The Holy Spirit

January 16, 2022

“Have ye received the Holy Spirit since ye believed?” This was Paul’s question to

the Ephesians (Acts 19:2). Their response was that they did not know if there was a

Holy Spirit. Paul’s follow up question was, “Unto what then were ye baptized?”

(Acts 19:3). They responded, “John’s baptism”. Obviously, John’s baptism did not

bring with it the gift of the Holy Spirit or the remission of sins, but instead a

looking forward to Christ and a command to follow the “lamb of God which take

away the sin of the world” (Acts 2:38). So, the Ephesians were then baptized in the

name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 19:5). At which time they received the Holy Spirit,

began to preach, and their language was changed. This happened to twelve men

who had yielded to John’s baptism and his preaching to repent, but it took yielding

to the Son of God for forgiveness of sin and the gift of the Holy Spirit to be

received at Paul’s laying on of hands and prayer. When they yielded to his inspired

words they were gifted and when we yield, we will be gifted the same. Forgiveness

of sins will come as we yield to Christ and obey his word (Matthew 7:21). Jesus

said those will go to heaven who comply to his will as he obeyed his Father. After

all, the Word of God is the sword of the Spirit, God’s gift to us (Ephesians 6:17).

Understanding this, we value the gift of the word of God by choosing to comply

with the words of scripture knowing that we are in the process of yielding to the

Holy Spirit, God’s comforter. This is the one that Jesus promised would come and

comfort us even as he had been comforted. It strikes me that yielding and humility

may both be essential to receiving the gifts of God, especially that of forgiveness.

Choosing to begin by submitting to the example of Christ in baptism and rising to

walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4). So, we see that these twelve who were

baptized by John “unto repentance” were then baptized by Paul in order to receive

forgiveness of sin and the Holy Spirit as well as the Holy Spirit’s gifts.

Dr. Kenneth E. Morrison