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biblestudy: Acts (Part Three)

Acts 2; Speaking In Tongues
John W. Ritenbaugh
Given 09-Aug-88; Sermon #BS-AC03; 81 minutes

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Got a brainstorm while I was studying today. I thought that I would go through something that We do not touch on very frequently. Uh, sometimes once a year, the day of Pentecost or shortly before while we go through at least some portion of this. But At other times of the year it doesn't seem to be a subject that that lends itself to any particular occasion, so we have such an occasion right here and now because we are going through Acts the second chapter. So what I thought that I would do with you today is is review with you some of the principles involved in. Lassalelia What glossalia is. Speaking in tongues. Of course, the, the people who are involved in that draw very heavily on Acts the 2nd chapter, and that's right where we are. And so I spent the day, at least a portion of the day, studying into the tongues question booklet that Mr. Armstrong wrote many decades ago, and I can recall when I was in advanced public speaking class at Ambassador College there in '68 and '69 that Mr. David John Hill, who was at that time was the head of the publishing division of the work, said that. The tongues question booklet. During the decade of the, the 50s and at least part way into the 60s was our most popular booklet. I do not know whether you knew that or not. It was not the United States and British Commonwealth and prophecy or why were you born? It was the tongues question. Uh, it's probably very likely that there is not very many of you in this room have read that book probably in the last 5 or 10 years. But uh, I decided that I would change that, not that I'm going to require you to read it as an assignment as sort of background material for Acts too, but I would at least touch on it tonight and go through some of those principles and make up that, that lack in your life. You did not even know that you were missing it, did you? was probably a major of of the Different Kind or class, I do not, I do not know what of people that we are reaching today that we were reaching. With the radio broadcast back in the 50s and 60s. And there was a demand for that book because apparently there were quite a lot of number or quite a large number of of Pentecostal type people who were listening to the radio program and asking a large number of questions about this subject. I'm sure Mr. Armstrong came in contact with quite a large number of people who were involved in this movement as well because I think it probably reached its heyday somewhere back in the 30s and 40s was beginning to taper out in the 50s. And then believe it or not, it had, it had a revival. Amongst the mainline churches. During the 70s. I mean, there were Catholic churches where they were having charismatic meetings, and Anglican and Episcopal, you know, can you just imagine those people? Uh that seems almost unimaginable to me. They're so stiff and formal and ritualistic about everything, and yet they were involved in this movement. I do not know whether it reached the, the fever pitch that. Pentecostal people did, but nonetheless, they were getting, getting involved in the speaking of tongues. Also, I feel that there was some difference between The Roman Catholic and the Episcopalian Anglican approach to the speaking in tongues and there was with the Pentecostals. Pentecostals were very fervent enthusiastic about calling down the spirit through a number of routines that they went through. OK, the first thing that we have to approach here is why is this question so important? Well, the reason is Because even today, there are large numbers of people. who say That the speaking in tongues is the sign that one has received God's Holy Spirit. And That receiving of God's Holy Holy Spirit is the most important thing in life because it is salvation. Now that last phrase is correct. The first phrase is not correct. But the last one is. The receiving of God's Holy Spirit is salvation. even Mr. Armstrong agreed with that. Here's quoting from, from the booklet. On the tongues question. Salvation means simply the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is the very life of God. Well, that's important. Uh, important enough that we should spend a little bit of time on it because we want to make sure that we have God's Holy Spirit. Because it is salvation. And really, if you do have God's Holy Spirit, that's quite encouraging. Because it means that You're going to be saved. You see, you're going to be delivered from the flesh, you're going to be delivered from this world. You're going to be in the kingdom of God. If so, be that the Spirit of God dwells in you. I can confirm that first of all, we are going to look at Romans. The 8th chapter and in verses 9 and 11, Romans 8 and verses 9 and 11. Where Paul writes, you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if indeed the spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the spirit of Christ, he is not his. Verse 11, but if the spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you. Now notice how simply put this is you just cannot mistake it. Having the Holy Spirit is salvation. The receiving of it there is, therefore, is the most important and critical factor in life. But if the spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Well, Mr. Armstrong is right. Having the Holy Spirit is salvation. We are not going to involve ourselves here with the question of growth. But I Corinthians 3 does show that we have to be careful about what we sow and because that's going to determine what we reap. We have to be careful about how we work. But let's go to that just so I do not misquote it. But in I Corinthians 3, In verse 9, it says, for we are God's fellow workers, you are God's field, you are God's building. According to the grace of God, which was given to me as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation and another builds on it, but let each one take heed how he builds on it, for no other foundation can anyone lay and that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw. The 3 good ones and 3 bad ones, 3 that are basically indestructible and 3 which are easily destroyed. Each one's work will become manifest for the day, that means the day of judgment, meaning