Are You Baptized In The Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit baptism is very important to every heaven-bound Christian for many reasons. The first is the personality of the Baptizer – the Holy Spirit Himself. The Holy Spirit, being the third person in the Trinity, plays the role of the preservation of the believer after salvation. The Bible says and grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30). There are lots of virtues the Holy Spirit imparts on believers when they receive His baptism. For example, in John 7:37-39, we read of the flow of the rivers of living water symbolizing the Holy Spirit. Just as water is very important for the survival of the physical well-being of man, so also the living water or water of life is very important for spiritual well-being. The spirit of a Christian can get dehydrated and ultimately become dormant due to the lack of this living water. Another fundamental blessing from the Holy Spirit is what we find in the instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ in Acts 1:8 - power. The disciples of old would not have been able to face the Jewish elders had they not received power from the Holy Ghost. Without the baptism of the Holy Spirit there can be no power or boldness for Christians to evangelize and witness to the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says in Acts 4:31: “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.” The Holy Spirit also enables a believer to pray without ceasing when he or she speaks in tongues. This is the promise of our Lord in the Great Commission – that we shall speak with new tongues (Mark 16:17). Beloved, do you lack boldness as a Christian? Are you hesitant about sharing your conviction on the Lordship of Jesus? Are you rising and falling into sin because you think it is impossible to withstand the wiles of the devil? Are demonic forces tormenting you? Pray earnestly for the baptism of the Holy Spirit today and you will receive power and boldness for victorious Christian living, in the mighty name of Jesus. Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.
