Baptized With Fire

Acts 2

Last week we started a study in the book of Acts. In this series we are looking at how Christianity began and how God transformed it from just a handful of terrified, disenfranchised messianic Jews, to the largest religion in the world today. Last week we studied chapter 1 and discovered that God did at least four important things with His apostles in order to get them ready for what was ahead of them. We also talked about how God wants to do these four things with us as well.

First, the disciples spent 40 days with Jesus as He taught them, spent time with them, and prepared them. We called it a “Transformative Preparation.” It was like a retreat for them. Church camp with the one who created the Church. Next, as they allowed themselves to lose focus and think about the end goal, Jesus brought their focus to the task at hand. One foot in front of the other. Don’t get ahead of yourself.

Part of focusing on the task at hand involves trusting in God. Don’t worry about the details and don’t act surprised about what is happening, because you know what to do. You know what is going to happen and you know how to respond. Finally, don’t just stand here, get to work. Nothing gets done if we don’t go to work. That’s exactly what the apostles did. With God’s guidance they replaced the 12th disciple. That’s where we left off.

Today we are going to keep going and move into chapter two. In chapter two the heavy lifting begins for the apostles. That is where we read about the miracle at Pentecost, it’s where we see the first massive influx of believers, and it’s where we get to see how these new followers of Christ react to the life changing transformation that Jesus does in them.

Before we study this exciting story and see what it means for us today, let’s pray.

Pray

Acts chapter 2. What an exciting passage in the bible! It is a chapter that begs to be studied in a quiet place without interruption. I would love to sit and meticulously go through it line by line, but you would be asleep in 5 minutes flat! There is a lot of irony in that. It’s always the most exciting scripture that is also the most difficult to focus on. In this chapter there are many connections to the Old Testament. Much of what happens parallels Old Testament stories. We see fulfillment of prophecy. We see God connecting with, not only the apostles, but thousands of people. We see what happens to those people after God’s love and mercy transforms them.

It’s like watching a long plan fall into place and come together perfectly! It reminds me of an engagement story I read. Tyson and Renata met at college and sang in the choir group. They had been dating for two years when Tyson decided to propose. For his elaborate plan he had custom made a wooden scrabble table and enlisted the help of the 40 members of the choir. He told them of his great plan and they spread the word to others in the lead-up to the special moment.

Finally, on the night of their two year dating anniversary the plan began to take shape. After eating at a nice restaurant they walked back to the dorms together. In the common area of the dorms they walked up to the scrabble table he had built for her as an anniversary gift. As they stood around it he moved some tiles around to spell out, “Will you marry me?” While he did this, the choir had gathered in the atrium above the lobby, as well as other people who had gotten word about this special moment. When she noticed the words he was forming on the scrabble board he got down on one knee and the choir began singing one of the songs they had sung in class that year called, “Amor de mi Alma” (“Love of my Soul”).

I like this story because it sounds much like what God did, only on a much smaller scale. Over the course of thousands of years, God set up this moment to propose to us! He carefully prepared and laid out the scene with themes of purifying fire, His Spirit moving and creating in the wind, and His message of love and mercy spreading across borders, oceans, and language barriers. He shared His plan through prophets. After all of the preparations were complete, He laid out His free gift of salvation for us and extended His hand inviting us into a spiritual bond of marriage.

If you are taking notes, this is our driving thought for today:

The salvation that Jesus offers does not hinge on a momentary decision but an entirely new dynamic with God. It is a willingness to be bonded to the God who asks for our hand in spiritual marriage.

That’s exactly what we will see as we take a look at some of the connections and parallels from the Old Testament. In Acts chapter 2 the largest and most transformative “new dynamic” we have with God is the gift of the Holy Spirit. Let’s read for a little bit and break what is happening down.

Acts 2:1–4 NIV

1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

What is Pentecost? To understand Pentecost we need to understand some Jewish Festivals, or Feasts. Or you could say that we need to know the Old Testament context and how that lines up with this moment in history. Just like the proposal story, this is where God’s plans and preparation come together. Let’s break down the word, “Pentecost.”

Pentecost: pente (fiftieth) cost (number or day)

Fiftieth day of what? If you know what happened 50 days earlier, don’t be afraid to shout it out… Passover! What happened during Passover in this particular year? Jesus was crucified.

