Pentecost Was Not a Sit-In; It Was a Sent-Out

Reading of the Word

Luke 24:49 NASB 2020

And behold, I am sending the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Prayer of Illumination

Holy Spirit, come again. As long ago you inspired, astonished, and confused the people, come to us now to fill our ears with the sound of your breath, fill our eyes with the brilliance of your presence in each other, fill our hearts with your good Word. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Introduction

Happy Birthday to the church, the bride of Christ. The church is 20 centuries old. The message of the Gospel cannot be done away with. It has lasted the test of time and this validates its truth. Jesus is who he said he is and saved us from sin, death and hell and has given his children eternal life. That message is the same message that began with the early church.

Neuroscience studies have revealed something you might not know, although you have experienced it many times. That is the power of the number three. Our brains seem to love the number three because our short-term memory best remembers patterns of threes. To your brain, the number three feels whole. That's why memorable instructions are given in sets of three, like: “Stop, look, and listen” at a railroad crossing or “Stop, drop, and roll” when your clothes are on fire. The power of three applies to parenting instructions too. Experts recommend never giving more than three instructions to a child at a time. It's also why so many sermons have three main points!

Jesus was apparently aware of the power of three because he gave his disciples three final instructions before ascending into the heavens. He gave these three instructions at the end of forty days with them after his resurrection. Together with about five hundred other Jerusalem residents, they had witnessed his resurrected body walking around, clearly alive following his public execution.

After forty days of being with them and opening their minds to understand the Scriptures, Jesus gave them three final instructions at Bethany, which was just outside of Jerusalem.

Jesus had to take on his new role as high priest and intercessor so that the Holy Spirit could work in us. He never left them alone. He made sure that what he started would be continued through them in the power of the Holy Spirit. It was God’s best and perfect plan but he had to leave for it to happen.

Let's pick up the narrative in Luke 24, where Jesus talks with his followers just before He ascends to the Father's right hand.

Luke 24:45–51 NASB 2020

Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and He said to them, “So it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven.

Luke wrote what two books? The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. This book in Scripture serves as a bridge between the the apostles being instructed to focus on specific areas to where Paul enters the mission field of the world. This charge that was given to the early church continues in depth in the first chapter of Acts. Let’s dive into Acts 1:1-11

Acts 1:1–11 NASB 2020

The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had given orders by the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom He had chosen. To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of things regarding the kingdom of God. Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” So, when they had come together, they began asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time that You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” But He said to them, “It is not for you to know periods of time or appointed times which the Father has set by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and as far as the remotest part of the earth.” And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were watching, and a cloud took Him up, out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, then behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them, and they said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”

Wait In Jerusalem

Why did they have to wait? God has a plan, and God has a timing for his plan.

You are not here today by accident. God has a plan for your life, and he wants you to understand that his plan will continue to unfold for you today if you follow his three instructions. God demonstrated his ability to make and fulfill a plan in his timing with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Then he planned the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the future second coming of Jesus is also part of God’s plan.

They had to only do one thing: Be obedient to his instructions.

There is no substitute for obedience, and there is no spiritual Pentecost without obedience. The church signs her own spiritual death warrant when she fails to obey the divine command to wait for her spiritual Pentecost.

Charles W. Carter, “The Acts of the Apostles,” in Matthew-Acts, vol. 4, The Wesleyan Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1966), 494.

We serve an on time God! He is never early nor late. He’s right on time!

Receive Power From the Holy Spirit

The Greek Word for power is dunamis and is translated power. Dunamis describes that this power is greater than dynamite power. Its greater than atomic bomb power. It’s the greatest power that will ever exist. It’s limitless and it’s the power that is available to us today.

The two greatest revivals in church history came from this verse and the dynamite gospel of salvation by grace it affirms. In 1517, Martin Luther, a slave to Roman Catholic legalism, and self effort salvation, saw the light of God’s grace for sinners, saved by faith, and marched into history as the one who gave birth to Protestant churches. Luther called Romans, “The true masterpiece of the New Testament- the purest gospel.”

The Church of England remained Catholic in its theology, and two hundred years after Luther, in the 1700’s, John Wesley, a Church of England pastor, came to the America to do missionary work. Preaching salvation by works, he had little peace. He wrote in his diary, “I came to America to convert the Indians; but who will convert me?” He was a good, moral, ethical man; but somehow he knew that did not make him right with God.

Discouraged back home in England, he half heartedly went to a little chapel service. The speaker read from Martin Luther’s preface to the Book of Romans and Wesley said, his heart was "strangely warmed". That’s putting it mildly. His conversion to salvation by grace through faith, exploded all over England and the Americas, as the Methodist church took up the torch for the gospel.

