Pentecost And The Foundation Of The Church

Corby Glen 08-06-2025

Introduction

The fifty days between Passover and Pentecost following Jesus’ Crucifixion must have been incredibly strange time for the 11 remaining apostles (Judas having committed suicide) and the other disciples who had not deserted Jesus.

The Jewish inhabitants of Jerusalem had expected Jesus to start an uprising to throw the hated Romans out – along the lines of Judas Maccabeus – who in 167 BC had thrown the Seleucid Kings out of Israel and made Israel an independent Kingdom under the Hasmoneans. In 63 BC Pompey the famous Roman General was asked to support one of two claimants to the Jewish throne - Aristobulus against his brother Hyrcanus. Instead Pompey decided to annex Israel into the Roman Empire and this was the status quo in Jesus' era.

But Jesus had not led an uprising against the Romans.

What shocked the apostles and other disciples profoundly was to see Jesus falsely accused and then crucified.

And so far as the rulers in Jerusalem were concerned THAT SHOULD have been the end of this annoying little Galilean sect

But that wasn’t the end of the story.

Jesus had risen from the dead three days after his Crucifixion.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the only event that the early Church gave for its phenomenal success and growth.

Following His Resurrection, Jesus spent 40 Days with various of his Disciples before he ascended to the Father

We don’t know exactly how many people saw the risen Christ before his Ascension.

However St Paul tells us that the resurrected Jesus was seen by at least 500 brothers and sisters (in 1 Cor 15.6) plus the 11 apostles, Cleopas and his companion on the Road to Emmaus (Lk 24.13-35) and James (the brother of Jesus).

That makes at least 514 – and that doesn’t include the women such as Mary Magdalene

During those 40 days from Jesus’ Resurrection to his Ascension, Jesus gave his Church what is known as the “Great Commission” just before he left this earth.

He told them

“ Go and make disciples of all nations baptising them in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you till the end of the age” (Mt. 28:19 and 20)

But before they were to start evangelising, Jesus gave a very clear but bizarre instruction to the disciples.

In Acts 1. verse 4 we read that Jesus

…gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem,

So I have three questions:

1. The first question is this.

Why were the disciples told to WAIT, rather than to start evangelising right away

i) One reason, I think was that the disciples’ minds were probably still scrambled by the events that had happened.

We see this confusion in Cleopas and his companion – possibly his wife Mary (who is named as one of the three Mary’s at the Cross in Jn 19. 25) - on the Road to Emmaus

It would have been hard for them to think straight as they were still grieving at Jesus' death

ii) But the second more important reason was that they needed to wait for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

When Jesus told them to stay in Jerusalem (before they were to start fulfilling the Great Commission), he gives them his reason

“But you shall receive Power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be my witnessses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1 v.8)

This was the only way the disciples would be able to fulfil the Great Commission.

Bringing people to Christ is a spiritual battle.

It is not simply an intellectual discussion – as you might have if you were discussing politics.

The spiritual battle for people’s hearts can only be won, on the spiritual battlefield – and we need the power of the Holy Spirit to succeed.

It was amazing how much time Jesus’ disciples spent in prayer in Acts 1 and 2.

And the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 occurred during one of these prayer meetings

It must have been very daunting for the disciples, when they first heard the Great Commission - to preach the Gospel to all nations.

But what they also had to learn was that when Jesus asks us to do something – He provides us with the means to do it.

2. My second question is this

WHY did God PICK the feast of Pentecost for the outpouring of His Spirit and the launch of the Christian mission to the world?

Why did Jesus make such a fuss about the timing?

There are a number of reasons but I believe the prime reason is that the actual meaning of the Pentecost will tell us what is going on.