What is the Gift of the Holy Spirit Today?

A question about Acts 2:38.

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This is the answer to the second question a person asked me about the Holy Spirit recently. If you missed the first article, it was about the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.

Today’s question about the gift of the Holy Spirit comes from Acts 2:38.

Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 

I admit to you upfront that this is a challenging question for me to answer because there are a few different ideas about what this gift is, and I don’t know that I have it fully settled in my mind what I believe this gift is.

So, here’s how we’ll approach this question together:

• Examine the context of Acts 2.

• Consider various ideas as to what the gift of the Holy Spirit is in Acts 2:38.

• Conclude with some final thoughts.

The Context of Acts 1-2.

The buildup to Peter’s sermon (1:1-2:13)

Before Jesus ascended back to heaven after His resurrection, He told His apostles what would soon take place.

And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, "which," He said, "you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now…But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." (Acts 1:4-5, 8)

While they waited in Jerusalem, Matthias was chosen to take Judas’ place among the apostles (Acts 1:12-26).

On the Day of Pentecost, the promised Holy Spirit came upon the apostles just as Jesus and the Father had said (Acts 2:1-3). They were “filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues [languages]” (Acts 2:4).

A crowd of God-fearing people quickly gathered and were amazed that they heard in their own language “the wonderful works of God” (Acts 2:5-11). Since it was an important feast for the Jews, people were gathered in Jerusalem from many different places around the Mediterranean.

While some were confused and wondered what this event could possibly mean (Acts 2:12), some mocked by saying, “They’re just drunk!” (Acts 2:13).

Peter’s sermon (2:14-36).

First, Peter explained what was happening - why they were hearing “the wonderful works of God” in their own language (2:14-21). It wasn’t that the apostles were drunk, but it was the demonstration of the Spirit’s power. This fulfilled what was recorded in Joel 2:28-32. The Spirit being “poured out,” as Joel wrote, pointed to a time when people would call “on the name [authority] of the Lord” to be saved. Peter’s point is: that time is now.

This begs the question, however: just who exactly is the Lord? That question will be answered shortly.

Having pointed the crowd to the Scriptures to explain what was happening, Peter then turned their attention to Jesus. He showed that the death and resurrection of Jesus was God’s plan (2:22-28). They all knew the mighty works Jesus had done - and they all knew how He had been crucified by them. This was all “according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.” God raised Jesus from the dead because it was impossible for death to overcome Him, which David wrote about in Psalm 16:8-11.

Finally, Peter drives home the point to the crowd: the resurrection of Jesus means He is Lord and Christ (2:29-36). God promised David that He would set up one of his descendants on the throne (2 Samuel 7:12-16). The resurrection of Jesus from the dead was proof positive (Romans 1:1-4) that He was the promised Messiah. The resurrection and exaltation of Jesus meant that the time was right for the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, as prophesied by Joel.

Why was the time right? Because now there was a “Lord” who all people could “call on the name of” to be saved.

"Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." (Acts 2:36)

The response to Peter’s sermon (Acts 2:37-41).

This sermon caused quite a bit of distress among the crowd - they were “cut to the heart” because they had rejected and crucified the Lord and Christ. They asked, “What shall we do?” (Acts 2:37).

Peter told them what they must do - here is what was required to “call on the name of the Lord” to be saved.

Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call." And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation." (Acts 2:38-40)

Notice - they were commanded to repent and be baptized “in the name of Jesus Christ.” By responding to the gospel in this way, they would be calling on the name - the authority - of Jesus Christ as the Lord to save them and forgive their sins.

Those who responded in this way would “receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”This offer was for all who heard Peter’s sermon that day, their children, and everyone “afar off” - as many people as the Lord would call.

On that very day, about 3,000 people “gladly received” the gospel and were baptized - obeying what Peter told them to do to call on the Lord’s name or authority.

Ideas about the Gift of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:38.

