(Elohim)
and not 
(Ru'ach).
R2. Receiving the Holy Spirit. [Make a Comment]
We are to be born of, immersed in, filled and led by the Holy Spirit.
This precept is derived from His Word (blessed be He):
Scripture Contents
Key Scriptures
A. The Holy Spirit was there at Creation.1
Genesis 1:1-2
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was
unformed and void, darkness was on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of
God hovered over the surface of the water.
1.
The Hebrew word used in Genesis 1:2 is
(Elohim)
and not
(Ru'ach).
B. Even as early as Moses, God resided with Israel.
Exodus 29:42-46
Through all your generations this is to be the regular burnt offering at the
entrance to the tent of meeting before ADONAI. There is where I will meet
with you to speak with you. There I will meet with the people of
Isra'el; and the place will be consecrated by my glory. I will
consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar, likewise I will consecrate
Aharon and his sons to serve me in the office of cohen. Then I will live
with the people of Isra'el and be their God: they will know that I am
ADONAI their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt in order to live
with them. I am ADONAI their God.
C. The Holy Spirit dwelt within prophets & certain of God's servants since the earliest of Times.
Genesis 41:38
Pharaoh said to his officials, "Can we find anyone else like him [Yosef]?
The Spirit of God lives in him!"
Ezekiel 2:1-2
(see also Ezekiel 3:24)
He said to me, "Human being! Stand up! I want to speak with you!" As he
spoke to me, a spirit entered me and put me on my feet, and I heard him who
was speaking to me.
Ezekiel 36:27
I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and
you will keep My judgments and do them.
Daniel 5:13-14
Dani'el was brought into the king's presence. The king said to
Dani'el, "Are you Dani'el, one of the exiles from Y'hudah
whom the king my father brought out of Y'hudah? I've heard about
you that the spirit of the gods is in you, and that you have been found to
have light, discernment and extraordinary wisdom.
D. Certain of God's servants were filled with the Holy Spirit since the earliest of times.
Exodus 31:1-3
(see also Exodus 35:3-31)
ADONAI said to Moshe, I have singled out B'tzal'el the son of Uri
the son of Hur, of the tribe ofv Y'hudah. I have filled him with the
Spirit of God - with wisdom, understanding and knowledge concerning every
kind of artisanry.
Deuteronomy 34:9
Now Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had
laid his hands on him; so the children of Israel heeded him, and did as the
LORD had commanded Moses.
E. The cloud and the glory of God brought protection & judgment, & enabled conversation with God.
Exodus 14:20
Next, the angel of God, who was going ahead of the camp of Isra'el,
moved away and went behind them; and the column of cloud moved away from in
front of them and stood behind them. It stationed itself between the camp
of Egypt and the camp of Isra'el - there was cloud and darkness here,
but light by night there; so that the one did not come near the other all
night long.
Exodus 33:7-11
Moshe would take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far away from the
camp. He called it the tent of meeting. Everyone who wanted to consult
ADONAI would go out to the tent of meeting, outside the camp. Whenever
Moshe went out to the tent, all the people would get up and stand, each man
at his tent door, and look at Moshe until he had gone into the tent.
Whenever Moshe entered the tent, the column of cloud would descend and
station itself at the entrance to the tent; and ADONAI would speak with
Moshe. When all the people saw the column of cloud stationed at the
entrance to the tent, they would get up and prostrate themselves, each man
at his tent door. ADONAI would speak to Moshe face to face, as a man speaks
to his friend. Then he would return to the camp; but the young man who was
his assistant, Y'hoshua the son of Nun, never left the inside of the
tent.
Exodus 40:34-38
Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of ADONAI filled
the tabernacle. Moshe was unable to enter the tent of meeting, because the
cloud remained on it, and the glory of ADONAI filled the tabernacle.
Numbers 11:27-29
A young man ran and told Moshe, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the
camp!" Y'hoshua, the son of Nun, who from his youth up had been
Moshe's assistant, answered, "My lord, Moshe, stop them!" But Moshe
replied, "Are you so zealous to protect me? I wish all of ADONAI's
people were prophets! I wish ADONAI would put his Spirit on all of them!"
Numbers 14:10
But just as the whole community were saying they should be stoned to death,
the glory of ADONAI appeared in the tent of meeting to all the people of
Isra'el.
Numbers 16:19-21
Korach assembled all the group who were against them at the entrance to the
tent of meeting. Then the glory of ADONAI appeared to the whole assembly.
