A Tour Through Acts ~ part 2
Inadequacy Encountering Sufficiency
Acts 2:1-4, 14
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:1-4)
As the apostles’ heads were bowed in prayer, a breeze began to move across them, and then it was more than a breeze. It was literally, “an echoing sound as of a mighty wind borne violently” roared through the house like the whirr of a tornado, so that their robes flapped wildly. The Spirit of God was coming upon them! A fiery presence was in their midst, and it suddenly divided into separate flame-like tongues that individually danced over the heads of those present. Fire had always meant the presence of God. Through John the Baptist, God had promised a baptism with fire (Matthew 3:11), and now it was here. They were “filled with the Holy Spirit” and in an electrifying instant began to speak in other languages—literally, “as the Spirit continued giving them to speak out in a clear, loud voice.” They spoke as clearly and powerfully as the Old Testament prophets.
This event may seem mysterious, with its “wind,” “fire,” and supernatural utterance. It has a primal ring like the Greeks’ earth, fire, wind, and water. But in the Jewish context the phenomenon was perfectly understandable. The Hebrew word for “wind,” ruah, and the Greek word pneuma are both used for the Holy Spirit. Ezekiel used ruah to describe the Spirit of God moving over a valley of dry bones representing a spiritually dead Jewish nation, so that suddenly there was thunder and the clattering of bones as they came together “bone to bone.” Then came the wonderfully macabre spectacle of growing sinews and flesh, and finally skin, and then Ezekiel’s words at God’s command:
9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’ ” 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. (Ezekiel 37:9–10)
At Pentecost, the reviving winds of the Spirit came upon the apostles with incredible spiritual life and power. In a future day this will achieve final fulfillment in the Messianic Age. The apostles now had God’s life-giving Spirit in a more intimate and powerful way than anyone had ever known.
First “wind,” then “fire.” Fire is a symbol of God’s presence throughout the Bible, beginning with Moses and the burning bush (Exodus 3:2–4) and continuing with the consuming fire on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:17). The fire at Pentecost indicated God’s presence, just as its resting on Israel demonstrated a corporate unity. However, a new significance came when the fire divided into flames dancing over the individual apostles. The Spirit now rests upon each believer individually. The emphasis from Pentecost onwards is on the personal relationship of God to the believer through the Holy Spirit. The inner pillar of fire burns away our dross, flames forth from our inner being, and brings to us a sense of God’s presence and power. The fire of God!
First “wind,” then “fire,” then divinely empowered utterance. In the Old Testament, inspired speech was regularly associated with the Spirit’s coming upon God’s servants, as in the case of Eldad and Medad (Numbers 11:26–29) and of Saul (1 Samuel 10:6–12). Pentecost was the day par excellence of such speech. To the observant Jew, it was easy to see that the Holy Spirit had come. When he comes to God’s people, he brings wind, fire, and utterance.
How did the apostles feel when the heavens began to roar so loudly that the sound attracted a vast multitude from all corners of Jerusalem? Surely there was some surprise in the Upper Room. What was it like when the flames began flashing over their heads and they began speaking languages they did not know? Some began to speak in perfect Latin, others in other languages and dialects. The burning expectancy of the last fifty days, the persistent emptiness, was suddenly fulfilled. What did they feel in relation to God and to one another? We get some idea from Ephesians 5:18–21, where Paul carefully explains the experience by first counseling the Ephesians to be filled and then explains what this means in four subordinate participles.
Really, a sense of our own inadequacy is a gift. To recognize that we have a need may be the first step in seeing that need met. Feeling our own inability or insufficiency may seem like a negative thing, when in fact it may be quite the opposite.
There is a notion in our contemporary culture that recognizing our inability or insufficiency is somehow contrary to the principles of success. Self-confidence and high-powered, aggressive personalities seem to be what takes the day. The truth is, most of us simply do not live there. Oh, we might put on a facade in order to appear confident and assertive, but if the truth be known, many times we feel just the opposite. In the wisdom of the great purveyors of television commercial truth we hear the maxim, "Never let ‘em see you sweat." But, in reality, we do sweat like frogs trapped in the sauna. We are worried about the future. In fact, we are worried about the present; trying to balance job and family; trying to be good parents and providers, good role models, good wives and husbands. Sometimes it is tough. Oftentimes it’s tough. And many times we feel totally inadequate.