I know that was a lot of context for this question. But I think it’s important to consider all of that because, as you probably noticed, the Holy Spirit had an important role in what occurred in Acts 1-2. If we ignore everything that comes before Acts 2:38, we will have some additional difficulty figuring out what the “gift of the Holy Spirit” is.

Now, I want to share with you some of the various ideas about what the gift of the Holy Spirit is in Acts 2:38.

I have a book in my library titled, The Holy Spirit of God. It is a collection of manuscripts from the eighth annual Lubbock Lectureship. In this book, three different brethren present their arguments for the following views.

I will include what I thought to be some of the most persuasive arguments from each viewpoint and then share my thoughts about each viewpoint.

It refers to the ability to perform miracles.

Bobby Liddell made the following points about this particular view of the gift of the Holy Spirit.

• Unless Acts 2:38 is the exception, every reference to the Spirit in Acts 2 involves that which is miraculous.

• Other passages like Acts 8:12-17 and Acts 19:1-7 clearly show that baptized believers did not receive the Holy Spirit “in any form, miraculous or non-miraculous…when they were baptized.” They received the Holy Spirit when the apostles laid their hands on them.

• The exact phrase “gift of the Holy Spirit” occurs only twice in the New Testament - in Acts 2:38 and Acts 10:45. The instance in Acts 10:45 clearly refers to the miraculous, so wouldn’t the phrase have the same or similar meaning in Acts 2:38?

• The miraculous spiritual gifts were given to the first-century church until the apostles died out and the New Testament was completely revealed and written down (1 Corinthians 13:8-10; Jude 3; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:3).

• The “promise” of Acts 2:39 refers to the miraculous mentioned in Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4, and Acts 2:33. It was extended to those present on that day (Acts 2:41), to the next generation (Luke 11:13; 23:38), and to the Gentiles of that day (Ephesians 2:13, 17).

It refers to the Holy Spirit Himself.

Burt Groves made the following points about this particular view of the gift of the Holy Spirit.

• God gives the Holy Spirit to those who obey Him (Acts 5:32).

• The presence of the Holy Spirit in the church and in Christians means they must keep themselves pure (1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:18-20).

• When a person is saved, he receives the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9). “The gift of the Holy Spirit is God’s presence in the life of the person who formerly was enslaved to sin.”

• The Holy Spirit testifies with the Christian’s spirit that he is God’s child and heir (Romans 8:16-17).

• “The presence of God in the lives of His children results in spirituality. It is the fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23). “The work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Christians is not miraculous work.”

It refers to salvation - specifically, the blessings of God’s promise to Abraham.

Marvin Weir made the following points about this particular view of the gift of the Holy Spirit.

• “The primary thrust of God’s grand scheme of redemption” is to provide salvation to all people (Luke 19:10). Miracles were always secondary to salvation in God’s plan of redemption - they pointed to what God was doing.

• While the prophets did not promise miraculous gifts to everyone that obeyed the gospel, they did promise that salvation is something every obedient person will receive (Isaiah 2:2-3; Micah 4:1-2; Joel 2:28-32).

• “The message Peter proclaims in Acts 2 is salvation through Christ (Acts 2:22-36). This is the same message the prophets had prophesied. This was the salvation which had been promised to Abraham.”

• “In God’s grand scheme of redemption a promise was made to Abraham that in his ‘seed…all nations of the earth’ would be blessed (Genesis 22:18; 12:3)…” What is it that ‘even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto him” (Acts 2:39) will enjoy?” Not miraculous gifts, but the salvation that God had “planned, prepared, and promised to make available to all mankind.”

• The Scriptures teach that the promised gift of the Holy Spirit gives salvation from sin (Acts 3:24-26; 13:26, 32-33; Galatians 3:14, 29).

Concluding Thoughts.

So that was a lot.

I think some excellent thoughts were presented for each viewpoint on the gift of the Holy Spirit. Here are a few of the thoughts I had while going through each viewpoint.

