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PENTECOST AND
THE BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT
Dr. Silas C. Nair
Introduction
Pentecost marks the inauguration of a new
work by the Holy Spirit. Understanding the meaning of “Pentecost” is pivotal
in understanding the work of the Spirit in this dispensation. There is utter
confusion among Christians regarding Pentecost and its significance. Every
word in the Scriptures is inspired (2 Tim. 3.16) and the apostles and prophets
have spoken "not in words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy
Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual" (1 Cor. 2.13).
Therefore, we need not read into the Scriptures our own theology but distinguish
the things that differ.
Pentecost was a decisive point in the work
of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost is a historical and unique event. Pentecost
was one of the seven holy feasts of Jehovah (Cf. Lev.23.4, 5). The Correlation
of the first four one with the other may particularly be noted
1.
The feast of Passover.
This was on the 14th day of Nissan. Ex. 12.1-14; 1 Cor. 5.7.
2.
The feast of unleavened
bread. This was from the 15th – 21st day of Nissan.
Ex. 12.15-20
3.
The feast of first
fruits. This was on the 16th day of Nissan. Lev. 23.9-14
4.
The feast of Pentecost.
This was on the 6th day of Sivan. Lev. 23.15-17; Acts. 2.1
These first four feasts are very closely related
and the three that follow the first are in relation to the first feast. The
first three fell in the first month, on 14th, 15th
and 16th, and the 4th was on the morrow after the seven
Sabbaths. This relationship should be kept in view while we discuss the feast
of Pentecost.
On the feasts of Unleavened Bread, Pentecost
and Tabernacles all male members of Israel over 20 years were required to appear in the temple
in Jerusalem (Ex. 23.14-19). These three times when “all your
men shall appear before the Lord,” God promised them that “neither will any
man covet your land when you go up to appear before the Lord your God three
times in the year” (34.22-24). And they shall not appear before the Lord
empty handed (Deut. 16.16).
On the 14th of Nissan was the Passover.
When the angel of death saw the blood of the Passover Lamb sprinkled on the
lintel and the door posts He passed over them (Ex. 12). This feast was a
type of the death of the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 5.7). The third day from
this on the 16th Nissan was the feast of first fruits, which is
a type of the resurrection of Christ (1 Cor.15.23). On the morrow after seven
Sabbaths (i.e. on the 50th day, 50th day after the
first fruits, resurrection) is the day of Pentecost.
The Jews were commanded to "bring out of your
habitations two wave loaves of two tenth parts; they shall be of fine flour;
they shall be baked with leaven; they are the first fruits unto the Lord
(Lev.23.17). This feast typified the first fruits of dedication. On this
day (Acts 2) 3000 souls were saved. All these types had their fulfillment
in the New Testament and the New Testament has specifically authorized them
as types in the Old Testament.
On the day of Pentecost the Jews were asked
to bring from their dwellings two wave-loaves. They shall be of fine flour
and they shall be baked with leaven (Lev. 23.17). These two wave loaves typified
both Jew and Gentile, which formed parts of the Church. In the Church age,
the present dispensation in which we live, though the Lord is not dealing
with the Jews as a nation, individual Jews will be saved as also individual
gentiles. Failure to understand this distinction is to misunderstand the
meaning of Pentecost.
Pentecost is the complement of Calvary. Pentecost has made available to men what Calvary made possible. Pentecost sometimes is also said
to be the powerhouse of Christianity.
When the day of Pentecost was "fully" come
they were prepared. They were waiting for the promise of the Father (Acts.
1.5). This was a historical event. It is never repeated. This can be repeated
only if Calvary can be repeated. This is impossible.
There are those who repeat Calvary every Sunday. In the Roman Catholic Mass when
the officiating priest lifts up the wafer and the cup, according to their
theology, these elements are transformed into the body and blood of Christ.
On Good Friday Christendom crucify the Lord again and again. But the Scriptures
say that He died only once. In the same way many evangelical Christians repeat
Pentecost when a person is born again and yet others see this as a second
blessing received by those who are born again. Pentecost is a historical
event, which is never repeated. Pentecost can be repeated only if Calvary can be repeated, which is unthinkable.
