Resurrection and the Holy Spirit

"And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost (Jn. 1:32,33). "Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water... Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life" (Jn. 4:10,13,14). "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)" (Jn. 7:37-39). "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (Jn. 10:10). "If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth [it] not, neither knoweth [it]: but ye know [it]; for [it] dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you... But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you" (Jn. 14:15-18,26). "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, [it] shall testify of me" (Jn. 15:26). "Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you... Howbeit when the Spirit of truth is come, [it] will guide you into all truth" (Jn. 16:7,13).

Seeing these clips from the book of John, it is no wonder that these were the final instructions that Jesus gave to his followers before leaving this world: "And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence" (Acts 1:4,5). And as he told them, so it was: "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting... And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1,2,4). And the significance of this experience cannot be exaggerated, seeing that the scriptures clearly show that it is the remission of sins, the only way into the one body of Christ, which is to say into Christ; and therefore the only way to be born into the kingdom of God (I Cor. 6:11; I Cor. 12:13; II Cor. 5:17; Jn. 3:5; Tit. 3:5). And in light of these plain, irrefutable scriptural facts, it is no mystery as to why the apostle Paul made the following profound statement of truth in regard to the experience of being baptized by Jesus with the holy Ghost: "Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his" (Rom. 8:9). To provide this life giving experience from heaven is the ONLY reason that Jesus came here to suffer, die, and raise again from the dead; because it is indeed the only way for sin to be purged out of the hearts and spirits of men. The baptism of the Spirit is the ONLY result of all that Jesus lived and died and rose again for, as Peter alluded to in his first epistle (I Pet. 3:21). Do not leave this world without this experience my friend, and do not leave this world without retaining your first estate WITH the experience, which estate is holiness (Heb. 12:14; Mat. 24:12,13). Amen.