Acts 02_01-04 Birth of the Church

Read Acts 2:1-4 – The Brooklyn Dodgers went to the WS 7 times in 40 years and lost every time, becoming famed for their motto: “Wait until next year.” Next year finally arrived in 1955 when they won their one and only Brooklyn WS. In our text today, next year came for the disciples who’d been on hold.

Luke’s gospel “dealt with all Jesus began to do and teach.” Acts deals with what He continued to do – only now thru His disciples, empowered by His HS in a whole new age – the church age. Jesus anticipated this in Jn 7:38-39: “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” 39) Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” The gift of the HS was on hold until Jesus’ work was done and He left the scene. But that mission is now complete; He’s been glorified, the Spirit comes, and we have the birthday of the church.

It’s the coming of the HS that initiates this church age. He has been promised by Christ – most recently at His ascension – Acts 1:5: “you will be baptized with the HS not many days from now.” Well, now has arrived. On the Day of Pentecost, Jesus’ divine power is extended to His disciples as the HS arrives on the scene in a dazzling display of divine fireworks to show it’s real.

It’s no accident that this happens at Pentecost. Lev 23 defines feast days of symbolic significance. In Lev 23:5 we have Passover, symbolizing the atoning death of Christ -- at Passover. In 23:10 the Feast of Firstfruits, previews Jesus’ resurrection which Paul calls, “the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” Then, the Feast of Weeks comes 50 days after Passover, known as Pentecost. Here, rather than sheaves, the Israelites brought “two loaves of bread to be waved” (Lev 23:17) prefiguring the binding together of individual believers into a new entity brought into existence thru the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost – the church. This didn’t all happen on Pentecost by accident.

Previously, we’ve studied the differences between the baptism and filling of the HS. Today we’ll see both play a part of this very special, one-of-a-kind day as the HS is poured out on believers to begin His earthly ministry. Since the HS can’t normally be physically discerned, God, on this initial occasion, adds sound, sight and speech – unmistakable physical signs of His presence –each signifying some aspect of His work. The first two are manifestations of the baptism of the Spirit. The third is a result of the filling of the Spirit. Together they depict this divine invasion that remains with us to this day.

Sound – Signifies Divine Origin

1) “When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place.” Who is “all”? No doubt the 120. The HS is for all believers, not just the apostles. 2) “And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.” The wait is over. Without warning, the HS comes with the sound of a great wind – not an actual wind, but with a “sound like a mighty rushing wind.” Did you hear the tornado in 2008? Trevor was in Windsor; said it sounded just like a freight train, like what these heard giving physical evidence of the HS’s arrival. The sound came “from heaven.” Its origin is divine, not earthly. It’s the HS.

Wind often depicts the HS in the Bible. The Hebrew word, רוּחַ, as well as the Greek, πνεῦμα, both mean wind or breath, and both are used for the HS, symbolizing God’s life-giving power. In Gen 1:1-2: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2) The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit [רוּחַ]of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” We envision a dove, skimming over the chaotic waters. But the idea is rather that the HS is God’s life-giving breath, creatively moving across the waters to bring order out of chaos. In Gen 2:7: “then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground [perfect, but lifeless, until] and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” It is the breath of God that animates all creation.

And the same is true spiritually. In Ezek 37 Ezekiel is taken by the “Spirit” [רוּחַ] to a valley full of dry bones. But, 8b, “there was no breath [רוּחַ]in them. 9) Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath [רוּחַ]; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath [רוּחַ], Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds [רוּחַ], O breath [רוּחַ], and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” 10) So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath [רוּחַ] came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet.” All illustrating the new life given to those “dead in trespasses and sins” [Eph 2:1] when they put their faith in JC.

Jesus speaks similarly in Jn 3 when He tells Nic in 3:3: “Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” “It’s not a matter of good works, Nic. It’s a matter of new birth.” Then He defines further: 5) Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit [πνεῦμα], he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6) That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit [πνεῦμα], is spirit. 7) Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8) The wind [πνεῦμα], blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit [πνεῦμα].”

