The Work of the Holy Spirit Before and After Conversion

Dr. Nathan Leasure

When  we talk about God’s desire to empower us so that we can live victoriously over the power of sin in our lives, it is important to speak about what Jesus did on the cross. Yet, it is also important to speak about the ministry of the Holy Spirit. During His earthly ministry, Jesus Christ said that the Holy Spirit would be critical to our spiritual success. Look at some of Jesus’ statements:

John 14:16-18- “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— ¹⁷ the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. ¹⁸ I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”

Luke 24:48-49- “And you are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”

Acts 1:4-5- “And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; ⁵ for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

In each of these passages, Jesus tells His followers that after He has gone back to heaven, the Holy Spirit would be sent in power upon the earth and would be active in working out our salvation and holiness.

What is the Holy Spirit’s Role Before Conversion?

It is important to know that the Holy Spirit is at work in a person’s life before they ever put their faith in Jesus Christ. How is the Spirit active in our lives before conversion?

1. He convicts (convinces) us of the gospel.

John 16:8- “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.”

2. He makes Jesus glorious to us.

John 16:14- “He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.”

3. He brings us to salvation.

John 3:5- “Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”

What is the Holy Spirit’s Role after Conversion?

1. He gives assurance of salvation.

Romans 8:15-16- “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”

Galatians 4:6-7- “And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” ⁷ Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.”

2. He leads us away from sin and into God’s will for our lives.

Romans 8:1- “Walk after the Spirit.”

8:4- “. . . who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

8:5- “Follow after the Spirit . . .”

8:13 “But if you through the Spirit (leading of the Spirit) . . .”

8:14 “For as many who are led by the Spirit.”

3. He makes us feel connected to other Christians.

I Corinthians 1:13-14- “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. ¹⁴ For in fact the body is not one member but many.”

4. He initiates the growth of the fruit of the Spirit within us.

Galatians 5:22-23- ^“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”

When Does a Person Receive the Holy Spirit? 

Sometimes people ask, “when does a person receive the Holy Spirit into their lives? The Bible says repetitively that the Holy Spirit is received when someone believes on Jesus Christ to save them from their sins.

Acts 2:38- “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 11:17- (Peter speaking) “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?”

Galatians 3:2-3- “This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? ³ Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?”

These scriptures combined with earlier passages which indicate that we would not have assurance of salvation, we would not have spiritual leadership, we would not be “in the body,” and that we would be void of spiritual fruit without the Holy Spirit indicates that the Holy Spirit is received into our lives at the point of salvation. 

When the Bible talks about the Holy Spirit, some words are used that describe the experience of the Spirit in our lives. Sometimes those words can be confusing to believers. Let’s look at these words and scriptures that serve to explain what they mean for those who follow Jesus.

“Baptized with the Holy Spirit”

Seven times in the Bible, being “baptized with the Holy Spirit” is mentioned. Four of these mentions are the recorded words of John the Baptist who said that while he baptized with water, the Messiah would baptize in the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Mark 1:8, Luke 3:16, John 1:33). The question is, “what then does it mean to be baptized with the Holy Spirit? The other uses of this phrase gives us guidance.

The fifth mention of Holy Spirit baptism is in Acts 1:5 where Jesus says, “for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” This seems like a clear reference to what happened on the day of Pentecost when the 120 in the upper room and 3000 new converts all received the Holy Spirit into their lives for the first time. Previously, they had been righteous Jews who had followed Jesus as Messiah. After Pentecost, they were converted Spirit-filled believers.

In the sixth used of the phrase, Peter, reflecting on the conversion of Cornelius’ household says, “John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” In other words, Peter is saying that Cornelius’ household had received the promise of “baptism with the Holy Spirit.” Yet what happened at Cornelius’ home? In Acts 10:48, Peter simply says that they “received the Holy Spirit just as we (the Jewish followers on Pentecost) have.”

Finally, the seventh use of the phrase is found in 1 Corinthians 12:13 which reads, “for by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slave or free . . .” The idea here is that baptism with the Holy Spirit puts you in the body of Christ, the church. Yet, what else does the Bible say about the timing of our church membership? Acts 2:47 says, “And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” In this passage, church membership happens at the point of conversion; in the previous passage, being put into the church happens at the point of Holy Spirit baptism. What this seems to imply is that the Holy Spirit baptism is simply a way of speaking about receiving the Holy Spirit at the point of conversion.

“Filled with the Holy Spirit”

The filling of the Spirit refers to submission to the control of the Spirit and the empowerment by the Spirit. These dual meanings form two sides of a coin. Let’s look at the scriptural basis for this understanding.

First, being filled with the Spirit is being submitted to the control of the Spirit.