Pentecost is described in Acts 2.1-4,
but not defined. For a definition or meaning of Pentecost we need
to turn elsewhere (Cf.1 Cor. 12.13).
- They were with one accord in one place in
Jerusalem. (These were the disciples of the Lord, Jews)
- There was the audible sound as of a mighty
wind from heaven
- It filled the house
- There appeared unto them
cloven tongues like as of fie
- It sat upon each of them
- They were filled with the Holy Spirit
- They began to speak with other tongues as
the Spirit gave them utterance.
Pentecost was the seal of the Messiahship
of Jesus and the fulfillment of the promise of the Father (Acts. 1.5). This
was also the occasion of the institution of the Church. On this day the Church
was born and in that sense it is the birthday of the Church. The Word became
flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus was born in the body prepared for him by
the Father. Likewise on the day of Pentecost according to the prophecy announced
by John the Baptist (Matt. 3.11.Mark 1.8; Luke 3.16; John 1.33) and confirmed
by the Lord Jesus Himself (Acts. 1.5), Holy Spirit came to possess the body,
the temple of God, which is the Church. "At Pentecost the Holy Spirit
came as He had never come before. Something that transpired which inaugurated
a new era for the world, a new power for righteousness, a new basis for fellowship"
(Holy Spirit, P.42 by A. W. Pink)
When the day of Pentecost had fully come they
were all with one accord in one place (Acts. 2.1). Jesus was born in Bethlehem. This was the prophecy and it was fulfilled (Mich.5.2).
Holy Spirit would have come on the day of Pentecost only on Jerusalem only and nowhere else. This was also the word
that Jesus gave. They were to tarry at Jerusalem. What happened then?
After the Tabernacle was erected the Shekinah
glory filled the tent of the congregation (Ex. 40.34-35). Likewise when Solomon
erected the temple (1 Kings 8.11) the glory of the Lord filled the house.
In the New Testament God is building a new temple out of living stones (1
Pet. 2.4,5).
When the fullness of time was come God sent
forth His son (Gal. 4.4) and when the day of Pentecost was fully come, the
Holy Spirit came to indwell the temple of God (cf.1 Cor. 3.16). Believers corporately were fused
into the temple of God. The Holy Spirit also indwells every believer.
The "cloven tongues as of fire" are comparable
to the Shekinah glory, and is a demonstration to the world that God had come
to possess his temple. The formation of the Church on the day of Pentecost
was done by the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. What is the Baptism of the Spirit?
The word 'baptism' is a transliteration of
the Greek word baptisma, ('baptizo' is 'to dip', 'immerse').
There are only seven direct references to
the Baptism of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. These references can
be categorized into three groups:
1.
Matt.3.11; Mark 1.8;
Lk.3.16; Jn.1.33; Acts 1.5. These are prophetical.
2.
Acts 11.16. This is
historical
3.
1 Cor.12.13. This
is doctrinal.
The first four references are made in the
setting of water baptism of John the Baptist. He prophesied that the One
coming after him will baptize with (Gk. 'en') the Holy Spirit and fire.
The fifth reference is also prophetical. But here Jesus is the prophet who
said, "You shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from
now" (Acts. 1.5). Till this time baptism by
the Spirit had not taken place.
The next reference (the 6th) is
historical. According to the direction of the Spirit, Peter went to the house
of Cornelius, a gentile, and preached the gospel. He is recounting this experience
before the Jerusalem elders: ‘as I began to speak the Holy Spirit fell
upon them, as upon us at the beginning. Then I remembered the word of the
Lord, how he said, John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized
with the Holy Spirit (Acts 11.15,16). So what happened in the house of
Cornelius was similar to something happened when Peter and the other men
in Jerusalem were together at the beginning.
Peter understood that what happened to them and in the house of Cornelius
were the fulfillment of the prophecy of the Lord Jesus.
What happened at the beginning is described
in Acts 2.1-4. But no definition of this is given in Acts. This is
history.
“When the day of Pentecost had fully come,
they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound
from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where
they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire,
and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance”.
The last and the seventh reference is in 1
Cor.12.13. This is the doctrinal definition of baptism of the Holy Spirit.
