TITLE: HEAVEN HAS ITS OWN SOUND
SCRIPTURE: ACTS 2:1-4
What an exciting event found in the opening pages of Luke’s account in this power packed Book of Acts. Place yourself in the narrative if you can.
• It is a dramatic scene
• The Apostles are gathered together in one place
• The Apostles were together
• When we come together, especially as leaders, we can accomplish much in the kingdom of God
• If we put down our Personal Agenda’s
• If we remove ourselves from the Equation
• Learn how to come together where Jesus is the only focus
• That is the key to ensuring the Lord will show up
After Jesus ascended, the disciples returned from Mount Olivet to Jerusalem and went to the Upper Room where some of them were staying.
• These disciples, along with others, were continually devoting themselves to prayer
• They were in an upper room praying with one accord
I can imagine Peter – James - John and the rest sitting there on what we now term the Day of Pentecost pondering Jesus' Death - Resurrection - Ascension, but still happy and self-satisfied to be continuing in the old ways of Judaism, not wanting to move too fast. Then, in the midst of their comfort, comes a mighty Wind - a Violent Wind, they did not feel this tremendous Wind but only heard the sound.
• The Sound of the Holy Spirit
• This Holy Spirit shakes them up in ways they never could have imagined
• And the Holy Spirit does this immediately
• There is no Waiting
• There is no Tarrying
AND SUDDENLY FROM HEAVEN THERE IS A SOUND “LIKE THE RUSH OF A MIGHTY WIND.”
• It does not start as a Whisper
• Or as a Gentle Breeze
• It is not Gradual
• Scripture says “Suddenly”
The Hebrew word for Spirit is ‘RUAH’ - translates to wind or breath. In Pentecost the Ruah of God exploded into reality, filling the room with the sound of a hurricane. It is possible the Apostles, upon hearing the sound of this most powerful wind, immediately associated this with the Spirit, but—ready or not—there must have been a certain amount of terror.
So, Luke does not say there was a wind, but that there was a noise that sounded like a violent or mighty rushing wind. Can I tell you this morning that – Heaven Has Its Own Sound.
• A violent or mighty wind creates a huge sound
• Luke uses a Simile to describe what happened
• A "noise like a violent rushing wind" filled the house
The wind, as a figure of speech, can have several meanings.
• We could say that the wind represents the Spirit Himself
• However, we might say also that the wind represents the presence of God
• The sound of the wind rushing signaled that God was present
In addition, the wind can be a symbol of the Spirit's power.
• There was a sound of a powerful wind
• Putting all this together, the sound of the rushing violent wind reminds us of the Spirit manifesting Himself in Power
The noise was real. It was like a mighty wind. Sometimes God manifests Himself in unusual ways.
• He makes Himself known to us in unmistakable ways
• Very often this will be in a time of worship
• We as believers sense the presence of God among us and feel that we are standing on Holy Ground
This text of Pentecost is there for a reason.
• God wants us to know that He is with us
• That His presence in our lives is not a small portion
• It is His fullness
• His awe-inspiring, world-shattering fullness
• His presence is not a Little Light In Us
• I know we like to sing – This Little Light of Mine, I’m Going to Let It Shine
• That’s what is wrong with our Service to the Lord Today
• We have reduced the Holy Spirit – the Presence of God to a little, minute thing
• Heaven Has Its Own Sound
• It is not a little Sound but an over-powering sound that illuminates brightly in us
• And takes control of every area of our lives
The challenge for the Modern Christian is this --
• Do I believe this same, terrifying, powerful Spirit still resides in the Church?
• Do I believe this Spirit resides in me?
• Will I allow the Spirit Lordship in my life so that I can encounter and experience awe?
• Will I invite God to be dangerous and uncontrollable in my life?
The Holy Spirit is God.
• He cannot pretend to be anything else
• Unless we will give the Lord permission to be who He is, Lord of our lives
• Pentecost will be just a wonderful story found in the Bible
• When we give Him permission, it becomes our reality
• We begin to hear a different sound around us
• HEAVEN HAS ITS OWN SOUND
I have been in Oklahoma for almost 24 years now. The majority of you that are here this morning have grown up in Oklahoma and are therefore well aware of the power of the wind.
• If Atmospheric conditions were right, we hear the city sirens begin to blare
• Warning everyone to run for cover because severe winds or a tornado is imminent
• When you are from Oklahoma or have lived here for any amount of time, we understand the amount of damage straight line winds or tornadoes can cause
At the sound of those sirens, it is a warning to us to Seek Shelter.
• The fact that the wind could not be seen but could be felt
• And the added fact that it is so unpredictable
• Makes many want to stay on the porch and feel the wind in action
• I am not one of those people
We are all aware of the potentially destructive power of wind. But if properly harnessed, wind can also bring tremendous benefits. Think how much it would impact the world if there were no wind --
• The earth would be stagnant, stinking from pollution and from the normal decaying process that is occurring on the planet
• Just think how essential wind has been to the very development of civilization
• For example, if there were no winds, exploration never would have occurred
• Consider the great ships of the past that had no mechanical or nuclear energy to drive them
• Yet they glided across oceans with ease as their great sails caught the winds
• The world was explored and conquered by men who “set sail” and traveled the globe
• Fueled by the force of the wind
In fact, if no wind were blowing, there would be no movement.
