What is the baptism of the Holy Spirit?

Before developing, with the Lord's help, these two sides of the truth, I should like to say a few words about the baptism of the Holy Ghost, for, I am persuaded, that in the minds of many dear children of God, there is great confusion as to that which God would have us glean from this expression. If we turn to the first place in Scripture, where the statement comes in, I think we shall get light. I ask you therefore to turn back to the third chapter of Matthew, and there from the lips of John the Baptist we first hear about it. In the eleventh verse, addressing those who had come out to him, repentant, and to be baptized, he says, I indeed baptize you with water to repentance but he that comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire. Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." The Baptist predicts of the coming One — the Lord Jesus, — that He would have a ministry of a double character. He would baptize with the Holy Ghost, i.e. blessing, and with fire — judgment. Now, many people think the fire means power. Not so! A fire has no power except to destroy, and that is not what you want. You do not want destructive energy. Fire is always the symbol in Scripture of judgment. You have the two sides of the Lord's ministry here. He was to baptize with the Holy Ghost, and that is the richest and deepest blessing possible. He was also to baptize with fire. That is in a future day, yet to come.

Now the baptism of the Holy Ghost is the power that brings us into heavenly privilege, and still goes on in its effect. It is not a question of outward profession, of which baptism with water is the sign. The baptism of the Holy Ghost is a new and divine work. But what does it bring to us? Not merely the remission of sins, which baptism with water represents. The baptism of the Holy Spirit associates livingly with Christ at the right hand of God. For this reason the Spirit comes from heaven. Our Lord, even after He rose from the dead, baptised not then with the Holy Ghost. He said before He went up to heaven — "Ye shall be baptised with the Holy Ghost not many days hence." To whom did He say this? To the disciples. They were not unbelievers: there were only believers then present. But they needed to have wrought another work in them that had not been wrought in one however favoured in the whole world. Never since the world began had there been baptism with the Holy Ghost. It is a work that followed Christ's ascension to heaven, uniting us with Himself and one with another.

This is distinct from baptism with water. John's baptism is contrasted with it, Acts 11:16; Matt. 3:11. Christian baptism, though distinct, was in view of the reception of the Holy Ghost (Acts 2:38), but does not confer it. Acts 19:5-6. Baptism of the Holy Spirit took place at Pentecost: the Lord said to His disciples, "Ye shall be baptised with the Holy Ghost not many days hence," Acts 1:5; so that at Pentecost the saints were all baptised by the one Spirit into one body. 1 Cor. 12:13. This agrees with the church having been begun at Pentecost, and tells us that no one can be a part of the body of Christ until he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, being initiated into the one body formed, characterised, by the baptism of the Holy Spirit once for all.

The baptism with the Holy Spirit promised by the Lord took place on the day of Pentecost. By this one Spirit are we all baptized into the one body, which is the Church (1 Cor. 12:13). We are not born again by the baptism of the Spirit, but those who are born again become by it the members of that one body. Every believer who has believed in the Lord Jesus Christ hath the Holy Spirit. He the blessed Paraclete, is abiding in him. It is wrong for a believer to plead or pray for the Holy Spirit to come unto him, and equally unscriptural is it to pray for a baptism with fire, for there is no such baptism now, and no believer could pray for the flaming fire to fall upon him, for he is delivered from that wrath.

There is another thing which we ought now to enter into a little; viz., that the Church had no existence (save in God's purpose) until after the death and resurrection of Christ. The first mention, I believe, that we have of the Church in Scripture is in the 16th chapter of the gospel by Matthew. Christ had been virtually rejected by the nation of Israel. In the 12th chapter they went about to destroy Him; and in the beginning of the 16th chapter he speaks of them as an adulterous generation. Further on, in reply to Peter's confession of Him as the Christ the Son of the living God, Jesus said, "Upon this rock I will build my Church." This is the first time the Church is mentioned. It did not come out until after Christ had been rejected by Israel; and if you read the 21st verse, you will find, "From that time forth," Jesus began to speak of His sufferings, death, and resurrection. The distinction is most beautiful, because prior to that, at least to the end of the 12th chapter, the testimony of John the forerunner of Christ, and the testimony of Christ Himself, was to the kingdom. John's ministry was "repent" — not, for the Church is at hand, but "the kingdom of heaven is at hand." And when John was put into prison, Christ came forth and took up the same ministry Himself, uttering the same words, "Repent; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." In the tenth chapter He sends out His twelve disciples to preach that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. The result was, that this testimony met with almost universal rejection; so that instead of welcoming the Messiah to set up the kingdom, they actually went about to destroy Him. Then, when Peter confesses, "Thou art the Christ the Son of the living God," Jesus says, "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona." He tells Peter he is a blessed man; and added, that He purposed to build His Church. Now, can anything be clearer than that the Church was then a prospective thing; it was not then in existence. It was His intention to build it. Therefore, at that time, it was a thing in the future. You will also find in the first chapter of the Acts, after the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, He says, "Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence." And we see that actually fulfilled in the second chapter, when the Holy Ghost came down. In the fifth verse of the first chapter of the Acts we read of Jesus saying to His disciples, (those very people on whom He had breathed, and said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost,") — "Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence." Accordingly, on the day of Pentecost the Holy Ghost came down. For what? He came down and sat upon each of those believers, so that they were all filled with the Holy Ghost. But you may say, "What has that to do with the formation of the Church of God?" It has everything to do with it. That was the time when the Church of God began to be formed upon the earth. Therefore, at the end of the chapter, we read that "the Lord added" — to what? To the nation of Israel? No. To the disciples? No. What then? "The Lord added to the Church daily such as should be saved." In confirmation of this, turn to the 12th chapter of the first epistle to the Corinthians, and you will find in the 13th verse, "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body." No doubt there had always been believers, with more or less distinctness of apprehension of the coming Redeemer, from Adam downwards. Adam evidently had faith in the Redeemer, as well as Abel, Enoch, and a host of others. They were justified by the blood of the promised sacrifice. They had life and righteousness, and they will be everlastingly blessed. But they were always individuals — "just men;" they were always units. But since the Holy Ghost came down, there is no such thing as being merely an individual Christian. The Spirit has formed a unity, and enjoins us to keep it. In saying this I am not setting aside individual responsibility, because I know that exists; but what God is building now on the earth is a body, a corporation, so to speak, of believers in a crucified, risen, and ascended Saviour, who are actually in God's sight baptized by the Holy Ghost into "one body," in union with Christ, the ascended Head in heaven. Therefore, I trust, we can enter a little into the meaning of these words in the first of Ephesians: "The Church, which is His body." And let me say, beloved friends, that I cannot conceive any calling higher, any dignity greater; or a more blessed or more gracious way in which God could deal with His creatures, than in thus bringing each believer into direct union with the risen Son of His love in heaven, and in union with one another, by one indwelling Holy Spirit. Some years ago there was a clerical meeting in the town in which I was residing. A Christian passing through the street was attracted, like many others, with the sight of a number of clergymen going into the hotel.