“For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” So the baptism of
the Spirit is the work of the Holy Spirit whereby He made the believers into
one body, the Church.
The Greek word “en” is variously translated
by words “with,” “by,” “in,” etc. The context has to decide by which English
word the Greek word should be translated. “Jesus, when He was baptized, went
up straightway out of the water” (Matt. 3.16). He was in the water and came
up out of the water. So it is correct to translate
John’s word, “I indeed baptize you “in” water. In water baptism, there is
the Baptizer, (John) the one who is baptized, (Jesus) the element in which
He is baptized (water) and the purpose for which He is baptized (to fulfill
all righteousness). The same is true of baptism ‘in’ the Spirit also. The
Baptizer is Jesus, those who are baptized are the believers, the element
is the Spirit and the purpose is to form the body.
In all the first four reference to Spirit
baptism John said it was Jesus who was going to be the Baptizer. In Acts
1.5 Jesus only prophesied about the fact of baptism ‘not many days hence’.
In Acts 11.6 Peter recollected the prophecy of the Lord Jesus. In all these
six references to the Spirit baptism the Baptizer is therefore the Lord Jesus.
There is no reason to suppose another Baptizer in 1 Cor.12.13. Jesus Christ
Himself is the baptizer here also. Spirit would have come only after He was
glorified (Cf. Jn. 7.37-39) and He Himself had promised to send the Holy
Spirit (Jn.16.7). On the day of Pentecost Jesus Christ baptized the believers
in one Spirit into the Body. So this is the baptism “in the Spirit” not
‘baptism by the spirit or with the spirit’.
C. Baptism in the Spirit that Happened
on the Day
of Pentecost Is Historical.
Why is what happened on the fiftieth day (Pentecost)
said to be historical? There are several reasons for this.
1. What happened on this day was in fulfillment
of the prophecies concerning the feast of Pentecost. As the King James version
puts it, this happened when the day of Pentecost was fully come.”
2. This was unique and final. It has never happened
before, and did not happen even in Acts 8, 10 or 19 and will never happen
again.
3. By one Spirit we were all baptized into one
body. The verb in this verse is in the aorist passive tense. The event has
already taken place and is applicable to all believers alike as a positional
truth. I am (have been) crucified with Christ (Gal. 2.20). The crucifixion
of Christ is described to us in the gospels outwardly. The verb here is in
the perfect tense and speaks of an action that took place in the past but
having present results. Like wise, we were all baptized in one Spirit. The
Body was formed on the day of Pentecost, and since then the Lord has added
to the church daily such as who would be saved (Acts. 2.47). On the day the
Body was born – Pentecost – it was full. The Body only grows since then.
4. Narrating the events of the Red Sea, Paul writes: all our fathers were under the cloud,
all passed through the sea, and all were baptized
into Moses in the cloud and in the sea” (1 Cor. 10.1-1-2). The baptism into
Moses speaks of the :oneness or solidarity of Israel: as their leader. Centuries later referring to
this incident Amos writes: “Also I brought you up from the land of Egypt and led you forty years through the wilderness,
to possess the land of the Amorites” (Amos 2.10). The “you” in this verse
speaks of Israel as a Nation. Their national (corporate) conversion
took place centuries earlier but the later generations also have a part in
it. Likewise the baptism in the Spirit, which is corporate, took place on
the day of Pentecost, but all the believers in the late centuries have a
part in it. They are added to the church.
5. Whether Jew or Gentile, every believer irrespective
of national, social or racial differences, is a member of the body of Christ
and “we all” were baptized into the Body of Christ on the day of Pentecost.
After Pentecost “the Lord added to the church
daily such as should be saved” (Acts. 2.47). The saved ones are those who
are born again, sealed by the Spirit and indwelt by the Spirit. The Holy
Spirit lives in them. As in the case of baptizing ‘in’ the Spirit, the work
of adding to the Church is also the work of the Lord Jesus.
D. Has the Baptism in the Spirit that Happened
on the
Day of Pentecost Been Repeated?
