Where it all began

 As a precursor to the ascension of Christ, he promised his disciples the baptism of the Holy Spirit. He drew a contrast between the baptism of water (of John) and the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

 “For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.” Acts 1:5, KJV

 True to his word, the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost. This Pentecost experience has become the main reference point as far as baptism of the Holy Spirit goes. From the Pentecost experience, we can infer that baptism of the Holy Spirit is necessary if we do the work of ministry.

 But ye shall receive power, after that, the Holy Ghost comes upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Acts 1:8

 When does the baptism of the Holy Spirit occur?

 A close look at the scriptures will reveal that the baptism of the Holy Spirit happens differently for different Christians. In some instances, some Christians receive baptism at the point of salvation. But for most Christians, the baptism of the Spirit happens much later. A classic example of a person who received the Holy Spirit as soon as they accepted Christ is Cornelius (Acts 10:44-46, 11:15-16). Even before Peter preached the gospel to him, Cornelius had been a devout man. He had a desire for God but just lacked the person to point him in the right direction; this reveals something noteworthy about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Must genuinely desire the Holy Spirit before he can come upon a person. Consistent with the command of Jesus to his disciples to stay in Jerusalem until they received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. 

There are lots of examples of Christians who received the baptism much later after their conversion. On one of apostle Paul’s mission trips, he came across a bunch of Christians who not only had received and believed the gospel but had received water baptism. As he continued to fellowship with them, it became clear that they hadn’t been baptized in the Holy Spirit. Not only that, they didn’t even know what it was. Paul went ahead and laid hands on them. They received the baptism of the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-7); this is a clear example of how one can be a Christian and still not be baptized in the Holy Spirit. The baptism in the Holy Spirit doesn’t happen automatically at conversion, as some would want to believe. Yes, some get baptized at conversion, but it doesn’t happen that way for most people. In most cases, the person must first understand what it means and then desire to receive the baptism, and only then will the baptism come.

 The empowerment of the Holy Spirit

 In Acts 1:8, Jesus promised that the baptism of the Holy Spirit would be a baptism in power. Through the power of this Spirit, the Christians would be victorious in their daily lives and effective in ministry. There are many illustrations of the power of the Spirit in the work of the Apostles after they had received the baptism of the Spirit. The best example is how Peter stood boldly before the crowd and proclaimed the gospel on the day of Pentecost. As a result of this sermon, 3,000 people were converted and added to the church.

 Interestingly, it is the same Peter that was so afraid to identify with Jesus only a few days before this that he denied him three times. Peter had given up on the ministry and gone back fishing just a couple of weeks before this. But on the day of Pentecost, something changed – he was not the ordinary timid Peter but a bold and fierce man. The same can be said of the other apostles. They took on any challenge that threw at them head-on. They were not afraid to be thrown in prison and even killed for preaching the gospel. It’s because they were relying on the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.

 The ministry of the Holy Spirit

 After you have received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, you can expect to benefit from the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Paul refers to this as the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and he points out that the Holy Spirit “distributes to each one as he wills” (1 Cor. 12:11). The gifts of the Holy Spirit, as documented in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, are;

 Word of wisdom

 Word of knowledge

 Gift of faith

 Gift of healing

 Working of miracles

 Gift of prophecy

 Discerning of spirits

 Speaking in tongues

 Interpretation of tongues

Even though one Christian can’t receive all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, each Christian must desire to operate in some of the gifts of the Spirit. Just like the baptism of the Holy Spirit only comes to those who wish it. 

The gifts of the Spirit are also only given to those who desire them; this is made clear in the advice Paul gave to the church at Corinth. When he recommended that they “But earnestly desire the best gifts.” (1 Cor. 12:31). He asks them to earnestly desire the best gifts because the Holy Spirit only responds to genuine desire.