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Acts Term Paper: The Threefold Relationship With The Holy Spirit
By: Tommy McClave
Acts
Instructor: Rod Thompson
Calvary Chapel Bible College
March 31st
, 2016

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The general theme of the book of Acts written by Luke (who also wrote the third gospel
account) is the work of the Holy Spirit in the early church. The difference between the book of
Acts, and all the other books in the bible, is the fact that the events of this book are still being
lived out today by Christ's church. The Holy Spirit was sent down to us when Jesus Christ
ascended into heaven, and the Holy Spirit will be with us until we as the church are called up to
him, which we know now as "the rapture". But the main theme of this book is how the Holy
Spirit ministers to the early church and it shows us how he used many of the first Christians to do
great works. Acts 2:4 says, "And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak
with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." This is the first event in which the Holy
Spirit directly ministers to any of the first Christians, and this is no doubt the fulfillment of the
prophecy given to us by John the Baptist in "Matthew 3:11" and "Luke 3:16". There are three
aspects of the Holy Spirit and how he works. This is also referred to as the threefold relationship
with the Holy Spirit. The three ways are known as "para" (which means, "with"), "en" (which
means, "in"), and "epi" (which means, "upon"). These are the three ways in which the Holy Spirit
works, and ministers to the church.
The first aspect of the Holy Spirit is "para" (which means, "with"). The Holy Spirit is
with the church and always will be until the church is raptured. The Holy Spirit was promised to
the church forever which would mean that when the church is called up, the Holy Spirit is called
up as well. John 14:17 says, "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." Here, Jesus is clearly first talking about how the Spirit dwells "WITH" them. In a teaching
by Chuck Smith on this topic and reference, he says, "So the Holy Spirit, Christ said, is dwelling
with you. He is there alongside of you. The Greek preposition is para".1
Chuck Smith also stated
here, "Now prior to your conversion, it was the Holy Spirit who convicted you of your sin. It was
the Holy Spirit who revealed Jesus Christ to you as the One who could take care of your sins. It
was the Holy Spirit that convinced you to accept Jesus as your Lord."2
I would have to agree
1 Smith, Chuck. "Search." Blue Letter Bible. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2016.
2 Smith, Chuck. "Search." Blue Letter Bible. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2016.

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with him here, and say that the Holy Spirit convicts people of their sins while he is present and
with or "around" everyone, even before the acceptance of the Lord Jesus Christ takes place. In
other word's, I don't believe that a person has to be saved in order to be convicted of their sin
because I believe that the Holy Spirit does this even before, in the aspect of "para" or "with". I
know that in my life personally, I was very convicted of some things that I was involved in
before I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior into my heart. If the Holy Spirit's agenda wasn't
to convict someone before they accept the Lord, then many people wouldn't feel the need to
accept the Lord in the first place. One of the main reasons I did accept Christ into my heart, was
because the Holy Spirit had been convicting me of things that I was doing with my life, and this
led me to the prayer of repentance.
The second aspect of the ministry of the Holy Spirit is the Greek preposition called, "en"
(which means, "in"). It's only when a person puts their faith in Jesus Christ and accepts Him into
their hearts as Lord of their life, when the Holy Spirit indwells them. 1 Corinthians 3:16 says,
"Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?" This is just
one of the many verses in the bible that mentions the Holy Spirit dwelling in us. John 20:22 says,
"And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit.'" I
believe at this moment, the Holy Spirit dwelled in them and was no longer just alongside them or
with them. This means that every believer, including myself, has the Holy Spirit dwelling in us.
The purpose of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us is to conform us over time to the image of Christ.
When the Holy Spirit is in us, he is doing a work in us and that work is conforming us to the
image of the Son of God. So then when the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us, that would be the
same thing as being born again into the Spirit. In John 3:3, Jesus says, "Jesus answered him,
'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.'" Jesus
clearly states here that we must be born again and when we are born again in the Spirit, the Spirit
comes to dwell and live inside of us. So back in John 20:22, it is accepted that at that time, the
disciples were born again in the Spirit when Jesus spoke those words. I know that in my life
personally, I have seen a great work by the Holy Spirit in myself since I accepted Christ to be the
Lord of my life. This is the second part of ministry of the Holy Ghost. I have seen my life
change, and who I am change to be more like Christ every day. This certainly doesn't mean I
don't sin anymore, but it means that the Holy Spirit is slowly conforming me every day to the
image of God's son, Jesus Christ. Chapter eight of the book of Acts gives us a good transition

