The Holy Spirit Book: The Promise for All Believers

The Holy Spirit Book: The Promise for All Believers
-Roy Lessin, Meeting in the Meadow

The Holy Spirit is God’s promise for all believers.

The promise of the *presence* of the Holy Spirit is fulfilled when we receive our salvation by faith. The promise of the *power* of the Holy Spirit is fulfilled when we receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit by faith.

When we are born again, we receive a complete Holy Spirit and not a partial Holy Spirit. However, we do not receive the *power* of the Holy Spirit until Jesus baptizes us with the Holy Spirit...this is Jesus’ gift to us that was promised by His Father.

“This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the *promise* of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.” Acts 2:32-33

Another way we can see the distinction between the gift of the Holy Spirit’s *presence* in our lives and His *power* upon our lives is found in the following passage of Scripture:

“Then Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace to you! [Just] as the Father has sent Me forth, so I am sending you.’ And having said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit!’” John 20:21-22

In the above passage, Jesus breathed on them and they received within them the presence of the Holy Spirit. However, even though the Holy Spirit was now within them, Jesus further commanded them to wait in Jerusalem until He would baptize them with the Holy Spirit’s power.

“And behold, I will send forth upon you what My Father has *promised;* but remain in the city [Jerusalem] until you are clothed with power from on high.” Luke 24:49

Even though it was Jesus’ will to send His people forth to do His work, He knew they were not equipped to go. Only He could make that possible by sending the Holy Spirit to empower them. His instruction to them was to wait for the Holy Spirit to come upon them before they went out to be His witnesses. His instruction is the same to us today.

His promise was not limited to a certain group at a certain time, then would go away. The gift of the baptism with the Holy Spirit was not just for the apostles or the early believers mentioned in the book of Acts. His promise was for each believer, in every generation, until His return. Our need of Him today, His fullness and His power is just as great, or even greater, than it was 2,000 years ago.

“For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” Acts 2:39

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© 2023, 2017 Roy Lessin, “The Holy Spirit Book”. Used with permission, all rights reserved.