Do I have the Spirit, aka Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost? How
do I know?
Apostle Paul asked some disciples a question that many would scoff and mock today,
but here's to keeping it biblically real.
Can one be a believer and not have the Holy Spirit? Yes. Acts 19:1-6
Can one
be a disciple and not have the Holy Spirit? Yes. Acts 19:1-6
Did Jesus tell us to ask for the Holy Spirit? Yes. Luke 11:9-13
Can
one be born again and not have the Spirit? No. John 3:1-5
In the following, notice that Apostle Paul did not ask the disciples if they had
received the gift, baptism, or infilling of the Holy Spirit, he simply asked the disciples if they had received the "Holy
Ghost."
Acts 19:1-2 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having
passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, 2 He said unto them, Have ye received the
Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.
There is only one Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13, Ephesians 2:18, 4:4), and when spirit
is capitalized it always refers to God alone (John 4:24).
Did you know that Spirit, Holy Ghost, and Holy Spirit are interchangeable? (John
7:39; Romans 8:9) Did you also know that Jesus said that without the Holy Spirit, we do not belong to Him, and that we
will not enter into heaven. See John 3:1-5; 1 John 3:24, 4:13; Jude 19-20.
All of the following are interchangeable. In the KJV, we find Spirit 111x, Holy
Ghost 90x, Spirit of God 13x (includes Spirit of our God 1x, 1 Corinth. 6:11), Spirit of the Lord 5x, Holy Spirit 4x, one
Spirit 4x, Spirit of truth 3x, My Spirit 3x, Spirit of Christ 2x, Spirit of Jesus Christ 1x, Spirit of his Son 1x, Spirit
of your Father 1x.
Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed? If
we automatically receive the Spirit when we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, then why did Jesus tell us to ask
for it in Luke 11:13?
To receive it, repent, and ask the Lord God to give you His Holy Spirit.
Jesus commands us to be" born of the water and of the Spirit" (John 3:1-5), which began on the Day of Pentecost when
Apostle Peter preached the exact command in Acts 2:38.