ADONAI said to Moshe and Aharon, "Separate yourselves from this assembly;
I'm going to destroy them right now!"
Numbers 17:7 (16:42)
However, as the community was assembling against Moshe and Aharon, they
looked in the direction of the tent of meeting and saw the cloud cover it
and the glory of ADONAI appear.
F. The Spirit of God enabled recipients to minister & prophesy.
Numbers 11:27-29
A young man ran and told Moshe, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the
camp!" Y'hoshua, the son of Nun, who from his youth up had been
Moshe's assistant, answered, "My lord, Moshe, stop them!" But Moshe
replied, "Are you so zealous to protect me? I wish all of ADONAI's
people were prophets! I wish ADONAI would put his Spirit on all of them!"
1 Samuel 10:6
Then the Spirit of ADONAI will fall on you; you will prophesy with them and
be turned into another man!
2 Samuel 23:2
The Spirit of ADONAI spoke through me, his word was on my tongue.
Isaiah 11:5
The Spirit of ADONAI fell on me, and he said to me, "Say, 'Here is what
ADONAI says: "What you are saying is correct, house of Isra'el; because
I know how your minds work."'"
Isaiah 61:1
The Spirit of Adonai ELOHIM is upon me, because ADONAI has anointed me to
announce good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted; to
proclaim freedom to the captives, to let out into light those bound in the
dark; to proclaim the year of the favor of ADONAI and the day of vengeance
of our God; to comfort all who mourn
Ezekiel 37:1-4
With the hand of ADONAI upon me, ADONAI carried me out by his Spirit and set
me down in the middle of the valley, and it was full of bones. He had me
pass by all around them - there were so many bones lying in the valley, and
they were so dry! He asked me, "Human being, can these bones live?" I
answered, "Adonai ELOHIM! Only you know that!" Then he said to me,
"Prophesy over these bones! Say to them, 'Dry bones! Hear what ADONAI
has to say!'"
Joel 3:1(2:28)
After this, I will pour out my Spirit on all humanity. Your sons and
daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will
see visions
G. The Spirit of God gave recipients wisdom.
Deuteronomy 34:9-10
Y'hoshua the son of Nun was full of the Spirit of wisdom, for Moshe had
laid his hands on him, and the people of Isra'el heeded him and did
what ADONAI had ordered Moshe. Since that time there has not arisen in
Isra'el a prophet like Moshe, whom ADONAI knew face to face.
H. The Spirit of God gave recipients power and enabled justice.
Judges 3:10
The spirit of ADONAI came upon him, and he judged Isra'el. Then he went
out to war, and ADONAI gave Kushan-Rish'atayim king of Aram into his
hands; his power prevailed against Kushan-Rish'atayim.
1 Samuel 16:13
Sh'mu'el took the horn of oil and anointed him there in his
brothers' presence. From that day on, the Spirit of ADONAI would fall
upon David with power. So Sh'mu'el set out and went to Ramah.
Micah 3:8
On the other hand, I am full of power by the Spirit of ADONAI, full of
justice and full of might, to declare to Ya'akov his crime, to
Isra'el his sin.
I. The Spirit of God caused obedience to God's Law.
Ezekiel 36:27
I will put my Spirit inside you and cause you to live by my laws, respect
my rulings and obey them.
J. The Spirit of God could be transferred from person to person.
Numbers 11:16-17
ADONAI said to Moshe, "Bring me seventy of the leaders of Isra'el,
people you recognize as leaders of the people and officers of theirs. Bring
them to the tent of meeting, and have them stand there with you. I will
come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the Spirit which
rests on you and put it on them. Then they will carry the burden of the
people along with you, so that you won't carry it yourself alone."
Deuteronomy 34:9
Y'hoshua the son of Nun was full of the Spirit of wisdom, for Moshe had
laid his hands on him, and the people of Isra'el heeded him and did
what ADONAI had ordered Moshe.
2 Kings 2:9-15
After they had crossed, Eliyahu said to Elisha, "Tell me what I can do for
you before I am taken away from you." Elisha said, "Please! Let a double
share of your spirit be on me!" He replied, "You have requested a hard
thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, you will get
what you asked for; but if not, you won't." Suddenly, as they were
walking on and talking, there appeared a fiery chariot with horses of fire;
and as it separated the two of them from each other, Eliyahu went up into
heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw it and cried out, "My father! My father!
