The Power of Pentecost Part 1

On Father’s Day 1997 Ricardo Enamorado set out on a jet ski from Chicago’s Wilson Avenue boat ramp and headed north along the shoreline of Lake Michigan. At about 3 P.M. he turned around to head back south when the engine on the jet ski suddenly quit. Unable to restart it, he floated along nonchalantly, expecting help to come quickly on the busy waters off Chicago. Gradually, though, the wind and waves pushed Enamorado farther and farther from shore, and help did not come. By sundown he was frantic. Dressed only in cutoffs, tennis shoes, and a life preserver, he spent the night on the chilly waters of the lake.

The next day Coast Guard helicopters and a Chicago fire department chopper equipped with special radar began searching for the lost man. By the end of the day they still had not found him, and Enamorado, hungry and sunburned, spent another night on the dark waters of Lake Michigan.

Finally the next morning one of the search-and-rescue teams spotted a flash of light. Enamorado was signaling in the search team’s direction with a mirror. The nearly two-day ordeal was over at last.

A loss of power can be more dangerous than we realize. It’s one thing to be an individual unable to steer for lack of power… but what happens when it’s not just a man, but a whole church? How many Christians and how many churches are drifting away from their intended destinations, carried by the waves and winds of this world and not under the Holy Spirit guiding them into all truth? Without God’s Spirit infusing life into God’s people, we find the words of Jesus ringing true from John 15:5

John 15:5 (ESV)

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

So before we look at the actual passage, we have to understand that Acts 2 doesn’t appear out of the blue. The prelude or context to my three-point sermon is the word “Power”. When the resurrected Lord Jesus addressed His stunned students in Luke 24:49, He commanded them Luke 24:49

Luke 24:49 (ESV)

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

And again, in Acts 1, we are often excited to see the geographical progression that will shape the book of Acts, but there’s an often over-looked detail preceeding the regional listings—Acts 1:8

Acts 1:8 (ESV)

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

You see it? In both cases, Luke wants to make one thing clear:

The POWER precedes the pattern.

I believe that this is a crucial insight for both the 1st audience Luke was writing to, but it’s just as important for us today, right where I’m standing and right where you’re sitting. The BEST plans for ministry, the best-crafted sermons, the best programs a church can adopt, all the best intentions will come to nothing without GOD’s power! The amount of power we have determines the scale of work that can be done. If our work is on a human scale, we can get by on human power. But the assignment of being witnesses for Christ requires more than we can muster on our own—we need God’s power to do God’s work. In Acts 1, Jesus prescribed patience as the path to power (Acts 1:4) and being stellar students, the Apostles practiced prayer until that power was present (Acts 1:14). My aim today is to point out three things God’s power faithfully and graciously provided to the church THEN that He is still offering to churches TODAY—if only we would persevere in patience and prayer.

Point 1: Promise of Pentecost

James 1:18 says we are born through the word of truth and 1st Peter 1:23 says we have been born again—not of corruptable seed but imperishable seed through the living and abiding word of God. Therefore, I declare the following without reservation: Every Christian and every local Christian congregation needed God’s Word to come to faith and every Christian and local Christian congregation needs God’s word to remain in the faith.

Jesus said, “Man does not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). We hold on dearly to the Scriptures as if our lives depended upon them because our lives do depend on it and it’s Divine Author, God Himself. This is especially true of His precious promises. So every Christian and every Christian congregation hangs their hope on God’s power to make good on His promises. And according to Jesus, no promise could be better than the promise of God’s Spirit coming to live with and within God’s people—not only collectively as a group—but individually as well. I believe that’s the meaning of the individual “tongues” of fire: each believer is personally endowed and gifted with the Spirit—it’s a New Covenant reality uniquely won for us by Jesus.

No less than 5 Old Testament prophets explicitly predict the day when God would pour out His Spirit, for our purposes today, I’ll focus exclusively on a promise made by Jesus in John’s gospel and an explanation also given in John. On the night He was betrayed, as recorded for us in John 14:18-27, Jesus promises not to leave the Apostles like orphans and announces the coming of the Holy Spirit—not only as a teacher to reveal truth, but as a Counselor for the comfort and peace of His followers. Isn’t Jesus amazing?

He was about to suffer extreme punishment, to purchase peace for us.

He was giving up His right of kingly conveniences to confer comfort on us.

He laid down His rights as the Only-Begotten of God to ensure that we would be adopted and not orphans.

