Thank God For More Of Jesus !

[willvan]

This is my experience and thank God for more of Jesus !

I had sought for more of Jesus through the infilling of the Holy Spirit for a few months before I was filled. During a seminar service in Jan. 1980, my raised hand in answer to a question showed that I was the only one in the service who had not yet received the infilling of the Holy Spirit. After the service, the minister asked if I believed that God would fill me there on the spot. I said yes, and as he laid his hands on me, I began to speak in other tongues as the spirit gave me utterance. As the tongues continued, I felt God’s presence as a new spiritual energy, along with being “drunk in the spirit”. This initial “surge” continued for several days. My friends & co-workers noticed more positive changes in me, the first ones being after I repented & accepted Jesus in Jan. 1979.
For me, the key element here was faith. I believed that God would fill me then & he did. The scripture the minister read prior to the laying on of hands was John 7:37-39. (KJV)

" In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, if any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given: because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)"

God’s presence was and is as rivers of love, joy and zeal to me. This is not to say that the BHS/HGB (Baptism in/with the Holy Spirit/Ghost) or the initial infilling/reception of the Holy Spirit/Ghost happens to everyone this exact same way. This is my experience and thank God for more of Jesus ! He will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask of Him. (Luke 11:13)

[Sam]

Welcome to the group. As you've already seen we are a pretty diverse group. You mentioned waiting to say something that made sense. Well, you've said something that made sense in your post about receiving more of Jesus. Sounds like you've had a great experience in the Holy Spirit.

I think all of us here believe that Jesus lives in us as the Holy Spirit. Some believe He does not live in us until we speak with tongues. Others believe He comes in to live in us when we invite Him and then there is a subsequent experience when we receive an empowering in the Spirit or a release of the gifts of the Spirit and that subsequent experience is a baptism in the Spirit.

The birth of the Spirit and the Baptism in the Spirit as two separate experiences has been described as:

1. Jesus was born through the work of the Holy Spirit and indwelt by the Holy Spirit for about 30 years before He received an anointing or empowering of the Spirit or a baptism in the Spirit.

2. Salvation is compared to a well of water in our soul in John 4:1-26 and Isaiah 12:1-3 and the HGB or Holy Ghost Baptism is compared to a river of water gushing forth from our innermost being in John 7:37-39.

3. Salvation is compared to a pilot light (some here may be too young to know what that is) and the baptism in the Spirit is compared to that pilot light bursting into a full flame.

4. John the Baptist (or Yochanan the Immerser) presented Jesus (Yeshua) in a twofold manner: First as our Savior as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world and then secondly as the one Who would immerse/baptize people in the Holy Spirit.

5. A visual picture of the two experiences has been done with a pitcher full of water and an empty glass. First, water from the pitcher is poured into the glass. The glass is full of water depicting the Spirit coming in and filling a person. Then that glass of water is carefully picked up and lowered into the pitcher of water. The glass is still full of water but now it is submerged, immersed, baptized in the water.

6. In the Book of Acts there are various accounts of folks who were converted/saved/born again and then subsequently baptized in the Spirit such as in Acts chapters 2, 8, 9, and 19.