Online Speech Bank: Aimee Semple McPherson -- The Baptism of the Holy Spirit

Aimee Semple McPherson

"The Baptism of the Holy Spirit"

The curtains of the clouds which angelic hands had swept together when, the redemptive work of Jesus on earth completed, His ascending form disappeared from view, had again been parted, and the Holy Sprit, of whom Jesus had said -- "He will abide with you forever" -- had been sent forth from the presence of the Father. No sooner were they filled with the Holy Spirit than they began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.

What was the immediate result and the outward evidence of that filling? -- They began to speak with other tongues. Is there any record of anyone ever having spoken in tongues (languages with they had never learned and were unknown to themselves; see I Cor. 14:2), previous to the day of Pentecost and the opening of the dispensation of the Holy Spirit? No! The devout Jews who were gathered into Jerusalem at this time, for the religious feasts and ceremonies, came running together in multitudes, and, upon hearing the languages of the countries in which they had been born, spoken by these simple, unlearned Galileans, they were amazed, astonished and in doubt. At what were the people astonished? At what did they marvel? AT the rushing mighty wind? No. The tongues of fire? No; they are not again mentioned, and it is doubtful whether those who came together after the one hundred and twenty had been filled even saw them.

What then? They were amazed and marveled at the supernatural power that rested upon these men and women, causing them to reel and stagger, Acts 2:13, as though drunken with wine, and to speak with tongues unknown to themselves. The spectators who looked upon the out-pouring of the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost were divided into two classes just as they are today. One class were the mockers, who said in derision, "These men are full of new wine. Come on, let's have nothing to do with these people. They are fanatics. This is all excitement over religion; the whole city is in an uproar; nothing but wildfire. They ought to be arrested," etc. The other class were the thinkers -- the thoughtful, intelligent men and women, who said:

"Wait a moment. There must surely be something behind all this. The ring in these people's voices -- the shout in their souls -- the joy and love, worship and adoration reflected in their faces -- there must be some specific reason for it. They are certainly not reeling and staggering about like that for nothing. They must surely realize that the people who look on will make fun of them and think they have lost their senses. If they are not doing it for money nor for popularity, then why are they doing it? They are certainly not all fools. If there were only one or two we might think they were, but here are about one hundred and twenty; surely they cannot all be mad. I am going to investigate this matter and see what there is behind it all. Tell us, Oh, tell us, some of you good, happy people in there -- stop your shouting and your rejoicing for a little space, and answer -- WHAT MEANETH THIS?"

Then Peter, standing up --

"Peter, what are you rising up for? Are you frightened, Peter? Are you going to run away and seek to escape from this big, excited, questioning multitude as you did from the little girl that night you denied the Lord?"

"Run away? Oh, no! I will never run away any more now. I have been baptized with the Holy Ghost and fire. He has endued me with power from on high. He has taken fear away and put a holy boldness within my heart and words within my mouth, insomuch that out of my innermost being flow forth rivers of living water." Acts 4:13. And Peter, stand up (ah, the Holy Spirit puts a real "stand up for Jesus" in the timid soul" with the eleven, lifted up his voice and said:

Ye men of Judea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words; for these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day, but this is that which was spoken of the prophet Joel. It shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy...on My servants and My handmaidens I will pour out in those days of My Spirit, and they shall prophesy. I will show wonders in the heavens above, signs in the earth beneath...and it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth...ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.

"Why, Peter, aren't you afraid to talk like that to this great mob of people? Do you not know that they gnash their teeth and hiss at the very name of Jesus? Are you not aware that you are laying yourself open to the danger of being sized upon, carried to the whipping post, stripped, beaten and stoned to death? I thought that you were a timid man who was ashamed to be known as one of them?"

"Oh, no I will never be ashamed to be called on of the despised, persecuted, peculiar few any more. The Holy Ghost has come to abide in this life of mine, and the words that I speak I speak not of myself; the works that I do I do not of myself, but the Holy Spirit who has come to dwell within, He speaks the words; He does the works. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He hath shed forth this which you see (in the reeling bodies of those who appear to be drunken), and hear (in the speaking to other tongues)."

So boldly did this transformed man speak under the mighty power of the Holy Spirit that his hearers were pricked to their hearts and said unto Peter and the rest of the apostles: "Men and brethren what shall we do?" Then Peter said unto them -- "Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call." What promise is unto all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord God shall call, Peter? The promise of the Holy Ghost -- that which you see and hear.

