“Are you able. . . to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” – Matthew 20:22
Our nation is being swamped by rain at numerous locations where the loss of life is mounting. We are headed into the hurricane season which will likely bring further hardship. Our nation is deeply divided politically. Conflict and corruption are commonplace. Efforts are being made to clean up the political swamp, but they always seem to stop short of any true justice or change. Economists are conflicted about what the future holds financially. While victories are being won to secure peace internationally, the world is still ever on the edge of exploding. As we look deeper to the heart of the problem, we see the heart of humanity is the problem.
This is the “world” to which Jesus said, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel” (Mark 16:15). The gospel of Jesus Christ is the answer, but how do we communicate and deliver that eternal truth to a heart sick world? There is so much pain, so much suffering, so much uncertainty. There’s so much division, darkness, and depression. How on earth are we as Christians going to ever make an impact for the glory of God in this world? The answer and solution to this mess isn’t a woke Church trying to figure out the problems of this world by becoming like the world. The solution isn’t redefining “sin” to make it acceptable. Promoting prizes and promising riches isn’t going to hit the target of the heart. The answer to this world’s heart problem is not marketing better, masking sins with warped views of scripture, or mimicking mindlessly the messages of those with the most hits on social media. The answer I believe, can be found in the relationship between the Holy Spirit, baptism, and mission.
Vance Havner, a fiery revivalist preacher, evangelist, and author of a previous era, insightfully commented, “We are not going to move this world by criticism of it, nor conformity to it, but only by the combustion within it of lives ignited by the Spirit of God.” If we are going to make an impact on this world for the glory of God, we must reach beyond politics and philosophical world views. If we are going to accomplish anything of eternal worth, we are going to have to go beyond mere horizontal causes. Politics, philosophy, horizontal causes all have their place. If we are going to love our neighbor as we should, we can’t neglect those things. But we can’t rest there, we must go further, deeper, we must experience the baptism that only the Holy Spirit gives. We need, as Vance Havner so powerfully points out, to be “ignited by the Spirit of God.” What does that mean? What does that look like?
What are Jesus’ instructions about serving Him? At the end of the gospel of Luke it states:
Luke 24:46-49 (NKJV) – Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 And you are witnesses of these things. 49 Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”
Jesus instructed His followers to, “tarry in the city of Jerusalem until they were endued with power from on high.” What is that experience and empowerment?
The Work of the Holy Spirit in us is to make us like Jesus:
Romans 8:29 (NKJV) – 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
When a person is born again and indwelled by the Holy Spirit as a gift of God’s grace received by faith, the Holy Spirit has a mission for each one He indwells, to make them like Jesus. That doesn’t mean we are made “little gods.” That means the Holy Spirit will direct us and empower us to walk as Jesus walked and follow in His steps (1 Peter 2:21; 1 John 2:6).
Jesus was Baptized by the Holy Spirit before He began His earthly ministry:
Matthew 3:13 – 4:1 (NKJV) – 13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” 15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him. 16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
Once we are saved from our sins through faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit then seeks to empower the believer for service just as Jesus was empowered for service and ministry. Jesus was born without a sinful nature, so the Holy Spirit resided in Jesus the Man. Before Jesus embarked on His redemptive mission, He was baptized with the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit came upon Him.
Jesus taught that the Holy Spirit is “with” us prior to our conversion convicting us of our sin and need of a Savior (John 14:17a; John 16:8-11). When we repent and trust Jesus as Savior the Holy Spirit indwells or comes “in” us giving us spiritual life (John 14:17b; Titus 3:4-7). The baptism with the Holy Spirit, the empowerment of the Holy Spirit is described by Jesus as the Holy Spirit coming “upon” us (Acts 1:8).
If Jesus was Baptized with the Holy Spirit, We Should Be Too!
Jesus was baptized with the Holy Spirit before He began His earthly ministry. Therefore, we should be baptized with the Holy Spirit too before we try serving Him. That is what He instructed His followers to do.
Acts 1:4-5 (NKJV) – 4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; 5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
Acts 1:8 (NKJV) – 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
The “upon” (Greek epi) experience of the Holy Spirit to empower a Christian provides “power” (Greek dunamis). We get the English word dynamite from this Greek term. But the power of the Holy Spirit isn’t so much to blow things up (though He is able to do that and blast away impediments to His purposes if He so desires). The power of the Holy Spirit is to witness. The power of the Holy Spirit is the power to do.
