Holy Spirit
By Brent Rood | July 18, 2008
Holy Spirit and Pentecost
Who is the Holy Spirit?
He is the third person of the Trinity. He is responsible for convicting the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. He is the supernatural agent in regeneration. He baptizes all believers into the body of Christ, sanctifies them for service and growth and will forever indwell and seal them until Christ comes again (John 16:8-11; II Cor 12:12-14; Rom 8:9; Eph 5:18; Gal 5:16-25; Rom 15:16). Since the Holy Spirit is God, he was not created but has always existed (Acts 5:3-4).
Was the Holy Spirit given to people in the Old Testament?
Yes. First, the universal nature of the church and the oneness of all believers past and present makes the Holy Spirit a necessary part of the Old Testament saints. All who believe are united in Christ through the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:4-6). Those who do not have the Spirit do not have Christ (1 John 4:13; Rom. 8:9).
Second, there are countless passages which speak of the Spirit of God coming on individuals in the Old Testament not simply for salvation, but to empower them for ministry (Ps. 51:11; Isa. 63:10-11; Jdg. 6:34; 11:29; I Sam. 10:6; 2 Sam. 23:2; Isa. 61:).
What is the difference between the Holy Spirit before Pentecost and after Pentecost?
First, before Pentecost people were sealed by the Holy Spirit but not necessarily empowered by Him. As mentioned in the previous section, all God-followers of all ages must have the Holy Spirit within them in order to be sealed for heaven and united to Christ. However, though many were God-fearers even among the Gentiles, few were “filled” or “controlled” by the Spirit. Other than kings, priests and prophets it was rare for anyone to display spiritual gifts given to them by the Spirit. After Pentecost, all who have the Holy Spirit by faith are also promised empowering by him (1 Cor. 12:1-11; Eph. 4:8; Heb. 2:4).
Second, before Pentecost the power of the Holy Spirit was limited in the lives of believers. Although there were some amazing supernatural acts by chosen leaders, power over demons and effective evangelism of foreigners was almost non-existent. After Pentecost, there was an explosion of evangelism. Satan was bound by Jesus not to blind the nations any more, and demons were now cast out of people to free them to believe (Luke 10:18; 11:18-22; Rev. 20:2-7). Miraculous healing, mass prophecy and resurrection power over sin became available (Rom. 6:1-14; Phil. 3:10).
What is the “baptism of the Holy Spirit”?
The baptism of the Holy Spirit, also called the “gift” of the Holy Spirit, is the fulfillment of the prophecies of John the Baptist (Luke 3:16) and Jesus (Acts 1:4, 5). It is not so much an act of the Holy Spirit as it is the final acts of Jesus in empowering and equipping the church to accomplish the mission to which he commissioned them (Acts 1:8; Matt. 28:18-20). This makes the baptism of the Holy Spirit a once-for-all event in the history of redemption, along with the death, resurrection and ascension of Christ, with which it is most closely associated (Acts 2:32, 33).
Did the “baptism of the Holy Spirit” happen instantly, or was it completed in stages?
It was completed in stages. Just as Christ’s incarnation, death and resurrection went through specific stages to reach their fulfillment, so Christ’s baptism with the Holy Spirit went through four stages to reach its completion. The baptism of the Spirit was to bring a complete typological uniting of Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the known Gentile world. First, on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit fell upon the entire body of Jewish believers (Acts 2:1-4). Second, in Samaria, when the Samaritan believers received the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:14-17). Third, in Caesarea, when the Holy Spirit fell upon all the Gentile listeners, the initial nucleus of the far-flung church among the Gentiles (Acts 10:44). And fourth, at Ephesus, when the Holy Spirit came on previously bypassed disciples of John the Baptist in close conjunction with their being baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 19:1-7). Baptism with the Holy Spirit is thus associated with the once-for-all foundation and the ongoing witnessing nature of the church of Jesus Christ.
How does “baptism of the Holy Spirit” apply to believers today?
Every believer comes to share in the baptism with the Holy Spirit through his union with Christ at conversion (1 Cor. 12:13; Romans 6:3 ff.; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 2:5, 6; Col. 2:12, 13; 3:1-3). Baptism with the Spirit, therefore, as an experience of individual believers, is not an event subsequent to conversion, or enjoyed only by some believers. To share in the baptism of the Holy Spirit means to have a place in the universal church where the Holy Spirit dwells and where he is at work (Eph. 2:21-22).
How does “baptism of the Holy Spirit” differ from “filling of the Holy Spirit?
