HoHum:
James Candlish says of the Old Testament era, "The general bestowal of the spirit as the source of holiness is spoken of as a thing of the future, one of the blessings of the promised reign of God over His people. In the theocracy in Israel, the spirit of God had been given to certain chosen men as leaders and rulers of the nation, but there is no indication that the mass of the nation of Israel was filled with the spirit, in the sense in which the Christian Church after the Pentecostal gift was so"
WBTU:
The Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 was the beginning of a new age, an age that continues to this very day. The significance of Pentecost is that it was the beginning of a new work of the Spirit.
For instances:
Prophecies and Promises of a New Age of the Holy Spirit
OT prophets talked about a new age of the Holy Spirit usually in terms of water being poured out like the Holy Spirit would be poured out in the new age. Don't have time to go over all of these.
The NT really did not begin until Pentecost. Several prophecies that come before Pentecost.
Matthew 3:11: I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
Luke 11:13: If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!
During a water ceremony of the Feast of Tabernacles we find this in John 7:37-39: On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” 39By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Before his ascension Jesus renewed this promise, this time echoing back to the words of John the Baptist: Acts 1:4-5: Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8: But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Transition: Read 2 extended passages of Scripture
Numbers 11:16-17, 24-30
Acts 2:1-41
Pentecostal Miracles
Pentecost was the beginning of the age of “the baptism in the Holy Spirit.” Much disagreement as to the meaning of Pentecost. Some say that the main thing was the miraculous events of Pentecost, and that the new thing was the miraculous power manifested.
Common view even in Restoration Movement, especially as an interpretation of the phrase, “baptism in the Holy Spirit.” Such “baptism in the Spirit” is said to be the empowerment to speak in tongues and to perform other miracles. But these would also limit the fulfillment of this promise to 2 events only: Pentecost and the conversion of Cornelius. Pentecost is the main performance; Cornelius is the one time encore.
The difference between this and the more radical view is that the radical view is that these miraculous gifts are meant for all believers throughout the Christian age.
Another view is that the main point of the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost was not miracles but the indwelling gift and sanctifying presence of the Spirit in believers.
How can we say that the main point of Pentecost is not miracles?
At the time of Pentecost miracles were not a new thing. Miracles were part of the ministries of Moses, Elijah, Elisha, and Daniel in OT times. In Numbers 11 the seventy elders chosen to assist Moses in leading the Israelites were given a miraculous ability: they prophesied. But they did not do it again. Evidently it was miraculous because Joshua was jealous for Moses. Before Pentecost, the apostles themselves were given power to work miracles in Matthew 10.
Miracles did occur on and after Pentecost, but not because of Pentecost. God simply continued to give them as needed, which He had always done. Not special to Christian age.
Why were there miracles on the Day of Pentecost, then?
A miracle is not the main event in any situation. Their main purpose is to point to and confirm a message from God; they function as evidence of the truth of the claims of God’s messengers. This is why there were miracles on Pentecost. They were pointing to Peter and the others so that the message could be delivered. They were given to confirm the truth and the reality of the main event of Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit as an abiding, indwelling presence for the new age.
Must remember that the purpose of the Pentecostal tongues was not to enable the apostles to preach the gospel to the audience. This was not necessary; all spoke Greek, and they probably spoke Aramaic, a close cousin to Hebrew. We know they were able to communicate with one another as seen in Acts 2:5-13.
The tongues were serving as evidence of the truth of the message Peter would preach in vs. 14-40, a message in a common language understood by all. The impact of the tongues was amazement and wonder. The result of the tongues was not faith in Christ, because Peter had not yet preached the gospel. Their purpose and result was simply to confirm the message Peter was about to preach. They had a similar function in the meeting of Cornelius in Acts 10.
We can better understand the role of tongues speaking on Pentecost by comparing it to the account in Numbers 11. By putting the Spirit upon these 70 men, God would bestow upon them the gifts of wisdom and leadership. These were not necessarily miraculous powers. Vs. 25 of Numbers 11 we see that the Spirit was placed upon them to equip them for leadership, they were also given a miraculous power to prophesy. Here we see a clear distinction between the actual giving of the Spirit (to equip for service in the OT), and the miraculous prophesying that served as a sign that the deed was done. The miraculous prophesying had the same purpose as the tongues on Pentecost; it was a one time proof that God was keeping his promise concerning the bestowing of the Holy Spirit. In Numbers 11 it was to show that he was empowering these men with the gift of the Spirit for leadership purposes.
Why should the miraculous manifestations on Pentecost and later with Cornelius be considered the essence of the new age outpouring of the Holy Spirit? These kinds of things were nothing new!
The Real Meaning of Pentecost
Throughout the OT era up to the Day of Pentecost, the Spirit was given to individuals to equip them with skills and abilities as were necessary for service. The Spirit came upon them, but did not dwell within them. This was only an external presence.
What God was promising to give to believers in the new age was the inward presence of the Spirit: the indwelling, life giving, sin killing, soul strengthening gift of the Spirit himself. Ezekiel 36:27 says this: And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Jesus promises that true believers would have the Holy Spirit flowing from within them like rivers of living water as already stated in John 7:38-39.
What then was given to God’s people on Pentecost for the first time? Not miracles, not even the forgiveness of sins, but the indwelling of the Holy Spirit! This was the day when the Spirit was made available to God’s people in this way. This was the fulfillment of the promises made by John the Baptist and by Jesus himself. This was the true pentecostal power: spirit given moral power to be good, to resist sin, and to witness with boldness as talked about in Acts 1:8.
Peter specifically identifies the outpouring of the HS as the promise being fulfilled on that day in vs. 33. When he said in Acts 2:39 about the promise, he was referring to the promised Spirit, as stated at the end of vs. 38, “and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”
Yes, there were miracles on Pentecost as promised by Joel in vs. 16-18, but these were pointing to the real gift of Pentecost- the Holy Spirit himself!
The initial giving of the Spirit was called “the baptism of the Holy Spirit,” and on that occasion it was accompanied by miraculous tongues for evidential purposes. But the giving of the Holy Spirit to every individual believer at baptism is likewise called “the baptism of the Holy Spirit” as seen in 1 Corinthians 12:13: 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. This term does not necessarily have to do with miraculous gifts.
The tongues event (Vs. 1-13) was a sign that something big was about to happen. Peter’s sermon (vs. 14-40) explained what this “something big” actually was: Jesus was keeping his promise to send the Holy Spirit (vs. 23), a promise which was offered to all who would repent and be baptized in Jesus’ name (vs. 38-39).
We must put this in proper perspective. Those who see Pentecost’s main significance as miraculous powers are missing the new thing that was being done. the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It is like someone who receives a beautifully wrapped birthday gift. After carefully removing the velvet ribbon and the expensive paper, the lovely box is opened to reveal the keys to a fancy new Mercedes automobile! But then this confused person tosses aside the keys with a “That’s nice.” then turns and goes back to the wrapping in which they came. “Wow! What a beautiful box! What wonderful ribbon! What gorgeous wrapping! I love it! I’m going to keep this ribbon and box and paper forever!” We must be careful not to confuse the Pentecostal gift with the wrappings in which it came.