right now will be cleared because it will be revealed by fire, that is by test, and the fire will test each one's work of what sort it is. If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned with has double, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved. Yet so as through fire, that is through testing. The receiving God's Holy Spirit is salvation. God wants us to grow. He wants us to overcome. He wants us to increase in spiritual gifts. He wants us to have as fine a character as we possibly can. But even if a person does not do well, if they do not grow. Uh, the way God feels that they can grow. If that scripture gives you enough comfort to show that if you die with God's spirit, then he is going to give you life. Uh, everyone here wants to have life. Encouraging to know that if God's spirit is in us, we have it. We're going to be in the kingdom. So that is a critical question. It is the single most important factor in life. Uh, in Acts 2, We have there listed. The manifestations Of the spirit. That were given on that day, that is the manifestations that were given on that day. I'm going to give them to you here. There are 7 of them. Now this is important because Uh If the receiving of God's spirit. It is to be in accord with what it shows in Acts the 2nd chapter, and it is reasonable to assume. That the same manifestations will occur each time that the spirit is given. We're going to see that that is not a true statement, but yet that is a major portion of the basis of the Pentecostal movement's approach to the receiving of God's spirit. And now in verse one. On the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. The key phrase, they were all with one accord. Now anyone who knows anything about The Pentecostal movement knows that those people are not all with one accord. Even in the best of congregations, there are Uh, splits And schisms that developed. I do not want to spend a lot of time on that, that particular one, but it is a factor. You know if you've had any experience in, in watching church movements or church groups, they almost inevitably split. Somewhere along the line. Now in this particular case, these people were all with one accord. They were all in one place and in verse 2, and suddenly. This is very important. We're going to find out very shortly, the words suddenly the Holy Spirit came. Without warning, you know. The whole house was, was shaken and moved by a by a mighty wind. Verse 3. Let's see verse 2 and it filled the whole house. With this, this mighty wind. A verse 4. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit. And began to I, I'm one verse ahead of myself. Verse 3. And then there appeared to them divided tongues, woven tongues, as the King James may say, a fire, and that this fire sat on them. And yet nobody was burned. And then the next one is in verse 4, that they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. The key word there is all. They all at once, every one of them. And also in verse 4. They began to speak With other tongues. The implication from the word all is that everybody was speaking. And then This is not another one. This is still number 6. They began to speak with other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance. And then the last one In verse 8, How is it that we hear each in our own language in which we were born? So here we have also a miracle, not only in the speaking but also in the hearing as well. And again I do not know how many of you have any kind of background at all with these movements. Uh, when they finally do get to the place where someone speaks in tongues almost invariably, nobody can understand the person who is doing the speaking. And there have been Interested parties who have attended these Rosalia meetings and they have identified the language that was spoken, spoken as being, you know, something from halfway around the world. And in many cases they were, they really were literally human languages, but there was nobody in that room that could possibly understand what these people were saying. Because they may have been Americans and they were speaking something in the Maori language. Who there could understand that? What good was, was accomplished? By the person speaking in a language that no one else could understand. Now there are No similarities, absolutely none. Between The Pentecostal tongue speaking. And the manifestations that we see listed here in chapter 2. Not even one of them matches up exactly. See, sometimes somebody does speak in tongues, but not everybody speaks in tongues. Most of the time, nobody understands what is said. Not only that, the speaking in tongues does not come easily. It doesn't come suddenly. It doesn't come accompanied by the sound of a rushing wind that fills the entirety of the room or the building that they are in. And not only that, there are no cloven tongues of fire. And there is not even one. Now we are left then with a conclusion. That is the manifestations of the spirit that were given on the day of Pentecost. 31 AD were unique in history. It was a one time occurrence. It did not even occur the same way when Peter went to Cornelius's house. But it was a one time occurrence. And the Pentecostal experiences do not repeat what occurred on this one time. You know what we have here is the advent. See, that's the, the coming of. In fact, the first coming off, we can put it that way. Of God's Holy Spirit, a promised comforter. That Jesus spoke of just before he was crucified. Let's go back to John the 7th chapter. In John the 7th chapter, verses 3738 and 39. Now there are a number of scriptures which I'm going to be using 2 or 3 times during the course of this Bible study because I'm going to keep coming back to them in a slightly different context. But here in John the 7th chapter. This took place on the Last Great Day in verse 38. Now he who believes in me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. But this he spoke concerning the spirit whom those believing in him would receive. For the Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified. For the Holy Spirit was not yet given. Something else had to occur before the Holy Spirit would give it. These men then who were following Jesus Christ could not receive what not, had not yet been given. How could they receive it? it was impossible. OK, again, in John the 16th chapter. In John 16 verses 7 and 8. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away, or if I do not go away, the helper will not come to you. But if I depart, I will send him to you. When he has come, he will convict the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment. Uh, it was not given. He hadn't yet departed. He was not yet glorified. So how could these people receive what was not yet given? back in John 14 and in verse 7. A 17 is the one I want. Breaking into the midst of a sentence, he says, even the spirit of truth, and the world cannot receive because it neither sees him or knows him, but you know him, for he dwells with you and will future be in you. And what we have on the day of Pentecost was the Coming of the comforter that Jesus spoke of, and it came with manifestations. That is evidences were undoubtedly given by God in order to attract attention to what was occurring. Not only attracted attention at that time. That it is attracting our attention today. See even here, 8988, we are looking at the manifestations of the receiving of God's spirit that very first time. And now there is a fatal flaw. In almost every one of these. False doctrines. Now the fatal flaw, the Pentecostals make is this. They are trying to copy. and demonstrate the manifestations. Rather than following the teaching of the day. Talking about the day of Pentecost. They are trying to copy the manifestations. That were given on that day instead of following the teachings that were given on that day. Now Acts 2 in verse 38. And Peter said to them, And, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Now there is the nucleus. And that's not right. There is the conclusion. Of the teaching that day. This is what he was aiming to. That is that others would share in the gift that they had just been given. And so he proceeded to give a sermon that showed these people what was occurring, why it was occurring, and how they could participate in it. And so the conclusion was Repent and be baptized. And so there are two conditions. For receiving the Holy Spirit. One is, of course, that we have to come to a place of self-abasement, self mortification. Oh and unconditional surrender like our softball team did on Sunday. I left there with my taildragging. You know what the score of that game was? It was so bad. I'm not going to tell you. And I was totally abased because we beat those fellows twice during the year. And the worm turned. It became a big crocodile or something and chewed us up. it's really not the same thing at all. We do have to come to the place where we are totally surrendered unconditionally to God. Indeed, we are willing to give up everything for Jesus Christ. To give up everything for the kingdom of God. It means that we have to come out of the world. It means that we have to turn that word repent means not only a change of attitude, not just a a mental change, but it also means indicates implies very strongly a turning in the light. So not only does the mind change, but the conduct also changes with it. There is an awful lot of people who have gone through a mental repentance. They have seen where they are wrong. They have been abased, they have had a measure of of self mortification they have felt terrible remorse but they never changed anything in their life. That maybe for a short period. They were not really willing to surrender to give up everything for Jesus Christ. And so if we do really repent and we are baptized, then God promises that he'll give his Spirit. That was the climax of the teaching on that day. And this is where the Pentecostal people go awry. They are trying to copy to demonstrate the manifestations, the speaking in tongues. Without really following the teaching, which is to repent. And if they would just repent, Come out of the world, keep the commandments of God, surrender unconditionally to God. God would give them the gift. Of His Holy Spirit. Now you know what they, they do. These people make A great deal Persistent Ernest I Prayer to God. I do not even know whether to call a prayer to dignify it by using that word. But most of the time they are encouraged in a tarry meeting. To where a number of seekers is what they call them, get together. And these seekers are usually joined by a number of other people who already have had their baptism of the Holy Spirit, they call it, and have already spoken in tongues. These who have already gone through this experience are there to guide the seekers to where maybe they will receive their baptism and they will also speak in tongues. And so they are encouraged to say repetitious phrases over and over again. You know glory glory glory or hallelujah, glory, you know, love you Jesus or whatever. And sometimes they are encouraged to. You know, hold their hands up in the air and, and kind of Wave them around there and go on as long as they possibly can and if they get tired, somebody will come and you know, like Joshua and Moses hold up their arms for them or they are agonizing there in prayer. Sometimes those meetings can go on for hours and hours on end where these people are laboring. In all sincerity. I do not mean in any way to, to, to make fun of their earnestness in trying a counterfeit method of receiving the spirit of God. And finally, you know, sometimes in the wee hours of the morning, somebody will be moved to, to speak in tongues and speak in a. Uh, maybe a fervent, rapid, agitated state. And they will then have given evidence that they have received the spirit of God. When I was a boy, I am sure. That I got into at least a small measure of this. Uh, my grandmother was Pentecostal. And every opportunity she could, she took. Need the services with her. And I know for sure that I did not actually get into a tarry meeting where they were praying like this where someone was trying to get a spirit, but I was in meetings where everybody would be on their knees and, and somebody would be up there giving a testimonial of how God had come into their lives or done something great for them and, and everybody, you know, they would be, you know, glory hallelujah and uh. So kind of going along like that. It's a wonder I did not get turned off. Altogether. But at any rate, Let's go back to Luke's Version of Matthew, let's see, Luke 24, Luke's version of Christ's Last Days with him. And in verse 49, This is one of the foundational scriptures these people use. Out of Jesus' own