Baptism in the Spirit (2)
A Sermon on John 1:26-33
Scripture
26John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; 27He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose. 28These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where …
Sermon Description
Listen to this sermon on John 1:26–33 titled “Baptism by the Spirit (2)” as Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones makes the first of a series of propositions in regard to the baptism of the Spirit. He claims that someone can be a true believer without being baptized by the Spirit; how can this be? Certainly, no one becomes a Christian without the work of the Holy Spirit in them, but Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones argues these are fundamentally different. He stresses the importance for a balanced doctrine in dealing with the entirety of the Scriptures – what is read in the whole of the Scripture is what should be expected, but the disregard for portions of Scriptures is not acceptable. Follow the promises that are fulfilled in the Book of Acts and see how it is through the light of this book that the epistles are to be read. Questions of an unusual certainty in one’s assurance and saving faith are addressed, confirmation is examined, and the evidence of the life of Christ is illuminated. “There is nothing which is more fatal than to fail to see that the teaching of the epistles always presupposes the history which we have in the book of Acts of the Apostles.” Follow along as Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones considers this.
Sermon Breakdown
- John the Baptist predicted that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. This is a vital doctrine to understand.
- The baptism of the Holy Spirit marks the difference between Old Testament saints and New Testament saints. OT saints were believers but not baptized with the Spirit.
- You can be a believer and Christian without receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This was shown through examples from the OT and NT.
- The book of Acts shows the fulfillment of the promise of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Its purpose is to show how it happened, the results, and how it was recognized.
- The epistles presuppose the history in Acts. You can't understand the epistles without Acts. The epistles were written to correct issues in churches that had experienced the baptism of the Spirit.
- One effect of the baptism of the Spirit is to give assurance of salvation. It is wrong to say all believers have full assurance. Saving faith and assurance of faith are distinct.
- The case of the Galatians shows they had received the Spirit and miracles were being done among them. This shows the epistles presuppose the baptism of the Spirit.
- You can't put Acts against the epistles. All Scripture must be used. Acts shows the fulfillment of the promise of the Spirit.
- The epistles don't exhort people to seek the baptism of the Spirit because they had already received it. They deal with issues that arose from it.
- Jesus himself received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Though the eternal Son of God, as a man He needed the Spirit to empower His ministry. This shows the distinction between regeneration and baptism of the Spirit.
The Book of John
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.