Title: Congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ
Author: Andre Holtslag
Last saved by: Shane

“Pentecost Lessons”      Text – Acts 2:1-13      Readings – Genesis 10:1-11:9  Galatians 3:1-14

Congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ,
If you were to list the highlights of Biblical history; it’s major moments, they would be Creation, the Fall, the first coming of Jesus, which includes His birth, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, and the Second Coming of Jesus.  
And you will note that at the centre of them all is the person and work of Jesus Christ, including creation, for Colossians tells us that “all things were created by Him and for Him.”  

Well, to this list of the highlights of Biblical history, one other event must be added – Pentecost.  What we look at today, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, needs to be understood as another of the major moments in the history of the world.  
And there are a number of ways that this is made plain for us in these verses.  
We see it first in the opening words of the chapter.  
Literally, they are, “When the day of Pentecost was fulfilled.”  And this is so because these words are used in the Bible to indicate the end of a prophesied period of time.
It is used also, for instance, in relation to the time of Jesus’ birth and ascension.

But we see this also when we note the parallels between the Book of Acts and the Book of Luke.  
•	For Luke’s Gospel begins with an introduction, chapter 1, before telling of the coming of Jesus Christ into the world in chapter 2.  And, as we have seen, the Book of Acts begins with an introduction, chapter 1, before telling of the coming of the Holy Spirit in chapter 2.  
•	And more than that, consider the progression of Luke’s Gospel; note how the story unfolds:
o	First, Luke begins by telling of John the Baptist who says that one is coming who “will baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” 
o	Next, Jesus is baptized with the Holy Spirit.
o	Then, Jesus preaches a sermon that ‘spells out His programme’ so to speak.
o	And next, Jesus moves about speaking to Jews, Galileans, and Samaritans.  
•	Well, let’s look at the progression in Acts:
o	First, in 1:5, what does Luke refer to?  John’s prophecy of one who would baptize with the Holy Spirit.
o	And then, what happens here in chapter 2:4?  The disciples are baptized with the Holy Spirit.
o	And what will happen next?  Well, Peter will preach a sermon that ‘spells out the gospel’s programme’ so to speak.
o	And fourthly, the disciples will speak to the Jews, and then to Samaritans, and then even further afield. 
•	And together all of these things are intended to indicate just how important Pentecost is in the history of the world.

1.	Now, you might be thinking to yourself, Well, that all sounds good, but you just said that at the centre of all of the major moments of world history is the person and work of Jesus Christ.  But Pentecost is about the Holy Spirit.  So, does it really qualify?  
a.	Well, there is no doubt that Pentecost is about the Holy Spirit.  However, the Spirit’s function or purpose, according to John 15:26, is to testify about Jesus.  
(1)	He reveals Jesus Christ, He unites believers with Jesus Christ, and he fills them with the salvation benefits of Jesus Christ.  

ii.	So Pentecost, we might say, looks back to Jesus and looks forward to Jesus.  
(1)	Pentecost tells us that something has happened – salvation, and that something still needs to happen – eternal life.  
(2)	And for us to know salvation and to be prepared for eternity, we need the Spirit of Christ.  

And all of this is why Pentecost is a major moment in biblical history.  

So we are going to take some time today to consider this major moment in biblical history under two headings: 
First, we consider Pentecost Explained.  We will just look at these verses to make sure we understand what is going on here.  
And then, secondly, we will consider Pentecost Lessons.  How does Pentecost speak to us today?

So firstly then, Pentecost explained.

1.	Verse 1 says, “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.”  
a.	Now, the Greek word, Pentecost, simply means ‘fiftieth day.’  
i.	It refers to the 50^th day after the Sabbath of Passover week.  
ii.	On that day, a Sunday, all the Jews were to gather in Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of First-fruits where they presented the first of their harvest to the Lord. 
iii.	So Luke is telling us that the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Day of the Feast of first Fruits – 50 days after Jesus rose from the dead.
(1)	What happens to these disciples will be the first-fruits of what happens to all believers.

b.	And he tells us that on that day “they were all together in one place.”  
i.	Now, because Peter will explain these events as the fulfilment of a prophecy of Joel who said that sons and daughters and young and old and servants and men and women would participate in the events of this day, it is most likely that Luke is referring to the whole group of believers with the word “all.”  
ii.	And the “one place” he refers to is most likely the upper room they were in in chapter 1.  
(1)	If so, it would seem that this room was near the temple courts for it is from there that the crowd most likely came when they hard the noise and to there that they probably ended up in order for 3000 to hear Peter’s sermon and be baptized.  