Ephesians 5:18- ^“And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit.” (Notice, the main issue here is about control. As a person who is drunk is being controlled by wine, so a person who is filled with the Spirit is controlled by the Spirit.)

Luke 1:15- “For (John the Baptist) will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.”  (Again, notice the contrast: we can be controlled by alcohol or filled with the Spirit. The two seem to be mutually exclusive. We cannot be filled (or controlled) by the Spirit while being drunk [controlled] with “strong drink.”)

Luke 4:1- “Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.”  Finally, see that Jesus was “filled with the Spirit” which caused Him to be “led” (or submitted/ controlled) by the Spirit.

Secondly, being filled with the Spirit is to be empowered by the Spirit.

Look at the following passages:

Luke 24:49- “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”

Acts 1:8- “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Acts 2:4- “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit . . .“

Acts 4:31- “And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.”

Notice in these verses that being “filled with the Spirit” is associated with receiving power from God. But power for what purpose? The answer is, power to be bold witnesses for Jesus in word and deed! To be “filled with the Spirit” then is to be submitted and controlled by the Holy Spirit which results in empowerment by the Spirit. It is possible to quench the Spirit (1 Thess. 5:19). It is also possible to grieve the Spirit (Eph. 4:30). Yet, we are to be surrendered to the Spirit so that we are “led by the Spirit” (Romans 8:1). It is important not to think of being filled with the Spirit in terms of a glass being filled. This is not the biblical use of the term. After all, the Holy Spirit is a person and you either have Him or you do not; we cannot have Him partially in our lives. He can be absent from our lives entirely; or, He can be fully in our lives but limited by our actions.

When are we to be filled (or submitted to the control) with the Spirit?

The short answer is “as soon as you know you need to be.” Often, when a person comes to Jesus for the forgiveness of sins, they are unaware that God not only wants to save them for sin but wants to take complete control of their lives and deliver them from self. While the person has renounced sin, they can be very self-centered in their goals, dreams, vision for life, and affections. While they have changed in their behaviors, they are still resisting God’s will for their life, refusing to submit to His plans, and failing to discover their spiritual gifting and fully engage in His church to carry out His mission in the world. They may be free from sin but not from self.[1] Yet, God wants to deliver us from both and empower us to live courageously for Him! To do this, we need to be controlled and empowered by His Spirit. 

It is possible, given biblical knowledge to completely surrender to the Holy Spirit when you are converted. If a person has grown up in church and is aware of the Spirit’s desire to have complete control of their life, then when they come to faith in Jesus, they need to also make a complete surrender of self and be filled (controlled) by the Spirit. However, have said this, most people who come to Christ for salvation are unaware of God’s desire for total control in their lives and resist (often ignorantly) God’s takeover plans of their self. In these cases, the filling (or surrender) to the Holy Spirit happens at a point after conversion. Theologically, this is often called a second work of grace.

Are there Multiple Fillings?

A case study for what it means to be “filled with the Spirit” is the life of Peter. He is said to be “filled with the Spirit” three different times:

Acts 2:4- “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit . . .“

Acts 4:8- “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel . . .”

Acts 4:31- “And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.”

Also, Paul is said to be filled with the Spirit on two separate occasions.

Acts 9:17- “And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’”

Acts 13:9-10- “Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him ¹⁰ and said . . .”

Given the repetition in these passages, one thing is clear: being filled with the Holy Spirit cannot simply refer to the initial receiving of the Holy Spirit, which could only happen once. It is unlikely that Peter and Paul backslid or lost he Holy Spirit in their lives, requiring a new filling. Rather, what these texts indicate is that being filled with the Spirit is being controlled and empowered by the Spirit of God. In each case, Luke (the writer of Acts) wants us to know that the Apostles spoke and operated under the guidance and empowerment of the Spirit when they did ministry.

“Anointed by the Spirit”

In the Old Testament, the kings were often literally anointed with oil and were called “the Lord’s anointed” (Psalm 105:15, 132:10; Isaiah 45:1, etc.) Priests were also called the “anointed ones” (Lev. 4). In the prophetic books, the term “Messiah” is literally “the anointed one.” This meant they were the chosen ones of God, sanctified for His purposes. In the New Testament, we are told that Jesus was the anointed one of God. There are two places that make this very clear.

In Luke 4:18, Jesus said “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor . . .“ To the household of Cornelius, Peter said of Jesus, “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him” (Acts 10:38).

In contemporary times, a preacher or person of God is sometimes called “anointed” but in the New Testament that is never the case as far as we know. In two places, all Christians are said to be anointed by God (2 Cor. 1:21; 1 John 2:20). Otherwise this descriptive title is reserved for Jesus Christ.