Baptize with the Holy Ghost and with Fire

Over the years, popular theology has created much confusion about the meaning of being baptized with the Holy Ghost (baptism of the Holy Spirit) and with fire. To understand the need for being baptized with the Holy Ghost and with fire, we must first understand God's purpose for Jesus and the Holy Ghost as Comforters. The need for comforters was expressed in the Old Testament: "Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none". (Psalm 69:20). "So I returned, and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun: and behold the tears of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power; but they had no comforter. (Ecclesiastes 4:1). Comforters were needed to let the oppressed go free—to bring deliverance from evil to the captives: to bring power to bear to counter the power of the oppressors—devils. "There is one come out of thee, that imagineth evil against the LORD, a wicked counsellor. Thus saith the LORD; Though they be quiet, and likewise many, yet thus shall they be cut down, when he shall pass through. Though I have afflicted thee, I will afflict thee no more. For now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder" (Nahum 1:11-13). "And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing. (Isaiah 10:27).

The first Comforter was Jesus and his role was to usher in the kingdom of God through power and wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:24). "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him" (Acts 10:38). Not only did the people need to be freed from the oppression of the devil, but they also needed to be educated on how to keep him at bay: sin no more (John 5:14). "And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people" (Matthew 9:35).

Deliverance from evil is the signature power that heralds that the kingdom of God is at hand: "If I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you" (Luke 11:20). This is also expressed in the "Lord's Prayer": "lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen" (Matthew 6:13). And also by Paul: "And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen" (2 Timothy 4:18). To aid in bringing deliverance to more people, Jesus selected and empowered disciples. He gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases: "Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases" (Luke 9:1) and "After these things the LORD appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come" (Luke 10:1). He sent them forth with explicit instructions on where to go: "These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. (Matthew 10:5-6). And, he commanded them to give what they had freely received: deliverance from evil. "And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give" (Matthew 10:7-8). The next step for Jesus was to enable the kingdom of God to reside within the people of God. "And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:20-21). Thereby enabling not just "temporary" deliverance from evil but permanent: "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name" (John 1:12). He accomplished this through his death and resurrection, he made us "free from the law of sin and death" (Romans 8:2), and through sending the next Comforter—the Holy Ghost—unto us.

Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. (John 16:7-11)

The Holy Ghost as a spirit can reach more people than Jesus could as a man and can enter into them to be with them as a constant companion—the kingdom of God is within you.

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (John 14:16-17, 26)

The Holy Ghost, the Comforter, is the Spirit of truth: "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me" (John 15:26). Moreover, we know that the Word of God is truth (John 17:17; John 6:63) and that the Word of God was made flesh (John 3:16; John 1:14, 17). Thus, the Holy Ghost is the Spirit of the Word, the Spirit of Jesus Christ, the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of God (Romans 8:9; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 4:6). "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one" (1 John 5:7). To have the Holy Ghost requires having the Word—Jesus Christ: no Word, no Holy Ghost. "For as many as are led by the Spirit of [the Word of] God, they are the sons of God" (Romans 8:14). The next step was to distribute the Holy Ghost throughout the whole world. Jesus used a similar process as before: he gave the apostles authority and power to distribute the Holy Ghost, sent them forth with explicit instructions on where to go, and commanded them to give what they had freely received: the gift of "repentance unto life" (Acts 11:16-18).

HOLY GHOST GIVEN

"He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified)" (John 7:38-39). In preparation of the forthcoming distribution of the Holy Ghost, Jesus, before the day of Pentecost, took of the Spirit of God that came on him at the beginning of his ministry and put it upon the apostles to give them the authority to distribute the gift of the Holy Ghost—repentance unto life:

And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (Matthew 3:16-17)

Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained. (John 20:21-23)

This is just as was done several times in the Old Testament (Numbers 11:24-29; Numbers 27:15-23; Deuteronomy 34:9; 2 Kings 2:9-15): "And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone" (Numbers 11:17). Subsequently, the apostles received explicit instructions on where to distribute the Holy Ghost once they received power. "Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen ... But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 1:2, 8). After Jesus was glorified—his ascension into heaven, the Holy Ghost was given as promised on the day of Pentecost. "John answered, saying unto them all ... [Jesus] shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire" (Luke 3:16). The Holy Ghost was received in Jerusalem by one hundred and twenty disciples including the twelve apostles which had "been with [Jesus] from the beginning" (John 15:27). "Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection" (Acts 1:22). These twelve "shall bear witness" of Jesus as did the twelve stones that bore witness of the parting of the Jordan and the entering of the Promised Land:

Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man: And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel: That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones? Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it passed over Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever. (Joshua 4:4-7)

Power was also given to the apostles to distribute the Holy Ghost (see "Apostles"), as instructed, throughout Judea (Acts 2 – Acts 7), then Samaria (Acts 8), and then the rest of the world (Acts 10). Notice the similarity to the distribution of the bread and fish that multiplied to feed the multitudes (Matthew 15:36-37). Jesus distributed the bread and fish to his disciples and as they in turn distributed to the multitude, the bread and fish multiplied until all were filled.

And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten. Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. (John 6:10-14)

After distribution in Jerusalem and in all Judaea, Samaria was next in line to receive the Holy Ghost. Notice that even though Samaria had received the Word of God through Philip, it took the apostles, Peter and John, to give the Holy Ghost to the Samaritans.

Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost. And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. (Acts 8:14-19)

Similarly, the Gentiles (the rest of the world) did not receive the Holy Ghost until given by an apostle, in this case, Peter. "While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost" (Acts 10:44-45). Thus, at this point, the Holy Ghost is now given throughout the world and is now available to all those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ: "the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us" (Romans 5:5). "And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him" (Acts 5:32).

Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost

Popular theology has created division in the church. Popular theology holds that there are some Christians without the Holy Ghost and some with the Holy Ghost. Many "born again" believers are told, "You need the Holy Ghost!" This causes much confusion. This division is contrary to scripture: "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him" (Luke 11:13)? After all, it is by grace we are saved; it is the gift of God. "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost" (Acts 2:38). A person without the Holy Ghost is a heathen—"they by the way side" (Mark 4:15)—and not born again. They are in the flesh: "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his" (Romans 8:9). They are not children of God; they are not delivered from evil; they will not partake in eternal life; and they will not reign with Christ. "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates" (2 Corinthians 13:5)? The gift of the Holy Ghost—repentance unto life—is received when someone is "born again"; that is, when they repent of their sins and confess their belief in the Lord Jesus Christ and his resurrection (Acts 3:19; Romans 10:9-10). God puts his Spirit in the person to preserve them unto his heavenly kingdom: to aid them in obeying his Word, to aid them in understanding his Word, and to aid them in becoming righteous based on his Word. "And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them" (Ezekiel 36:27). Thus, with continual study, belief and obedience to his Word—abide in his Word—the person can produce the evidence that they are in right standing (skilful in the word of righteousness) with God: they "bear much fruit." "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples" (John 15:7-8).

In summary, by being born again, the person is baptized into the body of Christ by the Holy Ghost (see "Born Again"). "For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence" (Acts 1:5). "For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:12-13). "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:3-4). "For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Galatians 3:27). Thus, being born again is synonymous to being baptized with the Holy Ghost.

Being Filled with the Holy Ghost

The distinction amongst Christians is not whether they have been baptized with the Holy Ghost or not, it is whether they are filled with the Holy Ghost or not. That is, whether they have been baptized with fire: "ye shall receive power" (Acts 1:8). "And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). We are commanded to "be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18). Thus being filled with the Holy Ghost—being baptized with fire—is, generally, subsequent to being baptized with the Holy Ghost. Therefore while all born again believers have been baptized with the Holy Ghost, not all have been baptized with fire—filled with the Holy Ghost. It should be noted that several key events occurred in Acts Chapter 2: 1) the third person of the trinity, the Holy Ghost, entered the world "as of a rushing mighty wind"; 2) the disciples, were baptized with the Holy Ghost (baptism of the Holy Spirit) and were also baptized with fire; and 3) the signs that "shall follow them that believe" (Mark 16:17) were manifested (in this case, speaking in new—other—tongues).