So, the sound of a mighty wind is a perfect representation of the Spirit’s arrival on His life-giving, regenerating mission. Of course, these disciples were already believers, already had new life in Christ. But here they represent what happens to every believer going forward. II Cor 5:17: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” And how does that happen? By being born of the Spirit. That is the experience of every believer. Thus, I Cor 12:13: “For in one Spirit we are all baptized into one body.” And, Rom 8:9: “Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.” We’re divinely invaded.

In 1961, just after the Wall was built in Berlin, mourners would come to a graveyard in East Berlin and disappear. They opened a gravestone, climbed in and followed a tunnel beneath the wall to new life in West Berlin. What a beautiful picture of becoming a Christ-follower – those who in Jesus’ words “deny [themselves], take up their cross daily and follow him.” The old us dies with Christ, but in exchange we get new life imparted by the indwelling breath or wind of God – the HS. The rushing wind is a powerful symbol of new life in the Spirit. Life won’t get perfect, but neither can it ever be the same.

II. Sight — Signifies Divine Purging

Now, the second evidence of the Spirit’s arrival. 3) “And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them.” A spectacular visual aid – not real fire, but it looked like fire. It rested on all in that room – not just apostles, but everyone, depicting every believer as a recipient of the Spirit.

So why fire? It shows God’s presence. Often in the OT, God appears as fire –good but dangerous at the same time. When He makes a covenant with Abe in Gen 15, He’s a blazing torch. With Moses in Exod 3, He’s a burning bush. He is a pillar of fire to the Israelites. At Mt. Sinai, He comes down in enough fire and smoke to leave no doubt of His awesome presence. When He appears in Ezekiel 1:4b there is “fire flashing forth continually” – fire everywhere.

Why fire? Well, in the Bible, fire most often depicts God’s persistence in dealing with sin. Heb 12:29 gives us the sobering reminder that “Our God is a consuming fire.” However much He loves us, and however long his patience, sin – all sin – must ultimately be dealt with. Fire depicts that reality, and that depiction can range all the way from the fires of hell for those who refuse God’s gift of forgiveness and new life in Christ to the fires of discipline in the lives of believers to move us ever closer to the character of our Savior.

In Acts 2, the emphasis is on the purging work of the HS in the lives of believers. John the Baptist predicted in Mt 3:11 Jesus would “baptize you with the HS and fire.” Some suggest that “fire” symbolizes ultimate judgment meaning you either believe and are baptized with the HS, or you reject and will be baptized in the fires of hell. But the grammar suggests HS and fire are 2 aspects of the same baptism, meaning it’s not the fire of ultimate judgment but the fire of purging that’s in view. Heb 12:6: “For the Lord disciplines the one he loves.” God saves me just as I am. But – listen – He does not leave me there! Every Xn is subject to fires of purging to burn away the sin and waste that is part and parcel of our human existence. That’s where saving faith leads.

Isaiah prophesies God will “cleanse the bloodstains of Jerusalem . . . by a spirit of burning” (4:4). Speaking of Jesus’ 1st coming, Mal 3:2b: “For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap.” The refiner’s fire melted the gold ore, allowing the dross to come to the top to be skimmed off. Such are the fires of discipline in the life of a believer. Jesus depicts this in John 15:1-2: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2) Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away [it’s not real], and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” God’s fiery discipline purges us of known and unknown sin and waste. The fiery tongues of Acts 2 represent the pruning mission of the HS. Thank God for that, right?! His grace doesn’t stop at salvation when He cloths us in Christ’s righteousness positionally; it continues to build righteousness into our conduct. He refines; He galvanizes; He persistently chips away that which detracts from His glory until we can say like Job 23:10b: “When he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.” Trouble is merely God’s grace at work in the life of a believer.

Amy Carmichael took some rescued girls to see a goldsmith one morning as he heated his gold ore. He continually scraped off impurities as they rose to the top until little was left. One girl asked, “How do you know when the gold is purified?” He replied, “When I can see my face in it, then it is pure.” So the HS purges us until the face of Jesus becomes more and more clear in us.

