Pentecost

We celebrate today Pentecost, It is a celebration in the life of the Church today but how sad it is that as we come here to celebrate, most of the world outside has so little idea what it is all about.

It’s a celebration; we believe this to be the birth of the Christian Church, as we know it.

Some 800 years before the birth of Jesus Joel prophesied, and what did he prophesy, if we were to read the whole book his prophecies become apparent prophesies of Gods judgements, blessings and in these he moves people to repentance. He prophesied of end times and many feel that at Pentecost and beyond we have indeed entered those times.

I said before about a feeling of sadness, how sad we get so little response from the outside world, how sad that in these millennium years many have still to hear about Jesus and what he did and indeed still does for them. How few have accepted him for the Lord and saviour that he is.

Much we have you and I today to celebrate, we have this event we call Pentecost, it was a celebration the end of the harvest 50 days after the Passover celebrations, known as the feast of the harvest and days of the first fruits, but the descending of the Holy Spirit was to transform this Jewish festival into a Christian Anniversary indeed out of it was to come the birth of the Christian church of today.

I want to tell you this event was born of a promise see Luke ch 24 v 49 “ Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until ye be endued with the power from on high ” Oh it was a command alright and it was from the highest source, but it was a promise and that promise was wait where I tell you and you will receive. And receive they did the power and authority of the Holy Spirit.

Sometimes in the life of the church today we can get to thinking that were givers you and me, always giving of our time, skills and money but you know we are receivers a million times over aren’t we? Wait and give was the message? No wait and receive was Gods message, wait for the power to do the work he has for you, you can’t go it alone, stand not in your own strength for the flesh is weak, but stand in Gods strength. The work is Gods work whatever he calls you and I to and he will equip us accordingly, what we will in due course receive is our Heavenly reward, fellowship eternal with God, we can’t earn it but it’s Gods gift to us who call upon his name accept him as Lord and Saviour and do his will accordingly.

Gods timing was perfect it always is, not like ours, we want to work how we see fit and at the pace we set but God knows the whole picture so to speak and his timing is perfect.

The people had gathered for the festival and it was all for maximum affect that the Lord chose this time to fulfil prophecy, and this was indeed Gods prophecy, we read, there was dwelling at Jerusalem Jews devout men out of every nation under Heaven. They may well have come for the festival but our Lord had something else something far more spectacular for these people. This day they were to become the first fruits, members of a new Church, Gods Church, the Church of Jesus the Messiah.

There was a new message for a new people, it would be heard in every language and by every people. They were to speak it as the Holy Spirit gave them utterance, the wonderful life saving, life changing works of Jesus, his promises eternal given to all men, spoken to all men in language they could understand, by Gods chosen people for all Gods people everywhere.

Say brother do you ever feel that the preacher talks above your head? Do you ever feel that the message of the Gospel isn’t put to you so that you can understand? Do you ever struggle in your mind for understanding with something that you heard preached, I do and you know often that’s the world getting in where it shouldn’t because scripture leads me to believe that from this day that Gospel was spoken In everyman’s language. That Gospel message is as much for you as it is for the learned Bible scholar. You pray about it and the Lord will bring you understanding that the greatest scholar could never find with all his ability, when the Lord has something for you he gives it you unreservedly, just as he does his Grace day by day, isn’t that so. I once claimed that in conversation with my father, I still believe that to be true you know but he did correct me when he said, but the Lord will expect you to do your bit, that’s certainly worth thinking about too isn’t it?