Church Series-Introduction to the Baptism of the Spirit
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Wednesday October 12, 2016
The Church Series: Introduction to the Baptism of the Spirit
Lesson # 5
There are seven baptisms in the Word of God: (1) Baptism of John (2) Baptism of Jesus (3) Christian water baptism in the pre-canon period of the church age (4) Baptism of Moses (5) Baptism of the Cross (6) Baptism of Fire (7) Baptism of the Spirit.
John the Baptist prophesied of the baptism of the Spirit (Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33).
God the Father tells John the Baptist that the Lord Jesus Christ will be responsible for the Baptism of the Spirit (John 1:33).
John the Baptist places a clear distinction between water baptism and the baptism of the Spirit (Mark 1:8; Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16).
Matthew 3:11 “As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (NASB95)
The baptism of the Spirit takes place the moment the sinner trusts in Jesus Christ as Savior and is declared justified by the Father.
The baptism of the Spirit is the work of the Holy Spirit at the moment of the Christian’s conversion and identifies them with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
During the dispensation of the church age when a sinner exercises faith alone in Christ alone, the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit places that person in an eternal union with Christ, thus identifying the believer positionally with Christ in His crucifixion, death, resurrection and session.
This results in making the believer a permanent member of the royal family of God, a new spiritual species and eternally secure (Mark 16:16; John 7:37-39; 14:20; Acts 1:5; 2:1-4; Rom. 6:3-5; 1 Cor. 12:13; Gal. 3:26-28; Eph. 4:5; Col. 2:11-13; 1 Pet. 3:21).
This is called the “baptism of the Spirit.”
To be identified with Christ means that the Holy Spirit has made the justified sinner identical and united with the Lord Jesus Christ and also means that the Spirit ascribes to the believer the qualities and characteristics of the Lord Jesus Christ.
This does not mean that the believer becomes the second person of the Trinity, but rather it means that God views the believer has having been crucified, died and buried with Christ two thousand years ago as well as raised and seated with Him.
The baptism of the Spirit results in positional sanctification and the potential to experience sanctification in time and the promise of ultimate sanctification at the resurrection of the church.
This ministry of the Spirit never took place before the day of Pentecost in June of 33 A.D.
The completion of the royal family of God at the rapture will mark the end of the baptism of the Spirit.
The baptism of the Spirit distinguishes the church age from other dispensations.
There was no church before the baptism of the Spirit.
Understanding the nature of the baptism of the Spirit and its implications is so very important for the Christian to understand and apply to their own life.
The Father’s viewpoint of the believer is directly related to the baptism of the Spirit.
As we have noted the believer is identified with Christ in His crucifixion, His deaths, His burial, His resurrection and session.
God views the believer as He views His Son in the sense that He looks at the believer as having been crucified with His Son, to have died and been buried with Him and raised and seated with Him at His right hand.
This is all the result of the work of the Spirit.
The believer’s responsibility is to appropriate by faith this fact!
Doing so, results in the believer experiencing their sanctification and deliverance from the sin nature, Satan and his cosmic system.
Ultimately, it leads to the glorification of the Father since if the believer appropriates by faith their position in Christ, they will manifest the character of Christ and to manifest the character of Christ is to glorify God.
To glorify God is to manifest His character.
No wonder the devil has done enormous amount of work in this area to cloud and confuse Christendom’s knowledge of this truth.
There are two important words in the Greek New Testament that related to the doctrine of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
They are baptisma, “baptism” and the verb baptizo, “baptized.”
The verb baptizo belong to the following word group: (1) Bapto (verb), “to dip, to dye, to stain, to wet, to moisten” (2) Baptisma (noun), “identification” (3) Baptismos (noun), “the ritual washing of cups, utensils, bowls.”
In Romans 6:3, 1 Corinthians 12:13 and Galatians 3:27, the verb baptizo is employed in a figurative or metaphorical sense to denote the Holy Spirit causing the believer to be “identified” with Christ.
During the dispensation of the church age when a sinner exercises faith alone in Christ alone, the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit places that person in an eternal union with Christ, thus identifying the believer positionally with Christ in His crucifixion, death, resurrection and session.
This results in the believer being delivered from eternal condemnation, condemnation from failing to keep the Law perfectly, spiritual death, the sin nature, personal sins, Satan and his cosmic system.