Imagine you want to do something very special for your best friend’s birthday. You start months ahead, researching and shopping, and you finally find it—the perfect gift. You spare no expense and even spend a little extra to have it exquisitely wrapped. Taking every detail into consideration, you time the gift’s delivery, so it arrives on her birthday at precisely the time she was born.
Her birthday comes and goes, and you realize you haven’t heard from her. You track the package, and it shows it was delivered right on time. You think she’ll eventually reach out, but she never does. The next time you see her, you ask her about it, only to find out she never opened your gift. Come to find out, she forgot about it, and it’s just sitting in her drawer!
You would be disappointed right? And what about her…she’s missing out on something great!
This story illustrates exactly what many in the Body of Christ have done with the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has been sent to them, but because of wrong doctrine, ignorance or downright fear, they’ve ignored Him. That’s the reason most Christians are walking around depressed and defeated. They’re not yet connected to their Power Source, and therefore, they are powerless to destroy the works of the enemy in their own lives, much less anyone else’s.
What about you? Even if you have been baptized in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues, you likely have a family member, friend or co-worker who has not. In this article, we want to equip you to receive and minister the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Below are 7 Steps To Receive the Holy Spirit, so you can speak in tongues and receive power to live the abundant life of victory—and help others do the same!
1. Acknowledge the Gift of the Holy Spirit
“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.’” –Acts 2:38 (NKJV)
Just as you accepted the gift of salvation by making Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior, you can—and should—also accept the gift of the Holy Spirit. But first, you have to understand that He has been made available to you NOW.
Jesus, as well as the Old Testament prophet Joel, told us this gift would be made available to us, and Peter confirmed this when it happened on the Day of Pentecost:
- Joel prophesied that God would pour out His Spirit upon all people (Joel 2:28).
- Before His death, Jesus told His disciples that He would ask the Father to give us an advocate who will never leave us, the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17).
- Jesus goes on to tell them it is for their good that He is going away, saying, “Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7, NIV).
- “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4-5).
- On the Day of Pentecost, after the Holy Spirit did indeed come and devout men from every nation were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, Peter stood up and said, “This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel” (see Acts 2:14-17, NKJV).
God has already given us the Holy Spirit, and if you’re a believer, He is living on the inside of you—right now! You don’t have to beg for it or even ask for this gift. All you need to do is acknowledge the gift of the Holy Spirit and receive Him, just like you would any gift.
2. Be Ready To Receive the Holy Spirit
“If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?” –Acts 11:17 (NKJV)
God does not show favoritism (Romans 2:11), and He will give anyone the gift of the Holy Spirit who meets the requirements.
What are those requirements?
The only thing necessary to receive the Holy Spirit is that you must have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Once you’ve confessed Jesus as your Savior, God gives you the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13).
You don’t have to be a certain denomination, or be a pastor or evangelist to receive the Holy Spirit. Whether you have been a believer for 50 years or five minutes, you can receive the Holy Spirit right where you are, right now.
And why would you want to wait to receive this promised gift? Jesus put an urgency on receiving the Holy Spirit. In fact, before He ascended to heaven, He told His disciples to not leave Jerusalem until they were baptized in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5).
This was a command. Why would He require such as thing?
Because when you’re baptized in the Holy Spirit, you receive power (Acts 1:8)! The Holy Spirit was God’s Power Source for the disciples, and is your Power Source to do everything God has called you to do as well.
Are you ready to receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you? Keep reading the next step.
3. Receive the Holy Spirit by the Laying On of Hands
“And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied.” –Acts 19:6 (NKJV)
Scripture records for us how the early Church helped believers receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands.
1 Timothy 4:14 (NKJV) states, “Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership.”
It was vital for early Christians to use their faith and lay hands on new believers to help them grow and receive spiritual gifts. In fact, it was such a standard in the early Church that Hebrews 6:1-2 called the laying on of hands one of the elementary principles of Christianity.
Paul addresses believers to “stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Timothy 1:6-7, NKJV). Simon saw the laying on of hands as so powerful, he offered the apostles money so he could lay hands on others to help them receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:18).
Any believer can lay hands on another believer for the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. You don’t have to have a special gift for the laying on of hands. However, keep in mind that you cannot “give” or “make” someone receive the Holy Spirit. Nor can you “be given” the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands. You must simply have faith in God’s Word to lay hands on someone to receive this gift or to receive it for yourself.
If you have access to a Spirit-filled believer, ask them to lay hands on you and pray with you to receive the Holy Spirit. If you don’t have access to a Spirit-filled believer, don’t worry. It’s not an absolute to have someone lay hands on you. However, it can help, especially if you need a little boost when you first start praying in tongues. You can also call the KCM prayer line at (817) 852-6000. A licensed prayer minister would be delighted to pray with you to receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. We are here for you!