Imagine how the apostles felt in the days preceding Pentecost. For several years they had really been living. They were following one of the most exciting figures of history. Daily they were experiencing the miraculous. They were listening to the most insightful teacher of truth who had ever appeared on the face of history. It was indeed a time for high adventure. But they had recently experienced His crucifixion. What a sense of despair and defeat that must have been! But He had risen from the dead and appeared to them. What an exhilarating experience that had been! But now He had left them. He had challenged them with what we know of as the Great Commission, but then He had told them to go to Jerusalem and to wait. I’m sure they didn’t quite understand what that meant. But they were waiting. I’m sure as they waited, one terrible truth closed in upon them. HE WAS GONE! This powerful figure around whom their lives had been built for so long was now gone and they were alone. Certainly they had themselves, but it wasn’t the same without Jesus. What must they have felt?
I’m sure they must have asked a lot of questions, and had some heated debate, "What would it be like now? Who among them could ever fill His shoes? How could they ever fulfill His Great Commission? Was it all a dream? Was it now over? Questions — many questions, but no answers. Whatever else they thought or felt, they must have felt empty. Jesus was gone and they were empty.
This sense of emptiness is shared by many today. Even many Christians feel empty. There is something missing in their lives; something they can’t quite put their finger on. But they recognize a real need. They feel the need for power in their own personal lives. They feel the need for a sense of adequacy.
I’m sure all of the apostles felt that need, and especially one. Peter is an example of the spiritual pilgrimage of many Christians. He went through what many of us have gone through or are going through. Perhaps as we focus on what happened to Peter we will see the principles behind the power which changed his life and can impact ours.
Facing Inadequacy
Facing our inadequacy doesn’t sound like an exciting thing to do, but in many ways it’s the first step to a fulfilled life. It was for Peter. He needed it desperately. And it can be a first step for us as we face our inadequacy in the grace of God.
Peter is a wonderful picture of a regular guy. He is a most appealing character. He was just an ordinary guy. There was nothing extraordinary about his life. He was a working stiff like the rest of us, just a fisherman. He and his father and brothers had a fishing business. Every day they went to work. Every day they faced the pressures of the marketplace. He wasn’t overly educated. He didn’t belong to the elite social class. He was just like you and me.
When Jesus called him, he responded. He didn’t really know what that meant. He wasn’t aware of all the implications of following Jesus, just as we are not when we come to Him. But the desire was there. He wanted to follow his Lord. And, in many ways, he felt like he could follow him well. Peter was an impulsive kind of guy. He was fairly confident in his own abilities and many times he bit off more than he could chew. He had many a lesson to learn, one of the most important was that Peter couldn’t do it on his own.
Peter had to come face to face with his own inadequacy just as we must. This was going to be essential for his future spiritual growth. We find the account in Mark 14:66-72. The situation is that Jesus has been arrested. Peter follows from a distance. He is interested to see what will happen to Jesus. Peter thinks he is one of the most faithful followers, and perhaps he is. But he is about to come face to face with his own inadequacy.
While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came by. When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him. "You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus," she said. But he denied it. "I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about," he said, and went out into the entryway. When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, "This fellow is one of them." Again he denied it. After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, "Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean." He began to call down curses on himself, and he swore to them, "I don’t know this man you’re talking about." Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows twice you will disown me three times." And he broke down and wept. (Mark 14:66-72)
Peter was headstrong and he thought he would never deny his Lord. Now he had. In fact, he had denied him three times. He didn’t even have the courage to stand up before a servant girl and confess his faith in Christ. He wasn’t willing to identify himself with the Savior. How could he do such a thing? I’m sure he was filled with frustration, a deep sense of failure. Disappointment was probably too weak a word. Total discouragement is far better; perhaps even despair. I’m sure these are all emotions Peter must have felt. His heart must have ached. The Scripture says that he wept bitterly.
Peter had come face to face with the reality of his own inadequacy. The irony was that he truly did not want to deny his Lord. Yet, as Jesus had said only a few short hours before, "The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak." He did not want to deny his Lord, yet he had. "Oh, God, how could I have done such a thing? I said I would never deny you and I have done the very thing I said I would never do! What’s the matter with me? Oh, God, I’m a failure."
Have you ever felt that way? I’m sure you have. It’s common to all of us. In our jobs, or at home, many times we come face to face with our own inadequacy and failure. It’s not encouraging. Additionally, we all feel a deep sense of frustration at times at our efforts to follow Jesus Christ. You could call it the frustration index. The frustration index is the amount of tension we feel at the gap between what we know to do and our performance of it. The thing is that we know to do far more than we do. Our level of spiritual knowledge may be high, while our level of performance is much lower. There is a tension created, a sense of frustration felt when we recognize that we are not living up to our own understanding of what God expects of us. And sometimes we must come face to face with our own inadequacy. Peter did, and so must we. It may be the very thing we need. I believe that facing our own inadequacy is good for us. I believe it prepares us for God’s work in our lives.