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from the second aspect ("en") into the third aspect ("epi"). Chapter eight first presents us with
Philip preaching the gospel message to the Samaritans in Samaria. We see that Phillip does great
works there through the power of the Holy Spirit, and the people respond greatly and that there is
great joy in the city. It is safe to assume that at this point in time, the Holy Spirit has entered into
many of the people because many people have accepted Christ and have been born again into the
Spirit. Luke tells us in Acts 8:8 that, "there was great joy in that city!" This was interesting to me
that there was such great fruit being produced by Philip in Samaria since it was such a dark city
before he arrived. Then I found something David Guzik said in his commentary on the book of
Acts and he said this: "Undoubtedly, one reason there was such fruit was that Jesus had sown the
seed in Samaria during His ministry (John 4:1-26). Now Philip is reaping the harvest."3
In the
passage seen in John 4, we see the story of Jesus talking to the woman at the well in Samaria.
The reason why so much fruit was being produced in Acts 8, was because Philip was reaping the
harvest of a seed that was planted by the best seed planter the world has ever seen, Jesus Christ
the Messiah! Personally in my life, I've seen the importance of seed planting, and reaping of the
harvest. Sometimes I am discouraged when a person I witness to doesn't receive the Lord after I
speak to them, but I need to trust God and the Holy Ghost that he will send someone else who
will finish the work I started by the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Once the people in Samaria
receive the gospel message from Philip, the disciples move forward by sending Peter and John so
that the people in Samaria might receive the Holy Spirit.
Luke tells us in Acts 8:14-15, "Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that
Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, who, when they had
come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. This directly tells us that
even after the people in Samaria had received the gospel message, and accepted it into their
hearts, they still hadn't "received" the Holy Spirit. David Guzik mentions many points but the
one I leaned towards was this: "Some say they were really saved at Philips preaching, yet God, in
a unique move withheld the gift of the Holy Spirit until it could be bestowed on them by Peter
and John. God's purpose in this was to ensure continuity between the church in Jerusalem and the
3 Guzik, David. Verse by Verse Commentary on the Book of Acts. Simi Valley, CA: Enduring Word Media, n.d.
Print. The Enduring Word Commentary Ser.

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new church in Samaria, guarding against division."4
There many different views for this passage
but this one seems to line up for what I've been speaking about previously. The receiving of the
Holy Spirit and the baptism of the Holy Spirit was probably portrayed by the practicing of
spiritual of gifts in Samaria. We see however, that this didn't happen until Peter and John came to
Samaria to minister to the people and to lay hands on them that they may receive the Holy Spirit.
Acts 8:17 says, "Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit." It is clear that
the baptism of the Holy Spirit didn't occur until Peter and John came to them. In Matthew 16:19,
Jesus gave Peter and the other apostles the keys of the kingdom of heaven, it was really for times
like these. The Holy Spirit used the apostles as a channel to others who knew Christ and desired
the Spirit. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is the empowerment of the Spirit for ministry and the
bestowal of spiritual gifts. We can discern this by looking at two passages, both found in the
book of Acts. In Acts 1:5 it says, "for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized
with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." In Acts 2:1-4, we see what Jesus had told the
apostles, coming true when he said it would, and we see that when this does happen, the apostles
speak in tongues which is one of the spiritual gifts found in 1 Corinthians 12, written by the
apostle, Paul. From this, we can clearly see what the baptism of the Holy Spirit is, and what can
happen when it happens. Personally in my life, I'm not sure if I have been baptized by the Holy
Spirit yet, but I know I will. 1 Corinthians 12:7 says, "But the manifestation of the Spirit is given
to each one." From this, I know that I have at least one spiritual gift, and when I find out what it
is, I'll know I've been baptized by the Holy Spirit.
The book of Acts is about the Holy Spirit, and how He ministers to the early church to
bring others to himself, by using the apostles and other early Christians. The way in which the
Holy Spirit interacts with people and the church is done in three ways, which are: "Para" (which
means, "with"), "en" (which means, "in"), and "epi" (which means, "upon"). These are three
ways the Holy Spirit has revealed and will reveal himself to me. Before I was saved, the Holy
Spirit was with me, now that I am saved, the Holy Spirit is in me, and now that He is in me, he
can come upon me.
4 Guzik, David. Verse by Verse Commentary on the Book of Acts. Simi Valley, CA: Enduring Word Media, n.d.
Print. The Enduring Word Commentary Ser.

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Bibliography
Smith, Chuck. "Search." Blue Letter Bible. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2016.
Guzik, David. Verse by Verse Commentary on the Book of Acts. Simi Valley, CA: Enduring Word Media, n.d. Print.
The Enduring Word Commentary Ser.