mouth. He says, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you, but try in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high. There it is. There it is. There is the authority. We're supposed to tarry. Well, First of all, this was spoken to them. Now if we were going to follow the instructions explicitly, Doesn't it say that we would have to tarry in Jerusalem? I mean, you know, let's be logical. Because what they do is they pull out that one word and they say that you're supposed to tarry. Well, let's pull out another word, that word Jerusalem and say, well, we are supposed to do it in Jerusalem. Now if we wanted to go one step further, it says, Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you. To whom was he speaking? we are speaking to the disciples. Specifically, apparently to the ones called the apostles. That whole issue is to a very great extent cleared up. Simply by the definition of the word tarry. Harry does not need to pray. It doesn't mean to be. It doesn't mean to agonize. It doesn't mean to repeat over and over. It simply means to wait. It simply means to remain. It means to stay in the same place. You know Jesus told them to remain in Jerusalem. Jesus told them to stay inside of Jerusalem. He told them that they were to To wait there until They receive power from on high. Now let's go back to Acts one. There is another scripture there. That they use Acts 1 and verses 13 and 14. Now Christ has ascended to heaven. And when they had entered, meaning the Uh, apostles. And Others of the disciples, they went up into the upper room where they were staying. Peter, James, John, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James, the son of Alphaus, and Simon the Zealot, Judas, the son of James, and these all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus and with his brother. So there you have it. They were having a terry meeting and they were all there together praying. They were praying in one accord what it says. Well now indeed, is that what they were doing? undoubtedly, they were in prayer. It doesn't say that they were all praying at the same time. It just says that they were united in what they were doing. And undoubtedly they were going to be doing something like this. These were momentous days. They had just come through the most electrifying period of 50 or 60 days that anybody has ever come through in their life. They had seen their hero, their Lord and master die. They had seen him alive after. Every one of them had been totally assured. was dead And then there they were standing there, and they see him rise up in the air and disappear up into heaven after he had preached to them a number of times during that 50 days. So naturally they were on, they were going to be praying. You would be praying. You would be praying for God's direction about what to do. With your life, you know you would be doing that. Now, if we understand the holy days. A great deal of this is cleared up. Let's go back to Leviticus 23. Leviticus 23. Just going to look very briefly at. At 3 of the holy days. Actually 3 of the festivals because Passover. It's not a holy day. In verse 5, on the 14th day of the first month of twilight is the Lord's Passover. Passover pictures, the The death of Jesus Christ, the sacrifice sacrifice of the Lamb of God for the sins of the world. He died that our sins might be forgiven. And then on the 15th day of the same month, is the Feast of Unleavened bread. And you understand that the Feast of Unleavened bread pictures, the putting of sin completely out of our lives. Now 50 days later, Comes Pentecost. In verse 10, it says, speak to the children of Israel. And say to them, when you come into the land which I give you and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the first fruit. Of your harvest to the priests. Now if you have a new King James Bible, that paragraph is subtitled The Feast of First Fruits. Now we call it Pentecost today only because In Greek, it means count 50 and you have to count 50 from the first Sunday after the Weekly Sabbath, or I should say, shouldn't say first Sunday, the Sunday that comes after the weekly Sabbath that falls between the two holy days and the Days of Unleavened Bread. And you got 50 days and you arrive at the feast of first fruits. Now the the Jews, the Old Testament Testament Israelites never called Pentecost Pentecost. That's something that is strictly an offshoot of the Greek language. It was always called the feast of first fruits. It had a secondary name called the Feast of Weeks. Because they had to count 7 weeks. was an alternate way of counting it. But its real name is the Feast of First Fruits. Now the New Testament church. is the first fruits of God's spiritual harvest. When the Comforter came, when the Holy Spirit came, it was to bring forth the first fruits. The first. It's important to understanding what happened there on that day of Pentecost in 31 AD. The disciples did not pray down God's Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Pentecost was a day. It is a day. It is not an experience, which is what the Pentecostal people are trying to make out of. They are changing, trying to change a day into an experience. The experience of receiving the spirit of Spirit of God, but Pentecost or first fruits is a day. It is a day on a calendar that is arrived at by counting from the Days of Unleavened Bread. God from the very beginning intended to begin his New Testament church, the first fruits on the day of Pentecost, on the day of 1 fruits, 50 days after the Days of Unleavened Bread in which Jesus Christ died. All the praying in the world would never have changed the day of Pentecost. All the praying in the world, all the agonizing, all the nagging, all the tarrying in the world would not have caused God's Holy Spirit to come one minute sooner. Because it was foreordained of God. That it be given on that day. They were not agonizing in prayer here in Acts 1 verses 13 and 14, trying to pray down the spirit of God. They were not having any kind of a tarry meeting. They were in one accord and they were praying because of the Soberness and seriousness of the days in which they were living. God intended from the very beginning to give his spirit on that day. There is no hint at all of pleading or begging or nagging or persistent prayer. They were just simply waiting as they were instructed to wait by Jesus Christ, they are in Luke the 24th chapter. Now back to the book of Acts. I noticed these other occasions in the book of Acts. Same author Where the spirit was given, excuse me, Acts 8. And in verse 12. Now Philip Who at that time was a deacon. I'd gone down to Samaria. He had preached the gospel of the kingdom of God. For some people who are repented. They did, excuse me, believe. But when they believed Philip, as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God in the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. Excuse me, the hiccups. Then Simon himself also believed, and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done. Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, for as yet. All in a pop. But none of them. Anybody have a cure for hiccups? Water. OK, just a second. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Nice and cold. I ought to paralyze my diaphragm. OK, now you see there No tarry meeting. There was no sound No Hello Clove and tongue. I'm speaking with pork tongue here. No fire, nothing. They just prayed, laid hands on them, they received the Holy Spirit. OK, chapter 10. And in verse 44. This is Peter and, and Cornelius. While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. Again, No er meeting? These people had all, excuse me, and they had already repented. And the Holy Spirit fell on them while they were while Peter was speaking. Now why? Because they met the conditions. They repented and they believed. God wanted Peter to get the point. I understand that the gospel was to go out to the Gentiles. And in case there was any doubt at all in his mind regarding the preaching of the gospel to those people, God gave the Spirit even before they were baptized. But again, no evidence at all, excuse me, of any kind of a Terry meeting or whatever. Let's go to Acts 19. In verse one, It happened while Paulus was a current that Paul. Having passed through the upper regions came to emphasis, but finding some disciples, he said to them, did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believe? They said to him, We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit. He said to them, unto what then were you baptized? So they said into John's baptism. Then Paul, Paul said, John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on him who would come after him, that is on Christ Jesus. And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them. They spoke with tongues and prophesized. Again, these people hadn't even heard that there was a Holy Spirit. They had repented And that they, they had been baptized. But there was something wrong with their baptism. So they were baptized, excuse me, rebaptized in the in the name of Jesus Christ. Now the conditions were met. They did not have to hold a Terry meeting. There was no sudden rush of wind, no fire, no speaking in tongues, was there? I just happened to have a second thought there. There was a speaking in tongues, was not there? They spoke in tongues. That was the only only condition that was only manifestation that was met. None of the other things occurred. And above all, there was no place was there any indication of any kind of a tarry meeting or begging of God for God's Holy Spirit. OK, another factor that is a part of this, that is What they call The baptism of the Holy Spirit. What is it? I mentioned before that The great mistake is that they are trying to copy. The manifestations Rather than believing or following the teaching of that day. Perhaps another Central issue here is this thing about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. That is, what is it? Well, they have a wrong idea regarding it. And it tends to influence their thinking on the other things as well. Now their general idea is this. That a person some Where along the line? Repents It is baptized And he receives the Holy Spirit. But At a later date, Afterwards, you see, as an entirely separate act. But if the person seeks diligently enough, That God will will give this person his baptism of the Holy Spirit. Now what this baptism of the Holy Spirit is is a special endowment. Of power To enable these people to wit witness for Jesus. That is that that they are given. Uh, a greater fluency in their speaking. Uh, they are given. A fearlessness to be able to stand up and testify before others of the things that uh. Go the Has done for them, or is willing to do for them. And that the evidence for this is that the person always Underline always speaks in tongues. If they have been given This in this special baptism of the Holy Holy Spirit. Now they believe and again sincerely, that all the apostles went through through this. You see that at some time during the course of following Christ, during that 3.5 years. They became converted, but they received the Holy Spirit, and then on the day of Pentecost, they received this, this special indument of God's Holy Spirit and, and thus received the power to go out and proclaim the gospel to all nations. Oh If that indeed is at least a major part of the whole issue, they are very, very, very wrong. Uh, we will just go to one scripture that that shows. I feel something very clearly back in the book of Hebrews in chapter 10. Now to me this scripture sums up What I'm about to say. It says, for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sin. Now all of us know That under the Old Covenant, The religious life of these people was It was very strictly regulated by Laws that God gave. God-given, yes. A great deal of ritualism, yes. But what is generally not known. That I hope is known by all of all of us. is that at no time under the Old Covenant did God offer those people salvation. If he offered them salvation, then he must have also offered them the Holy Spirit. But he did not offer them the Holy Spirit. He could not offer them the Holy Spirit because There was not going to be any forgiveness of sin. And you see that The condition for the receiving of God's Holy Spirit was that the person had to repent. They had to stop sinning. They had to come under the blood of Jesus Christ. But there was no forgiveness of sin. Therefore, no Holy Spirit. And therefore, nope, no eternal life. There are other things, of course, too. There was no excuse me, no access to God. No promise of eternal life. It was strictly a material covenant. Now if there was no Holy Spirit connected it to the Old Covenant, there was no conversion. There was no conversion possible until the Holy Spirit was given. Therefore, the apostles could not have possibly been converted. Because they did not receive the Holy Spirit until the day of Pentecost. Now, once you begin to understand that as a background, it wipes away the whole Pentecostal approach. Of a special endowment that comes as a result of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. You know, let's go back to John 16. In John 16, And in verse 7 again. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away, or if I do not go away, the helper will not come to you. But if I depart, I will send him to you. Now notice it was expedient for them. That Christ lead and of course expedient for for you and me. If they already had the Holy Spirit. Why would he even say such a thing? They just did not have it. He's telling them in blunt language. The very night that he died, I mean, where the sequence of events began that led to his death actually the next day, but here he is in the last 24 hours of his life, and they still do not have the Holy Spirit. That's pretty late in his ministry. OK, let's go to John 15 and verse 26. John 15 and verse 26, which says, But when the helper comes, you see, it was not there yet. But when it comes, Whom I shall send. To you from the Father, the spirit of truth that proceeds from the Father, it will testify of me. I will send. It is yet future. He hadn't sent it yet. Chapter 14. And in verse 15, If you love me, keep my commandments, and I will pray the Father, and He will give you the helper. Now that's interesting, is not it? It was not the disciples who prayed for the Holy Spirit, it was going to be Jesus who would pray for the Holy Spirit. See nothing in that whole Pentecostal approach is right. I do not think there is anything right about the whole thing. Once we begin to examine it in the light of scripture, they have got virtually everything wrong. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another helper that he may abide with you forever. Even the spirit of truth, the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him, but you know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. Now John 7 again. Try it again. You know what I'd do if I was at home. I've had the hiccups. A lot of times, I take a glass of water, fill my whole mouth, shut my eyes, plug out my ears, plug up my nose. Then I swallow it. It seems to work all the time. I'll do it now, but you'd laugh. OK, in John 7. And again in verse 38. He who believes in me as the scriptures said out of his heart will will flow rivers of living water, but this he spoke concerning the Spirit whom those believing in him would receive for the Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified. See, there is another nail in the coffin. The Holy Spirit would not be given until something else occurred. There are things that had to occur in God's purpose before the giving of the Holy Spirit. I'm back in Joel too. The scriptures that Peter was quoting on that day of Pentecost, and Joel, the 2nd chapter and in verse 28. And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. Remember I mentioned to you last week that Peter changed that word afterward. To the last days. And what he was doing when he did that, I am sure that God inspired it is so that you would understand that the last days began when the Holy Spirit came to the earth. That's the interpretation, the New Testament interpretation of the word afterward in Joel 2:28. And we then have a definite day. That the last days began. The coming of God's Holy Spirit was the beginning of a new era. The church era The first fruits era. Uh, back in Acts one. In Acts 1 and in verse 4. Being assembled together with them, he commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which he said you have heard from me. And they heard from him at least in Luke the 24th chapter and in John the 20th chapter, where he told them to wait until you be endued with power from on high. That was the promise of the Father. So they were to, to tarry there to not depart, not leave, but remain in Jerusalem until the promise came. You see, I'm giving you all these scriptures to show you that the Holy Spirit could not have been given before the day of, of, of Pentecost there in 31 AD. Therefore, those apostles were not converted. The only ones that received the spirit of God were those that God had a special mission to perform. During the Old Covenant period. Those, of course, were those men and women whose names are so prominently mentioned in the scriptures in the Old Testament. Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob, and David, and the other prophets that you see named back there. OK, Luke 22, we really nail this one down. Luke 22nd chapter. In verse 32. 22 verse 32, Jesus is speaking. But I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail, and when you have returned to me, King James Version says, when you are converted, strengthen your brethren. Converted is correct. Fossils were not yet converted. back in John 20 John the 20th chapter. Verse 22. And when he had said this, he breathed on them. And said to them, receive the Holy Spirit. Now that seems to be a puzzle. So many But it's not a puzzle. If you believe all the weight of evidence that I just gave you. If he really gave them the Holy Spirit. Then Why even tell them to wait in Jerusalem until they received the holy, the promise from the Father from on high. If he really gave them the Holy Spirit at that time, and everything that he said in regard and all of the prophecies in regard of the Holy Spirit are just knocked into a cocked hat. And the Bible is contra contradictory and yet the Bible said that the spirits or the the scripture cannot be broken. All he did was breathe holy air on them. Spirit is breath. He went. Can you think of why? How did the Holy Spirit come? With the sound of a rushing mighty wind. He was giving them a little bit of a preview that they could latch onto and know immediately what was occurring. They would remember it. Another thing to look at here is He did not say to them, you have now received the Holy Spirit, past tense. But it was A forerunner of what was going to occur. OK, now, just exactly then what is? This baptism of the Holy Spirit. If this is the crux of the issue and, and they are all haywire on this thing, what exactly is it? Let's go back