The Day of Pentecost
Series: Book of Acts #9
Acts 2:1-14[1]
Intro
Show text from “The Visual Bible: Acts Volume I”
In our study of Acts, the Day of Pentecost has come. The Promise that Jesus had told His followers to prayerfully wait for has arrived.
I. notice with me the perfect Timing of the Spirit.
Pentecost was one of the three Jewish festivals in which individuals were to journey to Jerusalem and appear before the Lord at the temple with their gifts and offerings.[2] What we read about in Acts 2 occurs when the city is filled with people who will witness the outpouring of the Spirit. On that day 3000 will be saved and be filled with the Spirit and then return as witnesses throughout the Roman world. God’s timing is always perfect. Surely some of the 120 wondered why it was necessary to wait in Jerusalem. Jesus didn’t explain to them all the whys and wherefores. He simply told them what to do and they did it and it worked. Has God told you something to do without filling you in on all the whys and wherefores? “The just shall live by faith.”[3] Sometimes we have to simply trust His guidance and see what happens.
Acts 2:1 says, “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.” We’re not told specifically whether they were still in the upper room or not. We know that at some point they are in the temple court where Peter preached his sermon. It was also their custom to attend the morning and evening prayer times at the temple.[4] So they may have been in the temple court when the Spirit was poured out or they may have been in the upper room and came out to the temple court.
The important thing is this: the day they had been waiting for came! And when it came they were ready. They were all there together in one place doing exactly what Jesus had told them to do. The times and seasons that God has designed for the world and even for our own personal lives are in His hands. He has wisely and sovereignty planned the steps of our lives.[5] Our part is to simply trust and obey. Are you doing that? If you are, good things are about to happen in your life because you serve a very good God.
Pentecost is from the Greek word meaning 50th. It is referring to the 50th day after the Passover. The Passover was sacrificed on the 14th day of the first month of the year (Abib). The third day following that sacrifice a sheaf of barley harvest was offered to God. That sheaf was the firstfruits of the harvest. When Jesus rose the third day after His crucifixion 1Cor. 15:20 tells us He was the firstfruits of the resurrection. Seven weeks later they offered God two loaves of wheat bread which represented the gathering of the final harvest.[6] That was the Day of Pentecost which was on a Sunday. Lev 23:15-17 "’From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. 16 Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the LORD. 17 From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the LORD.”
Why is all that important? Because the typology teaches us that Pentecost is about the harvest. Jesus established the connection in 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." Any time the church loses sight of that connection she gets into trouble. The Holy Spirit is poured out on the Day of Pentecost for the harvest of souls. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a witness. That’s the express purpose of the baptism in the Holy Spirit.
II. The Manifestation of the Spirit is described in the next few verses—three supernatural signs were given.
1st was the sound of violent wind. Acts 2:2 “Suddenly”—God can intervene at any moment He chooses. Your world can look one way at one moment and completely different the next. All you need is for God to show up in power. The walls of Jericho looked exactly the same after Israel had obediently circled them thirteen times. But when everything was in place and everything God told them to do was done—“suddenly” the walls fell. Never forget the possibility of a “suddenly” from God in your life.
“Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heave and filled the whole house where they were sitting.” Understand it was not an actual wind. It was a supernatural sound—not the sound of a gentle breeze but the sound of a violent wind. (Like the roar of the stormy sea[7] or of a tornado.) People often report that a tornado sounds like a freight train. That is something like what they heard. It got people’s attention. When God wanted to get Job’s attention He did something similar. Job 38:1 says God answered Job out of a whirlwind. Elijah was taken into heaven in a whirlwind. And of course, wind is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. Jesus indicated that when He said to Nicodemus in John 3:8 “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
Acts 2:3 “They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.”
2. What seemed to be tongues of fire. Again, this was not actual fire. It was a manifestation of the glory of God. They saw something that looked like a mass of flames appears over the whole group. Then it broke up and a single tongue that looked like a flame of fire settled on the head of each one of them.[8] The symbolism suggests that they were not only empowered as a group but as individuals as well.[9] One thing we know about fire is this—you can take one flame and start a forest fire with it. Phillip got on fire for God and went to Samaria and got the whole city on fire. Fire will spread. Each one is empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a witness.
Fire is a common evidence of God’s presence in the OT. God met with Moses at the burning bush. He led Israel with a pillar of fire. Elijah went to heaven with a chariot of fire. There were manifestations of fire at Mt. Sinai when the law was given.[10] Listen to the description of what it was like when the law was given at Mt. Sinai, Ex 19:17-19, “Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently, 19 and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.” At Sinai God was signifying that something very important was taking place. On the Day of Pentecost these signs of fire and wind were doing the same thing. They were powerful attention getters.