Baptism of the Holy Spirit is a historical event while the “filling of the Holy Spirit” is a normative Christian experience. Of the seven times “baptism of the Holy Spirit” is used, 6 of those times refer to the event of Pentecost (Matt. 3:11; Mark 1:8; Lk. 3:16; Jn. 1:33; Acts 1:5; 11:15). The only passage which refers to being “baptized” spiritually makes the act synonymous with salvation of every believer (I Cor. 12:13). Being filled with the Spirit is the continuing activity of the Spirit in the life of the believer, and occurs at different times in the life of the believer based on his/her willingness to submit to the will of God (Eph. 5:17-21; Gal. 5:16). Filling of the Spirit is connected to the baptism of the Spirit because it is based on the historical baptism at Pentecost and the practical baptism of each of us at Salvation. We are able to now be “filled” by the Holy Spirit to empower and lead us in our Christian life.
Should believers today expect supernatural experiences when they receive the Holy Spirit at conversion?
No. Jesus said the Holy Spirit cannot be seen or felt, though his effects may be experienced (John 3:8). The reason fire, wind sounds and prophetic utterances happened at Pentecost was to have external signs which confirmed the Spirit’s presence. The Holy Spirit doesn’t sound like wind or look like fire. Without these effects no one would experience anything different. However, this doesn’t mean other effects of Holy Spirit conversion don’t happen. They may be different for different people. Some experience nothing at conversion, but see a slow change in their desires. Others feel a deep sense of peace. Others experience a rush of emotion. Others experience an immediate freedom from certain addictions. Some don’t convert to Jesus through a one time event like a prayer, or a decision during a service. They gradually come to belief through a process.
What is the gift of “tongues” given at Pentecost?
The gift of tongues was the supernatural ability to prophesy in a foreign language. Some believe tongues referred to some form of supernatural babbling instead of a clear language. There are several reasons this isn’t the case.
1) Tongues in the Septuagint. The Greek word for “tongues” is glosson and is found 113 times in the Greek version of the Old Testament, the Septuagint (Gen. 10:5, 20, 31; 11:7; Daniel 3:4; 29; 4:1; Isa. 66:18). In all cases “tongues” refers to either the physical tongue in the mouth or a known language.
2) Tongues in Prophecy. The Old Testament prophets predicted that at the coming of the Messiah many supernatural events would happen, including the fact that people representing every nation on earth would hear of Christ (Zech. 8:23; Isa. 28:11; 66:18; Eze. 3:6). In I Corinthians 14:21, Paul uses Old Testament language of foreign tongues to explain the phenomenon (Isa. 28:11, 12; Deut. 28:49; Jer. 5:15).
3) Tongues and Pentecost Imagery. The two images of Pentecost confirm the necessity of tongues referring to a known language. a) Law given at Sinai. Pentecost occurred 50 days after Passover just as the Law was given by God 50 days after the people were saved from Egypt. The Rabbis taught that when God spoke at Sinai giving the law, “every word which came form the mouth of the Almighty was divided into seventy tongues”, so that the Gentiles who were traveling with the Israelites might hear and understand the Torah clearly for themselves. Philo, the Jewish philosopher says that “from the fire of God’s glory came a voice which was understandable in the language familiar to the hearers.” b) Harvest of the Gospel. Pentecost was also called the Feast of Weeks and represented the first fruit of harvest to be celebrated. In Acts 2 Jews who represented “every nation under heaven” (vs. 5) came to Jerusalem to celebrate the Day of Pentecost. When the Holy Spirit empowered the apostles and they began to speak in tongues, the Jews were bewildered “because they were each one hearing them speak in his own language”. The purpose of tongues was to be a supernatural sign to unbelievers, while at the same time giving them the message of the gospel in their own language. It was on the day of Pentecost that the first great harvest of Jesus occurred and 3000 people were converted when the gospel was preached in everyone’s own language (Acts 2:41). c) Reversal of Babel. One of the biggest evils of mankind occurred in the Old Testament in the city of Babel where a tower was build to get to God (Gen. 1:1-9). It was an act of false worship that was so disgusting to God that He said, “Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech” (vs. 7). We get the word “babbling” from this event because of the confusing sound we hear when we don’t understand someone else’s language. Pentecost was a reversal of the tower of Babel in which God took the chaos of language diversity and brought order to it through the gift of tongues. If tongues continued to just be personal “babbling” then it makes little sense as a reversal.
What was the purpose of tongues?
1) Tongues were an instrument of revelation. Paul said in I Corinthians 14:2, “For one who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men, but to God; for no one understands, but in his spirit he speaks mysteries.” A mystery in scripture is something that was once hidden that is now revealed. Jesus said his followers would be revealers of the mysteries of the kingdom (Matt. 13:11). Paul’s preaching is according to the revelation of the mystery given to Him (Rom. 11:25; 16:25; I Cor. 2:1). This mystery relates to the gospel and particularly how the new church includes both Jew and Gentile (Eph. 3:6). In other words, tongues were an instrument of revelation. This is why Paul called prophecy in a known language better than tongues which aren’t interpreted because prophecy is revelation that all can understand (I Cor. 14:4-5).
2) Tongues were for public use. Every gift that was given including tongues was for the benefit of the “common good” (I Cor. 12:4-7). If people don’t understand what is being said it brings no benefit to the body, and therefore should not be done (I Cor. 14:18-19).
