Daily Bread Acts 19
Daily Bread Acts 19
Paul in Ephesus
1While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2and asked them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?"
They answered, "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."
3So Paul asked, "Then what baptism did you receive?"
"John's baptism," they replied.
4Paul said, "John's baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus." 5On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. 6When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. 7There were about twelve men in all.
Observation
As Paul returns to Ephesus, he finds some disciples and asks them if they have received the Holy Spirit. We are not sure why he asks this question but their answer makes plain why he asked the question. The Ephesian believers say, “We have not even heard there is a Holy Spirit.”
Paul’s next question gives us understanding as to how he sees that we receive the Holy Spirit. He asks them what baptism they received. This shows us that Paul links the sacrament of baptism to the reception of the Holy Spirit. He then clarifies the “baptism of repentance”, which prepared people to believe in Jesus and then be baptized into Jesus.
It is helpful to know that the word baptism, “baptizo”, means to be fully immersed or, completely covered. It was the same word that was used in agriculture when a seed was completely covered with soil, and immersed in water for an optimal growth environment.
Finally, we see as Paul laid hands on them after they were baptized they showed visible manifestations of the Holy Spirit, which included speaking in tongues and prophesying. These are not the only manifestations of the Holy Spirit, or the only normative mark for identifying whether someone has received the Holy Spirit, but they were strongly prevalent in the book of Acts.
Application:
There is often much confusion about the Holy Spirit in the church today. The two extremes are those who say unless one speaks in tongues that they have not truly experienced the power of the Holy Spirit. And there are others who seem to de-emphasize the Holy Spirit so much so that after generations of such treatment, one of their children might say, “We have not even heard there is a Holy Spirit!”
We see throughout the books of Luke and Acts a strong emphasis on the work of the Holy Spirit. For Paul, as he teaches in the book of Romans and Galatians, there is no way to live an effective Christian life without the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, Paul teaches, opens the eyes of our heart to see our need for Jesus. In Galatians, Paul tells us that if we live by the Spirit, we will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. In other scriptures, the Holy Spirit intercedes as we pray, gives us words to say when we are called to give public account for our faith, and the Holy Spirit will raise our bodies to heaven some day, just as it did Jesus Christ.
So as you can see, we should not be ignorant of the Holy Spirit. As we seek to renew the church in the 21st century, our greatest source of power and wisdom will be the Holy Spirit. Even in the Old Testament the prophet Zechariah says in 4:6, “Not by might or power but by my Spirit, says the Lord.”
So if the Holy Spirit is so important to our life as a Christian, how do we receive the Holy Spirit? First of all it is a gift of God. There is nothing we can do to earn the Holy Spirit. But as the Holy Spirit is a person of the Trinity it is important to recognize and invite the Holy Spirit into our lives. As we believe in Christ and are baptized, we receive the Holy Spirit. but as Paul says in Ephesians, “Keep on being filled with the Holy Spirit.” This would imply that our relationship with the Holy Spirit is ongoing and dynamic, not static. We need to be continually renewed and filled with the Holy Spirit throughout our lives to live with the kind of dynamism Paul and the disciples lived with in the 1st century.
Prayer: Come Holy Spirit! Fill our hearts and minds with Your love and power. We know our battles in this life are not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers of this present darkness. Equip us with your supernatural power to lead a life worthy of our calling in Jesus Christ. In His name and through Your power we pray, Amen.
Paul in Ephesus
1While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2and asked them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?"
They answered, "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."
3So Paul asked, "Then what baptism did you receive?"
"John's baptism," they replied.
4Paul said, "John's baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus." 5On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. 6When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. 7There were about twelve men in all.
Observation
As Paul returns to Ephesus, he finds some disciples and asks them if they have received the Holy Spirit. We are not sure why he asks this question but their answer makes plain why he asked the question. The Ephesian believers say, “We have not even heard there is a Holy Spirit.”
Paul’s next question gives us understanding as to how he sees that we receive the Holy Spirit. He asks them what baptism they received. This shows us that Paul links the sacrament of baptism to the reception of the Holy Spirit. He then clarifies the “baptism of repentance”, which prepared people to believe in Jesus and then be baptized into Jesus.
It is helpful to know that the word baptism, “baptizo”, means to be fully immersed or, completely covered. It was the same word that was used in agriculture when a seed was completely covered with soil, and immersed in water for an optimal growth environment.
Finally, we see as Paul laid hands on them after they were baptized they showed visible manifestations of the Holy Spirit, which included speaking in tongues and prophesying. These are not the only manifestations of the Holy Spirit, or the only normative mark for identifying whether someone has received the Holy Spirit, but they were strongly prevalent in the book of Acts.
Application:
There is often much confusion about the Holy Spirit in the church today. The two extremes are those who say unless one speaks in tongues that they have not truly experienced the power of the Holy Spirit. And there are others who seem to de-emphasize the Holy Spirit so much so that after generations of such treatment, one of their children might say, “We have not even heard there is a Holy Spirit!”
We see throughout the books of Luke and Acts a strong emphasis on the work of the Holy Spirit. For Paul, as he teaches in the book of Romans and Galatians, there is no way to live an effective Christian life without the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, Paul teaches, opens the eyes of our heart to see our need for Jesus. In Galatians, Paul tells us that if we live by the Spirit, we will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. In other scriptures, the Holy Spirit intercedes as we pray, gives us words to say when we are called to give public account for our faith, and the Holy Spirit will raise our bodies to heaven some day, just as it did Jesus Christ.
So as you can see, we should not be ignorant of the Holy Spirit. As we seek to renew the church in the 21st century, our greatest source of power and wisdom will be the Holy Spirit. Even in the Old Testament the prophet Zechariah says in 4:6, “Not by might or power but by my Spirit, says the Lord.”
So if the Holy Spirit is so important to our life as a Christian, how do we receive the Holy Spirit? First of all it is a gift of God. There is nothing we can do to earn the Holy Spirit. But as the Holy Spirit is a person of the Trinity it is important to recognize and invite the Holy Spirit into our lives. As we believe in Christ and are baptized, we receive the Holy Spirit. but as Paul says in Ephesians, “Keep on being filled with the Holy Spirit.” This would imply that our relationship with the Holy Spirit is ongoing and dynamic, not static. We need to be continually renewed and filled with the Holy Spirit throughout our lives to live with the kind of dynamism Paul and the disciples lived with in the 1st century.
Prayer: Come Holy Spirit! Fill our hearts and minds with Your love and power. We know our battles in this life are not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers of this present darkness. Equip us with your supernatural power to lead a life worthy of our calling in Jesus Christ. In His name and through Your power we pray, Amen.
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