Baptized by the Spirit

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This is the 6th message in a series of sermons on the topic of sanctification. Passages from Luke, John and Acts are primarily used for this message.

Written Excerpts:

Luke 3:16  John answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Introduction:

For about 5 weeks I have been doing a series of messages relating to the topic of sanctification. To help us in our understanding of this biblical subject, I’ve been borrowing some material from the book “Called to Be Holy” written by Dr. John Oswalt.

From the very beginning of the series I’ve tried to provide some examples of how badly we need a revival of holiness and true righteousness within the American Christian church.

Some years ago a well-known researcher who does research surveys on various social issues came up with these alarming facts through one of his surveys:

The Church (Born again Christians)

·  Faith today begins with personal felt needs and ends with convenience and simplicity

Ø  In other words, many “Christians” came to accept the Lord because they believed He would solve their problem(s) or would provide something they needed.

Ø  Their practice of faith goes no farther than deeds that are simple and convenient for them.

·  54% of born again Christians are not convinced that there is [any such thing as] absolute truth

Ø  How difficult should it be for a Christian to at least affirm that “the existence of God is absolutely true?”

Ø  Or, “it is absolutely true that Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of the world.”

·  Amount of time spent watching TV is 7 times more than all spiritual pursuits

Ø  “All spiritual pursuits” would include prayer; Bible reading; church attendance; etc.

·  8% tithe their income

·  Discipleship is unknown: 60% of converts are not connected to any Christian body in 4 weeks after conversion

·  No statistically observable differences between the values of the church & the world

·   Six primary values of both groups:

o    Material well-being

o    Satisfaction

o    Happiness

o    Approval

o    Comfort

o    Convenience

[There’s no mention of eternity, divine approval of life, fulfillment of divine purpose, service, etc.]

George Barna – “We have not transformed our culture because we are neither grieved nor embarrassed by our sin.”

When our current President was running for office, he campaigned on a pledge to “fundamentally transform our nation.” And, in my opinion, I think he’s experienced phenomenal success. In similar fashion, I believe that the American Christian church has been fundamentally transformed until it doesn’t look any different than your basic, run-of-the-mill, secular social club. Its values are no higher than the average “man on the street.” We’ve determined that it’s not possible to live holy lives, so we have been all too satisfied to prove it by our self-centered, lustful living.

The last sermon I gave in this series, which was three Sundays ago, we talked about the need of having a new spirit within us in order to have the ability to holy lives. We looked at some OT passages which revealed man’s problem stems from a “spirit of harlotry” or “spirit of prostitution” which cannot remain faithful to God and Him alone, but is constantly seduced by other “spiritual affections.” We also learned that we naturally have an unclean/impure spirit which also prevents us from being wholly devoted to the Lord. The Bible records prophecies where God promises to give His people a new heart and a new spirit so that they would and could live in obedience to His will and they could be exclusively His people.

Today, I want to continue speaking about this biblical emphasis on the work of God’s Spirit upon the heart and spirit of man to transform us into someone that is loyal and devoted to Christ through and through.

Before we continue, I want to provide a review of the “progression of thought” we have been following so far: What Must God Do [to bring you to the point that you can dwell in His holy presence]? (From Dr. Oswalt’s presentation at Table Rock Pastors’ Gathering)

• Deliver you from the consequences of your sin (by His grace through the atonement)
• Cleanse you from your idolatry (take away divided heart and spirit of “harlotry”)
• Give you a new heart and spirit (a heart that is perfect, whole, all it was meant to be; and a spirit that is truly alive to God)
• Put His Holy Spirit in you (baptize with the Holy Spirit, live within you to provide ability to be alive and whole)

Transition: With God’s help, we want to consider three aspects regarding the baptism with the Spirit.

Proposition: The baptism with the Spirit involves Christ’s messianic mission; our recognition of need; and our response in order to receive the baptism of the Spirit.

I.    The Messianic Mission

A.  OT Prophecies relating to the Messiah and the Spirit

Isaiah 11:1-2 (NKJV) ¹ There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots. ² The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.

This prophecy announces that the Messiah will be marked by the distinct presence of God’s Spirit upon Him.

Isaiah 32:1, 12-15 (NKJV) ¹ Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, And princes will rule with justice.  ¹² People shall mourn upon their breasts For the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine. ¹³ On the land of my people will come up thorns and briers, Yes, on all the happy homes in the joyous city; ¹⁴ Because the palaces will be forsaken, The bustling city will be deserted. The forts and towers will become lairs forever, A joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks-- ¹⁵ Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, And the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, And the fruitful field is counted as a forest.

Disastrous conditions shall prevail because of the sins of Israel until the “king” reigns in righteousness (v.1) and the “Spirit is poured upon us from on high.”

Isaiah 42:1 (NKJV) ¹ "Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.

These are some examples of references in the OT that show a clear and direct connection between the reign of the Messiah and the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

B.  The affirmation of John the Baptist (Messianic “forerunner”)

Luke 3:16 John answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

In the NT we have some pointed statements by John the Baptist who was the “voice in the wilderness” and the forerunner of Jesus Christ, the Messiah.

(There had not been a person clearly marked as a prophet of God for 400 years.)

·          What was John’s introduction to the Christ? “I baptize you with water, but He will ‘die for your sins.’” ??????

·          No! “…but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire!”

