John 1:19-34 KJV
19 And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?
20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.
21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.
22 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
23 He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.
24 And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.
25 And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?
26 John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;
27 He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose.
28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.
31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water. 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.

John is baptizing in the Jordan river, and many wonder if John was the Christ or even Elijah. John claim was he was the one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way for the Lord. This important, because every minister that ever preach the truth about God about Jesus is one crying in wilderness make way for the Lord. Yet John was the one prophesied about in the book of Isaiah that would come right before the Messiah.

Isaiah 40:3-8 KJV
3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
6 The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:
7 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.
8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

The Spirit of God stand forever. Jesus was the one coming to save the world to baptize man into the Holy Ghost. Something important to understand is John baptized with water but Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. Jesus had the power of God him, for He was God, yet He was the Word of God, as well as known to be the Son of God and the Son of man. Jesus had more then one title each title represent who He was, just like many of us have nicknames, and are called by several names. Online I go by turtle, my family has a nickname for me and several friends have had nicknames for me over the years. However we may call people by many names it makes them no less then who they are. Jesus is represent by many names from Savior, Lord, the Word, the only begotten Son of God, the Son of Man, Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. However no matter the title, it changes not His status or the fact He was from the beginning of the world. He came so that we might know who God is. He came to baptize us in the Holy Spirit, who was and is His Father. Yet because He was the Word of God He has always existed as the Word. The Word came in
the flesh in the form of Jesus. And Jesus came to tell us about the Father. Through out His ministry He speaks little of Himself but the ways of God. He preaches about the Kingdom of God.

To be baptized in the Holy Spirit is to not only know who God and His Son is, but to know who the Holy Spirit is and the functions of the Holy Spirit. For the Holy Spirit is the action of God. Let me share this verse with you this verse is Jesus speaking to His disciples right before His death.

John 15:15-16 KJV
15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

Jesus had told the disciples about who His Father was, everything that they needed to know. With this knowledge they knew God's business. God's business, what God does. He heals, He delivers, He forgives, He shows mercy, He is all wisdom, all righteousness, all knowing and more. Jesus for three years had taught His disciples. To be baptized with the Holy Spirit is still yet more then what I have mentioned for it is about giving His power to you to be used to spreading the gospel or the assignment God has given you to do on earth. For example Old Testament Saul was anointed king and the Holy Spirit came upon Him and he began to prophesize. To prophesize is to speak the things of God.

The day of Pentecost is not more then God giving each of the disciples the power and the boldness to speak the wonderful works of God. Let us look at the passage.

Acts 2:1-21 KJV
1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5 And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.
6 Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language.
7 And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold,
are not all these which speak Galilaeans?
8 And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?
9 Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia,
10 Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes,
11 Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.
12 And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this?
13 Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.
14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:
15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.
16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth
beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Many like to use this passage as a side show in churches, mocking the very truth of the Word of God. When the Holy Spirit comes upon a person, a person should be able to testify who God is. Many say Lord, Lord but will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. What is happening in the passage is disciples are speaking in more then one language, either taught, or empowered by the Holy Spirit. These were known languages for those in the city streets heard them and were amazed and wonder. I am not sure why it amazed them for these men being Galileans. It might been because with the origin known they might of consider them gentiles for it was a gentile region in which they were from. It could have been that they understood not that some of these men were fishermen, that perhaps would of come in contact with people not knowing Hebrew or Arabic. It is possible that the others in different fields like tax collectors had to have knowledge of different languages in their work. It not unusual for big companies to have people that speak many languages, but the amazing thing that there were only eleven speaking in these languages. I suspect in away these languages spoken were beckoning many nationalities to come hear what is being said.

Peter begins to speak and explain that they are not drunk but are filled with the Holy Spirit of promise. That what they were witnessing was what the Prophet Joel had spoken about. In last days God said He would pour out His Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy. The purpose for the Holy Spirit to be poured out and for people to prophesy was so men and woman might be saved. God was making an all call to the people that would hear and listen.

Beware of those that distort this passage. They are coming in to destroy the church. They are coming in to destroy you, to pull you away from God. The empowerment of the Holy Spirit is real. However you might not see cloven tongues, but you will know by the boldness God gives you to share the gospel, especially in places that know not Him. Remember when you have permission to speak do so for the glory of God. To receive the Holy Spirit of promise first get saved and ask God to fill you with His Spirit, to teach you all truth about His word. Rely on Him to teach you, but do not be afraid to use tools God gives you, from scripture to other sources to learn the things of God. Bible dictionaries, and commentaries often confirm what one is learning. However they do not replace the Holy Spirit.

Speak the things of God, speak the truth about who He is and His love for all mankind. This is the hour in which God is calling all lost souls to Him. This is the hour, that gospel much be preached, before the return of Christ can come. No man knows the hour in which Christ will return. Beware He can come any day.