And first as to the bearing of the coming of the Holy Ghost on believers collectively. The Lord Jesus, as we have seen, had been marked out by the descent of the Spirit upon Him at His baptism by John as the One who should baptize with the Holy Ghost. This baptism, peculiar in its character, and for a special purpose, now for the first time took place. Baptism with water was nothing new; John had administered such a rite. The disciples too were empowered to baptize with water. The Lord Jesus alone has baptized with the Holy Ghost. But on two occasions only have we any hint of such a baptism having taken place. On the day of Pentecost in the upper room in Jerusalem it was first administered. In the house of Cornelius (must we not say?) it again took place. (Acts 11:16.) John the Baptist had foretold it, the four Evangelists record his testimony about it, the church's historian, Luke, recounts the occasions and circumstances under which it took place (Acts 1:5; 2; 11:16), and Paul in writing to the Corinthians states doctrinally the results of it. (1 Cor. 12:13.) But as with the outpouring of the Holy Ghost, so with the baptism of the Spirit, no hint have Christians to ask for repetition of it, nor is there ground to look for it. For its effect being the baptizing believers into one body, this, when once done, was not to be repeated. Believers from amongst Israel were baptized into one body on the day of Pentecost; believers from amongst Gentiles were also baptized by the same Spirit into the body in the house of Cornelius. Had it been otherwise, converts from the Gentiles might have never been allowed a place of equality, or the recognition of oneness, with converts from the race of Israel. To mark the equality and oneness both companies received the Holy Spirit in the same way, direct from above, without human intervention of any kind. One sees the reason for the second outpouring and baptizing. One may surely, too, easily discern why they did not, and could not, take place afresh. And whatever may be said by men, we should remember that One person only in scripture is said to baptize with the Spirit (Matt. 3:11), and nowhere in the word is there any statement from which to draw the inference, that an apostle could baptize with the Spirit, or that laying on of hands was ever requisite for this baptism to be bestowed.

The baptism of the Spirit, as such, only occurred once: when the church was formed. However, every believer today forms part of that body of Christ and can therefore be regarded as included in this Spirit baptism. The notion of a ‘second experience’ being required is false (see Q.46).

The Baptism of the Spirit then was foretold by John the Baptist, reaffirmed by our risen Lord, and on His ascent to the right hand of God, it then began. Since that time every believer is baptized by the Spirit, introduced into the Church, the Body of Christ.

Two things are at once apparent. He came upon the assembled believers individually, and also did a work in a corporate way. Each believer on that day was filled with the Holy Spirit. He came as the indweller to each. But He also was present as the mighty rushing wind which filled all the house. He did not only come upon each, but all were baptized with the Holy Spirit, and united into a body. In 1 Corinthians 12:13 the more complete revelation is given concerning this fact. "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." The One Spirit is the Holy Spirit as He came on the day of Pentecost, the One Body is the church. All believers were on that day united by the Spirit into the one body, and since then, whenever and wherever a sinner believes in the finished work of Christ, he shares in that baptism and is joined by the same Spirit to that one body. A believer may be in dense ignorance about all this, as indeed a great many are; but this does not alter the gracious fact of what God has done. The believing company was then formed on the day of Pentecost into one body. It was the birthday of the church.

Of much importance is verse 13: "For in 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." This refers to the formation of the body. The baptism mentioned in this verse is not water-baptism. Water baptism does not save nor can this ordinance put any one as a member into the true church, the one body. The baptism is the baptism of the Spirit. It took place on the day of Pentecost. On that day the Spirit was poured out and while He filled every believer, He also united them into one body. Then the body of Christ was formed once for all by this baptism. Since that day whenever a sinner trusts in Christ he is at once joined to that body and shares in the one Spirit. Many Christians speak of repeated baptisms by the Spirit and refer to certain experiences as being new baptisms. In the light of this verse all this is incorrect. Scripture knows only one baptism. And all believers drink of one Spirit; they are all made partakers of one and the same Spirit.