The chariots and horsemen of Isra'el!" Then he lost sight of him.
Seizing his clothes, he tore them in half. Then he picked up Eliyahu's
cloak, which had fallen off him. Standing on the bank of the Yarden, he took
the cloak that had fallen off Eliyahu, struck the water and said, "Where is
ADONAI, the God of Eliyahu?" But when he actually did strike the water, it
divided itself to the left and to the right; then Elisha crossed over. When
the guild prophets of Yericho saw him in the distance, they said, "The
spirit of Eliyahu does rest on Elisha."
THE NEW COVENANT IS PROPHESIED
A. It was prophesied that God would make a New Covenant with the houses of Israel & Judah, & that His Torah would be put in their hearts.
Jeremiah 31:30-33 (31-34)
"Here, the days are coming," says ADONAI, "when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Isra'el and with the house of Y'hudah. It will
not be like the covenant I made with their fathers on the day I took them by
their hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt; because they, for
their part, violated my covenant, even though I, for my part, was a husband
to them," says ADONAI. "For this is the covenant I will make with the house
of Isra'el after those days," says ADONAI: "I will put my Torah within
them and write it on their hearts; I will be their God, and they will be my
people. No longer will any of them teach his fellow community member or his
brother, 'Know ADONAI'; for all will know me, from the least of
them to the greatest; because I will forgive their wickednesses and remember
their sins no more."
B. It Was Prophesied That God's Spirit Would One Day Be Poured Out on All Humanity, & that Whoever Would Call on the Name of the Lord Would Be Saved.
Joel 3:1-5 (2:28-32)
"After this, I will pour out my Spirit on all humanity. Your sons and
daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will
see visions; and also on male and female slaves in those days I will pour
out my Spirit. I will show wonders in the sky and on earth - blood, fire
and columns of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon
into blood before the coming of the great and terrible Day of ADONAI." At
that time, whoever calls on the name of ADONAI will be saved. For in Mount
Tziyon and Yerushalayim there will be those who escape, as ADONAI has
promised; among the survivors will be those whom ADONAI has called.
C. It was prophesied that a man would one day emerge from Jesse to whom the Spirit of God would give wisdom, understanding, power, knowledge, a proper fear of God, & the ability to counsel.
Isaiah 11:1-2
But a branch will emerge from the trunk of Yishai, a shoot will grow from
his roots. The Spirit of ADONAI will rest on him, the Spirit of wisdom and
understanding, the Spirit of counsel and power, the Spirit of knowledge and
fearing ADONAI
D. It was prophesied that God would one day give us a new Heart & put a new spirit within us.
Ezekiel 36:26-27
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit inside you; I will take the
stony heart out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my
Spirit inside you and cause you to live by my laws, respect my rulings and
obey them.
Ezekiel 37:14
"'I will put my Spirit in you; and you will be alive. Then I will place
you in your own land; and you will know that I, ADONAI, have spoken, and
that I have done it,' says ADONAI."
THE RUACH HAKODESH IN THE NEW COVENANT SCRIPTURES
A. The initial appearance of the Holy Spirit in the New Covenant on Shavu'ot.
Acts 1:4-8
At one of these gatherings, he instructed them not to leave Yerushalayim but
to wait for "what the Father promised, which you heard about from me. For
Yochanan used to immerse people in water; but in a few days, you will be
immersed in the Ruach HaKodesh!" When they were together, they asked him,
"Lord, are you at this time going to restore self-rule to Isra'el?" He
answered, "You don't need to know the dates or the times; the Father
has kept these under his own authority. But you will receive power when the
Ruach HaKodesh comes upon you; you will be my witnesses both in Yerushalayim
and in all Y'hudah and Shomron, indeed to the ends of the earth!"
Acts 2:1-4
The festival of Shavu'ot arrived, and the believers all gathered
together in one place. Suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the
roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were
sitting. Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated
and came to rest on each one of them. They were all filled with the Ruach
HaKodesh and began to talk in different languages, as the Spirit enabled
them to speak.
B. If we trust in Yeshua, God seals us by putting the Holy Spirit in our hearts.
2 Corinthians 1:21-22
Moreover, it is God who sets both us and you in firm union with the Messiah;
he has anointed us, put his seal on us, and given us his Spirit in our
hearts as a guarantee for the future.