In the Book of Acts we have three other instances
where Pentecostal experience is said to have been repeated. We would examine
this. Acts Eight speaks of Samaritans. They believed and were baptized in
the name of the Lord Jesus but had not received the Holy Spirit. Peter and
John went to Samaria and laid their hands on them and received the
Holy Ghost (Acts. 8.14-17).
Peter was sent to the house of Cornelius,
a gentile, and gospel was preached unto him. Then Holy Ghost fell on them
that heard the word and they spoke in tongues and magnified God (Acts. 10.23-48).
Paul came to Ephesus and found certain disciples (of John the Baptist).
They were baptized with John’s baptism but had not received the Holy Spirit.
Paul preached to them that John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance and
“they should believe on him who should come after him , that is, on Christ
Jesus”. When they heard this they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus
and when Paul laid hands on them Holy Ghost came on them and
spoke with tongues and prophesied (Acts.19.1-6)
These three instances are sometime called
the extension of Pentecost. The work of the Spirit in these three places
while maintaining the unity of believers whether Jews, Samaritans, Gentiles
or disciples of the Baptist, guarded them against
having separate churches. Yet in none of these places the occurrence was
similar to that in Jerusalem. The occurrence in Jerusalem was historical, and has not been repeated and
will not be repeated. The phenomena on the day of Pentecost describe to us
of what happened there but it is only apostle Paul who gives us the doctrine
of this event, which is the formation of the church.
In the prophetical reference in Mathew and
Luke, John the Baptist also mentioned of a baptism of fire. Some have seen
in this reference the cloven tongues as of fire on the day of Pentecost,
comparable to the Shekinah glory filling the temple. But the context makes
it very clear that this is not so. Both Mathew and Luke continue:
“His winnowing fan is in His hand and He will
thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn,
but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Matt. 3.11). So baptism
of fire speaks of future judgment.
If on the other hand the ‘baptism of fire’
is symbolized by the ‘cloven tongues as of fire’ on the day of Pentecost,
and Pentecost is a personal experience of the baptism in the Spirit, every
time a person experiences this the ‘cloven tongues as of fire’ should sit
on every believer. This has never happened and is never happening today.
Therefore to claim that the “baptism of fire” is a present experience of
blessing, whether second or third, is to misinterpret the Scripture.
There are other similar references in the
New Testament. We will examine some of them.
‘Baptized into Christ,’ i.e. ‘baptized
into his death’ (Rom. 6.3); ‘baptized into Christ’ (Gal. 3.27); ‘one
baptism’ (Eph. 4.5); ‘buried with Him in baptism’ (Col. 2.12).
Some have classified these references also
under ‘baptism with the Spirit.’ This should not be so and the things that
differ should be distinguished.
Griffith Thomas wrote a book called "Christianity
is Christ." It is true Christianity is Christ. It is not a religion in the
sense of other religions. Christianity is a Person, Christ. Christianity
is also personal. Christ is a historical person. But when one accepts Christ
as Lord and is born again, he experiences Christ. In this sense Christianity
is experiential also.
Christianity is also corporate. The Lord added
to the Church daily those who were being saved. The moment a person is saved
he is added to the Church. The personal and corporate aspect of Christianity
should also be distinguished.
"I have been crucified with Christ" (Gal.
2.20). This is the identification of the believer with Christ into His death.
Jesus was crucified on Calvary. This was 2000 years ago. When I accept Him as
my Lord, I have been crucified there as well in Him. This is the truth of
Scripture.
"Or do you not know that as many of us as
were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?"
(Rom. 6.3). Those who were baptized into Christ are
those who were baptized into His death. This is personal. Baptism into Jesus
Christ means in salvation a believing sinner is identified with Christ in
his death and resurrection. God reckons as if the believer has died with
Christ and rose again with him. Whereas by the baptism in (or of or with)
the Spirit the believers are fused into the body of Christ. This happened
on the day of Pentecost. (Today believers, those who are baptized into Christ,
are added to the Church) These are two distinct operations, though happening
simultaneously. One cannot be divorced from the other but they are distinct.
Baptized into Christ speaks of my relationship with Christ, but baptism in
the Spirit and being added to the Church speaks of my relationship with other
believers in the body. Without the former the latter is not possible. They
also happen simultaneously but there is a logical order. The personal comes
before the corporate aspect.
