It is through love that we receive the Spirit of God. He said to Israel in Deuteronomy 6:5:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.“

The Lord is the Word of the promise for our day, which we must cherish and cling to with all our soul. We must dedicate to His service the physical, intellectual, social, and financial resources He has provided. He must take priority in all our actions. The Spirit always comes to confirm the sincere love shown toward the Word of promise.

Love gives birth to faith, which is a firm trust in the Spirit. Faith produces a thirst for baptism. This thirst is already a blessing for anyone who experiences it. As it is written in Matthew 5:6:

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.“

It becomes essential to love receiving the Holy Spirit. He must be the focus of our thoughts and meditations—a burning and vital desire. The one concerned must hunger and thirst to partake in the divine nature, that is, to walk like Jesus, speak, pray, work miracles, heal the sick, cast out demons, and be taken up like Him. The person must feel that without Christ, their life has no meaning.

Holiness is mandatory because the Spirit of God does not come into the filth of sin. Sin is the rejection of the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance is a prerequisite. It must be like the day of Pentecost, when many repented after hearing the apostle Peter’s preaching about how they had crucified their own Messiah.

Today, the one who desires to receive the Spirit of Christ must repent for having crucified Him through unbelief. It’s not just about confessing transgressions such as adultery, theft, cheating, greed, jealousy, etc.—which are the fruits of sin as described in Galatians 5 and other passages, although that goes without saying—but about confessing sin itself.

“Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” – John 8:24
“Concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me.” – John 16:9

Sin is not believing that Jesus Christ is God made flesh. One must believe in who He is—receive the revelation. Let us say it again: rejecting the divinity of Christ is sin. We must believe that Jesus Christ is our Creator, our Lord (the One who reigns over us), our Savior, and our Leader. The Holy Spirit comes to baptize a heart that is convinced it had rejected Jesus Christ, the Word of His promise. The Spirit of Jesus comes into the one who trusts Him and surrenders entirely to His guidance.

It is very important to arrive at worship on time and to take a moment for prayer and meditation before the service begins. This atmosphere makes one receptive to the Spirit. Most often, the Spirit descends amid shouts of praise and acclamation. Anyone who wants to receive the Spirit must enter into the spirit of worship, focusing attention and thought on the hymns and the entire preliminary service. Even if they don’t know the lyrics, they should still clap, listen to the words being sung, and participate actively. As soon as the preaching begins, they must enter into the Spirit of the Word. Let’s quote Acts 10:44:

“While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word.“

The Roman centurion named Cornelius loved God and longed for the fulfillment of the Word’s promise in his life. He was already prepared by an angel’s visitation, who instructed him to send for the apostle Peter. When Peter began preaching, Cornelius and the whole assembly clung to every word that came from his mouth. Their attention was fully focused on what was being said. Their spirit was open, and their hearts were ready and thirsty. They entered into the Spirit of the preaching. The apostle Peter, being filled with the Holy Spirit, ignited the lamps (souls) that were ready.

We emphasize the importance of entering into the Spirit. We should take an example from how the world immerses itself in what matters to it. When people attend a football match or watch it on TV, they get into the heat of the action along with the players, referees, and spectators. They follow the dribbles, passes, even the shots—so much so that someone might jostle another on the bench without eliciting a negative reaction. At that moment, they are baptized with the spirit of football.

When someone plans to attend a dance party, they prepare themselves. They become excited as the time approaches. Once there, they don’t just sit around—they actively join the dancing when the music starts. They even sing along. They receive the spirit.

In the same way, Christians should act when they come to worship. They must enter into the Spirit of the Word, following the preacher word for word, entering the inspiration to the point where they can anticipate what will be said, joyfully saying “Amen” and “Hallelujah,” actively participating. Everyone must feel personally concerned and have the sense that the Spirit is speaking directly to them—then they will receive the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Word. He is the One who wrote it and manifests it. One must keep repeating the Word of promise to someone, and they will end up loving it and receiving the Spirit.

An important fact to highlight is that the Holy Spirit already descended once and for all at Pentecost, and He now dwells in His elect. He is transmitted from one person to another. God takes the Spirit from one and places it upon one or several others. Let us read Numbers 11:25:

“Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and He took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. As soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied. But they did not continue doing it.”

Many people today are not baptized with the Holy Spirit due to a lack of appropriate ministers. In other words, many of today’s ministers of God lack the Spirit in their lives because they are not called by God, trained, or commissioned. They are not set ablaze by the fire of the Spirit to ignite others. God’s ministers must be flames of fire.

“He makes winds His messengers, flames of fire His servants.” — Psalm 104:4

Why does the Lord make them winds and flames of fire? It is so they can transmit His Spirit and His Word. They are dispensers of grace, distributors of eternal life. God said, “He who receives you receives Me, and he who rejects you rejects Me.” He also said, “Whoever receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.” The reward is the Holy Spirit in the life of the servant—the Eternal Life. The same Holy Spirit in the prophet or the righteous one will come upon the one who receives.

Indeed, in the Bible, the lampstand holds seven lamps. The first lamp receives fire from the altar of sacrifice. This fire came down from heaven when Moses laid the sacrifices on the altar. From this first lamp, the second is lit. The second lights the third, and this one lights the fourth. Then the fourth lights the fifth; the fifth lights the sixth, and finally, the sixth lights the seventh lamp. The fire is passed from one to the next.

So it is with the Holy Spirit, who came down from heaven at Pentecost once and for all upon the one hundred and twenty disciples. He is passed from one person to another under the supreme authority of God, who takes the Spirit from one and places it on another. In the seven ages of the Church of the nations, the Lord walks among the seven golden lampstands. He moves from one individual to another, from one age to another.