Be My Witness

What is a witness?

The Wesleyan Bible Commentary, Volume 4: Matthew–Acts 2. The Divine Revelation of the Plan (1:7, 8)

A witness is one who gives testimony to that which he has seen or experienced, and of which he consequently has personal firsthand knowledge; and the witness given is an attestation of a known fact or event.

They were not told how long to wait in Jerusalem, but we know there were ten days left of the fifty days before the Day of Pentecost. They were to wait (or sit in) for ten days until they received the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, and then they were to go out and be his witnesses to the rest of the world.

The disciples without Jesus were filled with fear, misunderstanding, and despair. Now they have waited and received the Holy Spirit. Fear is no more. They boldly go forth and witness to the world of who Jesus truly is. The Holy Spirit had come!

They showed their boldness when every disciple except John gave their lives for this message.

You and I have the same three instructions that Jesus gave his disciples. He wants us to wait, receive, and witness.

1. You and I are to wait in the presence of the Father in prayer and obedience as we ask to receive the power of the Holy Spirit.

Before we take action, we are to wait. Before we receive power, we have to wait for God to give us that power. How often do we hurry on and take action before we wait for power?

We must be patient but trust that God's promise will be fulfilled! The power of the Holy Spirit will be given to meet the needs in our lives. We were not meant to live the Christian life by our own power, but we are to walk in the power of the Spirit.

2. We are to wait until we are empowered with the gift of the Holy Spirit.

We need to receive power from the Spirit before we do anything.

Think about it like this. When would you fuel up your car for a long trip? Would you start out on the trip with half a tank of gas, or running on less than half a charged battery? Some might, I suppose, but most wouldn’t. We’d make sure it was full and ready to go first. In the same way, we go to God to get our spiritual tanks refilled with the power to live victoriously.

3. The disciples burst out of that upper room and began to witness about Jesus and his mighty acts to all who could hear.

They were now empowered and with great joy, they had a message of Good News to proclaim to the world!

That day, three thousand people converted to be followers of Jesus because of the witness of the disciples.

This is what we are to do as well. We are to receive the power of the Holy Spirit and then go out and be witnesses to spread the blessings of God’s good news. Witnesses are to spread the news of being blessed to be a blessing. Being a blessing is part of our DNA, but we must be empowered with the Holy Spirit in order to spread that blessing to others. The church is meant to be the presence of Jesus in the world as the Holy Spirit empowers us.

To Sum It Up: Wait. Receive. Witness. Pentecost calls us to be sent out, not to sit in!

Conclusion

We are to bless the community outside these walls. The disciples did not stay inside the upper room in Jerusalem. They poured out into their community. We, too, must get outside these walls to bless others with the blessings we have received from God!

We bless others by helping them as we follow the example of the Good Samaritan that Jesus taught in Luke 10. Jesus has called us to follow his example as he stopped, got off his animal, and responded to the needs of his neighbor. Jesus showed the actions of the Samaritan as an example to us of what “love your neighbor as yourself” looks like. Then he commanded us to go and do likewise. We are all called to engage with our community and be good Samaritans to others.

Our Response

The three instructions from Jesus are: wait, receive, witness. Sit in his presence until you are filled with the Holy Spirit's power. Then go out and be a blessing!

Some of you today need to wait before God, praying to receive his power. Others need to take step two. Receive the Holy Spirit’s power! All of us need to be taking step three. We need to witness about Jesus by being a blessing to our community.

Remember, you and I were blessed to be a blessing. Let's be the blessing people of God and engage our community!

Prayer After Message

Gracious and loving God,

As we conclude our time of reflection on this Pentecost Sunday, we thank you for the powerful reminder of your Holy Spirit's presence among us. Just as you filled the disciples with your Spirit on that first Pentecost, we pray that you would fill us afresh today.

May the fire of your Spirit ignite our hearts with passion for your kingdom and your mission. Grant us the courage to speak boldly of your love, just as the disciples did on that day so long ago.

Help us to remember that your Spirit transcends all barriers and boundaries, uniting us as one body in Christ. Empower us to reach out in love to our neighbors, near and far, that all may come to know the saving grace found in Jesus Christ.

May we carry the flame of your Spirit with us, illuminating the darkness and bringing hope to the world. May our lives be a living testimony to your love and your power at work within us.

We offer this prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Benediction

As you enter a new week, may you experience God’s presence.

May you feel God pouring out the Holy Spirit over your heads and your thoughts and the words of your lips, over your hearts and your feelings and emotions and your compassion for all others, and over your hands and your feet as you put into action all that God commands you.

During this week, may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with each of you and give you his peace. Amen.