A.W. Tozer on the power of the Spirit – from The Abiding Elements of Pentecost wrote:
“Power means the ability to do. It means ability to do, that is all. Just the ability to do. . .. A dynamic ability to be able to do what you go to do. And ye shall receive ability to do, it will come on you. . .. He gives you the ability to be victorious in your life, to live right, to behold Jesus and to live with heaven in view. It is the ability to do.” Editor James L. Snyder, Tozer: Mystery of the Holy Spirit (Alachua, FL: Bridge Logos Pub. 2007). Pgs. 70, 71 (Acts 1:8)
If you’re going to live victoriously and usefully for Jesus, you need to first be empowered by the Holy Spirit.
They Waited Prayerfully for the Empowering of the Holy Spirit
Acts 1:12–14 (NKJV) – 12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey. 13 And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. 14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.
If we want to be empowered by the Holy Spirit, we should make our request in prayer and trust Him to provide this gift.
The Apostle John wrote:
1 John 5:14–15 (NKJV) – 14 Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
This empowerment of the Holy Spirit is something we should pray for and expect in answer to our prayers.
What We Receive from God is Always Received By Faith
Ask in faith, receive by faith:
Luke 11:13 (NKJV) – 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!”
Acts 15:8–9 (NKJV) – 8 So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, 9 and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
Being empowered by the Holy Spirit is not about us positioning ourselves “under the spout where the blessings flow out.” It is about taking God at His word, prayerfully asking, and in faith receiving. It should be mentioned though that scripture refers to, “the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him” (Acts 5:32). The idea of obedience implies there is truth to be obeyed. Where do we find such truth? We find it in God’s word (John 17:17).
All that we say here is predicated on seeking solutions withing the parameters of scripture. The Holy Spirit inspired the word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17). If we want to understand the Holy Spirit, we need to be familiar with His language, the word of God.
If we want to live in this power, we need to obey the Spirit. Rebellion and disobedience are contrary to the holy work the Holy Spirit intends to do in and through us. That should be clear to us. But the empowerment is something we receive by faith. Then it’s simply a matter of obediently following the Spirit’s leading.
A Word on What the Empowerment of the Holy Spirit Actually Is
At the end of the Gospel of Luke Jesus instructed His disciples to wait in Jerusalem to be baptized with the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49). But this is not mentioned at the end of John’s gospel.[1] At the end of John’s gospel Peter is restored. How Jesus restored Peter is interesting.
Three times Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him (John 21:15, 16, and 17). Each time Peter responded that he did love Jesus. The third question by Jesus questioning Peter’s love moved Peter to tears. How does this play into the baptism with the Holy Spirit? Jesus wanted Peter to know the centrality and importance of love. If Peter was going to “Feed My lambs,” “Tend My sheep,” and “Feed My sheep,” he would need help; he would need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit; he would need the power of God’s love overflowing him.
The night before Jesus went to the cross He told the disciples that they would all forsake Him (Matthew 26:69-75; Mark 14:66-72; Luke 54-62; and John 18:18-27). Peter stood up and insisted that the others might forsake Jesus, but he would not (Matthew 26:31-35; Mark 14:27-31; Luke 22:31-34; John 13:36-38). Then Jesus told him the sad prophetic truth that, not only would Peter deny Jesus, but he would deny Him three times. Peter had the best of intensions, but he lacked the power to follow through on them.
What was it that Peter lacked? What did Jesus point out to Peter on the shore of Galilee with the three questions about what he lacked? What Peter lacked was love. Peter didn’t love Jesus enough to stand with Him. And this is why Jesus insisted Peter, and the disciples wait in Jerusalem to be baptized with the Holy Spirit. The nature of the baptism with the Holy Spirit, is love. The power of the Holy Spirit is love based.
The Bible states that the Holy Spirit pours out love into the believer’s heart (Romans 5:5). The fruit of the Holy Spirit is love (Galatians 5:22-24). Prior to being baptized with the Holy Spirit, we love Jesus, we just don’t love Him enough. Jesus defined love as involving obedience. He said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15 and 21). True love of Jesus obeys Him.
The Baptism with the Holy Spirit – Immersion in the Love of Jesus
The baptism with the Holy Spirit is not merely about spiritual gifting, it is about love. People with spiritual gifts can still be carnal (cf. 1 Corinthians). Christians have no excuse to indulge in sin. God promises to provide a way of escape every time temptation occurs (1 Corinthians 10:13). So, how do we resist sinning? We resist in love. Love of Jesus is the path to victory in Jesus! We need to love Jesus so much that we refrain from sin. Such love can only be experienced through the Holy Spirit.
In Ezekiel 47 there is a depiction of a river. Ezekiel is instructed to go into the river first up to his ankles, then up to his knees, then up to his waist, then all the way in over his head. If that river is a river of God’s love, this is how some Christians live their lives. They go into the river of God’s love up to their ankles to test the waters. Their love toward God is only ankle deep, a little but not too much committed to Jesus. Then some people go a little further, but still not far enough. They go in up to their knees. They can still move around in the water. They are still in control. Then some go into the river up to their waste. They can still move around but they begin to feel the real current of the love of God. But again, they are still holding back. They are still in control. The baptism with the Holy Spirit is when you jump into the river of God’s love and commitment all the way. This is where you give up control and trust God to guide and provide for you. This is the sweet spot for the Christian life.