Ephesians 1:13-14
Furthermore, you who heard the message of the truth, the Good News offering
you deliverance, and put your trust in the Messiah were sealed by him with
the promised Ruach HaKodesh, who guarantees our inheritance until we come
into possession of it and thus bring him praise commensurate with his
glory.
C. We must be born of the Holy Spirit to become a child of God & enter His kingdom.
John 3:4-8
Nakdimon said to him, "How can a grown man be 'born'? Can he go
back into his mother's womb and be born a second time?" Yeshua
answered, "Yes, indeed, I tell you that unless a person is born from water
and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. What is born from the
flesh is flesh, and what is born from the Spirit is spirit. Stop being
amazed at my telling you that you must be born again from above! The wind
blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but you don't know
where it comes from or where it's going. That's how it is with
everyone who has been born from the Spirit."
Romans 8:15-16
For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to bring you back again into
fear; on the contrary, you received the Spirit, who makes us sons and by
whose power we cry out, "Abba!" (that is, "Dear Father!"). The Spirit
himself bears witness with our own spirits that we are children of God
D. If we repent of our sins & are water-immersed in the authority of Yeshua, we will be born of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:38-39
Kefa answered them, "Turn from sin, return to God, and each of you be
immersed on the authority of Yeshua the Messiah into forgiveness of your
sins, and you will receive the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh! For the promise
is for you, for your children, and for those far away - as many as ADONAI
our God may call!"
E. Yeshua was anointed with the Holy Spirit for ministry, and He immerses us in the same Spirit.
Matthew 3:11
(see also Mark 1:7-8, Luke 3:15-16, and
John 1:32-34)
It's true that I am immersing you in water so that you might turn from
sin to God; but the one coming after me is more powerful than I - I'm
not worthy even to carry his sandals - and he will immerse you in the Ruach
HaKodesh and in fire.
Luke 4:18-19
The Spirit of ADONAI is upon me; therefore he has anointed me to announce
Good News to the poor; he has sent me to proclaim freedom for the imprisoned
and renewed sight for the blind, to release those who have been crushed, to
proclaim a year of the favor of ADONAI.
John 7:37-39
Now on the last day of the festival, Hoshana Rabbah, Yeshua stood and cried
out, "If anyone is thirsty, let him keep coming to me and drinking! Whoever
puts his trust in me, as the Scripture says, rivers of living water will
flow from his inmost being!" (Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those
who trusted in him were to receive later - the Spirit had not yet been
given, because Yeshua had not yet been glorified.)
Acts 10:37-38
You know what has been going on throughout Y'hudah, starting from the
Galil after the immersion that Yochanan proclaimed; how God anointed Yeshua
from Natzeret with the Ruach HaKodesh and with power; how Yeshua went about
doing good and healing all the people oppressed by the Adversary, because
God was with him.
F. Our bodies are temples in which the Holy Spirit resides.
1 Corinthians 3:16-17
(see also 1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
Don't you know that you people are God's temple and that
God's Spirit lives in you? So if anyone destroys God's temple,
God will destroy him. For Gods temple is holy
(and you yourselves are that
temple.')
2 Timothy 1:14
Keep safe the great treasure that has been entrusted to you, with the help
of the Ruach HaKodesh, who lives in us.
G. We are able to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Luke 1:41
When Elisheva heard Miryam's greeting, the baby in her womb stirred.
Elisheva was filled with the Ruach HaKodesh
Luke 1:67
His father Z'kharyah was filled with the Ruach HaKodesh and spoke this
prophecy
Acts 2:4
They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh and began to talk in different
languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.
Acts 4:8
Then Kefa, filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, said to them, "Rulers and elders
of the people! ..."
Acts 4:31
While they were still praying, the place where they were gathered was
shaken. They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, and they spoke
God's message with boldness.
Acts 6:3-5a
"Brothers, choose seven men from among yourselves who are known to be full
of the Spirit and wisdom. We will appoint them to be in charge of this
important matter, but we ourselves will give our full attention to praying
and to serving the Word." What they said was agreeable to the whole
gathering. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Ruach HaKodesh
Acts 13:9
Then Sha'ul, also known as Paul, filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, stared
straight at him and said
Acts 13:52
And the talmidim were filled with joy and with the Ruach HaKodesh.
Ephesians 5:18
Don't get drunk with wine, because it makes you lose control. Instead,
keep on being filled with the Spirit
H. The Holy Spirit gives us power, knowledge, boldness, & wisdom.
Acts 4:31
While they were still praying, the place where they were gathered was
shaken. They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh, and they spoke
God's message with boldness.
