“Tracking the Wind in the New Testament”
The Holy Spirit is sometimes likened to wind.
In fact, both the Hebrew and Greek terms are terms having a common meaning of wind or breath.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:6-8
Last week we identified the Holy Spirit as a perfect pastor and tracked His work through the Old Testament. We learned that He is a person not a force or power or it. He is invisible but yet personal. He has all the elements of personhood. He has been active along with the Father and the Son from eternity. He was involved at creation and with creation from the beginning.
In the beginning was the Word, the Father and the Holy Spirit. We found Him active in the lives of individuals and groups. His ministry was both overt and covert. His specific ministry was often undetectable to the person but still effective. For others, His ministry was quite obvious to everyone.
A common theme throughout the Old Testament was His “coming upon” people to motivate and enable them to carry out God’s purposes. Such activity observed in the Old Testament continued on into the New Testament age along with come expanded and more permanent activity and ministries.
I. Names and Titles of the Holy Spirit
II. Origin of the Holy Spirit
III. Nature and Character of the Holy Spirit
IV. References to the Holy Spirit
V. The Holy Spirit’s Ministry in the Old Testament
VI. The Holy Spirit’s Ministry in the New Testament
A. The Holy Spirit’s Ministry with Jesus
1. As prophesied in the OT
Isaiah 11:1-5
Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.
And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
Result
And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see,
Nor make a decision by what His ears hear; But with righteousness He will judge the poor,
And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins,
And faithfulness the belt about His waist.
Isaiah 61:1-3
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me
Purpose
To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives, and freedom to prisoners; To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, To grant those who mourn in Zion,
Giving them a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.
The focus of the Spirit’s ministry in Jesus had to do with equipment for ministry to others not the personally sensational. The result of the Spirit’s ministry as prophesied through Isaiah focused on proclamation of the truth and application of the truth to life, release from bondage, comfort for the afflicted, discipleship.
2. As Recorded in the Gospels
a. He was the agent of incarnation (Jesus taking on Flesh)
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows. When His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her, desired to put her away secretly. 20But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 1:18-20
And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God. Luke 1:35
b. He manifested in His childhood
And it came about that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them, and asking them questions. 47And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers. 48And when they saw Him, they were astonished; and His mother said to Him, "Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You." 49And He said to them, "Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father's house?" Luk 2:46-49
c. He Anointed Jesus’ Official ministry at His baptism
And it came about in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10And immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him; 11and a voice came out of the heavens: "Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am well-pleased." Mark 1:9-11
This was a visible phenomenon to John. It had been told Him that this was how he would recognized the Messiah.
And I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, 'He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.' 34And I have seen, and have borne witness that this is the Son of God." Jn 1:33-34
d. He operated throughout His ministry
Directed His activities
And immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. Mark 1:12
Enabled Power for ministry
And when the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. 14And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit; and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. 15And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all. Luke 4:13-15
Provided power for Victory Demons
"And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? Consequently they shall be your judges. 28"But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Matthew 12:27-28
Inspired Joy in the Lord’s goodness and thanksgiving
And He said to them, "I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. 19"Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall injure you. 20"Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven." 21At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, "I praise Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou didst hide these things from the wise and intelligent and didst reveal them to babes. Yes, Father, for thus it was well-pleasing in Thy sight. Luke 10:18-21
Acts summarizes Jesus earthly ministry
"You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God was with Him. Acts 10:38
The Holy Spirit’s ministry to Jesus centered on His ministry to others, providing direction, empowerment, and fulfillment. Jesus carried out the Father’s will with the same resources available to us today. He relied upon the power of the Spirit, the Word of God and prayer.
B. The Holy Spirit’s ministry in people before Pentecost
1. Elizabeth Luk 1:41-45
Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42And she cried out with a loud voice, and said, "Blessed among women are you, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43"And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44"For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. 45"And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord." Luke 1:41-45
Insight into the truth – Humility -- Worship
2. Zechariah Luke 1:67
And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying: Luke 1:67
3. John the Baptist Luke 1:15
Luke 1:15 "For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and he will drink no wine or liquor; and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, while yet in his mother's womb.
The main focus was to prepare hearts to receive Jesus. Proclamation of the truth
A call to repentance Boldness and zeal for righteousness
4. Simeon Luke 2:25-32
Lived under the Spirit’s influence. (Holy Spirit was upon Him)
Instructed by the Holy Spirit. (Revealed by the Holy Spirit)
Directed by the Holy Spirit. (Came in the Holy Spirit into the temple)
Prayed by the Holy Spirit.
5. Disciples
“With” you vs “in you”.
“Jesus breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’”
This was not what was promised to happen at Pentecost.
Jesus must first be glorified.
Jesus had to be absent before the Spirit would carry out His new function.
Jesus promised that the Spirit would come later.
C. The Holy Spirit’s Ministry AT Pentecost
1. The Promise of the Spirit
God promised an outpouring of His Spirit on all mankind. Up to this point the Holy Spirit had manifested through a select few and even with many of them it was only a temporary thing.
The New Covenant promised an internal ministry of the Spirit in all who believed. Jesus gave the last details of the promised outpouring of the Spirit just before leaving this earth.
4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Acts 1:4-5
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8
Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.' " But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. John 7:37-39
But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Encourager shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you no longer behold Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said, that He takes of Mine, and will disclose it to you. John 16:7-15
2. The Coming of the Spirit
The promise of a special ministry of the Holy Spirit is a specific event. It was referred to as a specific event that would take place at a particular time. Do not take commands related to this event as present day principles regarding the ministry of the Spirit. They were not told to wait again. They were told to wait for the initial coming of the Spirit. Tarrying is not a condition of the Spirit’s baptism any more than waiting at the bus stop is a condition for the coming of the bus. The bus is coming. There is no other choice but to wait for it. The same is with prayer.
