stion
ought to be put to every candidate for the ministry, "Have you met God?"
Yes, but we ought to go farther than this and be even more definite; to
every candidate for the ministry we should put the question, "Have you
been baptized with the Holy Spirit?" and if not, we should say to him as
Jesus said to the first preachers of the Gospel, "Sit down until you are
endued with power from on high."

But not only is this true of ordained ministers, it is true of every
Christian, for all Christians are called to ministry of some kind. Any man
who is in Christian work, who has not received the baptism with the Holy
Spirit, ought to stop his work right where he is and not go on with it
until he has been "clothed with power from on high." But what will our
work do while we are waiting? The question can be answered by asking
another, "What did the world do during these ten days while the early
disciples were waiting?" They knew the saving truth, they alone knew it;
yet in obedience to the Lord's command they were silent. The world was no
loser. Beyond a doubt, when the power came, they accomplished more in one
day than they would have accomplished in years if they had gone on in
self-confident defiance and disobedience to Christ's command. We too after
that we have received the baptism with the Spirit will accomplish more of
real work for our Lord in one day than we ever would in years without this
power. Even if it were necessary to spend days in waiting, they would be
well spent, but we shall see later that there is no need that we spend
days in waiting, that the baptism with the Holy Spirit may be received
to-day. Some one may say that the Apostles had gone on missionary tours
during Christ's lifetime, even before they were baptized with the Holy
Spirit. This is true, but that was before the Holy Spirit was given, and
before the command was given, "Tarry ye until ye be clothed with power
from on high." After that it would have been disobedience and folly and
presumption to have gone forth without this enduement, and we are living
to-day after the Holy Spirit has been given and after the charge has been
given to tarry until clothed.

WHO CAN BE BAPTIZED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT?

We come now to the question of first importance, namely, Who can be
baptized with the Holy Spirit? At a convention some years ago, a very
intelligent Christian woman, a well-known worker in educational as well as
Sunday-school work, sent me this quest