And when the day of Pentecost was 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 all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1-4)

The phrase "filled with the Holy Ghost" is equivalent to receiving the fullness of the Holy Ghost plus power, which is also referred to as being baptized with fire. The Holy Ghost represents, among other things, the authority (exousia)—the right—available to us through Christ and the fire represents the power (dunamis)—the ability—available to us through Christ. Thus being "filled with the Holy Ghost" means having the full authority and power of Jesus Christ available. "For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake" (1 Thessalonians 1:5). "That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached; How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him" (Acts 10:37-38). Spirits of God are often represented as flames of fire (Hebrews 1:7; Revelation 4:5). Fire from heaven has been used throughout the Bible as a definitive sign of the power of God. John the Baptist, who came in the spirit of Elijah, prophesied of Jesus, "he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire" (Matthew 3:11). The prophet Elijah used fire as a sure sign of God's sovereignty:

And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken ... Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God. (1 Kings 18:24, 38-39)

The question then is, how do born again believers, baptized with the Holy Ghost, get filled with the Holy Ghost? By gleaning from scriptures, the path is clear: "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled" (Matthew 5:6). Righteousness is defined by the Word of God, which is given "for instruction in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16); thus, they which hunger and thirst after the Word of God—the Word of righteousness (Hebrews 5:13)—shall be filled. They shall be "filled with the fruits of righteousness" (Philippians 1:11) by which "whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you" (John 15:16). Notice, the disciples spent three and a half years with the Word made flesh, Jesus. They received (believed) the Word and lived (obeyed) the Word; thus, they got filled with the Word of God with understanding (Luke 24:44-45). "By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left" (2 Corinthians 6:7). Subsequently they got filled with the Spirit of the Word—the Holy Ghost: filled with authority and power. The Word they received was quickened (activated) with power by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead" (Romans 1:3-4).

The life that was in Jesus is made ours by means of His Cross when once we make the decision to be identified with Him. If it is difficult to get right with God, it is because we will not decide definitely about sin. Immediately we do decide, the full life of God comes in. Jesus came to give us endless supplies of life: 'that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.' Eternal Life has nothing to do with Time, it is the life which Jesus lived when He was down here. The only source of Life is the Lord Jesus Christ.⁸⁸

Therefore, Christ, the resurrected Word of God, brought life to the world: "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). If you want to know the power of God (i.e., the resurrection life of Jesus) in your mortal flesh, concentrate on Jesus Christ and his crucifixion. Focus—set your affection—on the objective Source, looking unto Jesus, and the subjective power will be there. For "this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent" (John 17:3). "And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God" (Ephesians 3:19). The fullness of the Spirit of God—the Holy Ghost—comes were the Word of God is written: "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee" (Psalm 119:11). "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:16-17). We see this in the following two excerpts from the Old Testament:

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, On the first day of the first month shalt thou set up the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation. And thou shalt put therein the ark of the testimony, and cover the ark with the vail ... And he took and put the testimony into the ark, and set the staves on the ark, and put the mercy seat above upon the ark: And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the vail of the covering, and covered the ark of the testimony; as the LORD commanded Moses ... So Moses finished the work. Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. (Exodus 40:1-3, 20-21, 33-34)

And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims. ... There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD. (1 Kings 8:6, 9-11)

Thus says the Lord, "in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee" (Exodus 20:24). Said another way, "God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands" (Acts 17:24); but rather, in the temple of your body. "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own" (1 Corinthians 6:19)? Thus, as in the Old Testament, when the Words of the covenant (Exodus 34:28) are placed in the most holy place in your temple, then the glory of the Lord will fill the temple (see "The Sign of the New Covenant"). "And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live" (Deuteronomy 30:6). One final note, being filled with the Holy Ghost is not a fixed state. It can vary and requires us to be "refilled" from time to time: we are required to continue in the Word. Note in Acts 4, Peter and John and many of the original one hundred and twenty disciples were refilled with the Holy Ghost. "And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness" (Acts 4:31). In another example, the seven disciples chosen as deacons were also refilled:

Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. (Acts 6:3-6)

The focus, however, is not being filled but rather, walking in righteousness—bearing fruit: "Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God" (Philippians 1:11). It is in bearing fruit that full authority and power—grace—are truly realized (see "Spiritual Formation: The End of Your Faith" for more on being fruitful). And, as we will show in the "Say Grace" section of the "Private Interpretations" chapter, grace is the power of God made available to us through Christ who is "full of grace and truth" (John 1:14).

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