In John 14:16, 17, 26 the Lord promises that the Father will send another Comforter. He was going away, but this other Comforter would abide with them forever, and would dwell with them, and be in them. In Acts 2:33, Peter says that He has now come. Pentecost was fifty days after the resurrection of Christ. Then it was that the baptism of the Holy Ghost took place (the baptism of fire is judgment, and is still future. (Matt. 3:11; Luke 3:16). Notice John 1:33 leaves the baptism of fire out): 1 Corinthians 12:12, 13 tells us it was the forming of believers, sealed with the Spirit, into one Body.
If you examine the Scriptures you will see that the baptism of the Spirit is not individual, but corporate. Individuals are sealed. The body was formed by the Holy Spirit coming upon them all at once; since then, we, Jews or Gentiles, who have believed the gospel, are united to the Head and to each other, by receiving the Holy Spirit. Some have mistakenly called this the second experience or blessing; but really, no one in Scripture is called a Christian, till the Holy Spirit dwells in him (Rom. 8:9, 15; John 7:39).
It is not by external signs that we know that the Holy Spirit dwells in us. He sheds abroad the love of God in our hearts (Rom. 5:5). He bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God (Rom. 8:16). It is by Him we say “Abba Father” (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6). He comes to dwell in us because we are sons. He that is joined to the Lord is one Spirit.
We will look now at some of the ways of God in the Acts of the Apostles.
In chapter 1, we find the disciples, for ten days after the ascension of Jesus, waiting in prayer for the promise of the Father (verses 4, 5), and in chapter 2 it is told us how He came. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. This was not gabbling, or jabbering, it was intelligent speaking, which those present could understand, and everyone could hear in his own tongue, the wonderful works of God. This was the beginning of the time mentioned in Caiaphas’ prophecy (John 11:52), when the children of God were to be gathered into one.
Peter had been given by the Lord (Matt. 16:19), the keys (not of heaven, that has no keys) of the kingdom of heaven—that is, the authority to admit or reject the subjects for the kingdom—the profession of Christ’s name on earth. He now stands up, and convicts them of rejecting and murdering the Messiah, whom God has now glorified, and quotes Joel 2 to show them that these men were not drunk, as they supposed, but that it was of that kind which prophesied there. The signs did not take place, nor was the Spirit poured upon all flesh, but it was of that kind. Joel 2 will be fulfilled when Israel is restored to their land and to the Lord.
Thousands of these godly Jews heard this, and were pricked to the heart, and said, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Peter answered, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” They must own with repentance the name of the crucified One, before they could be forgiven or receive the Holy Ghost. We could not baptize any for this purpose now, as we shall see in Acts 10:43, 44.
There is no evidence of any here speaking with tongues, except the preachers; no falling down, no screaming, nor indecent disorder all was solid reality.
Notice also, the hundred and twenty could not baptize themselves; they did not need that. They were the nucleus formed by the Spirit, into which the rest entered by baptism. It is the house aspect. The body is formed by God (1 Cor. 12:12, 13). Man cannot bring any into that body.
After the murder of Stephen, a great persecution began, and all the disciples were scattered abroad, except the apostles. They could not be a community any longer with one purse: they could not wait for the King to come back any longer. They had to leave everything, but with glad hearts they preach the Word wherever they go. Philip, a deacon at Jerusalem, proves that he is an evangelist everywhere, and going down to Samaria he preached Christ unto them, and God confirmed the Word by the miracles he did. Hebrews 2:3, 4, is God’s use for miracles. Then he baptized them all, both men and women, but none of them received the Holy Spirit, till Peter and John came down from Jerusalem, and prayed for them, and laid their hands on them; then they received the Holy Ghost.
Here we must consider the antagonism of the Jew and the Samaritan to each other. God would not have two divided assemblies, two fellowships, for there is only one Spirit and One body (Eph. 4:4), and this was taught here in that God withheld the Holy Spirit, till they are acknowledged one by the apostles’ laying on of hands. God is careful that we should maintain the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace. This case is neither like Acts 2 nor Acts 10, as we shall see.
Here again we can notice the difference between the work of the Spirit in us, and the indwelling of the Spirit. The first gives life; the last gives us power to live and to enjoy the things of God, and to call God our Father.
Again, there is no mention of speaking with tongues among the converts. There is no mention of the eunuch receiving the Spirit. John 7:39 is enough to show that he was sealed. In Acts 9, we have the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. Again we see the effect of the Word in the sinner, convincing him of his lost condition, and this continued for three days, when he neither ate nor drank. Then the Lord, who spoke to him on the way to Damascus, sent a disciple called Annaias to him, who came in, laid his hands on him, called him “Brother Saul,” and added, “The Lord, even Jesus... hath sent me that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.” The scales were gone, his sight came back, and he arose and was baptized (See also his own narrative in Acts 22:16). He tells this verse to Jews, for he pictured their position. Forgiveness of sins was administered in his case, like Acts 2, in baptism. (Compare John 20:23 for this).
In Acts 10, we have the Gentiles brought in; while they did not know salvation, were thus not saved (while safe enough if they died, like Abraham, and other Old Testament saints), yet we see plainly something in them that was not the flesh; “devout” means “pious” or “godly,” and Cornelius showed it in his works and prayers, which God accepted (see verses 2, 4, 22). God gives Cornelius a vision, and Peter a vision, and prepares each for his part—overcoming Peter’s scruples regarding the unclean Gentile, and preparing Cornelius and his company to hear the good news, and this Cornelius is ready to believe at once, ready to worship Peter as God’s messenger, and says, “We are all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded of God.” There is every mark here to show that he was already born again, really converted long ago. But now something is to be added; he is to hear of the work of Christ, and that “Whosoever believeth on Him shall receive remission of sins.” No sooner are the words uttered than they are believed, and no sooner believed than “the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the Word.” They are sealed at once, united to Christ the Head in glory. They are members of His body, and children of God the Father. Peter too is astonished and so are his company, but it is true, “on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.” And this time they speak with tongues, and magnify God. They do not jabber or gabble. It is intelligent worship to God, understood fully by those present. It was evidently to convince the Jews and Peter that God was also granting to the Gentiles repentance unto life. Again Peter uses the key; and; in the name of the Lord, commands that they be baptized.
In going over this narrative to the Jewish brethren at Jerusalem, Peter remembered the word of the Lord, “Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost,” thus owning these Gentiles as one with those in Jerusalem or elsewhere.
In Acts 19 Paul meets twelve of John Baptist’s disciples, who had not heard the gospel of the grace of God, nor did they know that the Holy Ghost was now dwelling in His house on earth. These were believing Jews, but did not know the finished work of Christ, and were still on Jewish ground. Paul taught them to believe on Christ Jesus, the glorified One. They were baptized to the name of the Lord Jesus. Paul laid his hands on them, thus expressing their oneness with the Christians. Then the Holy Ghost came on them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. Again, it is intelligent speaking, as the word “prophesying” shows.
These three cases of speaking with tongues are all that are in the Acts. In 1 Corinthians 14, we find the gift of tongues, but it is no mark of spirituality, and it was forbidden to speak with tongues, unless there was someone to interpret. Paul spoke with tongues more than they all, but he would rather speak five words with his understanding, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue (1 Cor. 14:18, 19).
Miracles, gifts of healing, diversities of tongues, are only second class, and are no mark of spirituality, as seen in the Corinthians.
At the beginning, the Word was confirmed by works of power (Heb. 2:3, 4). This has been done. Faith cometh by hearing, not by seeing (John 2:23-25; 11:40).