What happened three days later? Jesus was raised from the dead. Does anyone know what else was going on? The Jews were celebrating another Festival. It had nothing to do with Jesus, or so they thought. Turns out, throughout history they had been celebrating Jesus’ resurrection without even knowing it. This celebration is called the “Festival of First Fruits.” This Feast marks the beginning of the harvest and is a celebration that acknowledges that God is the One who is the source of all blessings and provision. But wait, there’s more!

Jesus spends the next 40 days with the disciples, which we talked about last week. Then another Festival approaches. It is known as the “Festival of Weeks.” It has the name because it occurs a week of weeks after Passover, or more specifically on the day after the seventh Sabbath after Passover. If you are quick with math you will recognize that as being 50 days after Passover. This festival is also a celebration of God’s provision for His people as it occurs at the culmination of the harvest cycle after the wheat harvest.

As a quick side note, Jesus said something about the harvest in Luke 10. We won’t go down that rabbit hole today, but I think it could be fun to study Luke chapter 10 and Acts chapter 2 side by side. Maybe one of you could dive into that and share with us what you find!

It’s Pentecost and this handful of Christ followers are still in the upper room of this house, likely praying and then in verse 2 a sound like a violent wind filled the house each of them caught fire! It was just tongues of fire, but still, can you imagine how simultaneously exciting and terrifying that could have been. That’s when they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit directed. Interestingly, the Greek words Luke used here for “wind” and “Spirit” sound and look very similar, so he was obviously connecting this to a specific theme.

Now, we could draw connections to many themes in the Old Testament, but I am hoping to keep at least 35% of you awake, so let’s just look at one. Moses and the Israelites on Mount Sinai.

Exodus 19:16 NIV

16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled.

Just like the disciples, Moses and the Israelites are met with an overwhelming, supernatural sound.

Exodus 24:17–18 ESV

17 Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. 18 Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

Again, we see God’s fire resting on the mountain, but not destroying it or Moses. That same fire flows out of the Tabernacle where God dwells.

Leviticus 9:24 NIV

24 Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.

There are many more connections we could look at, but, like I said, I don’t want to completely lose your interest so let’s go ahead and move on to verse 5.

Acts 2:5–7 NIV

5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans?… we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”

Okay, here is another reason it is important to know the setting of this story. We have God-fearing Jews in Jerusalem right now because of what? It is the Feast of Weeks. If we keep reading we will see a list of their native languages and Luke is showing us that these people are essentially from all over the known world. When they hear all of this commotion they are “bewildered” and go to see what it’s all about. Now, I like to use my imagination here a bit. What would it be like to be there?

Imagine you are hanging out around the Temple. Maybe you are on your way to or from the Temple to worship. Maybe you are in the Temple and the loud noise catches your attention and you feel the urge to check it out. What level of noise would cause you bewilderment? I think it would have to be substantial.

The other day a friend of mine told me a story about him and his son shooting tannerite. If you don’t know what it is, you can go down to Atwoods and buy this stuff you can mix up and use as a target. When you shoot it with a supersonic bullet it will explode. This guy had never done it, so he didn’t know how much to mix up, so he mixed the whole 5 pounds. When his son shot it, it made a massive explosion, sent out an enormous shockwave, and blew a hole in the ground two or three feet deep and about four to six feet across.

He didn’t think much about it, but as they were driving home he got a call from his neighbor asking if that was him. He said, “Yeah, I just drove by your house.” “No,” the neighbor said, “was that explosion you?” Later he found out that the Weatherford and Hydro fire departments were called to respond to an explosion that was felt or heard up to three miles away.

To me, that is bewilderment! “What was that? Did you hear that violent rushing wind sound? It looked like those people in that house caught fire! I don’t know, but after that explosion I hear them speaking in my native dialect fluently!” “Man, are you drunk? These are Galileans!” That’s what happened. Some of the people thought they were drunk! How could these uneducated and culturally backwards Galileans speak multiple languages fluently! You must be drunk to think that.

Or God was doing something amazing. Fulfilling prophecy. Let’s isolate this theme in this passage and then we will look at what Peter says about it…

Acts 2:1–11 ESV

3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance… 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language… we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”

Why tongues of fire? The Life Application Commentary answers that question like this…

Life Application New Testament Commentary The Holy Spirit Comes / 2:1–13

Why tongues of fire? It may be that “tongues” symbolized speech and the communication of the gospel. “Fire” symbolizes God’s purifying presence, which burns away the undesirable elements in people’s lives and sets their hearts aflame to ignite the lives of others.

