Question:
Dear
Greg,
I
am a little confused—which is normal for me.
Before Christ’s crucifixion and subsequent resurrection, when the
Apostles and other early Christians made a conscious decision to become
followers of Christ, did they not receive the Holy Spirit?
Blessings,
Dave
Answer:
Dear
Dave,
You may have in mind the passage in John 20:19-23, where Jesus breathes
on the disciples and tells them to “receive the Holy Spirit”.
The exact timing of this event is difficult to pinpoint, but it is one
of the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus, and it is also before the day
of Pentecost.
Acts 1 and 2 tells us that all those present in the account related in
John 20 were present in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost and that “all of
them were filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:4).
The confusion you are experiencing seems to be in trying to identify
when the disciples received the Holy Spirit.
The verse in John could be:
1.
a
gift that was uniquely given to the disciples who were present, and on the
2.
it
could be understood as a promise that would be fulfilled on the day of
3.
both
could have happened for the disciples, with a progressive reception of the
In Christ,