We now come to the practical question: how can we obtain this Baptism of the Holy Spirit which is such an absolute necessity in our work for Christ? Fortunately the answer to this question is very plainly stated in the Bible.
(1) “Repent ye and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts ii. 38 R. V.) _The first step toward obtaining this Baptism is repentance._ Repentance means “a change of mind,” a change of mind about sin, about God, and in this case especially (as the context shows) a change of mind about Christ. A real change of mind such as leads to action—to our turning away from all sin, our turning to God, our turning away from rejecting Jesus Christ to accepting Him. _The second step is the confession of our renunciation of sin and acceptance of Jesus Christ in God’s appointed way by baptism in the name of Jesus Christ._ The Baptism with the Holy Spirit in at least one instance (Acts x. 44‒48) preceded the baptism with water but this was manifestly an exceptional case and God says “repent ye and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit,” (Acts ii. 38, R. V.)
(2) “The Holy Spirit whom God hath given to them that obey him.” (Acts v. 32). _The condition of the gift of the Holy Ghost here stated is that we “obey Him.”_ Obedience means more than the mere performance of some of the things that God bids us do. It means the entire surrender of our wills, ourselves and all we have, to Him. It means that we come to Him and say from the heart, “here I am, I am thine, thou hast bought me with a price, I acknowledge thine ownership. Take me, do with me what thou wilt, send me where thou wilt, use me as Thou wilt.” This entire yielding of ourselves to God is the condition of our receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and it is at this point that many fail of this blessing. At the close of a convention a gentleman hurried to the platform and said there was a lady in great distress who wished to speak with me. It was an hour before I could get to her, but I found her still in great mental suffering in the intensity of her desire for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Others had talked to her but it had seemed to do no good. I sat down behind her and said, “Is your will wholly surrendered?” She did not know. “You wish to be a Christian worker do you not?” “Yes.” “Are you willing to go back to Baltimore and be a servant girl if it is God’s will?” “No!” “You will never receive this blessing until your own will is wholly laid down.” “I can’t lay it down.” “Would you like to have God lay it down for you?” “Yes.” “Well, let us ask Him to do it.” We did, he heard the prayer, the will was laid down, the Baptism of the Holy Spirit was received and she went from the church rejoicing.
Obedience means also the doing in all matters great and small, the will of God as revealed in His Word or by His Spirit. Any refusal to do what God bids us do, any conscious doing of what he bids us not do, even in very little matters, is sufficient to shut us out of this blessing. If there is anything no matter how little, that comes up before us to trouble us as we pray over this matter, we should set it right with God at once. Mr. Finney tells of one who, in great agony prayed for days for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit but received no answer. At last as she was praying one night she put her hand to her head and took off some little adornment that always came up before her when she prayed and cast it from her. Immediately she received the long desired blessing. It seemed a very little thing but it was a matter of controversy with God and hindered the blessing.
(3.) “How much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.” (Luke xi. 13.)
(a.) There must be definite prayer for this Baptism. It is often said that the Holy Spirit is already here and that every believer has the Spirit and so we ought not to pray for the Holy Spirit. This argument overlooks the distinction between having the Holy Spirit and having this specific operation of the Holy Spirit. (see 1. 2.) It also contradicts the plain teaching of God’s word that He gives “the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.” It is furthermore shown to be fallacious by the fact that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts was constantly given in connection with and in answer to prayer. (Acts i. 14; ii. 1‒4; iv. 31; viii. 15,17.)