2.	Next we are told about three observable signs that attest the arrival of the Spirit.  And attest means confirm or provide evidence of.  You boys and girls will remember that to prove that Moses was speaking God’s Word His staff turned into a snake.  So, because we are right at the end of the OT age,  miraculous signs are still needed to confirm that God is at work here.  
a.	So first, there was a sound like a blowing of a violent wind that filled the house.  
i.	And three significant things said about this noise are that it was sudden, that it was “like” the blowing of a violent wind, and that it came from heaven.  And each of these three things spells supernatural!  
(1)	What is happening here is not your normal weather change!  
(A)	I can think of two days in recent times where a day of sunshine has turned into a day of cloud and gusty wind pretty quickly.  But still some hours are involved.  
(i)	But not here.  This is sudden; instant.  Bang!  The violent wind comes.
(B)	But note it also comes from heaven, not from the south like one of our southerlies, but from heaven.  Again, it is clearly supernatural.
(C)	And because it can only be described as like a violent wind, because it is so much more than a normal violent wind, the message is clear – God is at work.  
(i)	God Himself is present
1.	Like the wind and thunder and earthquake when the law was given at Sinai, God’s presence is announced by the sudden and spectacular.  

ii.	We have read before from Ezekiel 37 and the valley of dry bones.  
(1)	Boys and girls, do you remember that story?  
(A)	Ezekiel saw a valley of skeletons and he was told to preach to the bones.  And do you remember what happened when he did?  It says, “There was a noise, a rattling sound.”  And Ezekiel said, “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live … and breath entered them; they came to life and stood on their feet – a vast army.”  
(i)	And Ezekiel was talking about the Holy Spirit.

(2)	You see, the Hebrew word for wind, and breath, and the Spirit of God is Ruah – it’s the same word for all three.  
(3)	And the Greek word for wind, and breath, and the Spirit is Pneuma – it too is the same word for all three.  
(4)	So this wind is not just a strong breeze but the Spirit of God appearing on earth at this major moment in biblical history demonstrating the life-giving power of God.  

b.	But not only is there this noise.  For, secondly, “what seemed to be tongues of fire” serve also to attest to the arrival of the Spirit.  
i.	And again, note that they don’t see tongues of fire, but something supernatural that can only be described as like tongues of fire.  
(1)	Heavenly fire comes into the room and separates into tongue-like flames that attach themselves to each person there.  

ii.	John the Baptist had said that while he baptized with water, Jesus would baptize “with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”   And here we see this happening.

(1)	And the association of fire and God’s presence is familiar to readers of the OT, fire is both a symbol of God’s presence and His judgment.
(A)	There was fire at Mt Sinai when God came to give Israel the law.  
(B)	And perhaps you boys and girls also remember the story of Nadab and Abihu.  
(i)	Can you remember what happened to them when they offered strange incense to the Lord?  Fire came out of the tabernacle and destroyed them.  

(2)	But for these believers, the fire is only a symbol of God’s presence, not His judgment.  Why?  
(A)	Because their judgment, as is the case for all who look to Christ, has been endured by Jesus.  Their sins are forgiven.  God does not look on them in anger but in love.  
(B)	And so, the fire will not destroy them.  

c.	Instead, its effect is the third and last of the three observable signs that attest to the arrival of the Spirit.  They are “filled with the Holy Spirit and [begin] to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” 
i.	In fulfilment of Joel’s prophecy, God’s Spirit is poured out upon sons and daughters, young and old, and male and female.  

ii.	And while much could be said here about these verses and the modern tongue-speaking movement, let’s just note today that what they speak here are different languages.  The disciples do not speak a kind of ecstatic, unintelligible speech that people can miraculously understand in their own language.  They speak different languages.
(1)	The Greek word glossa is only used in the Bible to describe a known language.  
(2)	In addition, the Greek word used to describe the Spirit enabling them to speak is used also in Acts 26:25.
(A)	There, Paul stands before Festus after having been accused of being insane.  And Paul says, “I am not insane, most excellent Festus … I am speaking true and reasonable words.”  
(i)	In other words, Paul wanted to reassure Festus that he wasn’t babbling like an idiot but speaking rationally and understandably.  
(3)	And lastly, if it were just an ecstatic speech in view, there would be no need for the word ‘other’ or ‘different,’ which tells us that they were each speaking different languages.  
(A)	What happens here in Acts cannot be used to justify the kind of ecstasy tongue-speaking you will encounter in many Pentecostal churches.
(4)	What happens here in Acts is that the disciples are given the ability to speak in many different languages without ever having learned them.

iii.	Well boys and girls, the Bible tells us of a time where different languages confused people and caused them to separate.  Can you remember when that was?  Babel.  Well here, different languages cause people to come together!  Babel is undone!  
(1)	Because Christ has come to save men from their sins, and because the Holy Spirit has come to bring the good news of that salvation to the world, God uses the gift of languages to draw people of different nationalities together.

d.	So, the wind, the flames, and the tongues all serve to attest the presence of God and His Word.
i.	Clearly, this is a major moment in biblical history!

