No. 14 What is �the baptism in the Spirit� I hear some Christians talk about? Is this something separate from baptism as we�ve been discussing it? Is it something to which we should aspire? >>PROFESSOR ROLAND ZIEGLER: Yeah, Josh, baptism of the Spirit, that's a buzzword in many Christian circles, especially in the Pentecostal and charismatic circles. Whereas the Lutherans are a little bit more hesitant about that. What do the charismatics mean when they talk about the baptism in the Spirit? Well, many see it as a filling with the Holy Spirit after the new birth and water baptism. And -- which manifests itself in the speaking of tongues. So they say the Christian life has these stages. You first get the new birth which is disconnected from baptism, especially in Pentecostal circles. Then you have water baptism as an act of obedience. And then after that you have that special filling with the Holy Spirit. And after that then you speak in tongues and you are, so to speak, a full Christian, a mature Christian. You really have the Holy Spirit. Now, the charismatic movement that goes far beyond the Pentecostal churches has in churches that practice infant baptism a little bit of a different view of the baptism with the Spirit. So charismatics in the Roman Catholic, in the Episcopal and Lutheran churches say: Baptism in the Spirit means that a baptized person is filled with the Holy Spirit, which manifests itself in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, especially speaking with tongues. They will say that a person of course has the Holy Spirit even before this baptism with the Holy Spirit. But that there are these additional gifts every Christian should strive for. So the Holy Spirit is operative in the Christian before this baptism of the Spirit. But you have this kind of second blessing you can say. For example, you can read that in the books by Larry Christenson who has been a leader of the charismatic movement in the Lutheran Churches. He comes from the old ALC for many years. What does the New Testament actually speak about the baptism of the Spirit? Well, in Acts 1:5 Jesus says: For John truly baptized with water. But ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence. That's of course a reference to Pentecost. The apostles will be filled with the Holy Spirit. And that is called a baptized -- being baptized with the Holy Ghost. Later on in Acts you have another reference when Cornelius and those who were with him received the Holy Spirit while Peter was preaching. Peter defending that he baptized them said -- when he saw that, he was reminded that Christ said that: Ye will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. So in Acts baptism of the Spirit is therefore, two different things. It is on the one hand the once and for all event of Pentecost. Where the apostles received the Holy Spirit for their office of preaching. And it is that exceptional event where Cornelius and those Gentiles received the Holy Spirit even before they are baptized. In both cases the baptism of the Spirit is manifested in the speaking of tongues. And that's the bridge for many Pentecostals and charismatics. They say: Okay, we are in baptism of the Spirit. They speak in tongues. Therefore we have that, too, because we speak also in tongues. Now, it's a whole different question if what charismatics and Pentecostals, they do and call speaking in tongues has anything to do with what the New Testament calls speaking in tongues. I have my serious doubts about that. But we have to realize that in Acts these are exceptional occasions. This is not a pattern. That every Christian at every time receives this kind of baptism with the Spirit. Rather, we see from the New Testament overall that baptism and the giving of the Spirit are connected. It says in John 3:5, "If you are not born out of water and the Spirit." The Spirit is there in baptism with water. In I Corinthians 6:11 Paul says: Ye are washed, ye are sanctified, ye are justified in the name of Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. Baptism and the Spirit belong together. In I Corinthians 12:13 Paul says: For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body. And in Titus 3:5: According to his mercy he saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. So baptism and the operation of the Spirit are one act. We do not find here a water baptism without the Spirit. And then later on we have an activity of the Spirit that is totally unconnected with the baptism of water. That is because Christ is the one who sends the Holy Spirit and who acts through the Holy Spirit. So when we walk before that baptism means the incorporation into Christ, it means being connected with the cross, with the benefits of Christ's death being baptized into Christ's death and rise with him to a new life, that does not mean oh, this concerns only Christ and the Spirit then is something -- does something completely different. We have to remember what the work of the Spirit is. The Spirit is the one who connects us with Christ. The Spirit glorifies Christ. So the Spirit is the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ. He does not something additionally to what Christ has done. The Spirit therefore makes us in baptism the property of Christ. He makes us partakers of Christ's holiness, life and glory so that in the Spirit we have the right to call on God as Abba, as our Father. The Spirit makes us alive and he puts us into the service of the divine Lord. So in baptism the Spirit operates. But he not only operates but since baptism the Spirit dwells in the Christian. He is the gift we receive in baptism. And as a gift he's always also a mandate, that is an obligation. We receive the life of the Spirit. And on the other hand, the apostle can say live the life of the Spirit. But he is not only a mandate but he is also the power to fulfill that mandate or fulfill the obligation. The Spirit in us is the basis of our Christian life and he is so to speak the engine that drives our Christian life. Now, when we talk about the Spirit dwelling in us, this is also a dwelling that is static. But like the Christian life which is always a receiving so the dwelling of the Spirit is always something we ask for. That's why those hymns we sing at Pentecost oftentimes start with "Come, Holy Ghost." You could say I received the Holy Ghost at baptism so it's kind of superfluous to say "Come, Holy Ghost." No it tells us that the Holy Spirit is not simply our property. But that we have the Holy Spirit and always grasping the Holy Spirit as we have the Gospel only by always grasping it by faith by always directing ourselves to faith. So normally baptism and the gift of the Spirit are one. As Peter himself says to those who hear him on Pentecost he says: Be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit had. He doesn't say: Be baptized and then later on if you are good enough, you might receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The difference between receiving the Holy Spirit and baptism in Acts occurs at critical moments at the expansion of the church in Acts 8 in Samaria where it is said that they were baptized but they did not receive the Holy Spirit. That means they did not receive specific gifts of the Holy Spirit. And in Acts 10 and 11 when the church starts to include pagans, Gentiles. Here the gifts of the Holy Spirit are understood as visible manifestations are a sign that this outreach from Judaism to the Samaritans and then to the Gentile world are legitimate. They are not the normal feature. And they do not recur later in Acts or in the congregations founded by Paul. Paul has to say quite a bit about the Spirit in I Corinthians 12. But you will never find the term baptism with the Spirit or in the Spirit with Paul. Because baptism, water baptism, that's where you get the Spirit p. So the gift of the Holy Spirit in baptism like the promise of baptism has to be apprehended in faith. The new life is a life in the Spirit. That means it is no longer a life ruled by selfishness, that is by sin, but it is ruled by God himself who also remains the power and the basis of this new life. That's what it means to live in the Spirit. It means to live the life of God. And the life of God is a life in faith and in love toward our neighbor. The life of the Spirit is therefore, not some exaggerated or strange or outrageous things. But it is the life of service. The Holy Spirit manifests himself in our lives when we overcome our selfishness and put our neighbors first. And therefore, live the divine life.