What is God doing? What is God doing in your life today? What is God doing when you have to wait to experience God? What is God doing when you have to wait for prayers to be answered? Could God be making certain that you have nothing more important in your life than God?
God has a history of causing people to wait before something will happen. Consider the question; why did God wait forty-nine days after pulling the Hebrews out of Egyptian bondage before giving them Torah?
In the days following the event when God parted the Red Sea allowing the Hebrews to escape the Egyptian army; the Hebrew children of God were behaving like a town whose team had won the Super Bowl.
Had God given the Ten Words immediately as the emotions of the escape began to ease, so would the passion for being obedient to God’s Word. Since God desires sincere and decided love; God waited before extending His Torah to the Jewish people.
The Jewish communities are now celebrating a two day holiday called Shavuot. Last night and again tonight around the world classes were held all during the night to help the Jewish people to recall the Ten Words of God and the six hundred and thirteen mitzvoth (commandments) that binds their obedient worship of God. By conducting night long study they seek to have the same feeling of unity their ancestors had experiencing that moment of knowing the strong loving presence of God.
Shavuot is a period of remembrance. Among the foods eaten by observing Jews will be dairy products and sweet pastries. This is to signify the difference separating this holy day celebration from others.
Another Jewish holy festival currently being celebrated is Pentecost. Pentecost is a first fruits grain festival that follows Passover by 49 days. It was for the purpose of honoring Pentecost that Jerusalem was so packed with out of town Jews when the disciples experienced the Pentecost we honor today.
Sometimes it happens that Shavuot, Pentecost falls on Memorial Day. This is not a conflict; instead consider it to be a greater calling to remember what God has done. We take time to pause and remember. We remember what God has done pouring out His Spirit upon the disciples of Jesus Christ. We remember the lives of those who have died serving the causes of freedom, liberty and service for our nation.
Jesus called the Spirit one who brings comfort and strength. Through the Spirit we know the truth about God’s presence in our lifetime. Additionally through the spirit we know God’s desire for his people to know peace and love.
What is God doing? What is God doing in your life today and in the life of the Jews who followed Jesus? What is God doing?
What is God doing when God’s Son Jesus is seeing the sorrow in the hearts of his disciples? (John 16:5–6) 5 But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. The news that Jesus is leaving them has them speechless. Why, these followers did not even ask where he was going or why they could not tag along as they had during the public ministry of Jesus. It is hard to understand how things could get better. After all with the presence of Jesus, the blind see the deaf hear, paralytics can walk and lepers are cleansed and demons are cast out. Jesus has fed a crowd of five thousand with five loafs and two fishes. By his command the dead have come back into life.
John 16:7–11 (ESV) 7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
Jesus continues to speak instructions to them. What is this teaching by his saying the spirit would come to convict the world about sin and righteous and judgment. What is God doing? One of the things God is doing with Jesus leaving these Jewish disciples; is to bring them on another day back to remembrance.
John 16:12–15 (ESV)
12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
The guidance of the Holy Spirit is not to originate truth. Instead the works of the spirit is to give reflection to what already exist; the truth of God’s Word. The Spirit does this by giving witness to the soul. This brings your soul into unity with God’s Word. The Jewish community seeks by honoring Shavuot to remember the unity their ancestors enjoyed experiencing by receiving God’s Word. The Christian community honors Pentecost when the disciples of Jesus Christ know by God’s Holy Spirit the Word of God is in unity and is revealed.
Two kingdoms cannot exist side by side. The Kingdom of God is truth and light standing against the kingdom of sin and darkness. It is like seeing the difference between belief and unbelief. The Jewish leaders could not bring themselves into belief that God was honoring his promise to send his messiah in the image of this teacher Jesus Christ. The Jewish leaders needed help remembering. Consider the words of Isaiah.
Isaiah 61:1–3 (Tanakh) The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me; He has sent me as a herald of joy to the humble, To bind up the wounded of heart, To proclaim release to the captives, Liberation to the imprisoned;
2To proclaim a year of the LORD’s favor And a day of vindication by our God; To comfort all who mourn—
3To provide for the mourners in Zion— To give them a turban instead of ashes, The festive ointment instead of mourning, A garment of splendor instead of a drooping spirit. They shall be called terebinths of victory, Planted by the LORD for His glory.
The Spirit of the Lord God proceeds from the Father, sent by the Son, so the Son will in the hearts of believers is glorified. Jesus is promising the disciples they will have the spirit of truth to assist them in their calling. The special office of the Spirit is to reveal and give glory to Jesus Christ. Jesus foresaw in his death, resurrection and ascension the prince of the sinful world fall like lighting.
John 16:16 (ESV) 16 “A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.”
The Spirit reveals the light of God’s Word in the world of sin. When the Spirit ministers to our soul we see the light of remembrance turning on. Fifty days after the Passover that gave evidence to the suffering and death of Jesus the Jewish community was gathering in Jerusalem. The purpose was to observe and celebrate the harvest festival called Pentecost and the remembrance festival called Shavuot.
Acts 2:1–13 (ESV) When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”
What is God doing with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit? God is giving the Jewish believers the resources necessary to remember what God has spoken through the prophets and to believe in Jesus Christ.
Acts 2:37 tells us the Jews were pierced in their hearts. Acts 2:41 confirms on that day three thousand Jews saved their souls in baptism. Acts 2:47 tells about the numbers of souls being saved increasing daily.
What is God doing to save souls? God sent the Holy Spirit and by the revealing of the truth in God’s Word; it was like a light going on. These could see in the darkness the light of what the prophets spoke and recognized Jesus Christ as their Messiah.
What is God doing? What is God doing in your life today? What is God doing? Please repeat after me and let us now share God’s Ten Commandments.
The Ten Commandments
1 You shall have no other gods before Me.
2 You shall not make for yourself a carved image.
3 You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
4 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
5 Honor your father and your mother.
6 You shall not murder.
7 You shall not commit adultery.
8 You shall not steal.
9 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10 You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
