The Spirit Is Alive Series

Calling on the Spirit

October 9, 2022

Acts 2:1-4

Have you ever received a gift you just weren’t sure you knew what to do with? Ties that make good presents for someone else. Perfumes and colognes that would make a skunk hold its nose? Maybe it was a picture or painting that would look great in someone else’s home. When we receive them, we know the routine, we smile, we say thank you, and we hope we can move on.

There’s a gift we receive from God that many of us really don’t know what to do with. We struggle with it because we know we have it, but it kind of just sits dormant. Never getting used, or at best . . . rarely getting used.

Have you ever received the gift of fire? Yup, it’s one of those unusual presents. Maybe you received a fancy lighter one time. Or you have a fire stick for times when you’re camping.

Fire is certainly fascinating. It’s frightening and scary, yet magnificent and powerful. And at the same time, we’re drawn to it. Who doesn’t like a warm fire in th winter or a campfire and smores.

Now, let’s combine gifts and fire and what do you get? It’s really the first gift from God to the young disciples and early followers of Jesus. Maybe the early Christians wondered, too. After all, that was part of the Lord's first gift to the church on that great earth shaking Pentecost . . . FIRE and the HOLY SPIRIT.

The faithful remnant of Jesus’ followers had gathered in the upper room near the temple in Jerusalem. There were 120 of them. In Acts 1:4-5, Jesus told the group

4 And while staying with them jesus ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, He said, “you heard from me;

5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” - Acts 1:4-5

They had been in Jerusalem, dutifully waiting for the gift of the Holy Spirit, a gift they really could not conceive of. What was the Holy Spirit? What would it do to them? What would it mean to have the Holy Spirit?

For 10 days, they prayed together, they chose a replacement for Judas, they ate together, they hung out and talked about life, faith and Jesus and what was to come. They were gathered in Jerusalem to wait for this gift, yet they weren’t quite sure what this gift was all about, nor what to do with the gift when they received it

Jesus had told them about the Holy Spirit. During their meal with Jesus on the night before His crucifixion, He told them that it was necessary for Him to leave them so that He might send a COMFORTER, one who would walk beside and ENCOURAGE, TEACH and EXHORT them.

Still, they weren’t sure what Jesus was talking about. Still later, Jesus told them through the Holy Spirit, they would receive POWER, a supernatural power as the Spirit would lead them.

How would they receive this gift? Who would deliver the gift? UPS, DHL and Fed Ex had not been invented.

Luke tells us the story in Acts 2 - - -

1 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. - Acts 2:1-4

So, that’s the story. They were all together. The coming of the Spirit happened very suddenly, it was loud and filled the house and they were immediately filled with the Holy Spirit.

Now, I want to do something we’ve never tried before. I want you to listen to about 2 minutes of a classical music piece. Whenever I hear it, I think of this moment in church history. It’s Peer Gynt, by Edvard Grieg. The movement is called “In the Hall of the Mountain King.”

The music starts out slowly, just as if it was a typical day in the upper room, the 120 are together and waiting just as Jesus told them to do.

As the movement picks up speed - - I picture the choir as a representation of the Holy Spirit as we really can’t understand them. But we sense the power and intensity. And through this, I picture the Holy Spirit coming upon the group in the upper room. And finally, they’re filled with the Spirit of God and are excitedly dancing and praising God as never before, then it’s over. Boom! Just as suddenly as the Spirit came. He’s gone. Not gone forever, just the initial outpouring.