The Gift of the Holy Ghost

The steps to Salvation

• The first is Faith
• The second is Repentance
• Third is water baptism in the name of Jesus
• Fourth and final step is receiving the Holy Ghost
• After this we must continue in the doctrine and renewing

Speaking with other tongues

• This is the initial sign of the Holy Ghost
• We'll focus on this in our next lessons
• So we'll just mention it briefly in this lesson

The Holy Ghost

• Viewed by many "Christians" as optional
• They say it's "not essential"
• What do the scriptures say?
• The Bible says it's essential to go to heaven
• Let's see what God says, then we can 1 Peter 3:15

The Prophets Spoke of it

• 4 great prophets said we can and will receive it
• Peter said "all that are afar off" Acts 2:39
• The prophetic scriptures have been fulfilled
• From the day of Pentecost until now

The Prophets

• Isaiah - Isaiah 28:10-12; 12:1-6
• Paul referred to Isaiah - 1 Cor 14:21
• Joel - Joel 2:28-29 fulfilled Acts 2:1-4
• Peter referred to Joel - Acts 2:16-18

The Prophets

• John the Baptist - Mat 3:11; Mar 1:8; Luk 3:16; John 1:33
• Jesus said of John in Luke 7:26-28
• Jesus Christ was a prophet - Luke 24:19; Acts 2:22-23
• Jesus prophesied many things; the destruction of Jerusalem
• The rise of false christs, even the baptism of the Holy Ghost

Jesus Prophesied of the Holy Ghost

• "rivers of living water" - John 7:37-39; 4:10-14
• "born of the Spirit" - John 3:5-8
• Foretold of the Comforter - John 14:16-17; 15:26
• Promised the disciples - Acts 1:5

What is the gift of the Holy Ghost?

• Man's made up terms that aren't Biblical
• They try to describe the Holy Ghost
• In order to find the answer let's go to the Bible
• The following terms describe the Holy Ghost

What is the gift of the Holy Ghost?

• "Spirit of Christ/God" - Romans 8:9-11
• Jesus spoke of being with/in us. This is the HG
• "A Baptism" - 1 Cor 12:13 same as Eph 4:5
• "A Birth" - two elements constitute being "born-again"
• John 3:1-8 speaks of these - born of water and of spirit

What is the gift of the Holy Ghost?

• "The Earnest of our Inheritance" - the down payment
• 2 Cor 1:22; 5:5; Eph 1:13-14
• Paul called it the "firstfruits" Romans 8:23
• "A Seal" - Eph 4:30; 1:13; 2 Cor 1:22
• "Rest" - Isa 28:12; Mat 11:28-30; Hebrews 4:1-11

What is the gift of the Holy Ghost?

• "Spirit of Adoption" - Rom 8:15; Gal 4:4-7; Eph 1:5
• "Living Water" - 1 Cor 10:1-4; John 4:10-14; 7:37-39
• "Power from on High" - to witness and to live right
• Acts 1:8; Luke 24:49
• " The Comforter" - John 14:16-17, 26; 15:26; 16:7

Who can receive the Holy Ghost?

• God set conditions in order to receive
• Once those conditions are met - Anyone
• God is no respecter of persons
• Luke 11:13
• What does the Bible say about this?

Who can receive the Holy Ghost?

• "all flesh" - Joel 2:28; Acts 2:17
• "the servants and the handmaids" - Joel 2:29
• John the Baptist didn't exclude anyone in Mat 3:11
• Peter said "all that are afar off" - Acts 2:39
• God said "them that obey him" - Acts 5:32

Who can receive the Holy Ghost?

• Those at Samaria and the Ethiopian in Acts 8
• Cornelius and those in his home Acts 10:44-48
• "every kindred, tongue, people, and nation" - Rev 5:9
• Angels desire to look into it - 1 Peter 1:10-12
• We can have it!

Evidence of the Holy Ghost

• Day of Pentecost - 120 believers (Acts 2:1-4)
• God's Word gives us example after example
• Millions have experienced it
• Paul more than anyone - 1 Cor. 14:18
• Many scriptures tell of speaking in tongues

Evidence of the Holy Ghost

• Isaiah prophesied of it - Isaiah 28:9-12
• Simon the sorcerer saw it - Acts 8:18
• Cornelius's household - Acts 10:44-48
• Disciples of John - Acts 19:1-6

The Gift of the Holy Ghost

• Many different views today on how get it
• We're going to look at scripture
• Bible describes it 9 different ways
• Not in stages or degrees
• Not different experiences

The Gift of the Holy Ghost

The Gift of the Holy Ghost

In the account of Cornelius's household (Acts 10:44-48), four of these terms are used in 5 verses: fell, poured out, gift, received.

Importance of the Holy Ghost

• God's Spirit is very important
• Our relationship with Him is sacred
• Jesus warned not to blaspheme the HG
• There's no forgiveness for this (Mark 3:28-30)
• All other sin can be forgiven

Importance of the Holy Ghost

• Let's look at the scripture
• No Holy Ghost = No catching away of the Church
• Rom 8:11; 1 Thes 4:16-17
• Without the Spirit of Christ we're none of His
• Rom 8:9; 2 Tim 2:19

Importance of the Holy Ghost

• We cannot call Jesus "Lord" without it
• 1 Cor 12:3 
• Once we've exercised our faith in Jesus
• By repenting, being baptized
• We can believe God to fill us with the Holy Ghost

The New Testament describes Salvation with several terms. Let's go through a few of these terms.

Salvation