Baptism of the Holy Spirit

Concise Bible Dictionary:

This is distinct from baptism with water. John’s baptism is contrasted with it, (Acts 11:16¹⁶Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. (Acts 11:16); Matt. 3:11¹¹I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: (Matthew 3:11)). Christian baptism, though distinct, was in view of the reception of the Holy Ghost (Acts 2:38³⁸Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Acts 2:38)), but does not confer it (Acts 19:5-6⁵When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. (Acts 19:5‑6)). Baptism of the Holy Spirit took place at Pentecost: the Lord said to His disciples, “Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence” (Acts 1:5⁵For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. (Acts 1:5)); so that at Pentecost the saints were all baptized by the one Spirit into one body (1 Cor. 12:13¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:13)). This agrees with the church having been begun at Pentecost, and tells us that no one can be a part of the body of Christ until he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, being initiated into the one body formed, characterized, by the baptism of the Holy Spirit once for all.

From Anstey’s Doctrinal Definitions:

The baptism of the Holy Spirit is mentioned seven times in Scripture (Matt. 3:11¹¹I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: (Matthew 3:11); Mark 1:8⁸I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. (Mark 1:8); Luke 3:16¹⁶John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire: (Luke 3:16); John 1:33³³And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. (John 1:33); Acts 1:5; 11:16⁵For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. (Acts 1:5)
¹⁶Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. (Acts 11:16); 1 Cor. 12:13¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:13)). It refers to the Spirit’s work of forming the body of Christ. This was accomplished by the Lord when he sent the Spirit down from heaven on the day of Pentecost and linked the believers in the upper room in Jerusalem into one body by the Spirit’s indwelling (Acts 2:1-4, 33¹And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. ²And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. ³And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. ⁴And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1‑4)
³³Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. (Acts 2:33)). This was extended later to take in believing Gentiles (Acts 11:1-18¹And the apostles and brethren that were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. ²And when Peter was come up to Jerusalem, they that were of the circumcision contended with him, ³Saying, Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised, and didst eat with them. ⁴But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying, ⁵I was in the city of Joppa praying: and in a trance I saw a vision, A certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came even to me: ⁶Upon the which when I had fastened mine eyes, I considered, and saw fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air. ⁷And I heard a voice saying unto me, Arise, Peter; slay and eat. ⁸But I said, Not so, Lord: for nothing common or unclean hath at any time entered into my mouth. ⁹But the voice answered me again from heaven, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common. ¹⁰And this was done three times: and all were drawn up again into heaven. ¹¹And, behold, immediately there were three men already come unto the house where I was, sent from Caesarea unto me. ¹²And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man's house: ¹³And he showed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter; ¹⁴Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved. ¹⁵And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning. ¹⁶Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. ¹⁷Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God? ¹⁸When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life. (Acts 11:1‑18)). Once this was done, the Spirit’s work of baptizing was complete for all time. It will never be repeated. 1 Corinthians 12:12-13¹²For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. ¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:12‑13) confirms this, referring to that event in the aorist tense (in the Greek), which means that it was a once-and-for-all act. Hence, the Spirit of God is not baptizing today; if He were, then there would be many bodies of Christ on earth, because the sole purpose of the baptism of the Spirit was to form the body of Christ. This, of course, could not be so, because Scripture states emphatically, “There is one body” (Eph. 4:4⁴There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; (Ephesians 4:4)).

A closer look at the seven references in Scripture to the baptism of the Spirit will show that it is an historical act, and not something the Spirit is doing today. Five of these references look forward in time to this action of the Spirit, being that they were uttered before Pentecost (Matt. 3:11¹¹I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: (Matthew 3:11); Mark 1:8⁸I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. (Mark 1:8); Luke 3:16¹⁶John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire: (Luke 3:16); John 1:33³³And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. (John 1:33); Acts 1:5⁵For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. (Acts 1:5)). The sixth and seventh references to the baptism of the Spirit were uttered after Pentecost (Acts 11:16¹⁶Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. (Acts 11:16); 1 Cor. 12:13¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:13)), and point backward in time to something that the Spirit did. Since there is no other thing concerning the Holy Spirit in Scripture that took place between these two groups of references, they would have to be referring to the Spirit’s coming on the day of Pentecost to form the body of Christ.