Ephesians 3:16-17a
I pray that from the treasures of his glory he will empower you with inner
strength by his Spirit, so that the Messiah may live in your hearts through
your trusting.
Colossians 1:9-10
Therefore, from the day we heard of it, we have not stopped praying for you,
asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will in all the wisdom and
understanding which the Spirit gives; so that you may live lives worthy of
the Lord and entirely pleasing to him, being fruitful in every good work and
multiplying in the full knowledge of God.
I. The Holy Spirit is our counselor & we are to be led by Him.
John 14:15-17
If you love me, you will keep my commands; and I will ask the Father, and he
will give you another comforting Counselor like me, the Spirit of Truth, to
be with you forever. The world cannot receive him, because it neither sees
nor knows him. You know him, because he is staying with you and will be
united with you.
John 14:26
But the Counselor, the Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have
said to you.
John 15:16
When the Counselor comes, whom I will send you from the Father - the Spirit
of Truth, who keeps going out from the Father - he will testify on my
behalf.
John 16:7
But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I
dont go away, the comforting Counselor will not come to you. However,
if I do go, I will send him to you.
Romans 8:14
All who are led by God's Spirit are God's sons.
Galatians 5:18
But if you are led by the Spirit, then you are not in subjection to the
system that results from perverting the Torah into legalism.
J. Those who are immersed in the Holy Spirit can expect to bear fruit.
Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, humility, self control. Nothing in the Torah stands
against such things.
Ephesians 5:8-10
For you used to be darkness; but now, united with the Lord, you are light.
Live like children of light, for the fruit of the light is in every kind of
goodness, rightness and truth - try to determine what will please the
Lord.
K. Those who are immersed in the Holy Spirit can expect to experience miracles & to receive spiritual gifts (including tongues). That notwithstanding, not all will speak in tongues.
Mark 16:17-18
"And these signs will accompany those who do trust: in my name they will
drive out demons, speak with new tongues, not be injured if they handle
snakes or drink poison, and heal the sick by laying hands on them."
Luke 1:67-68
His [Yochanan's] father Z'kharyah was filled with the Ruach
HaKodesh and spoke this prophecy: "Praised be ADONAI, the God of
Isra'el, because he has visited and made a ransom to liberate his
people ..."
Acts 10:44-46a
Kefa was still saying these things when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on all who
were hearing the message. All the believers from the Circumcision faction
who had accompanied Kefa were amazed that the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh was
also being poured out on the Goyim, for they heard them speaking in tongues
and praising God.
Acts 19:1-7
While Apollos was in Corinth, Sha'ul completed his travels through the
inland country and arrived at Ephesus, where he found a few talmidim. He
asked them, "Did you receive the Ruach HaKodesh when you came to trust?"
"No," they said to him, "we have never even heard that there is such a thing
as the Ruach HaKodesh. In that case," he said, "into what were you
immersed?" "The immersion of Yochanan," they answered. Sha'ul said,
"Yochanan practiced an immersion in connection with turning from sin to God;
but he told the people to put their trust in the one who would come after
him, that is, in Yeshua." On hearing this, they were immersed into the name
of the Lord Yeshua; and when Sha'ul placed his hands on them, the Ruach
HaKodesh came upon them; so that they began speaking in tongues and
prophesying. In all, there were about twelve of these men.
1 Corinthians 12:8-13
(see also Romans 12:3-8 and Ephesians
4:7-13)
To one, through the Spirit, is given a word of wisdom; to another, a word of
knowledge, in accordance with the same Spirit; to another, faith, by the
same Spirit; and to another, gifts of healing, by the one Spirit; to
another, the working of miracles; to another, prophecy; to another, the
ability to judge between spirits; to another, the ability to speak in
different kinds of tongues; and to yet another, the ability to interpret
tongues. One and the same Spirit is at work in all these things,
distributing to each person as he chooses. For just as the body is one but
has many parts; and all the parts of the body, though many, constitute one
body; so it is with the Messiah. For it was by one Spirit that we were all
immersed into one body, whether Jews or Gentiles, slaves or free; and we
were all given the one Spirit to drink
1 Corinthians 12:28-31
And God has placed in the Messianic Community first, emissaries; second,
prophets; third, teachers; then those who work miracles; then those with
gifts of healing; those with ability to help; those skilled in
administration; and those who speak in various tongues. Not all are
emissaries, are they? Not all are prophets, are they? or teachers? or
miracle-workers? Not all have gifts of healing, not all speak in tongues,
not all interpret, do they? Eagerly seek the better gifts. But now I will
show you the best way of all.
