"fell upon," "poured
out," "fell on them," "came upon,"[10] all suggesting an act from above.

A Four-Sided Truth.

Now notice that the word used at the time of the actual occurrence and
afterwards is another word--"_filled_" and "full," which occurs eleven
times in the first nine chapters of Acts. It tells what was
_experienced_ by those persons at Pentecost and afterwards. It describes
_their_ side. Baptism was the _act_; filling was the _result_. If you
plunge a book into water you are submerging the book: that is your side.
The leaves of the book quickly become soaked, filled with the water:
that is the other side. When a baby is born it is plunged out into the
atmosphere. That is an immersion into air. It begins at once to cry and
its lungs become filled with the air into which it has been plunged. So
here "filled" is the _experience_ word; it tells our side.

The third word, "_anointed_," indicates the _purpose_ of this filling;
it is to qualify for living and for service. It is the word commonly
used in the Old Testament for the setting apart of the tabernacle to its
holy use; and of priests and kings, and sometimes prophets for service
and leadership. In the New Testament it is four times used of Jesus,
each time in connection with His public ministry.[11] Paul uses it of
himself in answering those who had criticised his work and leadership at
Corinth.[12] And John uses it twice in speaking of ability to discern
and teach the truth.[13] It is the _power_ word, indicating that the
Holy Spirit's coming is for the specific purpose of setting us apart,
and to qualify us for right living, and for acceptable and helpful
service.

The fourth word, "_sealed_," explains our personal connection with the
Lord Jesus. It is used once by Paul in writing to his friends at
Corinth, and twice in the Ephesian epistle.[14] The seal was used, and
still is to mark ownership. In our lumber regions up in the Northwest it
is customary to clear a small spot on a log and strike it with the blunt
end of a hatchet containing the initials of the owner, and then send it
adrift down the stream with hundreds of others, and though it may float
miles unguarded, that mark of ownership is respected. On the Western
plains it is common to see mules with an initial branded on the flank.
In both cases the initial is the owner's seal, recognized by law as
sufficient evidence of ownership. So the Holy Spirit is Jesus' ownership
mark stamped upon