Have You Been Baptized in the Holy Spirit? | 4 Views on Spirit Baptism

Type of Doctrine: Secondary or Tertiary

"I baptize you with water for repentance, but 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."

-Matthew 3:11 ESV

Why does it matter?

In Matthew 3:11, we are told that Jesus is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2:38, Luke refers to the Holy Spirit as a "gift." Also, in Acts 1:8, he shows that the Spirit gives power for ministry and power to speak about about Jesus. In other words, the baptism of the Spirit is an empowering gift of the Holy Spirit given by Jesus himself. Don't you want this gift? You can see the importance of this subject and why it matters.

However, many Christians disagree on when believers receive this gift and how we receive this gift. Some think we automatically receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit at conversion while others think it comes after conversion (more on this in the section below).

This is generally considered a secondary or tertiary issue. In some cases it is likely a secondary issue since it may significantly affect church practice (e.g., the Pentecostal view). However, in other cases, Christians can probably disagree and remain within the same church (since it does not significantly impact church practice).

What is it?

Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a vivid picture demonstrating a believer being immersed in the Holy Spirit just as in water baptism. Here is the definition given by Millard J. Erickson:

A blessing which John the Baptist promised would accompany the ministry of Jesus . . . It occurred at Pentecost, which Luke understood to be a fulfilment (sic) of Joel 2:28-32 (see Acts 2:16-21). Some teach that the baptism of the Spirit is a special act of the Spirit subsequent to regeneration, while others understand 1 Corinthians 12:13 as implying that all regenerate persons have undergone this baptism (Millard J. Erickson, "Baptism," in Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology [Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1986], 19).

Already we have run into an issue: is it after (i.e., subsequent) to conversion or not? Is it an experience that we can perceive or not? In other words: (1) when do we receive the gift of the Spirit (i.e., at or subsequent to conversion) and (2) are we aware that we are receiving the Spirit (i.e., experiential or not)? Some say yes to the first question while others say no. The same is true of the second question.

Moreover, some insist that the the gift of speaking in tongues is the evidence that a person has received the baptism of the Spirit (i.e., generally Pentecostals). Some, on the other hand, don't believe that the gift of tongues has continued to the present day (i.e., cessationists). Therefore, they would assert that speaking in tongues is not the evidence for Spirit baptism. Others believe that the gifts continue (i.e., continuationists), but they argue that tongues isn't required. Additionally, some would point out that there are passages addressing Spirit baptism in Scripture that don't mention speaking in tongues. Therefore, they argue that speaking in tongues may happen sometimes, but it does not have to happen as evidence that a person has been baptized in the Spirit.

Moreover, many point out that Paul seems to imply in 1 Corinthians 12:30 that not all will have the gift of tongues anyway. "Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?" (1 Cor. 12:29-30). His implied answer is a resounding, "No." We need all of the gifts (diversity) to come together in building up the body of Christ (unity). Thus, if Paul is saying that not everyone will have the gift of tongues, then requiring everyone to speak in tongues to show evidence of Spirit baptism will lead to many people being hurt. (At this point, it is also important to point out that we should be careful to avoid creating first-class and second-class Christians. All Christians are on the same playing field, as it were.).

Where does it talk about this subject in the Bible? It is important to start by researching the passages where the phrase "baptism in the Holy Spirit" appears in Scripture. However, it would be wise to go further. Many only develop their doctrine of Spirit baptism with the seven verses which mention the phrase "baptism in the Holy Spirit." However, there are other words that are sometimes used in reference to Spirit baptism (e.g., receive, come upon you, filling, etc.). (While Scripture sometimes uses "filling" in reference to baptism in the Holy Spirit, it is often used to mean fillings of the Holy Spirit after one has been baptized in the Holy Spirit. Therefore, in theology, "filling" is usually the term used for moments where the Holy Spirit fills a believer subsequent to the baptism in the Holy Spirit. This will be the subject of another article later.) This is why some claim that Luke and Paul are using the phrase "baptism in the Holy Spirit" differently. As they claim, in the Gospel of Luke and Acts, Luke uses "baptism in the Holy Spirit" to mean the initial, or first, filling of the Holy Spirit. Paul then uses the phrase synonymously with regeneration (i.e., the work of the Holy Spirit in repentance and belief at conversion).

Another important Scripture that is often brought in on this discussion is found in Romans 8. Paul writes, "You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him" (Rom. 8:9; emphasis mine). In other words, you cannot be a Christian without the Spirit. Thus, regardless of what view one adopts, we should all be careful of saying that someone does not have the Spirit. If a person doesn't have the Spirit, then he or she is not a Christian.

Seven Key Scriptures (It is helpful to do a Bible study on the other words mentioned earlier as well.):

• Matthew 3:11 ESV - "I baptize you with water for repentance, but 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."

• Mark 1:8 ESV - "I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

• Luke 3:16 ESV - "John answered them all, saying, 'I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.'"

• John 1:33 ESV - "I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.'"

• Acts 1:4-5 ESV - "And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, 'you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.'"

• Acts 11:15-16 ESV - "As I (Peter) began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'"

• 1 Corinthians 12:13 ESV - "For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and all were made to drink of one Spirit."
  

Here are four of the most common views I have seen. There are many complexities and nuances to this doctrine, but these are the typical Evangelical views.

4 Views of Spirit Baptism

View	Defined	Subsequent to conversion?	Experiential?
Reformed	The believer is baptized with the Spirit at conversion and it is typically an objective reality (not necessarily experiential).	No	Usually No
Pentecostal	The believer is baptized with the Spirit after conversion and it is experiential. Tongues is typically the evidence of Spirit baptism.	Yes	Yes
Third Wave Charismatic	The believer is baptized with the Spirit at conversion and it may or may not be experiential. Perhaps, though the charismatic experience will come through subsequent fillings of the Spirit.	No	Sometimes Yes
Holiness	The believer is baptized with the Spirit at some point after conversion when a person is perfected and free of a sinful lifestyle (i.e., the doctrine of entire sanctification).	Yes	Sometimes Yes

Application:

Thank Jesus today for the gift of the Holy Spirit! It is an amazing thing that God himself dwells within us. The Spirit empowers us, strengthens us, comforts us, produces fruit in our lives, and gives us gifts. He also helps us read our Bibles. As the Puritan John Owen has said, "Without the Holy Spirit we may as well burn our Bibles." His point is that without the Spirit we can't understand our Bibles. What an amazing gift the Spirit is!

Where can I learn more?

Bibliography:

-Erickson, Millard J. Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1986.

-Grudem, Wayne. Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2020.

For more:

-Brand, Chad Owen, ed. Perspectives on Spirit Baptism: 5 Views. Nashville, TN: Broadman and Holman, 2004.