But how much of the promise is unto us, Peter? Surely not all this mighty power, accompanied with the speaking in tongues. Was this not only the opening of the dispensation and for the Jews? But no, says Peter, "The promise is unto them that are afar off, even as many as the Lord shall call, for now in Christ Jesus there is neither Jew nor Gentile; there is neither bond nor free. In Him we are one and are baptized into the one body."

Acts 10:44, eight years after the day of Pentecost, the door of salvation and the baptism of the Holy Spirit is opened unto the Gentiles. Walking into the home of Cornelius, in the 44th verse, we find a meeting in progress. Cornelius has gathered his household, his servants, and his neighbors together to hear the words which Peter is to speak, words whereby they may be saved. "And while Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the Word. And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God."

In all these eight years the manner in which the Holy Spirit came in had not been changed -- the same Bible evidence -- speaking in tongues, remained. Even though there were no foreigners who came from other countries and spoke other languages, present to be benefited by the speaking in tongues, the Spirit spoke through them just the same, as He had on the day of Pentecost. In Acts 19 a new voice is heard preaching Jesus Christ and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. "Have you received the Holy Ghost since you believed?" Why, that voice and face seems familiar. Have we seen or heard this man before?

"Excuse me, brother, but is your name not Saul of Tarsus? Is this really you preaching the necessity of receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit! I thought you condemned all this, thought it to be folly and not to be permitted. Did you not say that you were going to put and end to all this nonsense, when, after you had looked on approvingly at the stoning of Stephen, you rode away to Damascus with the intention of still further persecuting these Pentecostal Holy Ghost people?"

"Yes, I used to persecute these Christians. I thought that they were all wrong and should be wiped out of existence, but that was before my eyes were opened. Did you not hear how that, when riding on my way to do them greater hurt, the light of the Lord shone round about me and I was stricken from my horse and fell as one dead in the dust of the road, and how Jesus, whose face was brighter than the sun, and whose raiment was whiter than the light, came and spoke to me, saying: 'Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?' Three days was I blind from the vision of His brightness. Then was I converted and my name was changed from Saul to Paul. Yes, I am one of them today. I will talk with you later, but not O must go on with me meeting."

After the baptismal service wherein the disciples are buried in the watery grave, in verse six, we see Paul laying his hands upon them, and read that the Holy Ghost came on them and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. Here, as in Jerusalem and in the house of Cornelius, the first thing that was mentioned of the souls that received the Holy Spirit was that they spoke with tongues.

In Acts 8:17, 18, we find sinful and wicked Simon the sorcerer, so impressed with the mighty power displayed when the believers received the Holy Ghost upon the laying on of the apostles' hands, that he offered money to the apostles in the hopes of being able to purchase the same power, saying: "Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay my hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost."

Without a doubt Simon say and heard the same things that the onlookers say and heard on the day of Pentecost. Bust Oh, this power could not be bought. All the money in the world could not have purchased it, but to those who humble themselves in lowliness and in sincerity before the Lord shall the Spirit be given freely without money and without price. Oh, tell me, Peter and Paul, tell me John and James, and all you who received this mighty incoming of the Holy Ghost with its attendant power and glory, may we, in this 20th century, receive this like precious gift, or did the Holy Spirit empty Himself of all His power in the apostolic days? Did you consume all of these supernatural wondrous blessings, or did you leave enough to spare for us today?

"Yes, indeed," they answer in unison. "Heaven has not gone bankrupt. Heaven's storehouse still is full. The Holy Spirit has never lost His power, the promise is unto them that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. Did not our Lord say: 'When He is come, He will abide with you forever'? Doubt no longer, but with open heart ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain. Remember the words of Joel the prophet: 'It shall come to pass in the LAST days,' saith God, 'I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh.' Remember, too, that when the high priest went in to the Holy of Holies the bells rang, and the high priest came out the bells rang again. When Jesus ascended up on high the bells rang and the people spoke with tongues and magnified God. Now this same Jesus, our high priest, is coming forth again for His waiting church, and on earth the bells are ringing, the latter rain is falling, and again those who have received the old-time power speak with other tongues."

Research Note: This speech taken from Warner, M. (Ed.). (1999). American sermons: The pilgrims to Martin Luther, King, Jr. New York: Literary Classics of the United States, Inc.