“He will baptize you with The Holy Spirit and Fire” John 3:11(b)
The literal and practical outcome of our baptism “With The Holy Spirit and With Fire” is found in the book of Joshua and it shows us how we enter a Kingdom Relationship with Him.
Joshua 1:3 “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.
4 “From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory.
5 “No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.
6 “Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.
7 “Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.
v8 “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.”
These prophetic words of God show us HOW WE CAN ENTER INTO A PRACTICAL KINGDOM RELATIONSHIP with Him.
Again, we are told, in John 6:31-35 “Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OF HEAVEN TO EAT.’”
Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven.
“For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.”
Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread.
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.
“Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die.
“He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. “For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink.
“He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him
“As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me.
“This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever.”
“I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.”
These prophetic words of Jesus tell us HOW WE CAN ENTER INTO A SPIRITUAL KINGDOM RELATIONSHIP with Him.
Jesus is telling us that His Baptism of believers “With The Holy Spirit and with Fire” requires that His Word permeate every part of your being: body, soul, mind and spirit. You are called to continue His Works until He returns to consummate the age. This His Command and this is your calling!
This command is NOT A METAPHOR or is it HYPERBOLE. THIS COMMAND IS LITERAL!
For this to happen, for you and I to obey Jesus’ Command and to respond to our calling, we must do as John (and Jesus) say, and “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”
The Kingdom of Heaven, The “Basileia”, is of royal power, kingship, dominion and rule, the right or authority to rule over a kingdom. It is the royal power of Jesus as the triumphant Messiah and of the royal power and dignity conferred on Christians in the Messiah’s kingdom.
It is at hand, “Eggizo”, the Greek words which means it is so near that is joined as one thing to another. In other words, nearer than is your wrist to your hand. This word refers to the crook of your arm or a curl as in a wave. It is near, it is active and powerful, it can overpower and you can be joined to This Kingdom. You can enter into it, or better understood, THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS WITHIN YOU! (Luke 17:21)
Jesus is revealing the location of His Kingdom which is accessible – but only for the few who are willing. Jesus makes no secret of it, yet, not many will understand and fewer yet will be willing to follow Him and enter His Kingdom. (“For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”) Matthew 7:14
As the word of The Kingdom spread, questions began to surface. “Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; (v21) nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is in within you.” Luke 17:20
You can only imagine the consternation created, especially among the religious ruling elite. They must have asked, “Is Jesus saying that Heaven has come down to earth?” And, in the minds of the Pharisees, they wondered “who is this Jesus and what gives Him the right to say these things?” These same questions and this same controversy persist until this day. For example, many of the contemporary Bible translations or versions, purposefully and deliberately changed the Greek-to-English translation of Luke 17:20-21,
from saying…
“The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is in within you.”
to saying…
“The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
“In your midst” is a deliberate misquote and a deliberate misinterpretation of God’s literal Word which should read “Within you”! They are miles apart in meaning and will have the effect of misleading and misdirecting a Believer from his or her ultimate goal in serving God.
In this day and age, The Kingdom of God is at hand and Jesus will baptize the willing believer with The Holy Spirit and with Fire.
“Now therefore arise, you and all this people, cross this Jordan, to the land which I have given to you.
“Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.
“From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory. (The land God promised)
“No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.
“Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.
“Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.
“This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.”
Read these words, drink them in, consume them. Now, GO!
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young