Receive the Holy Spirit

Receive the Holy Spirit - Meaning

ACTS 8 BIBLE STUDY ◄
Acts 8:9-13 Simon the Sorcerer

Acts 8:14-19 Receive the Holy Spirit

Acts 8:20-25 Simony

ACTS 8:14-19 14 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, 15 who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. 16 For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. 18 And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

What is meant by "receive the Holy Spirit" (Acts 8:15 & 19)?
The conversion of the human heart, which only the Holy Spirit can accomplish, isn't immediately and visually observable. Given that Simon "saw" (Acts 8:18) the manifestation of the Holy Spirit when Peter and John "lay hands" (Acts 8:19) on the people, the context of this passage makes it likely that the new Christians of Samaria were receiving the observable gifts of the Holy Spirit when Peter and John touched and prayed for them.

What could those gifts have been?
επιπεπτωκος (epipeptokos), the original Greek word translated "fallen" in Acts 8:16 is derived from the same root verb as επεπεσεν (epepesen), the original Greek word that is translated "fell" in Acts 10:44 (see Holy Spirit falls): 44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. 45 And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the gentiles also. 46 For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God. Then Peter answered, 47 “Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” (Acts 10:44-47). Notice that Peter simply declared that the recipients had "received the Holy Spirit" (Acts 10:47) to refer to the fact that they had received the "gift" (Acts 10:45) of "tongues" (Acts 10:46). Therefore, the gift of tongues could have been one of the manifestations of the Holy Spirit that "Simon saw" (Act 8:18) as well.

But wasn't the Holy Spirit visible as a dove when He descended on Jesus upon His baptism?
Yes, but it was for the unique purpose of identifying Jesus as the Son of God (see Lamb of God).

Why might the Lord have delayed the gift of the Holy Spirit to the Samaritans until Peter and John came to them?
To have Peter and John return to Jerusalem and share with any skeptics among the Jewish Christians the 'proof' that God had expanded the church to include even the Samaritans. Also, the new Samaritan Christians could have claimed independence from the church in Jerusalem if they had received the gift of the Holy Spirit from someone else laying hands on them. The Lord was keeping the growing church united in Christ.