4. Understand How the Holy Spirit Acts Upon You
“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” –Acts 2:4 (NKJV)
Some Christians don’t want to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit because of ignorance and/or unbelief. If they are going to speak in tongues, they say, it’s going to be up to God and God alone!
One pastor said he told God that he wanted the gift of the Holy Spirit, but God was going to have to do all the work. The pastor wasn’t going to move his tongue or lips. He would not be cooperating at all. And guess what? God, in His mercy and grace, knew the pastor’s heart was sincere, and made his tongue and mouth supernaturally move to where the pastor knew it was God moving on him!
But that’s not how it typically works.
Nowhere in the Bible does it say that the Holy Spirit speaks in tongues or speaks for you. You must make the choice to receive the Holy Spirit and act upon it as He gives you utterance. You must choose to speak by faith as the Holy Spirit acts upon your vocal organs. You must put the sound to what the Holy Spirit is doing.
Are you ready? Let’s move on to our next step!
5. Reject Fear of Receiving the Holy Spirit
“If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” –Luke 11:11-13 (KJV)
Just as some people fear the unknown, they can fear praying in tongues. They call it gibberish, weird or unbiblical. Some even fear they will receive an evil spirit instead of the Holy Spirit.
However, the Bible states very clearly in Luke 11:11-13 that God is a good Father who will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. This means you can be assured you will not receive an evil spirit.
Furthermore, 1 Corinthians 14:2 (AMPC) says, “One who speaks in an [unknown] tongue speaks not unto men but to God, for no one understands…because the [Holy] Spirit he utters secret truths and hidden things not obvious to the understanding.”
Praying in tongues is your secret prayer language with God, and it is not for everyone else to understand. It’s you speaking directly to God as the Holy Spirit utters secret truths. If your praying in tongues sounds odd to someone else, it’s because it’s supposed to!
Even though praying in tongues does not make sense to the natural mind, it is scriptural and spiritually sound. Throw away all the fears you have acquired through false teachings. Praying in tongues is real, and it is your source for supernatural power from God. As you follow each of these steps, you will receive the real thing!
6. Receive the Holy Spirit
“So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us.” –Acts 15:8 (NKJV)
In this verse, the Lord gave the Gentiles the Holy Spirit because they were eager to receive Him, and they believed the Word of God that promised they could have this gift. It was, and still is, that simple. We receive the Holy Spirit by faith. You have His Word to receive it by faith, and you have biblical examples.
Now, it’s time to receive the Holy Spirit by faith! Here’s how:
- Open your mouth wide, breathe in as deeply as possible, and tell God in your spirit, “I am receiving the Holy Spirit right now by faith.”
- Begin to speak as the Holy Spirit gives you utterance. Don’t say anything in English.
- In Acts 1:5, Jesus told the disciples they would be baptized in the Holy Spirit. Baptized in Greek means “total submersion…completely filled to the point of overflowing.” Allow that submersion to happen in you right now.
Remember, there’s nothing else required to receive Him. The Holy Spirit is already in you—just cooperate with Him and receive your supernatural prayer language!
7. Keep Praying in Tongues To Activate the Holy Spirit
“But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit.” –Jude 20 (NKJV)
Did you receive your heavenly language in Step 6 above? If so, congratulations, and get ready for your life to change!
If you weren’t able to speak in tongues yet, don’t stop 7. As you cooperate with the Lord, following the steps above, you will speak if you do not give up!
If you are ministering the gift of the Holy Spirit to another believer, it may not happen immediately. Keep praying for them only in tongues. Don’t crowd the person receiving this gift—it is between that person and the Holy Spirit.
Once you’ve received your heavenly language, don’t stop. Keep praying in the spirit every day to magnify God, pray in God’s perfect will and destiny into your life, spiritually recharge, gain great revelations and ideas, and much more. Keep praying to stir up the dynamite power of the Holy Ghost inside you! As you do, your faith will abound beyond anything you could have imagined.
These 7 Steps To Receiving the Holy Spirit will help you receive or allow you to minister the Baptism in the Holy Spirit to new believers and mature believers alike. When we pray in tongues, the Holy Spirit in us becomes evident, magnifying God and turning us into powerful epistles in Christ. It empowered the apostles to do His mighty work back then, and it will empower you to do great works today!
Related Articles:
12 Power-Packed Reasons To Pray in Tongues
16 Scriptures About Praying in Tongues
How To Harness the Power of the Holy Spirit In Prayer
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