1. Romans 6:3
The baptism of Romans 6.3 is neither water
baptism of a believer nor 'baptism with the Spirit", which is corporate,
but the believer's personal identification with Christ in his death and resurrection.
Water baptism is the likeness of this baptism into the death of Christ. In
v.5 Paul speaks of “likeness of His death and likeness of His resurrection.”
It is here he speaks of water baptism. Water
baptism is the likeness of a believer’s “baptism into Christ” i.e. his confession
that he is dead with Christ and risen with Him.
2. Galatians 3:27
For as many of you as were baptized into Christ
have put on Christ (Gal.3.27). What is the meaning of this baptism?
"This is not water baptism, which cannot save.
Paul used the word "baptized" in a metaphorical sense to speak of being "immersed"
or "placed into" Christ (cf. Gal. 2.20) by the spiritual miracle of union
with Him in his death and resurrection (John Mac Arthur, Note
on Galatians 3.27).
This “union” with Christ, which takes place
at the time of conversion, is confessed in water baptism. This (water) baptism
does not make a person a member of Christ or an inheritor of the kingdom of God. It is a public identification with Christ, which
Paul speaks of as a 'putting on' of Christ. Just as a soldier proclaims himself
a member of the army by 'putting on' his uniform, so a believer identifies
himself as one who belongs to Christ by being baptized in water. It is certain
that the apostle is not suggesting that water baptism unites a person to
Christ. Nor is Paul likely referring here to Spirit baptism, which places
a believer in the body of Christ. In water baptism the Galatians confessed
that they had died with Christ and had been buried with Him (William Mac
Donald, Believers Bible Commentary, N.T. page 701).
In Galatians chapter 3, Paul explains that
justification of a believer is by faith and is apart from the Law (1-25).
And such a justified person is a son in the family of God. All are sons of
God by faith in Christ Jesus. Without any distinction of Jew or Gentile,
bond or free, male or female all becomes Abraham's seed by faith. This is
because all have been "baptized into Christ." This is not water baptism,
but one's personal identification with Christ in His death and resurrection.
Everyone who is thus baptized has "put on" Christ.
Water baptism does not baptize a person into
Christ, but is a confession that the candidate is the one who has identified
himself with Christ in is death and resurrection i.e. baptized into Christ.
3. One Baptism (Eph. 4.5)
Chapters 4 and 5 describes the life and service
of a believer. All are one in Christ. Because they are united to Christ and
they are united to one another. This unity of the Spirit is to be maintained.
The seven-fold unity that is to be kept is mentioned in 4.4-6. The first
three chapters of Ephesians speak of the doctrine and the next three of life.
Though of-course the doctrine is related to life, the emphasis is on practice
in the second section. The baptism here speaks of water baptism. A Jew is
exposed to many baptisms (cf. Heb. 6.2 = doctrine of baptisms; 9.10 – various
washings). But Christian Baptism is singular. The Gentile has no baptism.
But now both of them Jew or Gentile must show allegiance to one (Christian)
baptism. Believer’s baptism is one, though there are different
modes of this baptism adopted by different groups. Some even don’t follow
water baptism.
4. Buried with Him in Baptism (Col. 2.12)
The emphasis in the expression “baptized into
Christ” is one’s identification with Christ in his death and resurrection.
But in the present reference in Colossians, the emphasis is on burial of
the believing sinner. This also happened at conversion and is portrayed in
water baptism.
G. False Views on the Baptism in
the Spirit
It was mentioned earlier that the baptism
in the Spirit was the work of the Lord when the believers were fused into
the body of Christ. This is historical and took place at Pentecost. This
is not repeated.
Is a believer baptized with the Spirit today
at conversion? Some maintain that this takes place every time a sinner believes.
Paul’s statement: For by one spirit we were all baptized into one body (1
Cor.12.13) is the corporate aspect of this baptism. If the Spirit baptism
is historical and it happened on the day of Pentecost this does not happen
again.
H. Is It Necessary for a Believer to Wait for the
Baptism
with the Spirit to
Receive the Holy Spirit?