• Windmill blades would never turn
• The production of materials would be slowed and diminished
• Wind is essential for progress to be made
• Without wind, we would be hundreds of years behind where we presently are in history
• Wind cannot be seen, but its effects can be felt and heard
• Just like the Holy Spirit
• We cannot see Him
• But we can feel the effects of His Presence and His Power
It is interesting to me that Luke compared this sound from Heaven to a “Rushing, Mighty Wind.” The word “Rushing” was translated from the Greek word PHEROMONES, the present-passive participle of PHERO, which means to be carried- borne- or driven and agrees with the idea of something borne or driven downward very loudly.
• When this sound from Heaven came, it was loud
• So loud that the writer used the word “Rushing” to describe what Jesus’ disciples heard that day in the room where they gathered
Furthermore, the Greek text also uses the word BIAIAS for “Mighty,” a word that could be better translated as violent.
• Hence, this “sound” thundered like the roaring of a sea or a mighty wind that swept downward very loudly and violently
When the wind of the Spirit blows upon a near-dead church, it can blow life back into that congregation again. When all of our organizing is done and is nearly perfect, yet we still lack Power, it is the wind of the Holy Spirit that can blow strongly upon us and cause a vision or organization to come alive with the life of God.
If you are someone who desires a “Quiet” relationship with God, I must warn you that when the Holy Spirit’s wind blows, it is rarely a quiet affair. It seems like every Sunday we at FBC begin louder and louder in our Praise. That is not by accident.
• The movement of the Holy Spirit is usually noisy and attention-attracting
• Or as we’ve seen, it’s a powerful force that sweeps downward from Heaven like the roaring of the sea
• Heaven Has Its Own Sound
Wind is a good word to describe the Power of the Holy Spirit. Change happens when winds blow — and when the Holy Spirit moves, He brings change like wind.
• Energy is produced by wind
• And when the Holy Spirit moves in this manner, He supplies Supernatural Energy
• He empowers us to do what we could not naturally do on our own
• Oh, how we need the supernatural wind of the Holy Spirit!
Let me make sure you get this - THE "SOUND CAME FROM HEAVEN." That started things. It was a sound as of a mighty rushing wind. Everyone who was in the room was affected by it.
• Many of the sounds we hear, like the springtime songs of birds, delight us
• The sounds of nature often soothe us
• The waves of the Ocean Calm us
• The Rain beating against the window Relaxes us
But other sounds we hear are created by man.
• We have locomotives whistling and rattling as they rumble along
• The sound of a jet plane passing overhead
• There are sounds of human voices
• There are the world's alluring and enticing voices
• But over it all there comes a sound from heaven that means so much to the children of God
Let me try to tie all this together for us this morning. You will remember that when Jesus was baptized there was a sound from heaven, a voice saying, "THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, IN WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED."
• Before His baptism He had not yet preached a sermon
• Nor had He healed any sick, as far as we know
• The only indicating record we have of Him is that He was a carpenter's son
• A carpenter pleasing God
On another oc¬casion, He addressed the Father and asked that the Father glorify His name. A sound came saying, "I HAVE BOTH GLORIFIED IT, AND WILL GLORIFY IT AGAIN."
• It was God's voice
• But not all ears were attuned to understand it
• Some said that it had thundered
• Others said an angel had spoken
• It was a strange sound to them
• Because HEAVEN HAS ITS OWN SOUND
There are many other sounds to which the Bible refers. The Philistines were com¬ing out against the Israelites. David mar¬shaled Israel's armies against the enemy. The Lord said, "THOU SHALT NOT GO UP; BUT FETCH A COMPASS BEHIND THEM."
Listen to what God says to King David. Don’t go fight yet, but – “WHEN YOU HEAR THE "SOUND OF A GOING IN THE TOPS OF THE MUL¬BERRY TREES," then bestir yourselves and go into battle. When you see the tops of the Mulberry Trees begin to move because of the wind, then I will give you the battle. Can you imagine what that must have sounded like?
--Moses and the Jewish people were faced with the ‘Red Sea’ in front of them and Pharaoh’s army approaching behind them when God send a STRONG EAST WIND to blow all night long to divide the Red Sea and dry the ground.
--Can you imagine what that must have sounded like all night long?
--God created man and he was lifeless until God breathed the breath of life into man’s nostrils
--Can you imagine what that must have sounded like?
--Yes, Heaven Has Its Own Sound
--Moses stood on the back side of the Median Desert and saw a Bush on Fire but not being consumed
--Can you only imagine what that must have sounded like as the bush was fully engulfed in fire but was still green and plush – not burning at all
--Heaven Has Its Own Sound
--May it always make the impression intended
--There is a danger —the danger that human devising may take the place of God's plans, that human noises shall drown out the sound from heaven
--Let us stay attuned to the sound of Heaven
--When God has entered our midst
--When the Presence of God begins to fill this place
