THE HOLY SPIRIT he was saved. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is not a second work of grace but is coincident, happening at the very moment of salvation. This is an initial act, once-for-all. Every Christian participates in it. I Corinthians 12:13 gives us the interpretation and meaning of that truth. It is in one Spirit that we are all baptized into one body. Notice the word "all." This refers to every Christian. No one is left out if He has truly received the Lord by faith. It is not a correct idea to meet together to tarry for the Holy Spirit. Some try to use Acts 1:4 as a war rant for this. Such people fail to realize that the Holy Spirit was giv en on the Day of Pentecost not because the people were waiting for Him to come but because it was the Lord's perfect moment. It was precisely 50 days after the Pass- over. There is never any mistake when it comes to God's timetable. He would have come whether they had been waiting or not (John 14:16). During this age of grace the Holy Spirit indwells in the be liever individually and the Church corporately forever. thereby misconceptions concern ing the ministry and the person of the Holy Spirit. One very definite passage which should be consid ered is Acts 8:14-17. The apostles in Jerusalem had heard that Sa maria had accepted the Word of God. Peter and John were sent there to help them. At that time of prayer they received the Holy Spir it. Previous to this they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. We must keep in mind that there was a racial barrier between the Samaritans and the Jews (John 4:9). Such discrimination could not con tinue under the influence of Chris tianity. There must be oneness in Christ. Another important passage in Acts is 19:2-6. Paul had come to Ephesus where he found a number of converts who had not even heard of the Holy Spirit. They had been following John's baptism only. The people were told to put their trust in Christ. As a result the Holy Spirit came upon them. We must keep in mind that these people had never heard the Gospel of Christ's fin ished work in its entirety. They were ripe for conversion. Page 45 It is unfortunate that there are so many erroneous teachings and
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