L. Being filled with the Holy Spirit is not a one-time event.
Acts 9:17-22
So Hananyah left and went into the house [of Sha'ul]. Placing his hands
on him, he said, "Brother Sha'ul, the Lord - Yeshua, the one who
appeared to you on the road as you were coming here - has sent me so that
you may see again and be filled with the Ruach HaKodesh." In that moment,
something like scales fell away from Sha'ul's eyes; and he could
see again. He got up and was immersed; then he ate some food and regained
his strength. Sha'ul spent some days with the talmidim in Dammesek, and
immediately he began proclaiming in the synagogues that Yeshua is the Son of
God. All who heard him were amazed. They asked, "Isn't he the man who
in Yerushalayim was trying to destroy the people who call on this name? In
fact, isn't that why he came here, to arrest them and bring them back
to the head cohanim?" But Sha'ul was being filled with more and more
power and was creating an uproar among the Jews living in Dammesek with his
proofs that Yeshua is the Messiah.
Ephesians 5:18-20
Don't get drunk with wine, because it makes you lose control. Instead,
keep on being filled with the Spirit - sing psalms, hymns and spiritual
songs to each other; sing to the Lord and make music in your heart to him;
always give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord
Yeshua the Messiah.
M. Peter explains that the tongues spoken on Shavu'ot were what the prophet Joel wrote about.
Acts 2:14-21
Then Kefa stood up with the Eleven and raised his voice to address them:
"You Judeans, and all of you staying here in Yerushalayim! Let me tell you
what this means! Listen carefully to me! These people aren't drunk, as
you suppose - it's only nine in the morning. No, this is what was
spoken about through the prophet Yo'el: 'ADONAI says: "In the Last
Days, I will pour out from my Spirit upon everyone. Your sons and daughters
will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream
dreams. Even on my slaves, both men and women, will I pour out from my
Spirit in those days; and they will prophesy. I will perform miracles in
the sky above and signs on the earth below - blood, fire and thick smoke.
The sun will become dark and the moon blood before the great and fearful Day
of ADONAI comes. And then, whoever calls on the name of ADONAI will be
saved."'"
N. The Holy Spirit was made available to Gentiles.
Acts 10:44-48
Kefa was still saying these things when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on all who
were hearing the message. All the believers from the Circumcision faction
who had accompanied Kefa were amazed that the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh was
also being poured out on the Goyim, for they heard them speaking in tongues
and praising God. Kefa's response was, "Is anyone prepared to prohibit
these people from being immersed in water? After all, they have received the
Ruach HaKodesh, just as we did." And he ordered that they be immersed in
the name of Yeshua the Messiah. Then they asked Kefa to stay on with them
for a few days.
Acts 11:15-18
But I [Kefa] had hardly begun speaking [to Cornelius & other
God-fearers] when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on them, just as on us at the
beginning! And I remembered that the Lord had said, 'Yochanan used to
immerse people in water, but you will be immersed in the Ruach
HaKodesh.' Therefore, if God gave them the same gift as he gave us
after we had come to put our trust in the Lord Yeshua the Messiah, who was I
to stand in God's way?" On hearing these things, they stopped
objecting and began to praise God, saying, "This means that God has enabled
the Goyim as well to do t'shuvah and have life!"
Acts 15:7-9
After lengthy debate, Kefa got up and said to them, "Brothers, you
yourselves know that a good while back, God chose me from among you to be
the one by whose mouth the Goyim should hear the message of the Good News
and come to trust. And God, who knows the heart, bore them witness by
giving the Ruach HaKodesh to them, just as he did to us; that is, he made no
distinction between us and them, but cleansed their heart by trust.
Today, the Holy Spirit is so identified with the New Covenant, that the reality of the Spirit's ministry among men going back to creation is often overlooked. Except for historical studies, the rabbinical community and much of the Christian Church ignores the Holy Spirit, and relegates His work among men to the distant past. In fact, none of the Covenants that God made with men throughout the ages could have existed without the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit has always been the entity that allowed men to interact with God the Father.