This is a visual image of, not only the disciples receiving the Holy Spirit, but them being purified by God’s presence and giving them His Word, His speech, His message. I like the way Nate Sala summarizes it best…

The disciples were given the spoken words of God by the Spirit of God to proclaim the Word of God!

read it again and slow down.

Peter also explains to the crowd what is happening. He says, “I’m gonna explain this to you, so listen carefully. They aren’t drunk, it’s too early for that! Joel’s prophecy is being fulfilled…”

Acts 2:17–21 NIV

17 “ ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams… 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

The point of everything that is happening here… God is fulfilling prophecy. He has fulfilled multiple Feast celebrations in a row. Today, He is fulfilling Pentecost. Throughout history, God spoke His word through specific prophets, now He has poured out His Word on all who call on Jesus and partners with Him. He goes on to give them the evidence that Jesus is the Messiah that was promised and then he finally says this..

Acts 2:36 NIV

36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”

These were God-fearing Jews that Peter was speaking to. They loved God. They traveled from far off to worship God and obey His laws. How would they react to learning that the Messiah was with them and they turned their backs on Him? They just witnessed God’s Pentecost miracles. They surely made these connections that we have talked about and more. They just listened to the Holy Spirit proclaiming through the apostles all of the wonders and mighty works of God! They just heard Peter speak with the power of the Holy Spirit and lay out the evidence. How did they react? Luke says they were cut straight to the heart!

Acts 2:37 NIV

37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Repent, be baptized, and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, Peter responds. Turn from your ways to God’s way. He has invited us into this totally new relationship with Him. He has called us to Himself and draws us into a spiritual bond of marriage. Be baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire! Like the disciples JUST WERE! Check this out. I think Luke wants us to make another connection to his previous book right here. In his previous book he quoted John the Baptist speaking about how he baptized with water but Jesus’ would baptize us with the Holy Spirit and fire…

Luke 3:16 NIV

16 John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Boom, here we are. Fifty days after Passover. Fifty days after Jesus was murdered, forty-seven days after He defeated death and rose again, about a week after His ascension. The next big celebration! Many Jewish people are here from every nation, and God is making a massive appearance similar to Mount Sinai! In one day this movement Jesus began through the Holy Spirit increased from 150 people to 3,150 people. That means that if each of the 12 apostles spoke to someone that day who accepted Jesus, they would have each had conversations with about 250 people on average.

After that, Luke says that these people devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking bread together, prayer. They helped each other when there was a need. They went to church together. They met in their homes with each other. They praised God together. Every day God added more and more and more people who were calling out to God, repenting, and being baptized.

Today there was a lot of great information to go over so we didn’t break anything down into a “life application” type segment, but, as we are talking about the Holy Spirit, it is important to discuss the work the Holy Spirit does in our lives. According to the Life Application Commentary…

Life Application New Testament Commentary The Holy Spirit Comes / 2:1–13

At Pentecost (2:1–4) the Holy Spirit was made available to all who believe in Jesus. Believers receive the Holy Spirit (are baptized with him) when they trust in Jesus Christ for salvation.

To close, I want to give you some scripture that you can study in relation to the work of the Holy Spirit as described by this commentary…

The work of the Holy Spirit in Christians:

The Spirit marks the beginning of the Christian experience.

No on belongs to Christ without His Spirit (Romans 8:9)

No one is united to Christ without His Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17)

No one is adopted as God’s Child without His Spirit (Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 4:6-7);

No one is in the body of Christ except by baptism in the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13).

The Spirit is the power for the new life.

He begins a lifelong process of change as believers become more like Christ (Galatians 3:3; Philippians 1:6). Those who receive Christ by faith begin an immediate personal relationship with God. The Holy Spirit works in them to help them become like Christ.

The Spirit unites the Christian community in Christ (Ephesians 2:19-22).

The Holy Spirit can be experienced by all, and He works through all (1 Corinthians 12:11; Ephesians 4:4).

You can take this information and drill down even further to study more specific functions of the Holy Spirit.

There was so much great information in this study today. I would encourage everyone to dig into this chapter and go crazy with some studies and chasing rabbits. We could have talked about so much more. There are loads of prophecies that are being fulfilled here. There are tons of parallels to Old Testament scripture. There are many connections to other New Testament scripture. To me it really feels like we just skipped a rock across the surface of the ocean.

Next week we will continue and see what Peter does next, now that the Christians have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit and God’s community is rapidly growing.

Pray