Thoughts on the gift of the Holy Spirit referring to the ability to perform miracles.

Outside of the apostles in Acts 2 and the case of Cornelius in Acts 10, everyone who received a miraculous gift of the Holy Spirit had the apostles’ hands laid on them (Acts 8:12-17). This ability was given by the laying on of the apostle’s hands.

A potential problem with the gift of the Holy Spirit referring to this miraculous ability received through the laying on of the apostles’ hands is that no one other than the apostles are recorded as doing miracles until Acts 6. The people who heard what Peter said would have expected the blessings immediately - so why such a delay with anyone other than the apostles doing miracles? Perhaps miracles were being done by Christians other than the apostles, but we have no definite record of this happening before Acts 6.

Also, while the exact phrase “the gift of the Holy Spirit” only occurs in Acts 2:38 and Acts 10:45, and it is true that Acts 10:45 refers to the miraculous - it doesn’t necessarily mean that Acts 2:38 is referring to the same thing. The situation in Acts 10:45 about Cornelius and those with him is not exactly parallel to those who heard Peter’s sermon in Acts 2.

Peter said regarding Cornelius and his household, "Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" (Acts 10:47). This was a reference to when the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles at the beginning of Acts 2, and not the people Peter preached to in Acts 2:38.

It seems strange to contend that the first part of Peter’s answer (Acts 2:38a) to the people’s question applies to everyone, but the second part of his answer (Acts 2:38b) applies only to a select few. It seems more natural to understand that Acts 2:38 does not teach that everyone who obeys the Gospel receives miraculous “gifts,” but that all who obey the Gospel receive the “gift” that the Spirit has promised. - Weir, The Holy Spirit of God, 136

Thoughts on the gift of the Holy Spirit referring to the Holy Spirit Himself.

The Scriptures absolutely teach that the Holy Spirit indwells the Christian (Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:18-20). That’s not what’s “up for discussion” here.

The question is this: is the gift of the Holy Spirit the Holy Spirit Himself?

My main problem with this interpretation is - that it’s simply not what the passage says. Peter could have said by inspiration, “…and you shall receive the Holy Spirit.” But he didn’t. Peter told them that they would receive the Holy Spirit’s gift.

I know many believe this point of view - and they may be correct. I struggle with this interpretation based on how Peter worded his statement at the end of Acts 2:38.

It would have been much simpler to say, “You will receive the Holy Spirit” than “You will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” if this interpretation is correct.

Thoughts on the gift of the Holy Spirit referring to salvation - specifically, the blessings of God’s promise to Abraham.

This interpretation of “the gift of the Holy Spirit” may be the one I’m leaning toward after studying for this article.

One reason is that one of the only criticisms of this point of view I found was that it’s a bit redundant - since right before it in Acts 2:38, Peter told them they would have their sins forgiven. But I don’t know how redundant it is when you think about it as referring to “the promise” - specifically, the promise God made to Abraham.

The promise God made to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3) and David (2 Samuel 7:12-16) are significant themes throughout the Bible. Peter already referenced God's promise to David in his sermon in Acts 2. It would make sense that the promise to Abraham would also appear in a sermon to a Jewish crowd, especially since Jesus Christ is the promised “seed” of Abraham (Galatians 3:7-22).

When you connect “the gift of the Holy Spirit” with the explanation Peter gives in Acts 2:39 about the promise being for the Jewish people and people of all nations - that certainly fits with the promise God made to Abraham.

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The problems I’ve identified with these viewpoints don’t necessarily make that viewpoint incorrect. Perhaps I just need to study more. It’s just what I’ve noticed so far in my studies.

At the beginning of this article, I told you this was a challenging question to answer. I still feel that way.

I feel like I’ve learned some things in preparing this article, but I don’t believe I have reached a definite conclusion in my thoughts on this subject.

I’d be glad to hear your thoughts!