Pentecost Sunday

What happened on Pentecost?

Acts 2:1–4 NIV

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Pentecost was the beginning of a new covenant

New promise -> law on the heart -> spirit in every one of us, God’s home in every one of us.

But as pentecostals, we believe that there was more to it than simply this new promise.

We believe in this thing called

The baptism of the holy spirit

What is the baptism in the Holy Spirit?

First off -

We aren’t talking about Salvation

And I mean two different things by this:

first, that every believer receives the Holy Spirit. The scriptures say, the Spirit is given to every believer as a seal guaranteeing our inheritance. And the scriptures also say, that Jesus will send us all the spirit to teach and convict.

This thing we call baptism in the spirit isn’t a salvation issue. It’s not like, if you have this you’re MORE saved, and if you don’t you’re NOT saved. It’s not about being a better believer.

Second, that this isn’t what happens at salvation. We believe it’s a secondary thing.

Acts 8, you have some people that are clearly believers - they are called believers, they’re baptized into the name of Jesus - but then the apostles pray for them separately to receive the Holy Spirit.

Luke 24, the disciples flat out worship Jesus at his feet.

So what does it mean?

Continuing the story, I think we see a big reason for it.

Acts 2:5–11 NIV

Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”

Acts 2:41 NIV

Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

The Baptism In the Holy Spirit is about Ministry and Witness

The baptism in the Holy Spirit started with tongues of fire in the upper room - but it extended past that. Right after the experience, Peter went outside and started preaching to the masses. And thousands were saved.

With the Baptism in the Spirit, we believe in this separate process that comes with it called tongues.

Acts 10:45–46 (NIV)

The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles.

For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.

Tongues is a personal prayer language that comes with the Baptism

We believe tongues is, among other things, a private prayer thing. (GROANS THAT WORDS CANNOT EXPRESS - > MY MIND IS UNFRUITFUL WHILE MY SPIRIT PRAYS).

And tongues is an unknown language to us.

1 Corinthians 14:2 NIV

For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to people but to God. Indeed, no one understands them; they utter mysteries by the Spirit.

Now, I know this goes AGAINST the story in acts (everybody heard everything in their own language). Tongues is a complex topic, but the short answer is, it operates in two different veins - private prayer time, and public proclamation. Publically, the scriptures say - there’ll be an interpretation, someone will understand.

Private prayer wise, the scriptures say - we don’t understand it. Another scripture says, the spirit prays, but the mind is unfruitful.

We call tongues the ‘evidence’ of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. We see lots of times through acts that it says, they were prayed over to receive the spirit - and they did, and we know because we saw them speaking in tongues.

That same experience then is available for us now

And this is where we can stumble a bit. Because this experience of the baptism of the spirit - it’s definitely interesting. And tongues is a really supernatural thing.

But if we’re coming into this seeking some new spiritual high - i’m sorry to tell you, that’s not the point here.

The Spirit is here, and he’s moving, and he wants to see more people experience this baptism and receive this gift of tongues - and then send them out on mission.

God WANTS us to experience more of him, he WANTS us to grow closer to Him. And that’s available to us today. But he’s also got a plan and a purpose for us. He has a mission field for every one of us.

And so we’re here today, offering the whole package. We want to take time and pray for you to receive the baptism of the spirit - and we want to lift you up to God in prep for a new or a greater mission field.

We want you to come up and want to receive - but we also want you to come up and get prepared to be sent out.