Ministering At The Altar

Here is the testimony of the book of Acts. In the very first chapter, Jesus told the disciples to wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit. He said they would be baptized in the Spirit and receive power when it happened. Chapter 2, the Holy Spirit came upon them. John 20, they received the Holy Spirit, and later on in Acts 2 the Holy Spirit would come upon them on the day of Pentecost. Let's look at another example of that pattern in Acts 8.

Acts 8:4-8: "Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word. And Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming Christ to them. And the multitudes with one accord were giving attention to what was said by Philip, as they heard and saw the signs that he was performing. For in the case of many who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them shouting with a loud voice; and many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed. And there was much rejoicing in that city."

Acts 8:12 says, "But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike" (NASV).

Do you ever baptize people before they get saved? No, first you get saved, then you get water baptized. So what can we conclude about these people in verse 12? They were saved. And when you get saved, do you receive the Holy Spirit? Romans 8:9 tells us if you don't have the Spirit you don't belong to God. Therefore, we can conclude by reading verse 12 that these people had the Holy Spirit. They had the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit in their lives, and they were baptized.

Then Acts 8:14-17 says, "Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit" (NASV).

Here we see the key word again, the "coming upon" of the Holy Spirit. The same pattern of Jesus with the disciples is appearing again with the apostles and Samaritans.

Acts 19:1-6 says, "And it came about that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper country came to Ephesus, and found some disciples, and he said to them, 'Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?' And they said to him, 'No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.' And he said, 'Into what then were you baptized?' And they said, 'Into John's baptism.' And Paul said, 'John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.' And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues and prophesying" (NASV).

Let's get the terminology straight:

Luke 4 - The Spirit is UPON Me, because He has ANOINTED Me.
Luke 3 - The Holy Spirit descended UPON Him.
Acts 1 - You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come UPON you.
Luke 4:1 - The FILLING of the Holy Spirit

"Upon," "anointing," "filling," "baptism of the Holy Spirit" are all describing the same thing and are used interchangeably. The terminology is the same. When we get to Acts 11, we see the same pattern in the events surrounding Cornelius' salvation and baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 5:18 describes the filling of the Holy Spirit. It compares or contrasts it with getting drunk with wine. When a person gets drunk with alcohol, several things happen to him. A foreign substance goes into the body. The person is no longer in control, but the substance is in control. The mind, emotions and motor skills are all affected. That's what happens when a person is filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is in control. You are consumed by the presence of the Spirit and are no longer in control. He is. Your mind, will, emotions, your body are all affected. There is boldness and there is power. That's one reason people don't like to be filled with the Holy Spirit. They don't want to lose control.

When these disciples first got filled with the Spirit in Acts 2, there were many manifestations. There was probably a physical expression as well. They gave the appearance of drunkenness, because that's how the people reacted. Peter had to explain they were not drunk on wine. What gave them the appearance of being drunk? Speaking in a foreign language, to my knowledge, has never been an indication of being drunk. Apparently these guys had some sort of behavior that made them look like they were drunk. So, when the Spirit comes upon you, you could possibly give the appearance of being drunk. When the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples, they were speaking in tongues, preaching, performing signs and wonders and speaking the word with boldness. They walked in the power and strength of the Spirit.

Based on what we've studied so far, we can conclude that the main evidence of the Holy Spirit and being baptized in the Holy Spirit is power. While tongues is a common manifestation, it's not the only evidence of the anointing or the baptism. Tongues is described as the least of all the gifts, probably because it is the most common. It is much easier to speak in tongues than it is to raise the dead or to perform a miracle to show that you have the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, everything the Holy Spirit has, you have. He comes with everything. As you see what the Father is doing, you can do it. If He is doing miracles, you can do miracles. Don't limit the Lord.

What will this anointing look like on you? I Corinthians 12 and Romans 12 simply say there are different gifts, different ministries. We don't all look the same. So the anointing will look different on each of us. The anointing will be different depending upon the gifts God has given you and the calling God has on your life.

Don't look at someone else when the anointing is upon him and think that's what you have to do or what you have to be, or that is what the anointing looks like. That's a common problem. We see someone walking in the anointing and think we must look like that person and do what that person does. The anointing will be released in your personality and will look different on each of us. It will be released in your ministry and in the gifts operating through you. It will be different depending upon God's call on your life. Don't get caught in the trap of believing it has to be like this or like that. It's not going to be that way. It will be designed specifically for you. The common thing is that it will be the empowering of the Lord.

Anointing can increase. God may even anoint us in stages. As we are able to handle more, He gives us more. God gives us what we can handle. He gives us a little and then He increases it. We find it over and over again in Scripture. The anointing and filling was continual in the disciples.

In Luke 11:8-13, Jesus said, "I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs. And I say to you, ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened. Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him" (NASV)?

Ask God for the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Some people are afraid that they are opening themselves up to the possibility of being deceived by demons if they pray for God to give them the Holy Spirit. We must have a greater confidence in God's ability to bring us into truth than in the devil's ability to bring us into deception. Many of us think the devil and God are equal, but they are not. The Word of God is stronger than anything the devil has. Have the confidence that you can ask God for His Holy Spirit and stand in the Word of God and know He will give it to you. If we are going to ask God to give us the Holy Spirit, to fill us with the Holy Spirit, we can expect Him to do it. If we ask, He will do it.

Often we have an expectation of how the Holy Spirit comes. In Scripture, sometimes they laid hands on the person, and sometimes they didn't. There is no set pattern. It's different every time. We may feel something. We may not feel anything. It depends solely on the promise that if we ask Him, we are going to get it. That Spirit has already been poured out on mankind, so we don't have to wait. First you receive it, then you maintain it. Be continually filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5). This is the pattern. Get filled, and then keep getting filled. Keep getting a fresh filling.

If you want God's anointing and empowerment for ministry, you will need to be filled with His Holy Spirit. For it is through the infilling of the Holy Spirit that we're empowered to see what the Father is doing and then do it with Him. If you want to pray for the sick and see them get healed, you'll need the anointing of the Holy Spirit. If you want to pray for the emotionally wounded and see them walk into emotional wellness, you'll need God's power and anointing. If you want to break enemy oppression off of people and move in God's authority over the enemy, you must be filled with the Holy Spirit and with God's power and anointing. You get this by being filled with the Holy Spirit. You need His anointing to minister with Him.

The good news is that He is freely willing to fill us with His Holy Spirit when we ask Him. If you have never been baptized in the Holy Spirit, ask God and He will do it for you. If you need a fresh infilling, a fresh anointing, a fresh empowerment, ask the Father and He will fill you.