Week 9 (24 Feb - 2 Mar): Spirit Baptised

This past Saturday, Pastor Ben preached on being “Spirit Baptised”. As Christians, we all know about the third person of the Trinity - the Holy Spirit. What we may not realise is that the Holy Spirit is a concept unique to Christianity. In no other religion does a god desire to dwell within humans - yet this is exactly how our God chooses to relate to us. The Holy Spirit is an ever-present reminder of how God desires to love us and be with us intimately.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit was promised by Jesus in Acts 1:8. Jesus made the purpose of this baptism clear - to empower the disciples to be witnesses to the ends of the earth. It is good that we remind ourselves of this, lest we become like the disciples who misunderstood the Holy Spirit’s baptism to be a matter of power and pride.

Pastor Ben also pointed out that we are the body of Christ on this earth. Without the Holy Spirit, we only have the form of Christ but lack his power. How often is it that we settle for the form of Christianity - showing up for house fellowships, skimming the Bible, saying a quick prayer before bed - instead of opening ourselves to “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20)? God desires to bring about a genuine transformation in us from the inside out – like how Peter was transformed in Acts 2, our inadequacy can turn to confidence, our doubt can turn to conviction, and our faithlessness can turn into devotion.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit during Pentecost in Acts 2:1-13 was accompanied by the supernatural sign of the disciples speaking in other languages that they did not know. Pastor Ben posed a question: must there always be a visible, outward sign of the baptism? Or can we believe the promises of God's Word? For example, in John 14, Jesus speaks of the Holy Spirit and promises: “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (verse 23)‭. This challenges our expectations of what the baptism of the Holy Spirit manifests as, and encourages us to embrace the mystery of God's working as we hold fast to his truth.

Since we cannot control what the signs of our baptism will be, what can we do? Peter answers simply, that we should “repent and be baptised” (Acts 2:38). If we desire to experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit, we must first face the extent of our sinfulness and our need for God. May we truthfully examine our tainted hearts before the Lord, and in so doing, grasp the profound grace of God that he chooses to reside in jars of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7). The Holy Spirit should not be to us a means to an end, but rather a miraculous gift of grace to be welcomed and treasured.

Blessings,

Jordan on behalf of RT1