3.	Well, not much more needs to be said about vv5-13.  They are fairly straightforward.  
a.	A crowd assembles having heard the noise of all this.  
i.	And they are astonished to hear them speaking in their own languages.  
(1)	After all, every one knows that Galileans are pretty ignorant and uneducated sort of folk.  
(A)	Sometimes my family and I will be watching the news on TV or something and a person will be interviewed.  And when they speak, we all start laughing because of the very poor way they speak English.
(B)	Well, that’s what is meant by these people referring to the disciples as Galileans.  

b.	And then Luke provides a list of nations that broadly moves from the East to the West.  
i.	And it’s an interesting list both because of the nations Luke includes and the nations Luke leaves out.  
(1)	Very simply though, Luke is just providing a list of nations!  
(A)	He wants his readers to know that there were people there from all over the Roman world.  
(i)	Again, if you remember the many nations mentioned in our earlier reading from Genesis, Babel is being undone as the gospel is heard here, miraculously.

c.	Now, most likely, the group is now moving or has moved to the temple area.  
i.	The picture here is not of a group of people just standing there speaking about God in this language or that language.  
(1)	The words “bewilderment,” “utterly amazed,” “amazed and perplexed” as well as the accusation of drunkenness suggest that the disciples were likely singing and leaping and shouting and crying out in praise of God and His wonders.  
(A)	This is an astonishing scene.  
(i)	And so they wondered, “What does this mean?”  

And this is, indeed, a good question!  What does this mean?  We have already described this event as a major moment in biblical history, in part because Babel is undone, but let’s consider the other lessons of Pentecost as our second point.

And there are three broad lessons that we do well to consider, and which we will tie together at the end:

1.	Firstly, there is the full significance of Pentecost.  
a.	You see, while Pentecost was the day upon which the Feast of first-fruits began, it had a richer significance in the life of Israel.  
i.	From Exodus 19:1, we have every reason to believe that 50 days after the very first Passover in Egypt, Israel came to Mt Sinai and there received from God the Ten Commandments.  
ii.	And Jewish tradition tells us that in the time of the disciples, Pentecost had also become the annual celebration of the giving of the law.  
iii.	In fact, very interestingly, and in relation to the speaking of other languages here, another Jewish tradition adds even more to this connection.  
(1)	Now, this is not written anywhere in God’s Word.  It is just an oral tradition, passed down from generation to generation.  
(A)	But from the writings of Jewish history, we learn that the Jews believed that when God spoke the Ten Commandments to His people, He spoke them in the 70 languages of the nations that made up the whole world, both because of the foreigners who lived with the Israelites, and to show that His law was a universal law.  
(B)	And Philo, a Jewish historian who lived around the time of Pentecost, says this of the giving of the law, “Then from the midst of the fire that streamed from heaven there sounded forth to their utter amazement a voice, for the flame became the articulate speech in the language familiar to the audience.”  
(2)	Now, as I said, this is not written in God’s Word.  It is Jewish tradition.  But if Luke knew of it and his readers knew of it, you can see how these connections would have immediately been made.
iv.	But even if we set that tradition aside, readers of Luke’s account who were familiar with the teaching of the Apostle Paul would have made the connection with the giving of the law.  
(1)	Whereas Pentecost was for the Jews the day of the giving of the law, for Christians it is the day of the coming of the Holy Spirit.  
(A)	And, as one commentator describes it, “for Luke the coming of the Spirit upon the early Christians at Pentecost is not only a parallel to the Spirit’s coming on Jesus at His baptism, it is also both in continuity with and in contrast to the law.”  
(B)	Thus, “the mission of the Christian church, as was the ministry of Jesus, is dependent upon the coming of the Holy Spirit.  And by his stress on Pentecost as the day when the miracle took place, he is also suggesting (1) that the Spirit’s coming is in continuity with God’s purposes in giving the law and yet (2) that the Spirit’s coming signals the essential difference between the Jewish faith and commitment to Jesus.  
(C)	For whereas the former is [law] centred and [law] directed… the latter is Christ-centred and Spirit-directed.”  

v.	And isn’t this the consistent message of the NT?  
(1)	Consider what we read in Galatians, “Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed.  So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.  Now faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.”  And what are we under the supervision of?  Galatians continues, “So I say, live by the Spirit … if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.”  		Why?  Because the Spirit focuses our glad obedience on the person and work of Jesus Christ.  And only Jesus can truly lead us to love God and to love our neighbour as ourselves.  

