The Witness Of The Holy Spirit
July 2023 |
“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
—Acts 1:8
THE TWIN WORKS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Jesus Christ died on Calvary for payment of man’s sin. Every individual that has accepted Him has received the benefits of salvation. These include justification, regeneration, being baptized into Christ, as well as freedom from the dominion of the world, the flesh, and the devil. This is accomplished by the person of the Holy Spirit who is given to the believing sinner at salvation. The Holy Spirit moves inside to dwell in the heart of the believer which grants permanent access to the person of the Holy Spirit who alone can provide the benefits listed above.
The Pentecostal movement has been responsible for re-introducing the truth of a second work of the Holy Spirit. This second work and experience equips the believer by granting permanent access to the Holy Spirit in power for service. From 1901 to 2001 it has been recorded that over 500 million people have been baptized with the Holy Spirit as defined above. By the time the day of Pentecost (Acts 2) ended, the twin works of the Spirit were available to all believers. At salvation, power to live a holy life free from the dominion of sin (salvation) is given. In the baptism with the Holy Spirit, power for service is provided to present the gospel in supernatural power. When the believer experiences and understands the purpose and proper use of these two events, a dynamic witness to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ is established. Let us take a closer look at several aspects of these witnesses.
LIFESTYLE WITNESS
The lifestyle witness is evidence of Christ to the world by the believer’s transformation into the image of Christ. This nature and character of Christ reflects the true character of God. The lifestyle witness begins through the experience of salvation. It is here where the believing sinner, after placing his or her faith in Christ is miraculously changed into a new creation. With a re-created heart, the believer finds himself baptized into Christ by the person of the Holy Spirit. By this union with Christ, sin’s dominion is broken and the penalty for sin is paid. All enmity between man and God ends. When the believing sinner places his faith in Christ and what Christ accomplished at Calvary, a new power source for life becomes available.
Once the sinner has become a saint, the progressive side of growth becomes a necessity. Growth will only occur properly as the Holy Spirit is free to attend to those things within the heart and mind of the believer that need to be renewed to the truths of God’s character and nature. Believers cannot labor for this transformation any more than we can labor for our salvation. As the believer maintains faith in Christ and what He is done for us on Calvary, the Holy Spirit is free to conform the individual to the image of Jesus. This produces the fruit of the Spirit and Christlike character. The Holy Spirit will not work on our behalf bringing about this transformation unless we continuously humble ourselves and depend exclusively on the finished work of Christ. In this manner, a lifestyle witness is established and maintained and brings glory to Christ Jesus.
VERBAL ANOINTED WITNESS—THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY
Once the believer has experienced salvation, the believer becomes a candidate for the Pentecostal baptism with the Holy Spirit. One of the results of experiencing this second subsequent event is the permanent ability to access the help of the Holy Spirit to proclaim Christ. I will refer to this witness as a verbal anointed witness, commonly called by many as the spirit of prophecy. The gospel is not understood by means of the mind acknowledging truth. The gospel must be revealed. The individual must first realize his or her need for salvation. The gospel must be presented with the Holy Spirit’s convicting and drawing power present. The Holy Spirit also produces faith within the heart of the individual at the point of revelation. The individual then has to choose to accept what has been revealed. Faith coupled with the sinner’s choice to believe brings about the redemptive acts of God. Peter stated (Acts 2:17-18) that this power fell upon believers on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2:4. Peter quotes this from Joel 2:27-28. The baptism with the Holy Spirit then becomes the event that introduces the believer to permanent access to the spirit of prophecy. This can result in a supernatural power that draws men to Christ as the saints present the gospel.
SUPERNATURAL WITNESS
The supernatural witness is available to those who have encountered the baptism with the Holy Spirit. This comes in the form of signs, miracles, wonders, and gifts of the Holy Spirit according to the will of God (Heb 2:4). Throughout the book of Acts as well as in the letters of the apostles, we encounter references to miracles, signs, wonders, and gifts of the Holy Spirit. We find instructions as to the proper use of the gifts and their definitions. There is no clear statement within the confines of the New Testament that would substantiate the belief of cessationism. This is the belief that these miracles and gifts are no longer available today. Miracles have not ceased, as a close view of church history can make plain. In America, we saw the great healing revivals in the first half of the twentieth century, where all the supernatural signs mentioned above were evidenced. According to the New Testament, these wonders are designed to provide evidence to the veracity of the gospel. Throughout the church age, the supernatural witnesses have provided evidence which confirm the story of Jesus Christ providing salvation. As God wills, the signs, miracles, wonders, and gifts are to be displayed and brought into light. These add a supernatural witness to the vocal presentation of the gospel. While it certainly is not necessary to see a miracle to be a believer, there are some whose doubt has been settled as they viewed the impossibility being made possible.
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