A common mistake made by many people is to describe the Holy Spirit as a
"force" or an "essence", something like electricity. This is very
unbiblical and is insulting to God because the Bible teaches that the
Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity, and is Himself fully God (Matthew
28:19 and Acts 5:3-4). By denying this and limiting Him only to a
"force", we are denying His ability to relate to us in a personal
relationship. "How does the Holy Spirit relate to us?", you may ask. The
Holy Spirit relates to us in three different ways throughout our lives:
First of all, He was with us.

"The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him.
But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you." John 14:17

Before we accepted Jesus in our lives, the Holy Spirit came along our
side to convict our hearts of sin, righteousness and judgment (John
16:8-11). He opened our eyes to our need for forgiveness and our need
for Jesus to save us.

Secondly, once we accepted Jesus in our lives, the Holy Spirit came in
us (see John 14:17 The Bible makes it clear that He indwells us (1
Corinthians 3:16, therefore making us spiritually alive (John 3:3-8),
and sealing us in our salvation (Ephesians 4:13. John 14:26 refers to
the Holy Spirit as our Comforter. The word used means that He is our aid
and our helper. One who guides and strengthens us in our everyday lives.
In the life of the believer, the Holy Spirit makes the things of God and
the Word of God clear (1 Corinthians 2:10) and helps us apply these
truths to our lives.

Thirdly, the Holy Spirit can come upon us (Luke 24:49 and Acts 4:8).
This is what is commonly known among Christians as the baptism with the
Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus, before His ascension, told His Apostles
that the Holy Spirit would come upon them, clothing them with power from
on high. The Apostles already had the Holy Spirit in them, for they had
received Him on the evening that the Lord appeared and Thomas was not
present (John 20:22). This shows us that the event in Acts 2 of the
baptism with the Holy Spirit is a distinct and separate event from the
receiving the Spirit at salvation. Nowhere in Scripture is it taught
that the baptism with the Holy Spirit is necessary for salvation, though
it does teach that it is available to all who ask to receive it (Matthew
7:9-12). Unfortunately, not every believer experiences this filling. The
baptism with the Holy Spirit can occur at any time in the believer's
life: simultaneous at salvation, or any time after.It is also not
necessarily a one-time event.We can see in the book of Acts that Peter
experienced the baptism or filling of the Spirit on more than one
occasion (Acts 2:4 and 14:9). The primary evidence of the baptism with
the Holy Spirit is not speaking in tongues (as many advocate) but rather
power."But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and
you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all and Samaria, and to
the ends of the earth."

Power to witness and share Jesus with the lost.Power to serve Him in
whatever area He asks us to. Power to overcome sin and live a holy life.
We can look to Peter as an example. Prior to the Acts 2 event, Peter was
afraid to be identified with Jesus (Mark 14:53). After He received the
power from on high, He witnessed boldly to the same crowd he earlier had
feared (Acts 4:5-23). You need the power of the Holy Spirit, and you can
receive it simply by asking:

"If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your
children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit
to those who ask Him!" Luke 11:13

http://www.prophecytalk.com/index.php?topic=567.0

Brandon