Remember what God commissioned the nation of Israel to do? In Exodus 19:6 God said they were to be a kingdom of priests. They were to represent God to the nations. They were to tell the world about the one true living God. But Israel did not fulfill that calling. Rather than evangelizing the world they became proud, self-righteous and exclusive. They put on their Pharisaical robes and called everyone else a Gentile dog.[11] They are an example of what the church must not do. Pentecost is empowerment for evangelism. It is not a badge of spirituality or an ID card for an exclusive religious group. When God blessed Abraham He blessed him so that he could be a blessing to all nations.[12] That continues to be God’s heart toward the lost.
3. The third sign was speaking in other tongues.
Acts 2:4 “All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
The fact that all of them were filled with the Spirit is significant. In the Old Testament the Spirit of God came upon leaders to enable them to fulfill an office. Elisha received a double portion of the Spirit from Elijah. Aaron was anointed by the Spirit for his priestly duties. David was anointed by the Spirit as king. In the past special people have received the Spirit but now all are receiving. In fact, Peter brings this out in his sermon.
Quoting Joel 2 he says in Acts 2:17-18 “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.” Regardless of age, regardless of social status God promises in these last days to pour out His Spirit upon them. Toward the end of this sermon he talks about receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit and says, Acts 2:39, “The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off-for all whom the Lord our God will call." The promise of the Holy Spirit baptism is not just for that generation but for their children and for generations to come.[13]
In Numbers 11 were have a preview of Pentecost. God takes the Spirit that is on Moses and distributes the anointing on 70 elders. The way they knew that God had done this was the prophetic utterance that happened when the Spirit came upon them. It was much more limited than the Acts 2 experience because they only prophecies one time and never did it again. There were two men who had not come down to the tent with the others and the Spirit came upon them and they also prophesied. Joshua was concerned and asked Moses to stop them. Does anyone remember Moses’ replay? It was a powerful reflection of the heart of God and an anticipation of what would happen on the Day of Pentecost. Here is Moses’ reply. Num 11:29 “But Moses replied, "Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the LORD’s people were prophets and that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!" That’s exactly what’s happening here on the Day of Pentecost.
Significantly, God is anointing all His people. They are becoming a prophetic community. The whole church is to be charismatic. The church is to be a prophetic community that proclaims the good news of Jesus Christ to the world.[14] Tongues of fire are symbolic of the passionate, zealous witness that God’s people are to give to the world.
It is interesting that the two signs of wind and fire are not repeated again in Acts.[15] But the prophetic sign of tongues is repeated over and over again. Luke shows tongues as an ongoing sign of being filled with the Spirit.[16]
As the 120 spoke in tongues, those listening heard their own native tongue. God was giving them a sign. Some people think that on the Day of Pentecost tongues were given to preach the gospel. But Peter does that later and he doesn’t do it in tongues.[17] Acts 2:11 tells us what they were saying. They were declaring the “wonderful works of God.” They were actually worshipping God for His mighty works and the tongues that the Holy Spirit gave them on this occasion matched the native languages of the people in the crowd. We have heard powerful testimonies of this happening in modern times.[18] When a person speaks in tongues it is not always a language that could be understood by someone. In fact, Paul even mentions tongues of angels in 1Cor. 13. This is the only time we are told that the tongues God gave corresponded to languages the crowd knew. In most instances in Acts when people spoke in tongues they knew it was tongues but they did not understand what they were saying.
Notice that Peter identifies tongues as a prophetic utterance.[19] In Acts 2:16-18 he explains what is happening and in the explanation he quotes Joel’s words saying that they would prophesy. Speaking in tongues is a prophetic utterance. And prophetic utterance is an indication that the Spirit has come upon a person.
It is very significant that when Peter explains what is happening on the Day of Pentecost he does not appeal to Isaiah or Ezekiel but to Joel. Why is that significant? Because Isaiah and Ezekiel are announcing the inward renewal of the Spirit which is what Paul emphasizes in his epistles. But Luke is emphasizing the restoration of the prophetic activity of the Holy Spirit and supernatural empowerment. Therefore the focus is not a new heart that comes at conversion but dreams, visions, and prophecy which are supernatural manifestations of the Spirit.[20]
III. Now look with me at the Reaction to the Spirit by the crowd.
In Acts 2:5 Luke uses a rhetorical hyperbole to describe the crowd.[21] “Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.” It was kind of like saying, “They were there from everywhere.” In verses 9-11 he lists several nations represented. Parthians are modern Iranians. Mesopotamia is Iraq.[22] Jews from Egypt, Arabia, Rome and several other places are mentioned. What we’re seeing is the set-up for the spread of the gospel. The experience these people have on the Day of Pentecost will be carried back to all these places. Which begins the fulfillment of 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."
There are two reactions from the crowd.
