Acts 1:4-5 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Acts 2:2-4 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
Jesus foretold of the gift of the Holy Spirit in John 14:15-17 saying, “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.” Ten days after Jesus’ ascension is a pivotal moment in the birth of the church. This miraculous receiving of the Holy Spirit was a major turning point in how God has interacted with His people, in that now all Believers receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God. Believers are now considered priest (Exodus 19:6) in that they can now approach God personally and directly without any mediator because the Holy Spirit empowers us. This momentous event was designed as an attention-getter to awaken the disciples to embrace the Lord Jesus Christ and unify them in faith to Him and His church.
Acts 2:6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.
Not only did the disciples experience the noise and the tongues of fire, the filling of the Holy Spirit and the speaking in a language which they never knew before, but now they were being heard by the multitude of foreign peoples and understood in their own differing language from every nation under heaven; declaring the wonderful works of God and praising Him, each hearing in their own distinct language and this truly got their attention. In Acts 2:12 we read, “So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?” We still read about it today in Scripture, but this miraculous event was prophesized 800 years prior by the Prophet Joel in Joel 2:28 “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions”.
In Peter’s first sermon message in Acts 2:14-17 he stated, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams ...” Once Peter got started, he was caught up by the power of the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit preaching, explaining the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecy and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Walk with and learn from Jesus and inevitably you are going to get a firmer grasp on the Word of God because Jesus will have a firm grasp upon you. Spend more time with the Lord in prayer, in the Word of God with Him and in the ministry within His church. You will be blessed.
Let continue Pastor Herk's message on the Holy Spirit in the next post.
In Christ, Brian
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