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What the Bible Teaches Regarding
the Baptism of the Holy Spirit
An Inductive Study Guide
Lesson 8
“The experience of being baptized with the Holy Spirit”
Many know personally what it is like to experience water baptism. We
are immersed in water and experience the sensation of getting wet all
over. Of course, the emotional feelings when baptized with water vary
with the person and the situation. But before being baptized in water
we can know fairly well what to expect physically since we’ve all
been wet before—in the bathtub, shower or while swimming.
But what is the experience of being baptized with the Holy Spirit like? Is there something about it that we should know ahead of time? Since being immersed in the Holy Spirit is not something of a visible nature how can we know what to expect? The biblical examples of Holy Spirit baptism all included supernatural phenomena of some kind—either audible, visible or both. But what if our experience of being baptized with the Holy Spirit doesn’t follow the exact pattern of the biblical examples? It is clear that every individual in the biblical examples knew they had received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. How would we know if we were experiencing that blessing should the divine manifestations be different from theirs or not be present in the same way?
Although the Bible doesn’t describe this for us in detail—just as it doesn’t describe what we can expect to happen to us emotionally when baptized in water—there are some pieces of evidence that clearly point us in a direction of understanding. Look at the evidence in the following scripture, song and testimony.
Romans 5:5
“And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”
Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, p. 19, 20
“What was the result of the outpouring of the Spirit upon the Day of Pentecost? The glad tidings of a risen Saviour were carried to the utmost bounds of the inhabited world. The hearts of the disciples were surcharged with a benevolence so full, so deep, so far-reaching, that it impelled them to go to the ends of the earth, testifying: "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." Galatians 6:14...Every Christian saw in his brother the divine similitude of love and benevolence. One interest prevailed. One subject of emulation swallowed up all others. The only ambition of the believers was to reveal the likeness of Christ's character and to labor for the enlargement of His kingdom.”
Baptize Us Anew (Hymn #258 in the Seventh-day
Adventist Hymnal), 1st stanza:
Baptize us anew with power from on high,
With love O refresh us! Dear Savior draw nigh.
We humbly beseech Thee, Lord Jesus, we pray,
With love and the Spirit baptize us today.
What do the above quotations share in common in their descriptions of the experience of the baptism of the Holy Spirit?
| ADDITIONAL STUDY GUIDES ON THE BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT |