Let’s review the five examples. In at least four of them, the baptism in the Holy Spirit was an experience that occurred after salvation.

In three of them, Scripture plainly states that the recipients spoke with other tongues. Moreover, in Paul’s meeting with Ananias, his experience of being baptized in the Holy Spirit was not actually described, but we know that eventually he did speak in tongues. That represents the fourth case.

In the remaining case, something supernatural occurred when the believers in Samaria received the Holy Spirit because Simon tried to buy the power to impart the Holy Spirit.

Thus the evidence is quite clear. In the early church, born-again believers received a second experience with the Holy Spirit, and when they did, they spoke in other tongues. This should not surprise us, because Jesus said that those who believe in Him would speak in new tongues.

So we have conclusive evidence that every one who is born again should also experience another work of the Holy Spirit—that of being baptized in the Holy Spirit. Moreover, every believer should expect to speak with other tongues when he does receive the Holy Spirit baptism.

As one reads through the book of Acts, the work of the Holy Spirit in the early church is evident on every page. If you remove the work of the Holy Spirit from the book of Acts you have virtually nothing left. Truly, He empowered the first disciples to “turn the world upside down” (see Acts 17:6; KJV).

The places in the world today where the church is expanding the fastest are those places where Jesus’ followers are yielded to and empowered by the Holy Spirit. This should not surprise us. The Holy Spirit can accomplish more in ten seconds than we can accomplish in ten thousand years of our own efforts. Thus it is of vital importance that the disciple-making minister understand what Scripture teaches about the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives and ministries of believers.

In the book of Acts, we frequently find examples of believers being baptized in the Holy Spirit and empowered for ministry. We would be wise to study the subject so that we can, if possible, experience what they experienced and enjoy the miraculous help from the Holy Spirit that they enjoyed. Although some claim that such miraculous works of the Holy Spirit were confined to the age of the original apostles, I find no scriptural, historical or logical support for such an opinion. It is a theory born from unbelief. Those who believe what God’s Word promises will experience the promised blessings. Like the unbelieving Israelites who failed to enter the Promised Land, those who don’t believe God’s promises today will fail to enter into all that God has prepared for them. Which category are you in? Personally, I’m among the believers.

When a believer is baptized in the Holy Spirit, the initial evidence of his experience will be that he speaks in a new language, what Scripture refers to as “new tongues” or “other tongues.” Numerous scriptures support this fact. Let us consider them.

First, during the final moments before to His ascension, Jesus said that one of the signs that would follow believers is that they would speak in new tongues:

Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues (Mark 16:15-17, emphasis added).

Some commentators claim these verses should not be in our Bible because certain ancient manuscripts of the New Testament don’t include them. Many of the ancient manuscripts, however, do include them, and none of the many English translations I’ve read omit them. Beyond that, what Jesus said in these verses correlates perfectly with the experience of the early church as recorded in the book of Acts.

There are five examples in the book of Acts of believers being initially baptized in the Holy Spirit. Let’s consider all five, and as we do, we will continually ask two questions: (1) Was the baptism in the Holy Spirit an experience subsequent to salvation? and (2) Did the recipients speak in new tongues? This will help us to understand God’s will for believers today.

The second example of believers being baptized in the Holy Spirit is found in Acts 8, when Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached the gospel there:

But when they [the Samaritans] believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike….Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 8:12-16).

The Samaritan Christians clearly experienced the baptism in the Holy Spirit as a secondary experience after their salvation. The Bible plainly states that before Peter and John arrived, the Samaritans had already “received the word of God,” believed the gospel, and been baptized in water. Yet when Peter and John came down to pray for them, Scripture says it was so “that they might receive the Holy Spirit.” How could it be clearer?

Did the Samaritan believers speak with new tongues when they were baptized in the Holy Spirit? The Bible doesn’t say, but it does say that something amazing happened to them. When a man named Simon witnessed what occurred as Peter and John laid their hands on the Samaritan Christians, he tried to purchase from them the same ability to impart the Holy Spirit:

Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit. Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit” (Acts 8:17-19).