·          All four gospels and Acts repeat this declaration.

·          Did John not believe in the atoning work of Christ on the Cross? Of course. [He also said, “Behold the Lamb of God which takes away the sins of the world.”   But,]

·          He knew what the end work was [i.e., he knew that salvation through the atonement was not all that the Anointed One would perform.]

(Oswalt, Presentation at Table Rock Pastor’s Gathering)

Not only have the OT prophets spoken about the direct role the Messiah will have with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, but now in the NT, the prophetic forerunner of the Messiah echoes the same message.

But, John is not the only one who specifically emphasizes this aspect of the Messiah’s task.

C.  The confirmation of the Messiah Himself

After the resurrection, when the disciples were gathered and talking about His appearance to the two on the road to Emmaus, Jesus appears again and begins to speak.

Luke 24:44-49 (NKJV) ⁴⁴ Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me." ⁴⁵ And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. ⁴⁶ Then He said to them, "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, ⁴⁷ and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ And you are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high."

 “Wait for the promise of the father”

·          No disciple stumbles over this

·          How surprising – they have stumbled over almost everything else He has said.

·          Has He finally said something they expected the Messiah to say?

·          They expected Him to make the Spirit available to them so they could keep the covenant.

·          They had not realized that the only way that gift could be given was through His death to Himself on our behalf (Is. 53)

·          All of our cross is to die to our own selfish ways.

(Oswalt, Presentation at Table Rock Pastor’s Gathering)

There were many truths and principles that Jesus taught to His disciples while He was with them. One of those important truths had to do with the sending of the Holy Spirit to dwell within them. (We read some of these texts in our responsive Scripture reading earlier in the service.)

As He draws near the close of His earthly ministry, He urges them to tarry until they are endued with the power from on high; referring to the outpouring of the HS at Pentecost.

II.  The Human Need

We’ve already talked about the human condition; a problem of a defective heart and spirit. We need to be rescued from the consequences of our rebellion, but we also need to have the original problem dealt with as well.

The remedy God has provided is both external and internal.

A.  The Atonement

We said earlier that God’s plan for bringing people into relationship with Him involved:

·          Delivering them from the consequences of their sin (by His grace, through the atonement)

This was the external part of His work and plan. It was the sacrifice Christ did for us, but apart from us. There was nothing we could do to provide for our own salvation. It required the atoning blood sacrifice of God’s own Son.

But, there was an internal component as well.

B. The Baptism with the Spirit

In order to…

·          Cleanse them from their idolatry (take away divided heart and spirit of “harlotry”), and

·          Give them a new heart and spirit (a heart that is perfect, whole, all it was meant to be; and a spirit that is truly alive to God)

… it would require the very presence of God Himself through the Holy Spirit to effectively make these changes inside of us.

This impartation of the Spirit begins at the time we are born again. Transformation begins to take place immediately for the person who has genuinely trusted in Christ. Yet, there is a deeper work of the Spirit that must also take place as we discover our weaknesses, our divided affections, our self-centeredness and our predisposition to retain control of our own lives. We can solve none of those problems ourselves; it takes the mighty power of the Holy Spirit freely flowing through us for God’s glory.

III. The Human Response

If you remember the time when someone explained to you how to be saved, they probably emphasized the need to be sorry for your sins and repent of them, and then place your full trust and confidence in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for salvation (rescue from all consequences of sin including eternal death). We had to renounce our sinful attitudes and choices and accept Christ’s remedy.

There is a slightly different response that is appropriate for this baptism of the Spirit we are talking about today. In addition to accepting Christ and asking Him to come into our hearts, we must make a conscious decision to invite the HS to take complete control of our lives. There must be an unconditional surrender to the lordship of Christ and a willingness to let His Spirit take the controls of our heart and life, i.e., to “sit on the throne” of our heart. And, as Paul indicates in Eph. 5:18, we must keep on being filled with the Spirit, which indicates the necessity of continually seeking and submitting to a fresh filling and anointing of the HS as often as He prompts us.

This kind of consecration implies nothing held back. We yield to God every detail and aspect of our lives, our future, and everything. Then, we believe or trust Him to fulfill His promises.

“Faithful is He that calls you, who also will do it.” (1 Thes. 5:24)

This follows immediately after the verse that reads like this, “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly (entirely, through and through), and may your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Jesus came and died so there might be an adequate atonement for our sins and we could be forgiven because of His sacrifice, but He also came and died so we could be baptized by the Spirit and enjoy the sanctifying grace of the Holy Spirit here and now in this life.

Conclusion:

The Pattern of God’s work in His people…

·          God saves His people from the consequences of their sin by grace alone

·          He saves them in order that He might take up residence among them

·          But that is only possible if they share His character

·          However they are unable to live that character (of God) by their own ability.

·          God intends to empower them through the gift of the Spirit that His Son’s sacrifice will make available.

(Oswalt, Presentation at Table Rock Pastor’s Gathering)

Let us close the service this morning by singing the hymn that is listed in the bulletin:

Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart    #390

If you haven’t completely and totally consecrated yourself to the full control of the Holy Spirit, I urge you to do it.

You can either do it this morning by coming forward for prayer before you leave, or you can find a quiet place of prayer alone, but in any case, I urge you in the strongest terms possible to find that time of prayer and make that total surrender to the Lord.