is Jesus' Spirit! When we are born again, our Spirits are made alive and we are reconciled with God. As part of our reconciliation we are to be baptized in water, symbolizing our new birth and repentance from our old ways of living.  As we are "buried" in water, we symbolize our sins being buried with Jesus.  The water symbolizes our purification, and when we emerge we are "new creations in Christ Jesus!" But there is an additional baptism in the Holy Spirit, a separate baptism. 

    When we are baptized in the Holy Spirit, we are filled up with Jesus' Spirit! We allow His Spirit to completely fill us and live through us. It makes the walk as a Christian a lot easier with His power coming through instead of our own. When we have not received the baptism in the Holy Spirit, we often feel like we are trying to do things alone, by our own strength and in the power of our flesh. It is often difficult to resist temptation, understand scripture or hear God's leading. 

    This is because we are not supposed to live that way! We are not designed to live through our flesh. You may think that if you're a Christian you are not living by your flesh, but that may not be true. If you are led more by the temptation of your fleshly desires than your Heavenly Father's desires for your life, you are walking in the flesh. 

    When we have Jesus' Spirit working through us, it changes everything! The Holy Spirit brings us many gifts that enhance our Christian walk and experience. If you have not been baptized in the Holy Spirit, I strongly encourage you to do so! Read further into what the word has to say about it (consider checking out the book of Acts) and pray that the Father reveals His truth to you. 

Acts 2:38 And Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (ESV)
Ephesians 1:18 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit (ESV)

    

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