3) Tongues were a sign of judgment. In Acts 2:16-21, Peter declares that the tongues speaking which went on was a fulfillment of Joel 2. Yet, Joel said that sons and daughters would “prophesy”. Tongues are clearly a subset of prophecy. Three of the times that tongues is used in the Old Testament, it refers to a sign of coming judgment (Isa. 28:9-11; Deut. 28:49; Jer. 5:15). Tongues were a sign as much as they were a tool to spread the gospel (I Cor. 14:22). They were a sign that pointed to the baptism of the Holy Spirit which John the Baptist indicated was a sign of the judgment of God on the nation of Israel (Matt. 3:11-12). It involves the giving over of the kingdom to a “people bringing fruit” (Matt. 21:43).
Have the gifts of tongues and prophecy ceased today?
Yes and No. Tongues and prophecy as a sign of the baptism of the Holy Spirit no longer exists, because the event has already been fulfilled. There is no need for continual fulfillment in the church age. Both tongues and prophecy were the identifying signs of the event of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The baptism of the Holy Spirit was the sign of the “last days” spoken by the prophets beginning with Moses (Deut. 4:30; Num. 12; Isa. 2:2-3; Hos. 3:5; Mic. 4:1; Dan. 2:28; 10:14ff; Joel 2; Acts 2:17). The last days are the time when God’s people would be re-gathered, prophecy would by given to many, churches would be planted across the world and the Jewish nation that as a whole rejected the Messiah would be destroyed. Jesus told his disciples that the fulfillment and completion of the last days events would happen within their generation (Matt. 24:34). The events Jesus spoke of led up to and ended in A.D. 70 when Jerusalem and its temple were destroyed by the Romans. However, tongues as a gift given by the Holy Spirit for specific acts of evangelism is still a possibility today. The Holy Spirit can give whatever gifts necessary to accomplish his work. The gift of prophecy does not always mean “forthtelling”, but “speaking the truth of God’s word”, and as such can be used in today’s churches.
Is the gift of tongues given at Pentecost different from the tongues spoken of by Paul in I Corinthians 14?
Not necessarily. At first look the tongues of Corinthians seems to be different than in Acts. In Corinthians it is personal, incoherent and needing translation, and possibly brings private edification. Admittedly, the tongues mentioned in I Corinthians 14 seems to be less clear as to what it is. However, since the origination of the gift in Acts 2 is clear, then there are several reasons to believe tongues to be of the same type of gift in I Corinthians as it was given at Pentecost. First, the word “tongues” is the same Greek word in both passages. It has already been shown that tongues refers to a spoken language as opposed to angelic babbling. Second, Acts 10:44 records the Spirit falling on the Gentiles after Peter tells them the gospel, and immediately they spoke in tongues. When Peter later reflects on this to the other apostles he says, “the Holy Spirit fell upon them, just as He did upon us at the beginning” (Acts 11:15). Peter says when post-Pentecost converts received tongues, it was the same tongues as that which happened to the apostles. This would mean it was a spoken language. So it is reasonable to believe that the tongues of Corinth was the same as the tongues of Caesarea where the Gentiles received it, and the tongues of Ephesus where Paul laid his hands on new converts (Acts 19:6). Third, the pointl of Paul’s teaching in I Corinthians was not to distinguish between public and private tongues or between angelic language versus human language. The issue was the abuse of tongues. If tongues was a spoken language as it was in all other cases, then it could easily fit into the Paul discussion. Some people were given the supernatural ability outside of their intellect to speak an unknown language. However, at times, no one in the room spoke that particular language. Since people didn’t understand it, it brought no benefit to others (I Cor. 14:4-5; 18-19). Those who spoke in an unknown language to people who didn’t understand were talking to God because it brought no benefit to anyone else. Since the purpose of the tongues is for others, then this personal tongues use needed to stop (I Cor. 41:2-4).
Are the gifts of the Spirit today less useful than they were at Pentecost?
No. It is easy to come to this conclusion because during the “latter days” (events leading up to the destruction of the old economy) it seems that everyone had superhuman abilities. There was healing, speaking in unknown languages, prophesying of future events. Then today, we feel we may be experiencing less power of the Spirit by using our lesser gifts of mercy or encouragement. It must be remembered that even during the time of Pentecost it was rare for anyone but the apostles to receive any of the sign gifts such as tongues, prophecy and healing, which were primarily to confirm the ministry of the apostles. The purpose of the gifts is to build up the community and to expose the gospel (Rom. 12; I Cor. 12; Eph. 4). In fact, in the event recorded of the first 3000 people to be saved during Pentecost, there is not one mention of miraculous gifts, yet people unified and built each other up through standard gifts of hospitality, mercy, encouragement, teaching, etc. (Acts 2:41-47). These gifts, by promoting love are even more important than any miraculous gift because they truly accomplish what God wants for his church (I Cor. 13).
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