Is baptism ‘with’ the Spirit a second blessing
or experience for which a believer has to wait, as the early believers waited
in Jerusalem? There is no baptism ‘with the Spirit’ as it was
explained earlier. There is only baptism ‘in’ the Spirit. Therefore it is
not necessary for any believer to wait for the baptism with the Spirit either
in Jerusalem or elsewhere.
“Baptized” is in the aorist tense, which not
only looks back to an act, but views the act in its completeness, as accomplished.
This verb ‘baptized’ refers, therefore, to Pentecost, and gives us the doctrinal
explanation of that event. All references to this baptism have Pentecost
in prospect (Matt. 3.11; Mark 1.8; Lk. 3.16; Jn. 1.33; Acts. 1.5) or in retrospect
(Acts 11.15; 1 Cor. 12.13). Again ‘baptized’ links with what took place in
Acts 2, where we are told that the Spirit filled the house (v.2). It was
a literal baptism. The Holy Spirit had come in answer to the promise of the
Lord in the Gospels (Jn. 14.26; 15.26; 16.7) to form the Body of Christ.
Those present were actually baptized in the element, the Spirit. By the descent
of the Spirit they were all baptized into one body. When Paul says “we” he
has in view the whole Church in contrast to “ye” (v.27), referring to the
local church. Do not the words of John the Baptist in the Gospels indicate
that all whom he baptized in water would be baptized in the Spirit (Mark
1.8)? In the mind of God all Christians were seen to be baptized. It is essential
to see that the Holy Spirit only came down once. His coming was unique and
final. It was unique for it never happened before; it was final in that it
will never again happen in that way. There was only one baptism of this kind.
This was the birthday of the Church. We speak of our next birthday, but actually
we have only one birthday, the rest are anniversaries. Believers are not
baptized in this way at conversion; they come into the good of what took
place at Pentecost. There is no Scripture that states that believers are
baptized in the Spirit at conversion. The words used of what takes place
at conversion are indwelling, anointed, sealed, earnest, but not baptism”
(Richie New Testament Commentaries, I Corinthians, by J.
Hunter, P.146)
“The baptism in the Spirit by Christ of every
believer into His body to form His body is a historical event similar to
His incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension and coming again. Christ
did it once and for all when He sent His Holy Spirit” (Hebrew Greek Key Study
Bible, 1 Corinthians, P.1403)
The next phrase, “and have all been made to
drink into one spirit” is the individual aspect. “Literally translated it
means we all “have been given to drink.” The idea in the verb ‘potizo’ is
that a drink is offered to someone, but he must drink it or reject it himself”
(The Layman’s Commentary on the Holy Spirit, by John Rea,
P.69). Each believer is offered this. This is personal and his drinking into
one Spirit is experiential.
So it would be more correct to say that in
(by/with) the baptism of the Spirit the body was formed on the day of Pentecost),
and as in Acts. 2.47 the Lord is adding to the Church daily
those who were being saved. The saved are those who have been made
to drink into one Spirit. One need not wait for the baptism in the Spirit
or by the Spirit or of the Spirit.
The moment a person accepts Jesus Christ as
Lord many things happen in his life simultaneously:
1. He is born again and becomes a child of God
(Jn. 1.12,13)
2. He receives the Spirit of Adoption whereby he
calls God as Abba Father (Gal. 4.4-6)
3. He is sealed by the Spirit of Promise, the Holy
Spirit (Eph.1.13-14; 5.30) and this is his guarantee that he will be redeemed
fully one day. He awaits for the adoption, the redemption of his body.
4. He is indwelt by the Spirit (1 Cor. 6.19,20).
This indwelling is permanent. His body becomes the temple of God.
5. If a person does not have the Holy Spirit he
is not the Son of God.
Therefore, a believer need not wait for the Spirit
of God for any reason whatsoever, but he has the Spirit of God already.
I. Is the Gift of Tongues
a sign/proof
of the Baptism with
the Spirit?
Since baptism of the Spirit is a historical
event and is not repeated it is futile to look for a sign for the baptism
of the Spirit in this present age whether it is a gift of tongues or any
other sign.
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