II. Speech – Signifies Divine Empowerment

The first two evidences of the Spirit’s arrival are a result of the baptism of the Spirit; the third is a result of the filling of the Spirit; it signifies the divine empowerment that results from Spirit-filling. That empowerment can and does take many forms, constantly renewed as we submit to His control. Here we have a spectacular manifestation appropriate to this one very special day. 4) “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.” The disciples’ submission to the Spirit’s control enabled them on this day to speak in languages that were completely foreign to them. An amazing display signifying many things.

First note, these were actual languages. Several things clarify this. First, the word tongue (γλῶσσα) has a dictionary meaning of either the organ or a “distinctive language.” Second, “utterance” means “to speak intelligible, meaningful words.” Third, in v. 8, each person there was hearing “in his own native language (διάλεκτος)” – dialect. Fourth, v. 10 shows there was content – “the mighty works of God.” These were real languages known to foreign visitors tho not to the disciples! Whether the tongues in I Cor 12-14 are also legit languages or some ecstatic heavenly language is for another day. Acts 2 is a miraculous display of divinely inspired speech enabled by Spirit-filling.

This signified much. First, it made clear to all who would see that God was at work. There was no other legitimate explanation. Second, this emphasized the universal appeal of the gospel. It is not just for Israel; it is for everyone from everywhere. Third, this is, in a sense, the reversal of what occurred at the Tower of Babel in Gen 11. Babel is where man insisted on building his way to God and God confused the effort by causing diversity of languages. So people who started the day with one common language were suddenly unintelligible to each other. At Pentecost, people who spoke multiple languages were suddenly hearing the one common language of the gospel, thus showing man’s attempt to reach God by his own devices brings confusion and death. But God coming to man brings clarity and life. This is the message of Acts 2.

This also illustrates divinely empowered use of spiritual gifting. All believers are given spiritual gifts to use in God’s service. But they must be used under the Spirit’s power. I Cor 12:4: “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.” We won’t normally see the same miraculous intervention God sent to evidence His arrival on this occasion, but we can and must be equally empowered by the same HS any time we minister the gifts God has given us. As Jesus says in Jn 15:5c: “apart from me you can do nothing.” And we have Him in the person of the HS. That’s the application of this passage for us.

So, is this an experience to be duplicated? Some us the baptism of the Spirit must be accompanied by the gift of tongues. But if so, where is the wind, fire and speaking known languages? I know of no one who insists on that. This was a one-time event to make a point – the HS has arrived and here is clear evidence to demonstrate that – thus is born the church, the body of Christ.

This is made clear another way. When Peter first took the gospel to Gentiles in Acts 10, he knew it was legitimate, Acts 10:45: “because the gift of he HS was poured out even on the Gentiles. 46) For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God.” In a sense it’s Pentecost all over again because a group of previous outsiders and now included. Later, when Peter defends his Gentile preaching to Jewish brothers, he says in Acts 11:15: “As I began to speak, the HS fell on them just as on us at the beginning.” Not “as on us everyday”, but “at the beginning”! God had provided the same visual evidence of the Spirit’s coming to Gentiles as He did to Jews to show they are legit! It’s exceptional evidence, not normal life!

Conc – The point of this sermon is this -- every believer has all of the HS they will ever get. We’ve been invaded by God’s presence and have divine power at our disposal. That’s a fact. We have all of the Holy Spirit. That makes us part of the church which characterizes this new age.

But here’s the question – does He have all of us? Are we going it on our own, or are we daily seeking His enabling power in our life. You know the guy who took his chain saw back to Ace. Said he’d been promised it would cut 50 trees a day, but all week, he’d never got more than one. The clerk said, “Let me check.” He pulled the cord and the saw let out a roar. The man said, “Hey, what’s that noise?” Power unleashed is no power at all. But our obedience submission to the Word and the Spirit – that unleashes divine power in our lives. Let’s pray.

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