Swanton Novers/Brinton 08-06-03
What can we learn from the Experience of Pentecost?
Introduction:
There are, in my opinion, only three major celebrations in the Church Year.
1. Christmas when we celebrate the Birth of Christ
2. Easter when we celebrate the Death and Resurrection of Christ and
3. Pentecost (or Whitsun - for the Anglicans!!) when we celebrate the birth of the Church as recorded in our reading this morning from the Acts of the Apostles
You might be wondering – how on earth could this spectacular Event - described in Acts 2 - have given birth to the Church?
So what was this event at Pentecost in AD 29 all about?
1. I would like to start by asking the question,
why did the power of God come down on the disciples at Pentecost?
To understand that we need to go to the end of Matthew’s Gospel. Jesus gave his Church what is known as the “Great Commission” just before he left this earth.
He told them “ Go and make disciples of all nations baptising them in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you till the end of the age” (Mt. 28:19 and 20)
The reason for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 was to enable the disciples to fulfil the Great Commission.
Bringing people to Christ is a spiritual battle. It is not simply an intellectual discussion – as you might have if you were discussing politics.
The spiritual battle for people’s hearts can only be won on the spiritual battlefield – and we need the power of the Holy Spirit to succeed.
It must have been very daunting for the disciples, when they first heard the Great Commission. But when Jesus asks us to do something – he provides us with the means.
Having said that, it must have then been bizarre to the disciples that Jesus gave them very clear instructions as when they were to start fulfilling the Great Commission. It wasn’t to be right away.
In Acts 1, Jesus said
“But you shall receive Power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be my witnessses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1 v.8)
2. And so the second question I’d like to pose was why did God wait for Pentecost?
Why did Jesus make such a fuss about the timing?
There are a number of reasons but I believe the prime reason is bopund up with the actual meaning of the Feast. Pentecost itself will explain to us much of what is going on.
Let me go a little into the background.
The Jews had three major festivals in their calender year, which all male Jews wee expected to attend. Passover, Pentecost and the Feast of Tabernacles
Pentecost was the second major festival of the Jewish year – after Passover. Pentecost was a harvest festival - at the beginning of the wheat harvest - when the first fruits of the wheat harvest were presented to God.
When the Power of God came down on the disciples at Pentecost, I believe God was saying that this is the beginning of the spiritual harvest - a harvest which is still going on today almost 2000 years later.
The spiritual harvest is the building of Christ’s church here on earth, of which we are all called to be a part.
From our reading this morning from the Book of Acts, we can see three principles for success in this spiritual harvest.
1. The disciples consulted with and obeyed
Jesus
2. The disciples couldn’t do it in their own
strength. They needed the Power from on
high
3. The disciples earthed their message in God’s
word
1. The first principle for success in the spiritual harvest isconsulting and obeying Jesus
After giving his disciples the Great Commission, Jesus told them to wait.
He didn’t explain to them why – though we can now see why with hindsight.
They were only going to be successful when they received the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
But there is a lesson for us too. The disciples
had to learn simply to trust Jesus’ word.
If we are going to be servants of Christ, we have to learn to trust in WHAT he tells us to do.
Jesus told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem until power from on high comes upon them.
So what did they do? Did they spend their time watching TV. No, they spent their time in prayer – in preparation.
In Acts 1:14 we read:
“They all joined together, constantly in prayer”
They got ready for action.
Prayer is the power-house of the Christian life. If we are despondent with the lack of response in our villages to our churches, we must start with prayer.
Prayer is the preparation for everything that we wish to do in Christ. It puts us in touch with HQ – with our Commander in Chief.
2. The second principle for success in this spiritual harvest is the realisation that we can only do it in the Power of the Holy Spirit
God asks us to be willing – but we don’t have to preach the Gospel in our own strength. The Church isn’t our worry – it’s God’s worry.
Maddy has a wonderful expression when I worry: “Why pray when you can worry!!”
If we are going to do God’s work, we need to do it in HIS strength and not our own.
The Acts 2 experience changed the disciples.
It gave them power and boldness.
And we can see this none more clearly than in the change of St. Peter.
i) Before the Acts 2 Experience
I am sure you all recall how Peter, at Christ’s trial before the Crucifixion, denied Jesus three times before the cock crowed twice. One of these denials was recorded in St. Luke as follows:
Then a maid (of the High Priest) seeing him (Peter) as he sat in the light and gazing at him said "This man was also with Him" But he (Peter) denied it saying "Woman, I do not know Him". (Lk 22:56)
Before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter didn’t have the courage to own up to being a friend of Jesus in front of a maid of the High Priest.
ii) After the Acts 2 Experience
However after the Acts 2 experience we see a transformed St. Peter.
In Acts 4, we see Peter, now proclaiming Jesus in front of the High Priest himself in the Jewish Ruling Council , the Sanhedrin.
After Peter had spoken, St Luke records the effect it had on the Sanhedrin:
Now when they saw the courage of Peter and John and realised that they were unschooled, they were astonished and took note that these men had been with Jesus. But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. (Acts 4: 13-14)
Peter was a changed man as a result of the Pentecost Experience described in Acts 2.
3. The third principle for success in the spiritual harvest is that the disciples earthed their message in the Scriptures
The only Scriptures that St. Peter has was the Old Testament. The New Testament hadn’t been written. Yet Peter was well versed in his Scriptures.
On the Day of Pentecost, he stands up to explain what is going on. He earths the event in Scripture – explaining that this event had been foretold 800 years earlier by one of the minor prophets – Joel.
His quotation from the book of Joel shows that he knew his Bible well.
He was able to earth his experience and the experience of the other believers in Scripture, because he spent time with the Word of God.
Many of our modern-day Sects get away with their false teaching because folk don’t know the Word of God. God has revealed himself in the Scriptures and any genuine Christian experience will be biblically based.
What is happening here Peter says conforms to Scripture. Joel prophesied it.
In conclusion
I find it of great comfort to know that growth in our churches is not my worry. It’s God’s worry.
However, we are called to work for God in the spiritual harvest. In Acts 2 we see three principles for the success of the operation.
1. The first principle is that we need to hear what God is saying to us and obey him. The disciples were told to wait in Acts 1 – and that is what they did. This enabled God to release his power for them.
And it is interesting to note that on the day of Pentecost, 3,000 people were converted. After that they didn’t have any problem with Parish Share!!!!
How did the disciples know the will of God – they spent a lot of time in prayer.
2. The second principle is to ask for power to preach the Gospel. We need to ask for strength and boldness to proclaim Christ – at the right time.
3. The third principle is to know our Scripture well. If we are going to preach the Gospel successfully, we need to be earthed in Scripture.