I tell you the truth, there’s no King like our King, and no god like our God.

As one song writer has said, “… the great I Am became a man Came as a lamb and would be executed to execute the plan A substitute to stand, in the place of the wicked On the cross, He was lifted, but we considered Him stricken and afflicted Just like the prophets predicted, He came at the proper moment To stop His opponent and lay down His life to offer atonement.”

Those few lines from a song entitled “Supreme” by Beautiful Eulogy, encapsulate the Good News: Jesus died on the cross, absorbing the wrath of God that WE deserved, He literally gave up His life to save every the soul of any and every person who no longer works in a vain effort to be good enough for God… but for anyone who knows only Jesus was and ever could earn heaven—we stop trying to deserve God’s acceptance but receive it as a gift. The gift of love that comes with the declaration that we are made righteous through the righteousness of Christ. Jesus’ resurrection stands as the evidence that His sacrifice was accepted and also points to the glorious new life for all who repent of sin and trust in Him. Of course, this is the gospel message and there’s nothing wrong with a little gospel in a sermon—but what does this have to do with the coming of the Holy Spirit? I’m glad you asked! Jesus says in John 7:38

John 7:38–39 (ESV)

Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ” [The Apostle John explains in verse 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.

John’s comment helps us to understand that Jesus not only purchased our forgiveness while giving us His own righteousness—additionally, by His resurrection and glorified ascension, He also won for us the promised Holy Spirit. That’s why John the Baptist said, I baptize you with water, but the One coming after me is greater than I—He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” Yes, Luke 3:16 as well as John 14 is fulfilled here in Acts 2.

So let me ask you something—reason with me: Seeing that Jesus already died and rose again for you and I to ensure the weighty matters of eternity—is there some earthly need that He would provide for you? Are you worried about bills on earth when the value of Christ’s blood has earned you eternal riches in heaven? Have you considered the lilies lately? I can’t dwell here but my point is simply this: If Pentecost has taught us anything, it teaches us that God’s power to make good on promises is a supreme reassurance for every Christian and ever Christian congregation—I pray you are also reassured in your faith.

Point 2: Providence of Pentecost

Remember that Jesus commanded the apostles to be His witnesses—in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Now, let’s be real—these are the same guys who were too scared to literally witness the Lord’s death. Now, in the very city where Jesus died, they’re supposed to proclaim His resurrection… but wait, not only in the city, but in the countryside as well. Oh, and they’re supposed to proclaim Jesus in Samaria too… but aren’t good Jews supposed to stay clear of Samaria and Samaritans? Ok, um, and now, the easy part: THE ENDS OF THE EARTH!!! Really, if you try to think of it as if you were there when Jesus first said it—you’ll see how outlandish the command really is.

But this is the faithfulness of God: He empowers His people to go to the world, but also exercises powerful providence to bring the world to His people. The most amazing case is in verses 9-11 in our text Acts 2:9-11

Acts 2:9–11 (ESV)

Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”

Historical and archeological records indicate that Pentecost was the best attended of all feasts, probably due to the weather. Sailing across the Mediterranean for example, would have been easier the further away you are from early Spring (like Passover). Given that the festival itself was related to the travel and wanderings of their ancestors, all Israelite/Jewish families too great pride in a sort of re-enactment of the journey of their forefathers. So, the stage is set for a crowd of thousands from 15 different regions of the world outside of Judea to hear the sermon Peter will preach later in the chapter. I wonder if we have the map? Thanks for that putting it up... Now, I’ll have you know that most commentaries link this list of nations to what is called the Table of Nations in Genesis 10. It’s fairly clear that Luke has the Table of Nations in mind, but that’s not what interests me most. What amazes me most about this list of nations is the history BEHIND the geography. How did descendants of Israel and Judah end up in all these places? In a word: exile.

