In this broadcast, Carl describes the two Holy Spirit outpourings. Every Christian has experienced the Spirit ‘within’ as newness of life resides within each of us at the new birth. However, not everyone has experienced the Spirit ‘upon.’ This second outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit is described in the Book of Acts as ‘coming upon’ believers to access the requisite power for ministerial purposes. Join Carl now as he delineates between the two outpourings and why the baptism of the Holy Spirit is crucial to overcoming the works of the enemy in your life…
Here is a complete transcript of the podcast…(below)
Friend, today I’m going to talk to you about the Holy Spirit and His operation in this dispensation of Grace, better known as the church age, in comparison to how He used to operate in the OT. We know from scripture that when anyone is born again by God’s Spirit and baptized into Christ Jesus the Holy Spirit then dwells within that person. However, in OT times, scripture says the Spirit of the Lord would come upon people but never permanently residing or indwelling within them. His manifestation was both selective and temporary. However, in the NT, things are very different, because we have been redeemed by Christ’s blood and now have permanent access to the Holy Spirit’s indwelling presence.
Friend, there’s a well of water that Jesus talked about in Jn 4:14, let’s read that now, “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.” Here Jesus describes the well of water that springs up into eternal life. The Holy Spirit dwells within the believer, when we’re born-again to bring newness of life. This well is for your benefit so you may access eternal life and it’s not for someone else. Now friend, in scripture the Holy Spirit is sometimes described as water, oil or even a dove. So water is often one of the types of the Holy Spirit in the Holy Writ. By receiving Christ you have access to this eternal spring within you. But why settle for a well only, why not dive into His river? Did you know there are rivers of living water available to you, if you decide to partake of them and I will speak more on this in a minute. Friend, Jesus called the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth in John 14:16-17 also, lets read it, “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 him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” Notice friend His Spirit abides within you when you become born again. But, believe it or not this concept of God’s Spirit living within you was actually foretold by the prophet Ezekiel 36:25-27, lets read it now:
“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. 26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.”
Friend notice there is a washing and cleansing that takes place here. The Lord washes you when you come to Him and makes you clean. Not only that, He places His Holy Spirit within you, praise God! But guess what, the NT speaks of this washing too let’s read, Titus 3:5, ”Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.”
In Old Testament times, as you well know the Spirit of the Lord came upon prophets’ priests, kings and judges momentarily but it never resided within them permanently. The reason for this is because Jesus had not yet come to redeem man and His blood had not yet been shed. Like I said, there’s a washing and a renewing by the Holy Ghost when we are born again. Not only that Ephesians 5:26 says, “26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word.” The “he” in this verse is the Lord Jesus and the ‘it’ is us the church. Friend, we are washed by the word of God. When you receive the word of God into your heart and become born again, you’re washed and cleansed of your sin and ready for the master’s use, praise God!
Friend, one of His purposes for abiding is that you might bear fruit in your life. Remember the passage on the fruits of the Holy Spirit, Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, klongsuffering, kgentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” In another passage, 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, the Apostle Paul outlines the gifts of the Spirit which operate for the purpose of blessing others. If you recall last month, I did several broadcasts purely on the gifts of the spirit. These gifts are very important in a believer’s life but equally as important if not more are the fruits of the Spirit because they display character traits of the Holy Spirit through our lives. As the saying goes, gifts are given, but fruit is grown. Our gifts are for other people mainly and fruit is for developing character traits that will give glory to God.
Another reason for the Holy Spirit’s indwelling is to help us be led by the Spirit in our daily walk. Romans 8:14, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Friend, there are three ways the Holy Spirit speaks to us today. He does so primarily through the word of God. Secondly through the unction of the Spirit or inner witness and finally through the still small voice. Friend, God leads us in His path and sometimes it may not all be a bed of Roses because He knows what lies ahead if we take the time to listen. Let’s read this very interesting scripture, Luke 4:14, “And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, Being forty days tempted of the devil.” Did you notice it was the Holy Spirit that led Jesus into the wilderness here? Sometimes we do have wilderness experiences in life and in some cases God can lead us there for testing, maturity or growth. I won’t say this is a common occurrence but there’s a belief amongst some people that preachers who teach on faith we seem to purvey to everyone that life’s going to be a bed of Roses and God is your personal vending machine, all you need to do is just speak it out and it materializes, no friend. Not everything is hunky dory at all times, like I said before God can ask you to do something when there’s no provision in the natural to do so. I heard one minister say this, “God has never let me down once yet, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t scared me half to death along the way.” Maybe that’s a bit stern but Friend, it takes guts sometimes to do what God has asked. I remember when I went to Bible College in another state, many years back now. I’d moved everything to that location and I was doing a graduate degree also, as well as Bible College. I went there with no job; Needless to say it was a very busy time for me.
