How do I receive the Holy Spirit?

Precious Reader, various theories have been propounded, as to how a person can receive the Holy Spirit. Of a truth, there is only one way a person can receive the precious gift of the Holy Spirit, and not many ways as some falsely teaches.

The Holy Spirit is received through faith in Jesus Christ 

The Holy Spirit is given at the very moment of salvation. Once a person puts his faith in Christ Jesus, instantly the person receives the Holy Spirit.

Apostle Paul wrote this: "In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory"-- Ephesians 1; 13-14

From the text, we can see that after we heard the gospel of our salvation and we believed, we were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. So you can see that it was after we trusted in Christ for salvation, that we received the sealing of the Spirit. To be sealed depicts ownership, so God by sealing us with the Holy Spirit indicates that we are his forever. We are God's own, and for the fact that we are sealed in him with the Holy Spirit is an indubitable proof.

 I love what the apostle wrote: The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God-- Romans 8; 16

How do we know that we are God's children? We know we are God's children, because the Holy Spirit bears witness with our human spirit that we are the children of God. The Holy Spirit in us communicates with our spirit, and gives us the assurance of our sonship. So the Holy Spirit does not only seals us, as God's own, but also gives us an assurance that we are indeed, God's sons and daughters through faith in Christ Jesus.

What if you are devoid of the Holy Spirit?

If you do not have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside you, then you are not reckoned as a member of the family of God. It means you have no personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and God does not know you as his.

The holy apostle wrote this: However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him-- Romans 8; 9.

The Spirit of Christ is synonymous to the Holy Spirit, it is another way of describing the same person. Paul stated it emphatically in his epistle, that to be destitute of the Holy Spirit, means you do not belong to God. Having the Holy Spirit then, is a necessity which can only be received through saving faith in Christ Jesus.

What is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit?

Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances-- Ezekiel 36; 26-27

When we trusted in Christ for salvation, our heart of stone was taken away, and God gave us a heart of flesh, and He placed his Spirit inside us, and this Holy Spirit empowers us to live a life worthy of the gospel. The prophecy of Ezekiel is part of the new covenant blessing which has been fulfilled in the new testament times. The Spirit of God inside us is what we call the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Apostle Paul also wrote: "Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!"-- Galatians 4; 6

The Holy Spirit has taken residence in our hearts by which we can cry out and call God, ''Abba Father! The Spirit permanently dwelling inside of us is what is commonly known as the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. 

In a nutshell, a person can receive the Holy Spirit only through faith in the Man Jesus Christ and not through other means. God bless you 

A thought to ponder 🤔 

If you do not have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside you, then you are not reckoned as a member of the family of God.

We defend and exposit the truth of the gospel

Comments

  1. shadman's MusingsOctober 28, 2025 at 10:31 AM

    Having lived through some horrible teachings on this very subject, it is refreshing to read someone that understands the truths of Scripture about what it really means to be filled with the Holy Spirit and when that actually occurs. Thank you, brother! And keep preaching the truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

If Jesus was God, then why did he cry out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?

This question continue to puzzle the minds of many people out there, who are genuinely seeking to know the truth as it is in Jesus. But am also not ignorant of the fact that others, simply ask this question merely out of prejudice against the deity of Christ. In their attempt to discredit the authenticity of scriptural evidence of the deity of Christ, they ask questions like this; if Jesus is God as the Christian's claims, then why did he cry out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me? Others also ask, if Jesus was truly God, then how can God be forsaken? Unitarians are part of those who reject the biblical doctrine of the trinity and affirm that God is only one person. They are a sect that rejects what the bible teaches about the true deity of Christ. They claim that Jesus Christ is not God in human flesh and that he is not equal with God. A typical example of unitarians are the Jehovah's witnesses. They are infuriated when we claim that God is one, but eternally exis...
Read more

What is the purpose of the church?

Beloved in Christ, the biblical meaning of church is an assembly of believers. The Greek word, "Ekklesia" means, ''the called out ones or a Christian community''. Christians are the very people God has chosen and called them out unto himself. The church constitute Christ hand, his eyes, his mouth, his legs, etc. We are the body of Christ and individual members of it, see (1 Corinthians 12; 27). The Church in it's most basic meaning refers to the very people who have trusted in Christ for salvation, they are the people who are saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2; 8-9). To delve deeper, I recommend you read my article on, What is the Church? and What does it mean that the church is the body of Christ? Let us look at the purpose of the Church or why does the Church exist? In the book of Acts, it is written : They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer ...
Read more

If Jesus was God, then why did he not know the day and hour of his return?

Is it true that Jesus did not know the day and hour of his return during the days of his flesh? The answer is yes, he did not know, for it is written: "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah (Matthew 24: 36-37). So if Jesus is God, as we Christians claim, then how come he did not know the day and hour of his return? Does that mean he is not omniscient as we claim? The apparent ignorance on the part of our Lord Jesus, respecting his return have been used as an occasion, by wicked and unlearned men to deny his true deity. I must confess that the theme for our discourse today is a difficult one, but the answer to the above question lies in the incarnation of Christ. The bible is clear about the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ.  In the book of Colossians, it is written: For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2: 9). And in ...
Read more