The order of the Scriptures presented in this Mitzvah shows the work of the Holy Spirit at various stages of history, and it is striking how similar and consistent His work has always been. He has always descended upon men, lived within men, filled men, empowered men, gifted men, counseled and led men and, enabled communication between men and God. The uniqueness of the New Covenant in regard to the Holy Spirit is not the newness of His work, but rather with whom He now interacts, and the intensity of the interaction. Prior to the New Covenant, the Holy Spirit enabled all men to speak to God (generally through prayer), but God was very particular about to whom He spoke back. He conversed with Adam, Noah, the patriarchs, Moses, and others, but they were always persons selected at His discretion. We call persons prophets if it is their function to hear God, and to repeat what they hear to others.
As marvelous as God's early form of interaction with men was, it was limited because the ordinary Israelite did not have general access to the Holy Spirit, and therefore had to consult with those that did have access, if he wanted to receive God's guidance. It was like having a father whom you have never met, and with whom you can only converse by way of a messenger.
That limitation changed dramatically in the New Covenant, when God fulfilled His promise through Joel to pour out His Spirit upon all flesh (Joel 3:1 (2:28)). Today, we are blessed to be able to relate to our heavenly father in a direct and personal way, and to be able to have conversations with Him, not only by our speaking to Him, but also by Him speaking back to us. Through the New Covenant, we have gained a relationship with God that most of us would not have had, had we lived prior to the time of Yeshua.
Now that brings me to Yeshua, of whom I have not yet spoken. Yeshua is a critical part of the New Covenant, because His atoning sacrifice for us is what enables us to be cleansed of sin so that the Holy Spirit can live within us. Without Yeshua, we could not receive the Holy Spirit, and that is why Hebrews 9:13-15 says of Him, that He is the mediator of a New Covenant:
For if sprinkling ceremonially unclean persons with the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer restores their outward purity; then how much more the blood of the Messiah, who, through the eternal Spirit, offered himself to God as a sacrifice without blemish, will purify our conscience from works that lead to death, so that we can serve the living God! It is because of this death that he is mediator of a new covenant [or will]. Because a death has occurred which sets people free from the transgressions committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.
There are two ways that we can utilize the gifts of the Holy Spirit that have been given to us in the New Covenant. We can use the gifts to enhance our personal lives, and we can use them to enhance the lives of others. There are a few among us who are specially gifted to equip others for ministry, and these we sometimes call the "fivefold gift ministers", a term that refers to the five ministries listed in Ephesians 4:11-12.
Furthermore, he gave some people as emissaries, some as prophets, some as proclaimers of the Good News, and some as shepherds and teachers. Their task is to equip God's people for the work of service that builds the body of the Messiah ...
Among the gifts of the Spirit, tongues tends to be the most spoken about
because of confusion that has resulted from incorrect teaching. Three
incorrect things that I have most often heard taught about tongues are:
I hope and trust that my earlier reference to 1 Corinthians 12:28-30 is sufficient to put the lie to #2 and #3 above:
And God has placed in the Messianic Community first, emissaries; second, prophets; third, teachers; then those who work miracles; then those with gifts of healing; those with ability to help; those skilled in administration; and those who speak in various tongues. Not all are emissaries, are they? Not all are prophets, are they? or teachers? or miracle-workers? Not all have gifts of healing, not all speak in tongues, not all interpret, do they?)
As for #1 above, and other gifts of the Holy Spirit, suffice it to say that the New Covenant, as we know it, could not exist without them.
Now just a bit more about the "immersion" or "baptism of the Holy Spirit". First, the word "of" is incorrect, because it is not the Holy Spirit that Immerses - it is Yeshua that immerses us in the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:11, etc.). More importantly, several Christian denominations teach that the "the baptism of the Holy Spirit" is a singular event of filling of the Spirit - a second work of grace that necessarily comes after one is born again. Both Scripture and life's experiences testify that immersion in the Spirit need not be just a one-time occurrence (Acts 9:22 and Ephesians 5:18-20), and it need not be a distinguishable second event after salvation because one can be filled with the Holy Spirit at the very moment that one is "born again". Consider Cornelius the God-fearer and others present when Peter preached the Good News of Yeshua in Cornelius' home:
Acts 10:44
Kefa was still saying these things when the Ruach HaKodesh fell on all who
were hearing the message.
Filling and refilling with the Holy Spirit can occur periodically throughout one's life.
Classical Commentators
Maimonides, Meir, and HaChinuch did not accept that there is a New Covenant, and did not write on this subject of the Ru'ach HaKodesh.
NCLA: JMm JFm KMm KFm GMm GFm