PositionPaper_GiftsMinistryHolySpirit_AU_A5_HR

This sealing of the Spirit took place before Pentecost in the upper room according to John 20:22, with the baptising power coming later at Pentecost.

For John baptised with water, but you shall be baptised with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. Acts 1:4

It was at Pentecost that we can see the purpose of this baptism clearly defined when Jesus said,

And so when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, ‘Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?’

He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.’ Acts 1:5-8

The Defining Purpose of the Spirit’s Baptism or Filling Acts 1:5-8 sets the perimeters and purpose of this impartation of the Spirit.

…you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth. The empowering work of the Spirit is primarily intended to be used in outreach, touching and healing others in Jesus name. Repeatedly in the Book of Acts, we find believers experiencing and embracing this empowering for ministry, thus we believe the baptism of the Holy Spirit ought to be embraced today if we are to do His ministry effectively. Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:14-17

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