 When is the Holy Spirit received? Here's what the Bible says. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him. There we see that salvation and the Holy Spirit come hand in hand. You receive the Holy Spirit the very moment you place your faith in Christ. Now, this raises the question, why then do we need to seemingly receive the Holy Spirit a second time, such as we see in Acts 2 and 4? Well, the baptism with the Holy Spirit is both a well and a river. It's an occurrence that becomes a continual state of being. At salvation, you receive Him, but His influence then increases as you surrender to Him. And as His influence increases, we see such manifestations as the gift of tongue, spiritual gifts, godly character, and what many refer to as spiritual growth. So, at salvation, He fills us like water in a cup. Throughout our lives, He continually fills us like wind in a sail.