We are not saying that God cannot renew the same Pentecost experience with a mighty rushing wind. The mighty wind was a promise that has already been fulfilled. God is sovereign. Let us read the Scriptures to unveil the mystery of the rushing wind:

“You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride; you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace. How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume more than any spice! Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride; milk and honey are under your tongue. The fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon. You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride; you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain. Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates with choice fruits, with henna and nard, nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with every kind of incense tree, with myrrh and aloes and all the finest spices. You are a garden fountain, a well of flowing water streaming down from Lebanon. Awake, north wind, and come, south wind! Blow on my garden, that its fragrance may spread everywhere. Let my beloved come into his garden and taste its choice fruits.” — Song of Songs 4:9–16

“The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” — John 3:8

It was promised that the north wind, called “aquilon,” and the hot, dry southern wind, “austru,” would blow on Solomon’s garden to spread its fragrances. This prefigures the coming of the Holy Spirit. Solomon is a type of the Lord Jesus Christ, our Bridegroom. The garden of Solomon, as described, represents the Bride of Christ, upon whom the Holy Spirit will blow like a mighty rushing wind to manifest holiness, perfect love, and incarnate divinity. The Holy Spirit is a Spirit of power, strength, and wisdom. He is Almighty; He is the rushing wind.

The Lord Jesus Christ typifies the Spirit as wind. He blows wherever He wills—that is, the Spirit baptizes whomever He wants. “And you hear its sound”—in other words, we see the manifestation in a person’s life, for we recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit by the life lived. “But you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going”—this means that the one who is filled with the Spirit is not understood; he is led by the Spirit.

We emphasize that Solomon’s Bride stole his heart with her love and the beauty of her character. She looks only to him, prays only to him, speaks only of him, and lives only for him. She radiates the holiness of her Bridegroom, and her prayers are accepted because they are inspired by the promise of the hour. It is this love that moved Solomon to call upon the rushing wind to blow upon her.

That is why God’s servants are winds and flames of fire. The Bride is the Blood of Christ on earth. Indeed, all of God poured Himself into Christ, and all of Christ poured Himself into His Bride. They carry within them the mighty rushing wind, the Spirit of power, and the Word of power—exercised in meekness, humility, and holiness. When we come into contact with truly anointed ones, the rushing wind no longer needs to descend from heaven upon us—it flows from them to ignite us. However, we do not dismiss the Pentecostal experience.

We know that since the Spirit came down, He has not gone back up only to return again. No—He walks among His Church. This is where we find the mystery of the baptism of the Holy Spirit without sensation. In quietness, the Spirit of Christ enters His elect without outward manifestations, without emotions. It is enough to come into contact with someone who is already set ablaze by the Spirit. And if one is prepared—even without a word—fire is transmitted.

One may also receive the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands by a servant of God who is filled, anointed, consecrated, and sent for the ministry.

“Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.” — Acts 8:17
“When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.” — Acts 19:6

However, it is not the minister’s hand that transmits the Spirit. No—it is the Lord who takes the Spirit from him and places it upon the person, just as He took the Spirit from His prophet Moses and placed it on the seventy elders.

The Holy Spirit is also received through prayer, fasting, and consecration, as mentioned above in Song of Songs. Even without the presence of a man of God, the Holy Spirit can enter an individual who prays alone. God is sovereign. Yet such an individual must first be taught how to receive the Spirit. The people must earnestly pray to claim the promise, for the Scriptures say:

“This promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” — Acts 2:39

According to the Lord’s instruction, the disciples remained in the upper room, fasting and praying until the Spirit came. They were afraid of the Jews because the Lord was absent—without Him, they were nothing. They longed for His presence. In our prayers, let us remind God that the Lord Jesus Christ has already prayed that we might be baptized with the Spirit.

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.” — John 17:20–21

The Spirit of Christ enters us according to the Word of promise in which we live. Indeed, the Scriptures say:

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” — Revelation 3:20

This message is addressed to the Laodicean age, which is our present day. Christ wants to enter and dine with us and we with Him—that is, His Spirit enters us, and we enter into Him so that we may become one. In other words, we become Christ, the Word made flesh.

We clearly understand that supper is the evening meal, a type of the end-time message, which is the revelation of the seven seals. The Spirit of the Lord wants to find in us the Word of the seven seals, for the Spirit feeds on fresh manna. The Spirit feeds on the Word and requires the promise of the evening time.

Naturally, breakfast is the morning meal. Spiritually, the morning meal is the message of the first age of the Gentiles. The Spirit of the Lord required that message in order to baptize the people. It was the promise of that day. Let us not forget that the return of the Lord Jesus Christ is like the journey of the sun, rising in the East and setting in the West.

The first messenger of the Gentile age came from the East. The next five were chosen in Central Europe, corresponding to the sun at midday. Each of these messengers preached the promise of his day, and the Lord confirmed their messages by giving the Holy Spirit to the people.

The last messenger was raised up in the West, in the greatest Western country—the United States of America—corresponding to the setting of the sun. He preached the revelation of the seven seals, and the Lord confirmed it. The Lord’s requirements are clear: in this evening time, we must present Him with the supper.

If someone does not understand and presents Him with the morning or midday meal, He will never accept it—that is, He will never give them the Spirit. We must walk according to the desire of the Spirit. He is the Guide, and He requires fresh manna. The eagles will receive…

This text is an excerpt from the book “YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN” written by Charles OUNDA.

We invite you to read the following article, “THE WORD OF THE HOUR.”

RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT.

RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT.