FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT



I shall endeavor to show that for one to be "filled with the Spirit" is for one to be endowed with miraculous power.



  1. CONSIDER WHO WAS FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT AND WHAT THEY DID:
    1. John the Baptist (Lk 1:15,44)
    2. Elizabeth (Lk 1:41-45)
    3. Zacharias (Lk 1:67-79)
    4. Jesus (Lk 4:1)
    5. The Apostles (Ac 2:1-4)
    6. The Seven (Ac 6:3)
      1. Stephen (Ac 6:3,5,8,10; 7:55)
      2. Philip (Ac 6:3; 8:6,7)
    7. Peter (Ac 4:8)
    8. The assembly (Ac 4:31)
    9. Saul (Ac 9:17; 13:9)
    10. Barnabas (Ac 11:24)
    11. The Disciples (Ac 13:52)
    12. The Ephesians(?) (Ep 5:18; Co 3:16)


  2. "FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT" IS A FIGURE OF SPEECH
    1. Having been filled with something, can one receive more?
      1. ILL--"Class Full of Water"
      2. Ac 2:4; 4:8
      3. Thus, figure of speech
    2. "The apostles were 'filled with the Holy Spirit' (Acts 2:4). This filling was figurative, not literal; and it refers to the endowment of power which was theirs, and not to a literal infusion of the Spirit. A few days later, following the memorable Pentecost day, the apostles were again 'filled' with the Holy Spirit. If the filling was literal and was the baptism of the Spirit, were they again baptized in the Holy Spirit on the occasion described in Acts 4:23-31? Thoughtful people will surely perceive that the pouring out of the Spirit, the filling of the Spirit and the baptism of the Spirit designated the bestowal of power upon the apostles by the Spirit and that the terms used are metaphorical, and not literal representations of what occurred. It is vital to remember in any proper study of the work and influence of the Holy Spirit that the measures of the Spirit were measures of amounts of power which the Spirit exercised through those endowed, and not literal affusion of the essence of deity--the Spirit. The Spirit is a Person--not merely an influence. The influence which the Spirit wields today is solely through means--the Word of God which he (the Spirit) gave us" (Questions and Answers, Guy N. Woods, p.51).
    3. How do we know that being filled with the Spirit is not the baptism in the Spirit? If being filled with the Spirit is the baptism in the Spirit, then the apostles were baptized twice (Acts 2:4 and Acts 4:31).


CONCLUSION: "Filled with the Spirit" is an endowment of power.