Some are receptive. They recognize that God is doing something. They don’t fully understand what it all means but they are curious and open to God. Verse 12 “Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?" When God does something we don’t fully understand let’s take that approach. Let’s inquire as to what it means. Let’s hear Peter out and respond to the Holy Spirit. It is very limiting to reject something God is doing simply because we’ve never seen it before. I fully expect God to do some things during this next decade that we’ve never seen Him do before. It will be consistent with Scripture. It will be consistent with the purposes of God and the nature of God. But it may look very different that what we’ve seen before. Be teachable. When Peter gave Scriptural support for what was happening 3000 of these people received it.
Others were resistant. They pridefully ridiculed what they saw. Acts 2:13 “Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine.” The Greek indicates they were mocking with gestures as well as with words.[23] Galileans were considered hillbillies by Hebrew Jews.[24] The fact, that God was using uneducated people—people less esteemed in society may have influenced their attitude. When God chooses a person He is not looking on outward appearances. He measures a person from the heart.[25] Man looks upon outward things and draws his conclusions. Sometimes he draws the wrong conclusions.
I don’t know how many of these mockers repented and became a part of the 3000 that day. One thing I do know is that every person in that crowd got an opportunity to respond. Every person in that crowed made his or her own decision as to what he or she would do with the opportunity God had placed before them that day. God has designed opportunities for you and me. He manifests Himself in our lives and then calls upon us to respond. I want to be the kind of person who opens up to God and takes advantage of those opportunities. Don’t you?
It’s amazing to me that people in that crowd could be witnessing one of the greatest events in human history and not even realize it. God was there but part of the crowd discounted it as insignificant—even ridiculed it. Outwardly the whole crowd saw the same thing. But some did not appreciate the value of what was before them.
Are you open to what God wants to do next in your life? What if it is different from what you expect—different from what you’ve seen before? When Scriptural support is given for it the way Peter did on the Day of Pentecost, will you receive it? Will you allow God to take you past preconceived ideas—past where you have been before?
Invitation
TEXT: Acts 2:1-14
“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. 5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11(both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs-we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?" 13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine." 14 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.” (from New International Version)
Richard Tow
Grace Chapel Foursquare Church
Springfield, MO
www.gracechapelchurch.org
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[1] Text (which was shown using the Visual Bible) is available at the end of this manuscript. All Scripture quotes are from New International Version unless otherwise specified.
[2] Green, Joel B., Scot McKnight, and I. Howard Marshall, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1992) Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels p. 237
[3] Hab. 2:4; Romans 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Hebrews 10:38.
[4] Stanley Horton, The Book of Acts (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1981) pp. 29-30.
[5] Eph 2:10 “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ps 31:15; 37:23.
[6] PENTECOST (from International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Electronic Database Copyright (c)1996 by Biblesoft)
[7] Luke 21:25 uses the same word for sound.
[8] Horton, p. 30.
[9] Ajith Fernando, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1998) p. 87.
[10] Craig S. Keener, The Spirit in the Gospels and Acts: Divine Purity and Power (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 1997) p. 193 says, “According to later rabbis, Pentecost was the day on which Moses received the Law from Mount Sinai, and gave it as a gift to Israel on earth.”
[11] W.A. Criswell, p. 86.
[12] Genesis 12:3; 22:18.
[13] W.A. Criswell, Acts an Expostion Vol. I Chapters 1-8 (Grand Rapid: Zondervan, 1978) p. 80 quotes, “Dwight L. Moody said: ‘I believe that Pentecost was but a specimen day. I think the church has made a woeful mistake in believing that Pentecost was a miracle not to be repeated. I believe that now, if we looked upon Pentecost as a specimen day, and began to pray, we would have the Pentecostal fire here again today.’”
[14] Roger Stronstad, The Prophethood of All Believers: A Study in Luke’s Charismatic Theology (New York: Sheffield Academic Press, 2003) pp. 69-70.
[15] I do believe that God, in His sovereignty, can use the signs of wind and fire anytime He chooses.
[16] For a scholarly discussion of the paradigmatic nature of Acts 2 see Ben Aker’s “Acts 2 as Paradigmatic Narrative of Luke’s Theology of the Spirit” available at http://www.agts.edu/faculty/faculty_publications/articles/aker_acts2.pdf
[17] I. Howard Marshall, The Acts of the Apostles in Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1981) p. 70 points out that most of the crowd would speak Aramaic or Greek, the two languages which the disciples also would speak. Also see Horton, p. 35.
[18] Peter Wagner, Spreading the Fire, p. 95 gives one such example.
[19] Roger Stronstad, The Charismatic Theology of St. Luke (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 1984) pp. 54-56.
[20] Roger Stronstad, The Charismatic Theology of St. Luke, pp. 56-57.
[21] Ben Witherington III, The Acts of the Apostles: A So0cio-Rhetorical Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998) p. 136.
[22] Peter Wagner, p. 87.
[23] Horton, p. 36.
[24] Peter Wagner, Spreading the Fire: Book 1 Acts 1-8 (Ventura, CA: Regal Books, 1994) p.89.
[25] I Samuel 16:7
