Listen:  126.5

While this is a controversial subject, I’ll go ahead and state from the outset that every believer on the Lord Jesus Christ receives the Holy Spirit instantly at the moment of salvation.  I am so pleased that you asked for Bible references to support the answer.  If we do not have scriptural support for our answers, then our answers are only opinions.

Let’s read 1 Corinthians 12:12-13, “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”  Here, the Apostle Paul is addressing all believers.  He states that it is the baptism of the Holy Spirit that places us into the body of Christ, or the church.  Is there scriptural evidence that says the body of Christ is the church?  Absolutely!  Let’s read Colossians 1:18which speaking of the Lord Jesus says, “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”   So, is every believer a part of the church?  Yes, they are!  Acts 2:47tells us, “…And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (NKJV)  We see then that every believer on the Lord Jesus Christ is baptized with the Holy Spirit and is placed into the body of Christ, or the church.

Now let’s read the inspired words of Paul in Romans 8:9, “But ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you. But if any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”  Again, let’s notice that Paul is speaking generally to all believers.  He states that if a man does not have the Spirit of Christ, then he doesn’t belong to Christ.  Simply put, if a man does not have the Spirit dwelling inside him that shows that he is not saved.  Who is the ‘Spirit of Christ’ referred to here?  We read in Ephesians 4:4, “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as also ye were called in one hope of your calling.”  There is ‘one Spirit’, whether he is referred to as the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of God, or the Spirit of Christ, there is only ‘one Spirit’. 

Once a person is saved and indwelt with, or baptized by the Holy Spirit, will the Spirit ever leave that person?  No, He will not!  Consider carefully the words of Ephesians 4:30which says, “And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption.”  While it is possible to grieve the Holy Spirit by our acts of disobedience, we never read of grieving the Holy Spirit ‘away’.  In fact, we are told that we are “sealed unto the day of redemption.”  Although our souls were redeemed at the moment we trusted in Christ as our savior, this ‘day of redemption’ is in reference to the rapture of the church when our bodies will be redeemed as we read in Romans 8:23, “And not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for our adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” 

Realizing that we are baptized with the Holy Spirit at the moment of our salvation, we can easily see that water baptism comes after the baptism of the Holy Spirit.  Let’s look at the incident of Philip’s dealings with the Ethiopian eunuch.  After accepting Christ as his savior, we read of the eunuch’s desire to be baptized with water.  Acts 8:36-37 says, “And as they went on the way, they came unto a certain water; and the eunuch saith, Behold, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thy heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”  While, baptism of the Holy Spirit is an act of God at the moment of salvation; water baptism is an act of obedience by those who have accepted Christ as their savior.  (126.5)