The Babylonian Exile would explain why there are Jews in Elam, Media, and Parthia to the extreme east. The Assyrian Exile of the northern Kingdom known as Israel would be easily linked to Israelite presence in Mesopotamia and possibly parts north. But we know that the Greeks also conquered pretty much everything from the province of Asia (sometimes called Asia Minor) clear to India—the Apostle Paul was from Cilicia which is kind of sandwiched between Cappdocia, Pamphylia and Phygia, far south of Pontus. Naturally, the Roman conquest of Palestine would have made the city of Rome an attractive place for Jewish business men and possibly points in between like Crete and Cyrene. I can’t explain Arabia, but we know that the prophet Jeremiah was taken forcibly taken away to Egypt during the fall of Jerusalem with a crowd of Jews who fled there as refugees. Amazingly, in the Sovereign power, wisdom, and timing of God, Israelites and Jews who suffered severe discipline from the Lord for a variety of sins and sinful dispositions have descendants who were blessed to not only hear the first Apostolic sermon after the Ascension of Christ, but also to carry that message back to their respective communities in all those regions. So what looked like a death sentence for the children of Abraham, was transformed by God’s powerful providence into a message of hope that resurrects the seemingly buried promise God made to Abram in Genesis 12:3 (the B-clause)

Genesis 12:3 (ESV)

“...in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

I challenge you to reconsider what may appear to be dark shadows of your life and consider what delights may be divinely decreed to turn around what seemed to be doom into bloom. To be clear: I am not saying that Christians go through life without suffering or pain—I am not recommending that anyone simply ignore and pretend life’s hardships away as if easily dismissed. After all, even in this example of God’s providence to the exiles and their descendants, many generations never lived to see the pouring out of God’s mercy on Israel on the day of Pentecost. Their pain was real and the pains in your life are real and often life-sapping. But I would remind you today that we serve a God who Isaiah 41:18-19

Isaiah 41:18–19 (ESV)

I will open rivers on the bare heights,

and fountains in the midst of the valleys.

I will make the wilderness a pool of water,

and the dry land springs of water.

I will put in the wilderness the cedar,

the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive.

I will set in the desert the cypress,

the plane and the pine together,

Our God is an expert at reversing seemingly irreversible circumstances. He resurrects the dead and gives POWER to every Christian and every Christian Congregation to persevere patiently while He works providentially for our good and ultimately for His glory.

Finally, point 3, lest I hold you too long, I want you to see the

Point 3: Purpose of Pentecost

The Pentecost event fulfills many things, pointing both backwards to OT events and pushing us forward to the glorious future—far more than we can discuss in a single sermon. If it is the Lord’s will, I will return at another time and complete this chapter with you. But today, and briefly, I want to point out one immediate effect of the Holy Spirit being poured out on God’s people. It’s right there in the B-Clause of Acts 2:11

Acts 2:11 (ESV)

both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”

In a word, the purpose of Pentecost is praise. Certainly, God is worthy of praise for His wondrous works and for the wonder of His Triune holiness and love. We praise God for His perfections and for His mighty works—no work mightier than the work of God in Christ at the cross displaying both His righteous wrath against sin and gracious Self-giving for sinners like us. Every Christian and every Christian congregation ultimately exists for the promotion of God’s praises throughout the ages. He gives us of Himself so that our praises would naturally overflow from a heart of gratitude for all He is and what He has done.

A wise man once said, “Evangelism is, because worship is not.” What he meant was simply this: Christians and Christian congregations engage in evangelism so with the goal that

Habakkuk 2:14 (ESV)

the earth will be filled

with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord

as the waters cover the sea.

Psalm 22:27 (ESV)

[that] All the ends of the earth shall remember

and turn to the Lord,

and all the families of the nations

shall worship before you.

Promoting the praise of God—that’s why I’m here, my friends. That’s why Viers Mill is here.

In closing, let me say this: When I tell my Presbyterian friends, and Anglican friends, and Baptist friends about Viers Mill nobody’s ever heard of a church like yours, let me tell you. But I told one ministry colleague of mine about my preaching assignment here and was trying to explain what I know of Viers Mill and the uniqueness of your church’s history and fingerprint. I told him, Viers Mill started in the late 1940s

Grew and gave birth to or was associated with the start of four other churches:

A black congregation

A spanish-speaking congregation

A Chinese-speaking congregation and

A Cantonese-speaking congregation—all function as individual churches but on the same campus.

He said, “Wait… so… Viers Mill is a one church but also a community of 5 churches, speaking 4 languages—they’re multi-site but on the same campus?

I said, yeah, that’s about it, I think. Viers Mill, you are a rare gem for sure—but I hope you can that in some ways, you resemble the church at its beginning here in Acts 2. More importantly, I pray you will hold tenaciously to God’s Promises as you trust His to providence for all your needs while maintaining your purpose: to promote His praise here and as your vision statement says, vibrant church for all people, where, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit: God is worshiped; The gospel of Jesus Christ is faithfully proclaimed in our church, community and throughout the world;

Amen? Amen!