The Holy Spirit Remained on Jesus

Sometimes what's true isn't specifically said in the Bible. Sometimes more important is what is "not said". The following passages describes the Baptism of Jesus by John. Jesus is different than the rest of us! He wasn't bogged down by sin of any kind. His temple was already clean, never being contaminated by sin. Satan had never entered his house as he has ours. With that said, what does the following "not say"?

John 1:32 "And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. 34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God."

Have you thought about it yet? This "says not" a lot:

• With others John never mentioned the Spirit descending on the baptized person. 
• With others John didn't see the Holy Spirit making a home with the baptized person.

•  John didn't know this baptized person. He knew others.

•  God never gave John a message about any other person he baptized.

•  With the others God never mentioned the Spirit descending.

•  With others God never mentioned that the Holy Ghost will remain on him.
• God didn't say that the others were baptized with the Holy Ghost. 

•  John never said that the others were Jesus.

•  It isn't said that the Holy Ghost entered Jesus.

We can conclude from this that the Baptism of John was different.  It had a different purpose for Jesus than it did the others! First off, the Holy Ghost did not ENTER Jesus, it descended ON him and stayed there. There is no mention anywhere of the Holy Ghost not living on Jesus, but...

I'll ask some questions: At this time did the Holy Spirit live WITHIN Jesus? Before this time did the Holy Ghost abide with Jesus? With John's Baptism did the others receive the Holy Ghost? Let's look at the easiest first.

John's Baptism was for the remission of sins:

Mark 1:3 "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 4 John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.5 And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins."

John's Baptism was not a saving baptism. He prepared those baptized for the ministry and sacrifice of Jesus. "make his paths straight" was for those who were sincere and remorseful to clear the path for accepting Jesus. Those who were baptized testified their willingness to accept Jesus. Theirs was a outward washing getting ready for an inner cleansing. This was a baptism of "being sorry" for being unrighteous. They confessed their sins, but had not yet received forgiveness. Hence, John's Baptism was one of preparation: sorrow and confession. It was important for preparing their heart for salvation which was yet to come. They did something looking toward salvation, but they were not yet saved! Since God ordained John's Baptism, those baptized were called by God. God used John for the call.

With us, it's the same way.  Before we're saved we must be sorry and confess our sins. Sorrow drew them to John's Baptism and the baptism itself was a "confession" that the person admits to their sin. Hence, John's Baptism was a witness to their fallen state and an admission of guilt. It shows a willingness to be saved, but John's baptism is not a sacrament because salvation is by the blood!

Hebrews 9:22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

At the time of John's Baptism Jesus had not yet been crucified. No New Testament blood had been shed for us and hence, John's Baptism was NOT for the "remission of sins", but he preached that it was to be for that in preparation for a later time.  He preached that, but that wasn't to happen until blood was shed. John's Baptism did not cleanse the heart of sin. Nobody got saved with John's Baptism! It took Jesus to stand at the path to salvation and be there for us:

Matthew 26:28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

 The blood shed under The Law didn't remit sins. "Remission" means to cancel the payment due for sins. John's Baptism did not clean us from the penalty of death because Jesus had not shed his blood to pay the price. Therefore, John's Baptism served two purposes: 1) It paved the way for Jesus's propitiation and 2) It facilitated the Holy Ghost to abide ON Jesus.

Didn't Jesus have the Holy Ghost within him already. Let's look at that! Jesus must feel what we feel. It was required that he be tempted because we are tempted. Before we're saved there is no indwelling of the Holy Ghost. It was necessary to face temptation from the devil with a heart just as ours! Jesus, in my opinion, did not yet have the Holy Ghost residing WITHIN him, but the Holy Ghost was ON him. Just as with Job, Jesus faced the devil equipped the same way! Jesus was a man who was God, but God's Spirit protected him, but did not do it for him.

Jesus then was tempted by the devil for 40 days. He never once sinned and never submitted to temptation by sinning. The Son of Man did that of his own volition. God had not yet put his Spirit WITHIN Jesus so that he had an advantage over what we had, but he stood there just as we do. It would have been an injustice to face the devil any differently than what we do. He felt just like we do. He was David facing Goliath with only a stone, so to speak. However, the Holy Ghost was ON him to encourage, but not to do the battle. The Holy Spirit ON Jesus was just as the raising of the hands with Moses defeated the enemy. The Holy Ghost was not in Moses, but Moses reached up to him!

When did Jesus receive the Holy Ghost WITHIN him? How about the transfiguration?

Mark 9:1 "And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power. 2 And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them. 3 And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. 4 And there appeared unto them Elias with Moses: and they were talking with Jesus. 5 And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. 6 For he wist not what to say; for they were sore afraid.7 And there was a cloud that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him."

The "transfiguration" points back to the Baptism of Jesus. In both places God says "this is my Son". The transfiguration ties the loose ends together between the time Jesus was Baptized and when he was Transfigured. "Transfigured" means  " metamorphosized". That implies that the attributes of Jesus were changed. That change was manifested by "shekhinah", the light of God, meaning dwelling or settling.denoting the dwelling or settling of the Divine Presence of God. God even came to make the transformation! The Holy Ghost moved in so to speak.

The transfiguration, in my opinion, was when the Holy Ghost moved from being ON Jesus to DWELLING WITHIN Jesus! Jesus faced the devil on his own, but when he was to be crucified, he took all the sins of mankind on himself and would need to be fully God complete with the indwelling of his Holy Ghost:

1 Peter 2:24a  "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree,"

Other passages say that Jesus bore the sins of ALL mankind. That's quite a load he carried for us. At that time he said:

 Matthew 27:46 "And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

Jesus had the Holy Ghost WITHIN him. It took all that power, to be fully God, to carry a burden of that magnitude. At the time of his being "forsaken" the indwelling of the Spirit was not there for a time because sin cannot be in the presence of God. Just long enough to die for us, Jesus the Son of Man, had the filling of the Holy Spirit removed from himself and replaced by millions and billions and trillions of sins committed and to be committed. The Holy Ghost remained ON him just as it was during his ministry, but the Spirit was no longer WITHIN him. With his Resurrection all was restored for his dirty job had been done!

Think on these things! God allowed his son to face the devil just as Job did without God doing it for him. Perhaps this leads the reader to new insights on what Job "has to do with Jesus". It's a foreshadowing of what Jesus was to face. Job remained faithful. So did Jesus. Jesus the Son of Man fought the devil and the devil lost! Could you do that?

Later on we'll look at the difference between the Baptism of John and the Baptism unto Jesus. Stay tuned!