When Vickie and I lived in South Florida, I would see a large billboard on my drive to and from the church each day that advertised the Florida lottery and its possible payouts. At times, the payout would be in the tens of millions of dollars, and at other times, in the hundreds of millions of dollars. To many Floridians, this was quite tempting, so tempting that thousands and thousands of people each week spent their hard-earned money for what might equal a one chance in 150 million for walking away with the lottery prize. And the State of Florida was all the more grateful for the weekly generous contributions.
A couple of weeks ago, God showed me that the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost was not a Holy Ghost lottery. In other words, at this incredible outpouring in the upper room, God didn’t say that He would pour out the Holy Spirit upon the “lucky” man sitting on the third row, second seat, and then ignore and skip the individuals sitting to his right and left. It couldn’t be said that the Spirit-baptized individuals were the ones who beat the one in 120 odds in the Holy Ghost lottery. No, no, no. The pouring out of the Holy Spirit was for all.
Immediately after reading this blog post, I challenge you to take the time to read the account of this great outpouring found in Acts 2 and pay particular attention to the number of times that the word “all” is used. I know that you’ve read this chapter many times, but read it one more time and notice the great emphasis that God placed upon each and every one (all) of His children being filled to overflowing with His precious Holy Spirit. Acts 2 makes it clear that God didn’t bypass or ignore some individuals while pouring His Spirit on others. Understanding this will give all those who desire to be baptized in the Holy Spirit confidence that this gift from heaven is theirs for the asking. Based upon what we read in the Book of Acts, all who ask can and will receive this gift from heaven. That’s shouting news!