I was standing on one word God had given me. He told me by the end of October, you will have the job I’ve chosen for you. I knew God had spoken to me, but classes started in early September and by October 25th, I still didn’t have that job. Needless to say, the opportunity to sweat was there. I was committed with all my payments friend and I could have started to worry and get into unbelief if I wanted to. So I started to worship and thank the Lord for His provision and reminded Him of the promise He made to me, and sure enough within a week I received a really good paying job and my boss was a believer also. I got my job on October 30th. Just like the Lord promised, by the end of October, literally lol. So I was very blessed, heck I even got a bonus that year too, over and above what I was expecting so the Lord is faithful friend no doubt about it. But there are times when it can become uncomfortable if we start focusing on life’s circumstances, instead of what God promised and that ‘s the challenge of our faith friend. You know Jesus actually talked about some bumps along the road in John 16:33, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” Friend we need the power of God also, to be successful in our Christian walk in these times of tribulation.
Friend, let me discuss now a second encounter with the Holy Spirit described in John 7:37-39 as a river of living water. Remember earlier we talked about the well springing up into eternal life but this is an additional portion of that same water. Jesus is speaking, “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.)” Friend, Jesus is describing rivers of living water that bubble up within you when you receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. The rivers of living water are more than enough to sustain you but others too because it is rivers, plural. Friend, this spirit of truth or the Holy Spirit infilling is not available to the world, but only those who are already saved in Christ Jesus. It is the same Holy Spirit infilling that Jesus spoke of in Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.“
If Jesus didn’t think this additional outpouring was necessary, He wouldn’t have told His followers to meet in Jerusalem and wait for it. Did you notice friend in Christ’s statement that in the outpouring of God’s Spirit, the Spirit comes upon you because He already dwells within you. The scripture makes it clear there is a difference between the Spirit dwelling in someone and coming upon someone. Friend when the Holy Spirit lives within us at our new birth in Christ, His purpose is to bear fruit in our lives, but His outpouring is for power to witness to others. So, as you can see, “The Spirit of God indwells us for the purpose of fruit bearing, and the outpouring of the Spirit is for service to others.” There is power available friend, ‘Dunamis’ equipping power for the purposes of ministry and being a witness in this earth and it’s available for all who would believe and receive it. Some people think this second outpouring is redundant today and claim it isn’t really necessary to do the works of Jesus but friend, that makes Jesus out to be a liar. Evidently, he thought the disciples were not properly equipped to be witnesses for the Gospel in their current state; otherwise, He wouldn’t have made this recommendation. In summary, it’s evident from scripture, there is a twofold work of the Holy Spirit within the believer and that is the Spirit within and the Spirit upon. The Holy Spirit dwells within us at the New Birth for our individual benefit and this represents the majority of Christians today, within denominational churches. The New birth is how we enter God’s Kingdom. But there’s an additional encounter where the Holy Spirit comes upon you by the Baptism with the Holy Spirit.
This is the promise of the Father that Jesus spoke about in Luke 24:49, “And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.” Friend this offer of being endued with power is still available today it has not gone away despite what theologians may say. Now I’d like to make it very clear that being Baptized with the Holy Spirit has absolutely nothing to do with your salvation or getting to heaven for that matter. The second encounter with God’s Spirit is for service and for the sake of blessing others. As we speak there are approximately 600 million Christians worldwide who’ve entered into the promise of the Father or second outpouring where the Spirit of God comes upon them. Like I said before, you’re not special if you receive this promise or in an exclusive super spiritual club that looks down on other Christians who don’t have it, no friend, that’s pride talking. This separate and powerful encounter is for those who will believe. Down the years the Lord has graciously allowed me to minister this promise of the Father to people with tongues as the initial evidence and I continue to do so even today.
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