The baptism of the Spirit was not conditioned on their praying either. Prayer just happened to be what they were doing when He came. Their prayer had other benefits but it was not the catalyst for the coming of the Spirit. This was a prophesied event that was scheduled by the Father to take place in connection with a well-known celebration called Pentecost. After that time everyone looked back on the event. They did not encourage people to tarry or wait.
It was an assumed gift at Salvation. The Joel prophesy said nothing about tongues or emotional experience. The focus of this ministry of the Spirit was “as usual” on the communication of truth.
Focus of the promise
Truth of God, Flow rivers of living water from our innermost being, Power for declaring the truth, Baptism identification
Don’t lose sight of the overall eternal purpose of the event by getting sidetracked on the temporal manifestation. This promised coming of the Spirit would result in the spread of the good news of life in Christ and unite all Christians into one body. His coming would be evidenced by a universal ministry in those from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost part of the earth. The promised baptism in the Spirit was first experienced by the disciples and close followers in Jerusalem who were gathered in obedience to Jesus command to wait for the Spirit’s arrival. The specific event, the Baptism in the Spirit came on the day of Pentecost according to God’s decree and timing. It included speaking in other languages which was an initial sign of baptism. Later baptisms on other groups did not include speaking in tongues.
3. The Specifics
The Baptism in the Spirit demonstrated itself as outlined by Jesus. The record dramatically described the complete fulfillment of the promise by reporting His coming upon the various groups of people previously mentioned by Jesus; those in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, Gentiles of the uttermost part of the earth.
Phase 1 was the baptism of those in Jerusalem and Judea. (Acts 2)
Phase 2 was the baptism of those in Samaria (outcasts included in the body of Christ). 8:14-31
Phase 3 was the baptism of those in the “uttermost parts of the earth” (Gentiles). 10:44-48
The clarifying event is found in Acts 19:1-7
And it came about that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper country came to Ephesus, and found some disciples, and he said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" And they said to him, "No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit." 3And he said, "Into what then were you baptized?" And they said, "Into John's baptism." And Paul said, "John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus." And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues and prophesying. And there were in all about twelve men.
The expectation after Pentecost is that everyone would “Receive the Holy Spirit WHEN they believed.”
4. The Meaning
1 Cor 12:13 makes clear the true meaning of the baptism in the Spirit.
“In one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.”
Just as John the Baptist unified and identified those who came to him in water (water being the unifying factor for the repentant believing remnant) so Jesus unifies all those who believe in Him in the Holy Spirit (the Holy Spirit being the unifying factor for Christians.) Baptism in the Holy Spirit places those who receive Jesus into and identifies us with the body of Christ.
DEFINITION
Baptism in the Spirit is a work of the Holy Spirit whereby He indwells any and every individual upon genuine belief in Christ and unites that individual with Christ and all other believers.
We are united by Baptism into Christ. We are baptized in the Spirit into his death & resurrection. Without Spirit Baptism, you are not in Christ. The body of Christ was established at Pentecost and demonstrated through Acts. Every individual who then receives Christ is placed into that body by Spirit Baptism. Spirit Baptism qualifies us for all the other ministries of this fantastic Pastor. These are ministries promised to every genuine Christian. These are not just for a select few, but for EVERY Christian. Some require our cooperation, while others are a ministry made available at all times with or without our cooperation.
D. The Holy Spirit’s Ministry related to Conversion
The follow are all actions done by the Holy Spirit all at the moment of genuine faith in Jesus.
1. Regeneration (Inner Core Change)
John 3 Is the classic passage on new birth.
He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:5-7
Definition
Ministry of the Holy Spirit whereby He imparts life to the human spirit which was dead in sin.
2. Baptism
The first converts were places into the body at one time at Pentecost. (see above)
All subsequent believers are connected to the body of Christ at the moment of regeneration.
3. Indwelling
We are the dwelling place or place of operation for the Holy Spirit. He permanently indwells every Baptized, regenerated individual. Indwelling places Him in close proximity to His work.
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 1 Corinthians 6:19
4. Sealing
The Holy Spirit is the one who puts His seal on every believer. Sealing in the New Testament indicated:
Authentication (good housekeeping seal of approval)
Ownership (mark our stuff or territory, boundary markers)
Protection/Preservation/Security
who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge. 2 Cor. 1:22
In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-- having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory. Ephes. 1:13
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Ephes. 4:30
The Holy Spirit, by reason of His indwelling presence assures us God’s continual work in our life. He gives us a taste of what is yet to come. Do you have the Holy Spirit? If not, Paul assures us that you don’t have Christ either. Your spiritual life comes from the Holy Spirit’s ministry in you; regeneration. Are you a member of the body of Christ? Your connection to Christ comes by the baptizing ministry of the Holy Spirit. Are you a temple of the Holy Spirit? He comes to live in us at the moment of regeneration.
Are you secure in your relationship to Christ? The Holy Spirit is God’s special seal. The Holy Spirit is God’s promise of more to come.
• Receive Jesus today.
• Recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit.
• Rejoice in your relationship with God through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Next week we will track His ministry regarding renewal and growth subsequent to conversion.
Since you LIVE by the Spirit, so let us WALK by the Spirit. Gal 5:25