God can only fill an empty vessel. There is a real sense in which that is true. What we may need is to come to a place of emptying in our own lives. We may need to come to a place of brokenness. That may be the very thing we need to give us the right perspective on our lives. The perspective we need in order for God to begin His work in us. That may be the preparation for our personal Pentecost. It was for the apostles and for Peter. It can be for us.
Encountering Sufficiency
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:1-4)
It is when we face our inadequacy will we come to a place of encountering His sufficiency. That is what Pentecost was. Pentecost was an encounter with God. This is its real significance. We don’t want to miss that in the details of the day. The real significance of Pentecost is not the rushing, mighty wind or the visible tongues of fire, or even the fact that they spoke in many other languages. The real significance of Pentecost was an encounter with God. God moved in. By His Spirit, God took over. They were filled with God’s Spirit and clothed with power. Pentecost means that God is in charge.
What happened at Pentecost was a transforming event. Like the caterpillar when it spins its cocoon and then waits there while an inner work of transformation takes place, so the disciples were waiting as God did His unseen work in their hearts to prepare them for that day. Then as the caterpillar emerges, something wonderful has happened. He is no longer a caterpillar, but a beautiful butterfly. His life has been changed. He has been transformed. On the day of Pentecost, God came down in power and changed the lives of a multitude. Like the butterfly, they would never be the same again. They didn’t even act the same. They were intoxicated by the Spirit. They were doing strange things. They weren’t acting like normal people. Some accused them of being drunk, and they were. They were drunk with the Spirit of God. They were overwhelmed because God had taken over.
That’s precisely what we need today. That is what this church needs today. As we see our insufficiency, our inadequacy, and as we encounter His sufficiency, we understand the dynamic of how to live. Pentecost was an encounter with the sufficiency of God. They had been emptied only to be filled. It finally had clicked; it all made sense now. They understood how to live above the level of their inadequacy. They must learn to depend upon His sufficiency. They must learn to live in His power. And that is what we need today. We need our own personal Pentecost because, as we encounter God, we will find the power to live our lives.
Living Dynamically
Facing our inadequacy not only brings us to a place of encountering His sufficiency, but both taken together, produce an ability for living dynamically. Notice what happened to Peter.
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say." (Acts 2:14)
Something has changed! This is a different Peter. A few days prior to this, he could not even admit before a servant girl around a campfire that he knew Jesus. He had acted like a coward. And now, with multiplied thousands gathered together, he dares to stand up and command the attention of the entire multitude? This is a different Peter! Something has happened. What has happened to the man?
Pentecost had happened. Encountering God’s power had happened. Being filled with the Spirit had happened. A transformation had happened. Peter appears different because he is different. Indeed, something has happened to the man. He is now operating, not in his own ability, but in God’s sufficiency. He is moving by the power of God. God is in charge now. The Spirit is in control, and this is precisely what makes for dynamic living. It is living in the power, the "dúnamis" of God.
Peter’s cowardice had been turned into confidence. But his confidence now was in God. He began to understand what Paul would later write, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." And this was a result of encountering the very presence of God. In chapter 4 of Acts, Peter and John are before the religious leaders and it is said of them in verse 13, "When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus." Encountering the presence of Jesus Christ is what will give us confidence. It is the confidence of knowing that He indwells us by His Spirit, that He empowers us by His Spirit, that He lives in us and through us by His Spirit.
Indeed, it was a life-changing experience for all. On Pentecost, 3,000 came to know the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Church was born in Jerusalem. It was a dynamic Church, filled with dynamic people who were living out their Christianity in the midst of a secular society. This is the picture of a living, dynamic fellowship of believers who are empowered by the Holy Spirit of God. These are people who have seen their own inadequacy. They have encountered the sufficiency of God. And because they have been filled with His Spirit, they are now empowered to live dynamically changed lives in the midst of a society which runs counter to the principles of God’s Word. It is a Church made up of ordinary people, living extraordinary lives by the power of the Spirit.
Have you come face to face with your inadequacy? Perhaps you have. Maybe you even feel it keenly today. Don’t despair — there is hope. It may be just the place God has brought you to. He may be bringing you to the point where you can be filled with His grace and love and power. God fills empty vessels. If you sense your inadequacy today, come to Him and allow Him to fill you up with Himself. As you encounter His sufficiency, you will be empowered to live dynamically. You will experience the power of God.
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