4:1 Era of the Spirit. Ten days after the Ascension of Jesus, as was promised, while the disciples were at prayer in an upper room in Jerusalem, the Holy Spirit was poured out on them. They received an
inner vitality, miraculous gifts, and a new power to witness, which was to flame out like a fire to burn in the hearts of many people throughout the world. The church was born. The way the church started is how it was empowered to continue.We now live in the era of the Spirit, to empower us for spiritual growth, to give us vision for service, and to be an adventurous church for today. The Holy Spirit is still being poured out on us as at the beginning.
4:2 Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, who has always been part of the Godhead, and shares fully in the nature and work of God.
He is personal, not an impersonal force. He relates to each of us differently. He teaches [Luke 12:12], he comforts or stands alongside us [John 14:16], he reveals [John 14:17], he convicts [John 16:8], and he may be grieved [Ephesians 4:30].
In the Godhead there are different roles. The Holy Spirit acts as the executive officer to reveal and do the work of the Father, that was shown in Jesus. He is the person of the Trinity who comes into us to bring about the reality of God and strengthens us to do God's work [John 14:17].
He was involved in creation [Genesis 1:2], is the source of life [Genesis 2:7], moved the prophets to see visions and speak the word of God, set apart and gifted leaders of Israel [Judges 13:24-25], and moved people to write scripture [2 Peter 1:21]. He is symbolised in Scripture as breath [Job 33:4], wind [John 3:8], a dove [Luke 3:22], stream or river [John 7:38], and fire [Matthew 3:11].
4:3 The Holy Spirit in Jesus Christ. Jesus was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, who was in him from the beginning. At his Baptism Jesus received a baptism of the Holy Spirit to anoint him for ministry. All his ministry was in the supernatural power and guidance of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ [Romans 8:9].
Jesus promised the Holy Spirit to his disciples after he ascended [John 14:26, 16:7, Acts 1:5]. The Holy Spirit would stay in the background in order to glorify Christ, to teach them and help them to remember all that Christ had taught them [John 16:13-15], and to empower them for witness to Christ [Acts 1:8]. The Spirit continues the work of Jesus.
4:4 Baptism in the Holy Spirit. The OT prophets, John the Baptist and Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would be poured out in a new way on believers [Ezekiel 36:27, Joel 2:28-29, Matthew 3:11, Acts 1:5]. The Holy Spirit is involved in all stages of a person's coming to faith and growing in Jesus Christ. He convicts people of their need [John 16: 8], believers are born of the Spirit into the Kingdom of God [John 3:3,6], he melds them into Christ's body, the church [1 Corinthians 12:13], and he baptises or fills them with power for witness and service [Acts 2:1-3].
The Baptism in the Holy Spirit was first received by the church on the day of Pentecost, but has been received by individuals and groups of people since then [Acts 8:14-17, 9:17, 19:1-7]. The promise of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit has never been withdrawn, and is for all believers for all time, requiring only that we ask in faith, sincerely desire the gift, and give ourselves totally to God's service [Luke 11:13, John 7:37-38, Romans 12:1-2].
Baptism in the Holy Spirit is the initial empowering of the Holy Spirit in a believer's life, that imparts the gifts of the Holy Spirit, releases freedom for praise and prayer, anoints for service in boldness and joy, and builds the church [Isaiah 61:1-4]. No one gift is a sign of the Holy Spirit, but all of these things can be expected in a Spirit filled Christian. Spirit baptism is not to be confused with conversion, or baptism in water. It may occur at the same time as either of these or separately as part of the process of normal Christian beginnings.
4:5 Work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit enables us to pray by interceding in us with God [Romans 8:26-27]. He opens our minds to understand the scriptures [Luke 24:32]. The indwelling of the Spirit is not a private and individual experience, but draws us into Christian community [Acts 2:43-47]. By him the church will grow in numbers, maturity and unity [Ephesians 4:12-16]. Holiness is both a requirement and a result of being filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us to grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control [Galatians 5:22-23]. He anoints us with his freedom and glory [2 Corinthians 3:18]. He strengthens us for spiritual warfare to resist and overcome evil and Satan [Ephesians 6:10-18].
The Holy Spirit imparts spiritual gifts to believers to enable us to build up the church and carry out God's work in the world. Different gifts are given to each person according to God's grace [Romans 12:3-8, 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, Ephesians 4:11]. Above all the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Mission. He makes our witness real. He empowers the Word to people, raises the church in revival, gives the church its vision, and protects and empowers it in its reaching out to the world. Complete openness to receive the Holy Spirit in all the church's life is essential for us to live and witness the fullness of God. The Holy Spirit is for the world, in order to transform it and prepare it for the coming of Christ.
- Rev Brian Brandon, May 2001