2.	And it is this that leads us to the second lesson of Pentecost that we do well to consider – the filling of the Holy Spirit.  
a.	For here we read of something unknown in OT times.  
i.	Recently we have been looking at the book of 1 Samuel in our district meetings.  And we noted there in relation to Saul that He had the Holy Spirit, but then the Holy Spirit left Him.  And we sought of scratched our heads about this a bit didn’t we.  What does this mean in relation to us?  Can we lose the Holy Spirit?  
ii.	Well, the first thing we must note is the Holy Spirit did exist and work within believers in the OT.  
(1)	He is already at work in just the second verse of the Bible!  
(2)	But in regards to believers, while He was also the one who caused true believers to be born again, just as He does in the NT, he also came and went in special, but very limited, ways to certain people at particular times.  
(A)	There is almost a sense of His ministry being a kind of background and relatively unseen ministry.  

b.	But now, the age of the NT will be defined by the Holy Spirit’s presence in the lives and hearts of believers.  
i.	Once He fills them, they are His!  
ii.	Who they are is then defined by their being born again by the Spirit of Christ.  
iii.	Indeed, what is Christian living but living in the Spirit as Paul says in Galatians!  
(1)	That is why this is such a major moment in biblical history.  The Spirit is now to the fore in a way previously unknown.  

c.	But in this connection, we also need to remember that what happens to these disciples is unique and unrepeatable.  
i.	We must not try and build our doctrine on the sequence of events that happens to them because they lived at an extraordinary time in history – the edge of the OT ad NT.  
(1)	These disciples believed in Jesus; they were already born again.  In addition, Jesus had breathed on them the Holy Spirit after His resurrection.  And here they are filled with the Spirit.  
(2)	But that is not the case with believers after this time.  
(A)	Very soon, what Jesus described to Nicodemus as a moment when the Holy Spirit enters a person to unite them with Jesus will become the norm.  

ii.	So, what is described as being “filled with the Spirit” is also called a baptizing or a pouring out or a receiving of the Spirit elsewhere in Acts in relation to the experience of others.  
(1)	But despite these different terms it is the same thing.  
(A)	God sends His Spirit from heaven to fill the hearts and lives of people enabling them to believe in Jesus Christ.  

d.	And note also to whom this happens.  It happens to “all of them.”  
i.	Again, as we have seen – young, old, male, female, it makes no difference to God’s Spirit.  1 Corinthians 12:13 says, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body-- whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free-- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.”  

e.	So please hear what I am about to say: To insist that ‘Holy Spirit baptism’ is an experience enjoyed by only some after they have been converted, as a kind of second blessing, as some believers in the Pentecostal world do, is not biblical.  
i.	The filling of the Spirit or being baptized in the Spirit is the name used to describe that moment when the Holy Spirit makes His home, as a representative of Jesus, in a believer’s heart.  
(1)	It describes the moment when the believer is joined to Jesus.

3.	Lastly then, and very briefly, note the reaction to Pentecost in v13.  “Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”  
a.	We have read today about one of the major moments in biblical history.  
i.	It led, on that day, to 3000 people putting their faith in Christ.  
ii.	But it also led to some writing off what they saw and heard as evidence of drunkenness.  

b.	And later in Acts, this mocking will turn into a questioning, and then it will become threats, and then imprisonment, and then beating, and then murder and execution.  
i.	You see, it’s not impossible to have no opinion about Jesus Christ.  
(1)	You will either be filled with the Holy Spirit or you will be filled with yourself or anything else but the Holy Spirit.  

ii.	And none of us knows that moment when our life will end.  We cannot put off answering this question.
(1)	So which is it for you?  
(A)	Some of you are not here because you want to be here.  
(B)	Some of you have slept through a good portion of the sermon.  
(C)	Some of you are wishing this sermon would end so that you can go and do what you really want to do.  
(D)	But others know they have heard the truth and desire more and more to live the Spirit-filled life.  

(2)	And it all comes down to one thing – Who is Jesus?  
(A)	Have you given your life to Him?  
(B)	Is He your Lord and Saviour?  
(C)	Do you delight to hear His words?

If so; if Jesus is your Lord and saviour, then you know that the Christian life is not about Thou shalt not do this or that, full stop.  No, the Christian life is what we read in Ephesians – “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God (repeat) … Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.  Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you … live a life of love … Do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.  Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery.  Instead, be filled with the Spirit.  Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”  
This is the lesson of Pentecost.  Amen.