What did Simon see that impressed him so much? He had already seen a number of other miracles, such as people being delivered from demons and the paralyzed and lame being miraculously healed (see Acts 8:6-7). He himself had been previously involved in occult magic, astonishing all the people of Samaria (see Acts 8:9-10). This being so, what he witnessed when Peter and John prayed must have been quite spectacular. Although we can’t say with absolute certainty, it seems quite reasonable to think that he witnessed the same phenomena that occurred every other time Christians received the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts—he saw and heard them speaking in other tongues.

The third mention in the book of Acts of someone receiving the Holy Spirit is the case of Saul of Tarsus, later known as the apostle Paul. He had been saved on the road to Damascus, where he had also been temporarily blinded. Three days after his conversion, a man named Ananias was divinely sent to him:

So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight, and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he arose and was baptized (Acts 9:17-18).

There is no doubt that Saul was born again before Ananias arrived to pray for him. He believed in the Lord Jesus when he was still on the road to Damascus, and he immediately obeyed his new Lord’s instructions. Additionally, when Ananias first met Saul, he called him “brother Saul.” Note that Ananias told Saul that he had come so that he would regain his sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit. Thus for Saul, being filled with, or baptized in, the Holy Spirit occurred three days after his salvation.

The Scriptures don’t record the actual incident of Saul’s being baptized in the Holy Spirit, but it must have happened shortly after Ananias arrived at where Saul was staying. There is no doubt that Saul spoke with other tongues at some point, because he later stated in 1 Corinthians 14:18, “I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all.”

The first example is found in Acts 2, when the one hundred and twenty disciples were baptized in the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost:

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance (Acts 2:1-4; emphasis added).

There is no doubt that the one hundred and twenty believers were already saved and born again before this time, so they definitely experienced the baptism in the Holy Spirit after salvation. It would have been impossible, however, for them to have received the baptism in the Holy Spirit prior to this time simply because the Holy Spirit was not given to the church until that day.

It is obvious that the accompanying sign was speaking with other tongues.

Keep in mind the primary reason God gave you the Holy Spirit baptism—to empower you primarily for the purpose of being His witness, by means of the manifestation of fruit and gifts of the Spirit (see 1 Cor. 12:4-11; Gal. 5:22-23). By living a Christ-like life and demonstrating His love, joy, and peace to the world, as well as manifesting supernatural gifts of the Spirit, God will use you to draw others to Himself. The ability to speak in tongues is only one of the “rivers of living water” that should be flowing from your innermost being.

Also remember that God gave us the Holy Spirit to enable us to reach all the people of the earth with the gospel (see Acts 1:8). When we speak in other tongues, we should realize that the language we are speaking could well be the native tongue of some remote tribe or foreign nation. Every time we pray in tongues, we should be mindful that God wants people of every language to hear about Jesus. We should ask the Lord how He wants us to be involved in fulfilling Jesus’ Great Commission.

Speaking in tongues is something we should do as much as possible. Paul, a spiritual powerhouse, wrote, “I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all” (1 Cor. 14:18). He wrote those words to a church that did a lot of speaking in tongues (although usually at the wrong times). Therefore, Paul must have done a lot of speaking in tongues to do more than they did. Praying in tongues helps us to stay conscious of the Holy Spirit, who lives within us, and will help us to “pray without ceasing” as Paul taught in 1 Thessalonians 5:17.

Paul also taught that speaking in speaking in other tongues edifies the believer (see 1 Cor. 14:4). That means it builds us up spiritually. By praying in tongues, we can, in a way we may not fully understand, strengthen our inner man. Speaking in other tongues should provide daily enrichment in every believer’s spiritual life and not be just a one-time experience at the initial filling of the Holy Spirit.

Once you have been baptized in the Holy Spirit, I encourage you to spend time every day praying to God in your new language. It will be greatly enhance your spiritual life and growth.

The fifth mention of believers being baptized in the Holy Spirit is found in Acts 19. While traveling through Ephesus, the apostle Paul met some disciples and asked them the following question: “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” (Acts 19:2).

Paul, the man who wrote the majority of the New Testament epistles, clearly believed that it is possible to believe in Jesus but not have received the Holy Spirit in some sense. Otherwise, he would not have asked such a question.

The men replied that they had never heard of the Holy Spirit. In fact, they had only heard of the coming Messiah through John the Baptist, the one who had baptized them. Paul immediately baptized them again in water, and this time they experienced true Christian baptism. Finally, Paul laid his hands on them that they might receive the Holy Spirit:

When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues and prophesying. There were in all about twelve men (Acts 19:5-7).

Again, it is obvious that the baptism in the Holy Spirit was subsequent to salvation, regardless of whether or not these twelve men were born again before they met Paul. Also, once again, the accompanying sign of their Holy Spirit baptism was speaking in tongues (and in this case also prophecy).

Like all of God’s gifts, the Holy Spirit is received by faith (see Gal. 3:5). In order to have faith to receive, a believer must first be convinced that it is God’s will for him to be baptized with the Holy Spirit. If he is wondering or doubting, he will not receive (see James 1:6-7).

No believer has any good reason not to believe that it is God’s will for him to receive the Holy Spirit, because Jesus plainly stated God’s will in the matter:

If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him (Luke 11:13).

That promise from the lips of Jesus should convince every child of God that it is God’s will that he or she receive the Holy Spirit.

This same verse also supports the truth that being baptized in the Holy Spirit occurs after salvation, because here Jesus promised God’s children (the only people who have God as their “heavenly Father”) that God will give them the Holy Spirit if they ask. Obviously, if the only experience one could have with the Holy Spirit was being born again at the moment of salvation, then Jesus’ promise would make no sense. Unlike a certain dying breed of modern theologians, Jesus believes that it is very appropriate for people who are already born again to ask God for the Holy Spirit.

According to Jesus, there are only two conditions that must be met for one to receive the Holy Spirit. First, God must be one’s Father, which He is if you are born again. Second, you must ask Him for the Holy Spirit.

Although receiving the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands is scriptural (see Acts 8:17; 19:6), it is not an absolute necessity. Any Christian can receive the Holy Spirit by himself in his own place of prayer. He simply needs to ask, receive by faith, and begin to speak in tongues as the Spirit gives him utterance.

Some people worry that if they pray for the Holy Spirit, they might open themselves up to a demon spirit instead. There is, however, here is no basis for such a concern. Jesus promised,

Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? (Luke 11:11-13).

If we ask for the Holy Spirit, God will give us the Holy Spirit, and we should have no fear of receiving anything else.

Some are concerned that, when they speak in other tongues, it will just be themselves making up a nonsensical language rather than a supernatural language given by the Holy Spirit. If, however, you attempt to invent a credible language before being baptized in the Holy Spirit, you will see that it is impossible. On the other hand, you must understand that if you are going to speak in other tongues, you will consciously have to use your lips, tongue and vocal cords. The Holy Spirit does not do the speaking for you—He only gives you the utterance. He is our helper, not our doer. You must do the actual speaking, just as the Bible teaches:

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and [they] began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance (Acts 2:4, emphasis added).

And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues (Acts 19:6, emphasis added).

After a believer has asked for the gift of the Holy Spirit, he should believe and expect to speak in other tongues. Because the Holy Spirit is received by faith, the recipient should not expect to experience any particular feelings or physical sensations. He should simply open his mouth and begin to speak the new sounds and syllables that will make up the language that the Holy Spirit gives him. Unless the believer begins to speak by faith, no utterance will come forth from his mouth. He must do the speaking, and the Holy Spirit will provide the utterance.