There are two main misconceptions concerning the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The first is what we might call the "Pentecostal" or "Charismatic" view. Christians who have this idea see the baptism of the Spirit as being a personal experience that a believer has sometime after he is saved, whereby he is filled with the Spirit, and thus is enabled to speak with tongues, etc. However, in Scripture, the baptism of the Holy Spirit is never mentioned as happening to someone individually; it was purely a corporate action of linking the company of 120 believers in the upper room in Jerusalem into one unit by His indwelling.

The second view is the mainline evangelical "non-charismatic" view. Christians who hold this idea think that the baptism of the Holy Spirit occurs when a person believes on the Lord Jesus Christ and thereby receives the Spirit, and thus made part of the body of Christ. However, this is not correct either. Note carefully that 1 Corinthians 12:13¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:13) does not say, “We have been baptized into the one body.” Adding the article “the” changes the meaning considerably. It supposes that the body was in existence before the baptism mentioned in the verse took place. This would support this mistaken idea; however, the verse doesn’t say that. It says, "baptized into one body,” meaning that the baptism is what formed the one body. Thus, the baptism of the Spirit is a historical event. All who get saved thereafter are added to that body by the sealing of the Spirit (Eph. 1:13¹³In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, (Ephesians 1:13)).

We might wonder how it is that Paul could speak of himself (and of the Corinthians) as being baptized by the Spirit, when they were not even saved when the Spirit came down and formed the body of Christ at Pentecost. The answer is that Paul was speaking representatively. He said, “We”—referring to the Christian company as a whole—“have been baptized into one body,” referring back to the action of the Spirit at Pentecost. It is something like the incorporation of a company. It is incorporated once, and each time the company takes on a new employee it does not need to be incorporated again. Nor is there any such thing as every new employee in the company being incorporated; the new employee is merely added to an already-incorporated company. Likewise, when someone gets saved today, he is added by the indwelling presence of the Spirit to an already-baptized body. As mentioned, this is called the sealing of the Spirit (Eph. 1:13¹³In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, (Ephesians 1:13); 2 Cor. 1:21-22²¹Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; ²²Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. (2 Corinthians 1:21‑22)).

Taking our illustration a little further, suppose we listened in on a company’s board meeting and heard one of the directors say, “We were incorporated 100 years ago.” We would have no trouble understanding what he meant, but someone who doesn’t understand the English language very well might ask, “What does that person mean? None of these people in this meeting are over 60 years of age. How can he say, ‘We ... a hundred years ago ... ?’” Well, it’s because the director was speaking representatively of the company. Likewise, being part of the Christian company that was baptized at Pentecost, Paul and the Corinthians (and we too) are embraced in that baptism.

W. Scott said, "The baptizing of all believers into one body is a corporate act and never repeated. As the result of this spiritual baptism, the one body is formed, and into this Spirit-baptized body believers find themselves when sealed by God" (Some New Testament Teachings, p. 174).

Another expositor in Scripture Truth magazine said, "Let us look now at some of the actions attributed to the Holy Spirit. First of all, we learn that He baptizes. Scripture shows clearly that this baptism is an accomplished historical fact, which took place once and for all at Pentecost" (Scripture Truth, vol. 21, p. 102).

J. N. Darby said, "As to a person subsequent to Pentecost being baptised with the Holy Ghost, I should say he was introduced into an already-baptised body" (Letters, vol. 3, p. 466).

F. G. Patterson said, "The Holy Ghost baptized them into 'one body.' Here let me say, that an individual is not said to be baptized with the Holy Ghost in Scripture. Not even the Lord Himself" (The Church of God, the Body of Christ, p. 27).

W. T. P. Wolston said, "If the baptism of the Holy Ghost has taken place at Pentecost, does Scripture carry the thought that it is ever to be repeated? I believe distinctly not. The Holy Ghost has come; He is here. The baptism of the Holy Spirit has been received, and there is, consequently, no fresh baptism to be looked for" (Another Comforter, p. 226). He also said, "The baptism of the Holy Ghost took place once, and once only, so far as I read of it in Scripture."

Hence, the baptism of the Spirit is not something that is going on today as a post-salvation experience, nor is it what brings believers into the body of Christ. It was a historical action of the Spirit that has been long completed, and never to be repeated.