What better way to describe receiving the loving empowerment of the Holy Spirit than to describe it as a baptism? Baptized in the love of Jesus! Immersed in the love of Jesus! So indwelled and overflowed with the love of Christ that nothing can tempt us away from it, nothing can scare us away from following it obediently in Christ. Yes, the baptism with the Holy Spirit is what Jesus said would be like “rivers of living water” (John 7:37-39). “Living water,” enlivened by the love of the Holy Spirit overflowing us.
On Pentecost those who were baptized with the Holy Spirit stepped forth courageously to minister. Those they ministered to had a few days before consented, no, demanded, the brutal crucifixion of Jesus. For anyone depending on mere human sight, to say anything about Jesus to them would be frightening. But having been baptized with the Holy Spirit, they now loved Jesus so much, they didn’t care what would happen to them. They would proclaim Jesus and the Gospel from the rooftops for all to hear, no matter what the consequences.
Even though those they ministered to had just a short time earlier crucified Jesus, they loved Jesus so much that they were going to obediently seek to fulfill in the Spirit the Great Commission. But it was also such incredible, powerful love, that they would “love your enemies” (Luke 6:27 and 35). What probably sounded insane, even obscene to them when Jesus first said it, now may perfect loving sense. They loved Jesus with all their heart supremely. But they would also love their neighbor sacrificially. Such love is only possible, only acquirable, from the Holy Spirit of baptism.
It would be a mistake to think that such a subsequent work of the Spirit in baptism is about getting more of the Holy Spirit. That is not the case. We get as much of the Holy Spirit as we are ever going to get when we are born again. But the baptism with the Holy Spirit is about Jesus getting all of us! The baptism with the Holy Spirit is about a Christian going in all the way, holding nothing back, complete trust and full surrender to Jesus. The baptism with the Holy Spirit is, as Andrew Murray described it, abandonment to Jesus.
Baptism with a Purpose
A lot more could be said about baptism itself. Baptism is a sign of passing from death to life (Romans 6:4). Baptism is a sign of total surrender and resurrection to a life empowered with the Holy Spirit and His love. But baptism also involves a sense of mission and purpose.
When the mother of James and John the sons of Zebedee came and knelt before Jesus to request her sons be granted to sit beside Jesus in His kingdom, Jesus responded by questioned if they really knew what they were asking. He said, “Are you able. . . to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” (Matthew 20:22). With these words of Jesus we see that baptism includes a sense of mission purpose. Baptism is not a mere ritual or is it only an outward sign of an inward work. Baptism includes a sense of mission purpose.
Jesus knew what lay ahead of Him. As He stepped forward to fulfill the Father’s loving redemptive promise which included the cross as well as the resurrection, He described this mission as a baptism. He used baptism to speak of His mission because baptism illustrates total commitment.
When we are baptized to testify to our conversion in Christ, when we experience the baptism with the Holy Spirit in power, we should include in our thinking and heart that this is not just an experience to receive individually for ourselves, it is an experience with a purpose. We are on a mission like Jesus is. Being conformed to the likeness of Jesus includes adopting His mission in our lives.
This mission can only be accomplished in the same love that drove Jesus to the cross. That’s what love is like. Love is sacrificial and willing to suffer. Love is kind. Love isn’t envious and self-seeking. Love isn’t in it to win it for themselves. Love isn’t provoked and poked and pushed off course by evil. Love takes no pleasure when sin wins. Love rejoices in the truth. Love is willing to bear all things, believe all things, hope all things in its calling and mission purpose. Love never fails because such love comes from the Holy Spirit and keeps its eyes on Jesus (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). In fact, Jesus and “love” are interchangeable. Truly, Jesus is God and “God is love” (1 John 4:8 and 16). “In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we should live through Him” (1 John 4:9). Yes, that is our mission, to walk in the love of Jesus in this world and seek the redemption of as many lost-in-sin sinners as possible. The means to fulfilling that mission, is the baptism with the Holy Spirit, a baptism with the love of God. Now, I pray, let’s “live through Him” and lovingly ministry in the powerful love of the Holy Spirit. Father, in Jesus’ name we ask, please make us what we need to be, to do what You call us to do, for Your glory, until Jesus returns. That is the mission of the Holy Spirit of baptism. In Jesus’ name and the love of God. Amen!
[1] This may be because John’s gospel is the latest of the four gospels written and the Spirit directed John to a different concluding set of circumstances to record.