The baptism with the Holy Spirit is not the final goal to be attained in the Christian experience. It is the gateway leading into a new realm of living.

Why do I need the experience?

"Don’t leave home without it" This was the advice about baptism with the Holy Spirit Jesus emphasised to His disciples just before He ascended into heaven (Luke 24:49)   Of all people, those Jesus spoke to that day should have been the best equipped to spread the Gospel throughout the world. It was these people who had eaten, walked and talked with Jesus, and witnessed the many miracles He performed during his three and a half year ministry. But He told them that they should not leave Jerusalem until they received the promised gift - the baptism with the Holy Spirit. Jesus knew the weaknesses in men and women, but was about to supply the missing ingredient to help them overcome. We ALL need to overcome sin and weakness - and only the Holy Spirit can empower us to do so.

What happened on the "Day of Pentecost"?

In obedience to Jesus the disciples gathered in a room, worshipping and praising God, and waiting for the promise to be fulfilled. Their united desire came to pass as the Holy Spirit "invaded' their lives. It was seen by witnesses as cloven tongues of fire on all those present. They immediately were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave to them utterance. (Act 2:1-4). The towns folk suggested that these followers of Jesus were drunk from wine. But the Apostle Peter, standing in the middle of a large crowd, explained that the promise Jesus had made was being fulfilled: 'But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8). After Peter finished explaining the power of Jesus, 3000 people came to be saved from their sins".

But didn’t I receive the Holy Spirit when I was Born Again?

When you are born again, you are born of the Spirit (John 3:5-6). This is what makes us members of God's family - our new life has begun. Now we need to receive God's power to live this new life in all its supernatural fullness. We can thank God that He has NOT left us "as orphans* but has sent the Comforter" (John 14:16). We read in Acts 8:14-17 that although many people in Samaria had accepted the Word of God, Peter and John were still compelled to travel there immediately, and pray that they would receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 19:1-6 the Apostle Paul asked the disciples at Ephesus; "Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed?" There are several other examples of people being baptised in the Holy Spirit throughout the book of Acts.

What is Speaking in Tongues?

We must distinguish between speaking in tongues as the initial evidence of being baptized with the Holy Spirit, and the gift of speaking in tongues in the Church. All people that are baptized with the Holy Spirit speak in tongues. This is the initial evidence of being baptized with the Spirit. But all people do not speak in tongues in the Church (1 Corinthians 12:30). This is when the gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues is operative in the church (1 Corinthians 12:10).

Speaking in tongues does not come naturally to a new Christian. That is because it is NOT natural, but a SUPERnatural occurrence. It allows believers to speak directly to God Himself and comes from deep within a person's spirit. Praying in tongues builds us up spiritually (1 Corinthians 14:4) and bypasses our understanding (1 Corinthians 14:14). This is helpful when we may not know what to pray, The Bible says in Acts 2:4 that they (the disciples) were filled with the Holy Spirit (God's part) and began to speak in tongues (our part). This "prayer language* is a valuable part of a victorious believer's life.  Only when joined together with other parts of a well-balanced Christian life will the baptism be beneficial.