Disciples Global Network

The Spirit of God descended on Jesus, equipping him for his Messianic mission. He would baptize his followers in the Holy Spirit and Fire . John proclaim ed   a baptism in water  “ for the remission of sins ,” and  he announce d the arrival of  the  “ Coming One .”  He was the Forerunner sent before the  Messiah as promised in the Book of Isaiah -  “ Behold,  I send my messenger before  your  face … .” He was the promised King of Israel. He would baptize his people “ in Spirit and Fire .”

John the Baptist prepared the way for the Messiah’s arrival, the herald of the Good News of the Kingdom of God – Mark 1:4-8. All four gospel accounts apply the same passage from the Book of Isaiah  to John the Baptist, the messenger who summoned men to repent “ for the remission of sins ” in preparation for the Messiah’s arrival in Israel. John is identified as the forerunner expected before the “ Day of the LORD ” - “ The voice of one crying, in the wilderness, prepare the way of the LORD ” - (Isaiah 40:3-5).

With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the blessings for all nations promised to Abraham commenced . The Apostle Paul calls the Gift of the Spirit the “ Promise of the Father ” which he links to the Abrahamic covenant. The promises to Abraham and “ his Seed ” find their fulfillment in the New Covenant inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.

The national sins of Israel caused her expulsion from the Land of Canaan. God, however, foresaw her failures and determined to institute a new covenant, one energized and characterized by His Spirit . It would include the salvation of the nations and culminate in the resurrection of the dead and the “ New Heavens and the New Earth .” With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the time of the New Covenant commenced.

Peter summoned his audience in Jerusalem to repent and be baptized “ in the name of Jesus Christ .” He concluded his sermon on a note of fulfillment and with a foretaste of things to come . Peter began with a citation from the Book of Joel , and he finished his message with a clause from the same passage, thus neatly bracketing his sermon.

The Gift of the Spirit demonstrates beyond question who belongs to the Holy Covenant Community of Jesus, and who does not . In the assemblies of Galatia, “ false brethren ” were preaching “ another gospel ,” pressuring Gentile believers to adopt circumcision and conform to other regulations of the Mosaic Law.   Paul repudiated the very idea and sent the Galatians a series of arguments demonstrating why Gentiles need not be circumcised.

The description of the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost stresses the theme of fulfillment. On that day, what was foreshadowed by the ancient feast began to receive its promised substance. The bestowal of the Spirit was an epochal event that marked the start of the Age of the Spirit, and the Gift of the Spirit fulfilled what the annual Levitical feast symbolized.

All four gospel accounts apply the same passage from the  Book of Isaiah  to John the Baptist, the messenger who summoned men to repent “ for the remission of sins ” in preparation for the Messiah. The passage identifies John as the forerunner who was expected before the “ Day of the LORD ” - “ The voice of one crying, in the wilderness, prepare the way of the LORD ” - (Isaiah 40:3-5).

By his Death and Resurrection, Jesus formed one covenant community - One New Man - based on faith in him  – Ephesians 2:11-22. The Apostle Paul is adamant. There no longer can be “ Jew or Gentile ” for disciples of Jesus. The old distinctions are inappropriate among the One People of God. By his shed blood, he “ dismantled  the middle wall of partition ” that separated Jews and Gentiles so “ he   might reconcile them both in one body for God through the Cross .” God is building both into one building,  one habitation of God in the Spirit founded on Jesus .