to I Corinthians 12. And in verse 12. Whereas the body is one, it has many members, but all the members of that one body being many are one body, so also is Christ. For by one spirit, we were all baptized into one body, whether Jew or Greek. Slave or free, all been made to drink into one spirit. A 4 by 1 spirit, we are all baptized into one body. The word baptized means to immerse. It means to plunge into. OK, the person is immersed or plunged into the thing he is baptized in. When you're baptized in water, you are plunged into. Immersed in the water. That's that's very plain. Consequently, The baptism of the Holy Spirit. I'm going to change a word here. Because I've, I've been using. A proposition here, purposely because That's what the Pentecostals say. The baptism of the Holy Spirit. That never appears in the Bible. At first. What it says in the Bible is baptism or baptized with. Or as we might say today, by means of. Consequently then, the baptism with Not all, but with the Holy Spirit. Is not our immersion into the Holy Spirit. Because the scriptures just told us. That it is the baptism or entrance or plunging into or immersion into the church. by one spirit, we were all immersed into. Plunged into one body. Now back to Romans 8 and verse 9 again. Romans 8 and in verse 9. But you are not in the flesh but in the spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now the key phrase here is this time dwells in you. OK, if the spirit is in us, that is, it dwells in us. Then we belong to Christ. We are in Christ. We are in the body of Christ. We have been plunged inside of it. By means of the spirit. OK, and Matthew 3. I'm just picking this verse out to. To show you the way that the, the Bible really phrases it. It seems as though John the Baptist could get it right, but the Pentecostals can't. And in verse 11. I indeed baptize you with water. Unto repentance, that he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with. The Holy Spirit and fire. OK, back to the book of Acts again. You know, we are going to Connect some words together here. I started to go through at least some of this last week. Just by comparing. What it says in one place, with what it says in another place, we find a number of words that are being used synonymously. So that they are They mean the same thing in the kind of context in which they appear. You know, what is it that makes us a member of the church? It's the receiving of God's Holy Spirit. That's what plunges us into the church. Therefore, the receiving of God's spirit and the baptism of the Holy Spirit, or by the Holy Spirit or with the Holy Spirit are both the same thing. They are one and the same. They are not different. They are the same thing. Now Acts 1 in verse 5. For John truly baptized with water, that you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. In Acts 2, on the day of Pentecost, they received the Holy Spirit. Being baptized with the Holy Spirit and receiving the Holy Spirit are exactly the same thing. In chapter 2 and in verse 4. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Filled with the Holy Spirit is the same as baptized with the Holy Spirit is the same as receiving the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38. And Peter said to them, repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit is the same as being baptized with the Holy Spirit is the same as being filled with the Holy Spirit. Incidentally, in the next couple of verses, 3000 of them were baptized. And they receive the Holy Spirit. There is not one word of anything. Even coming close to tarrying or begging or praying down the Holy Spirit of God. Again, In Acts 10. Now here we have the story of Cornelius and his household receiving the Holy Spirit. Now let's jump over into chapter 11. We find Peter being called upon to explain what was what went on there. So verse 4, it says Peter explained to them, that is the people in Judea, in Jerusalem. Uh, in order Step by step from the beginning. Then verse 14. Who will tell you words by which you and all your household will be saved. As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them as upon us at the beginning. And then I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit. Now there is the Holy Spirit falling on them. And that word is equated with baptism, is equated with receiving is equated with receiving. Did I say receiving fell upon. Filled with, that's the one I'm looking for. If therefore God gave them verse 17, the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God? When they heard these things, they became silent and they glorified God, saying, then God has granted or also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life, and that last statement there proves that this was their first occurrence of receiving the Holy Spirit. Because the Gentiles were not contacted before. And the Gentile Cornelius received the Holy Spirit when he met the conditions. He was repentant. He believed. God gave him the Holy Spirit. And so it fell upon them as at the beginning. So, This baptism of the Holy Spirit was not something that was subsequent to a former conversion and receiving the Holy Spirit. So falling fell, receiving gift, baptism in the Book of Acts are all used synonymously. And the next question is His tongues always the same. One has received the Holy Spirit. Let's go back to Matthew the 7th chapter in a very familiar scripture. In verse 20 The scripture that says every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore, by their tongues, you, you will know that. No, it doesn't say that. It says by their fruits you shall know them. Who is going to be of God and who is not? Who is a false minister and who is not? It's by the fruits, by what they produce in their life that they are known. I'm back in I Corinthians 13. I Corinthians 13. And in verse one, Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels that have not love, love is a fruit of God's spirit. Love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, meekness, faithfulness, self-control. All of those are fruits of God's spirit, and they are the thing, the manifestations that we look to to see whether or not a person has God's Holy Spirit. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, tongues are not the proof that one has God's Holy Spirit. Tongues can be counterfeited by Satan, the devil, devil, but the love of God cannot be counterfeited by Satan because he has the wrong spirit. And because he has the wrong spirit, none of the fruits of God's spirit can be counterfeited by him. He can come close. But when push comes to shove, And the love of God is going to show itself. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, have not love, I have become a sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. John 13 Verse 35. John 13 and verse 35. Jesus said, by this all will know that you are my disciples if you have love, one for another. Love there I'm sure is put for all of the other fruits of God's spirit. As the others will follow as well. Love is the main thing, and love is going to be the sign, evidence, manifestation of God's spirit, not tongues. In I Corinthians 14. Now here is a chapter has a great deal to say about the speaking in tongues. One thing maybe that needs to be interjected at this point is that tongues are a legitimate gift. Talent or ability of God's spirit. Back in I Corinthians 12, In verse 4, now there are diversities of gifts with the same spirit. And there are differences of ministries with the same Lord. There are diversities of activities, but it's the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation, the evidence of the spirit is given to each one for the profit of all. That is for the common good of the church. For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same spirit, to another faith by the same spirit, to another gifts of healing by the same spirit, to another, the working of miracles to another prophecy, to another, the discerning of spirits to another different kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of times. And now the speaking in tongues is a legitimate gift. Talent, ability of God's spirit. And if you look at it rightly, it is a gift of the gift. The gift being God's spirit, and it is a gift of the gift. The ability to speak in tongues. I'm back in chapter 14 again. In verse 5, Paul says, I wish you all spoke with tongues. But even more that you prophesy. needing to speak under inspiration. It seems to indicate that when a person speaks in tongues, he's not necessarily speaking under the inspiration of God. I do not see how that conclusion can be avoided. But even more that you prophesy. For he that prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets that the church may receive edification. Are the kind of tongues that these people in these movements are speaking. are for the most part, something that is unintelligible gibberish. To those who are listening. Apparently some of this It was evident in the Corinthian church. Because Paul says in verse 20, Brethren I, do not be children in understanding. However, in malice, be babes, but in understanding, be mature. II Timothy 1:7 says that the Spirit of God is the spirit of a sound mind. That's important in in understanding this. Now the question is, should we seek the ability to speak in tongues? In verse 4, Chapter 14, it says, He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself. But he who prophesies edifies the church. Now there are occasions. When the speaking in tongues is a legitimate need of the Church of God. It is not a legitimate need under the circumstances. In which we are now operating. We all speak the same language. There is no need for the gift of tongues. And so if we should go to God seeking it. Then it seems to me that since what Paul said here in I Corinthians 14:4 that he who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, then it is something that would be sought after for self. Glory, self edification, something that is selfish. Because it's not needed. And so therefore, we should not be seeking after it. Now this chapter shows. That this was a self blessing that could very easily degenerate into sin, which is exactly what occurred. That's why it had to be written about and correct it. These people were undoubtedly getting some kind of a pumped up. You know, what would we call it trip. A vanity trip. A thrill Some kind of a, a feeling, a sensation of being able to really wow the local personnel there with their ability to speak in some other language that nobody else could understand. Now that kind of a usage. is completely selfish. That's why it appears here in the Bible. Why does God give us His Holy Spirit? There are a number of reasons. But certainly one of the most important. Is that it will give us the power to crucify the self. So that we can understand the deceitfulness of sin in contrast to the holiness of God. So that we are able to see what we are like and therefore be able to continue. To abase ourselves, to be mortified, to continue to surrender our will to God in every area. Of course, it's also given to us to give us the, the power to overcome. That we might be cleansed. With From all unrighteousness that we might have imparted to us the righteousness of God. We might be able to, to be able to have the, the faith of Jesus Christ, to be able to understand God's word, to give us the power to be able to be kind, to be gentle, to be patient, to be good. To be able to preach the gospel. That's why God has given His Holy Spirit. Not to give us a feeling. To enable us to carry out His will. Back in Acts one, this conclude with this scripture, Acts one. In verse 8, You shall receive power. The Holy Spirit has come upon you. Now here is why, and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, to the ends of the earth. That's the commission. God has given to each and every one of us. He has given us his, his spirit. All measure of his power. To enable us to do this, to do it with our own life. And to do it as a corporate body in the preaching of the gospel, to be a light wherever we are, to be the right kind of an example. We need the power of his spirit to enable us to do that. How is this? Our accomplished Acts 2 and verse 38. Through repentance and faith. Through surrender. And the trusting of God. Not through tarrying, not through persistent begging. Not through pleading But through repentance. Not through the sound of a rushing mighty wind. Not through speaking in tongues. But through repentance and faith. Yeah, I think we will stop right there. And the next time I will pick up in chapter 2 once again.

JWR/aws/drm

 

 

Sermon Topics

False Gospels

Jesus Christ's Return

Life after Death

Repentance

Resurrection

The Gospel

The Kingdom of God