All of God’s working in the hearts and lives of humanity was about to culminate on this exciting, empowering and experiential day, Pentecost!
The Holy Spirit always had been present and working in the world from Genesis 1:2 until Jesus’ nativity. Christ and the Spirit were intertwined. The Holy Spirit has been called “Christ’s other Self.” As the third Person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit has had a relationship with humans by giving them power, love, life, hope, boldness, morality and holiness. It was on the Day of Pentecost that He imparted to the followers of Christ all of these qualities in a personal, collective and universal way by birthing the church.
Arnold Airhart wrote, “It is not possible to conceive of the Church without the Spirit. It is the Spirit who makes the Church truly the Church. The Church is rooted deep in pre-Pentecost history, but Pentecost marks the arrival of the Church as the body of Christ, and as God’s instrument of saving mission to the world.”
Examining and understanding the Day of Pentecost is a vital part of every believer’s quest for spiritual life.
The Day of Pentecost Is a Day of Fulfillment (Acts 1:1-21)
The New Testament’s Day of Pentecost is the Jewish Feast of Weeks. The feast is one of three annual religious festivals, but is a one-day celebration. It came on the 50th day (the Greek pentekostas) after the presentation of the harvest’s first fruits. It was known as the Feast of Weeks because it fell seven weeks (a week of weeks) after Passover. Later, it would commemorate the giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai.
Pentecost is the Fulfillment of Prophecy
Peter quotes Joel’s prophesy when he said God was fulfilling His promise of pouring out His Spirit (Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:14-21).
Pentecost Is the Fulfillment of Prayer
The disciples had gathered together in oneness, in faith and surrender to God. They had been in deep prayer asking God’s direction for themselves and for their faith in the risen Lord. They seem to have finished praying, waiting expectantly for some direction. Suddenly a loud sound such as a tornado permeated every inch of the house.
Airhart said wind is one of the biblical symbols of the Holy Spirit, the life-giving breath of God. He further observed it denoted a “heaven-sent power.” The Holy Spirit was divinely energizing their inadequate selves to make them adequate in life and to be people of action!
A fire-like cluster sat upon the head of each believer. Within the diversity of those present, on that incredible day a unity was brought about by the Holy Spirit. The symbol spoke of their hearts being cleansed and purified by the baptism of the Spirit. It did not change their personalities, but their hearts, motives and desires. It was the fulfillment of John the Baptist’s prophecy in Matthew 3:11-12 and Luke 3:16-17.
Pentecost Is the Fulfillment of Proclamation
The gospel had to be shared. What better time than when so many were gathered in Jerusalem from all over the known world? As the Spirit gave these disciples unity, purity and boldness, He also gave them the inspiration and mechanism to proclaim the gospel in many languages. These were not unintelligible voices, but the languages of the people, who were gathered in the city celebrating the Feast of Weeks.
The speaking in languages was the sign of the universality of the good news and the reception for people of all nations and dialects! It was God’s timing to break through the boundaries of Jewish provincialism and proclaim the gospel to the whole world!
Chuck Swindoll said one Christmas he gave his son an HO gauge train. There was a tiny little unit called a transformer on the train set that broke down the 110 volts from the wall to lesser voltage. The reason for this was that if one plugged it straight into the 110 outlet, it would fried to a crisp a second. The transformer broke down the voltage so little train could go around the track for hours on end—all because a little transformer dispenses power at appropriate level.
Swindoll said, “When the Holy Spirit (the Transformer) comes, He will take the majestic truth of God and will dispense it just the way you need it, give it to you with handles that you can take and use. It is the Spirit’s delight to take the full truth of God and make one thing meaningful to all.”
That’s what happened on the Day of Pentecost to the disciples in the upper room, and He will do exactly that to any present day disciple seeking Him!