How the Holy Spirit Works

We are Saved and Sealed Once with the Holy Spirit but then we can be Filled Many Times with the Holy Spirit throughout our Christian walk.

Jesus said to the disciples in Acts 1, "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Many often see Acts 2 and Pentecost as the time when the disciples first received the Holy Spirit. This belief is where the false teaching comes from that when you receive the Holy Spirit you will pray in tongues. But no, they actually received the Holy Spirit in John 20:22. Jesus had said to them, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so also I am sending you.” When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit."

So what happened at Pentecost? It was not a first receiving of the Holy Spirit for the disciples but an extra filling with the Holy Spirit. They already had the Holy Spirit in them, but this was an extra filling.

And what was the purpose of this extra filling of the Holy Spirit? To witness to and save the lost.
So if someone is genuinely saved AND filled in an extra way with the Holy Spirit, they will be witnessing to the lost, as the disciples did in Acts 2 when they spoke in other tongues.

When people are filled in this extra way with the Holy Spirit is when they use whatever gift the Holy Spirit has given them to witness. For some it is tongues or a word of knowledge but for others it is teaching or mercy or giving etc. Every person has their own gift from the Holy Spirit, as Paul says in 1 Cor. 12. But all gifts are meant to be used to reach the lost for Jesus.

So don't let anyone minimize the gift that you have received from God to accomplish his purpose of reaching the lost.

It is not just when people pray or speak in tongues that the Holy Spirit is upon someone in an extra way. When any believer is using Any of the gifts of the Holy Spirit as a means to more effectively witness to others, they are then filled with the Holy Spirit. The purpose of the Holy Spirit being upon someone, or filling them in an extra way, is that they will then witness and share the gospel. God gives us different gifts to accomplish this one main goal of reaching the lost. But the goal is the same for all of us, to witness or tell others about Jesus. Amen.

I pray that this will be ground breaking for some of you. Maybe your gift has not been recognized very much and you have heard that the only way to be "spirit filled" is to pray or speak in tongues. But no, ANY of the spiritual gifts can shine out when someone is filled with the Holy Spirit.
So go shine your gift and be proud of whatever gift you have received from the Holy Spirit.

If you do not know what your spiritual gift is, here is a complete list of all the gifts:
Prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leadership, mercy, word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits or discernment, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues, healings, helps, and governments/administration.

Some people have more then one spiritual gift. I believe my gifts are serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leadership, mercy, faith, discernment, and helps. :)

May God bless you all!