Filled with the Holy Spirit

Introduction

Last week was Pentecost Sunday and started a new series looking at What the Holy Spirit does. And we saw that the first thing that the Spirit does is enable the communication of the wonders of God in other languages so that everyone could hear and understand.

People of many nations were gathered in Jerusalem and God sent the Holy Spirit

This morning we are looking at being filled with the Holy Spirit.

Now, the communication of the wonders of God in other languages was part and parcel of being filled with the Holy Spirit.

Acts 2:12-21

People of many nations gathered in Jerusalem and God sent the Holy Spirit

Prophet Joel

Filled with the Holy Spirit

What does Luke, the writer, mean when he says that they were filled with the Holy Spirit

Last week we heard that there was quite strange sound … there was the sound of the blowing of a violent wind filling the whole house that they were sitting in … and they saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on them

I’d not noticed the word separated before … one fire that split and rested on all of them

Then there was this speaking in other tongues or languages

Some who saw all of this made fun and said ‘they have had too much wine’ - and Peter challenges them saying ‘they’re not drunk, as you suppose, it’s only nine in the morning’

There was definitely a huge commotion … it was a bit noisy …

If they are accused of being drunk, I’m guessing that there was something in how they were that looked a bit like drunkenness … maybe it was the speaking in other tongues … and as people were hearing this they were hearing the wonders of God proclaimed

Now, it’s hard to completely understand what was happening … but it was definitely different … it might have been a little bit chaotic and messy … it was noisy … but I wonder, with the accusation of being drunk, where there was some joy and laughter, maybe a bit of feeling not quite in control of their bodies

Because the presence of God had come upon them … the picture of the tongues of fire represents this presence resting on them … and if they are declaring the wonders of God, I think they probably wouldn’t have been doing that with a sad expression but they would have been joyful and thankful … it would have led them to praise and worship and people calling on the name of the Lord

Gifts

And what we see straight away … and Peter goes on to explain more about this … is that as the Spirit comes to fill the people … the Spirit gives gifts

The first one we see is tongues. And then Peter refers to the prophecy from Joel and he talks about other gifts that the Spirit promised would be given … prophecy, seeing visions and dreaming dreams.

Tongues is an interesting gift. I had a conversation with someone after the service last week because we were talking about what tongues was … and I think there are two different things that occur with this gift of ‘tongues’ in the New Testament

Mostly, I think we see this gift as not being a literal language but something of a pattern of speech that people can’t understand … even ourselves … but it can be interpreted. And then there is the occasion in Acts where crowds gather and they hear the large group of disciples speaking in ‘tongues’ and they hear the wonders of God spoken in their own languages.

I’m going to take us to 1 Corinthians 14:1-6 first … this is what I think we see the gift of tongues being mostly in the rest of Acts and referred to in the rest of the New Testament

Here the word ‘tongue’ is the same as in Acts … and this is what Paul says … walk through the passage

So someone speaking in tongues … doesn’t speak to people but speaks to God … they utter mysteries by the Spirit … they edify themselves

Now Paul isn’t saying that this is a selfish gift … he says in 1 Corinthians 14:18 “I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.” So Paul must think that this gift is great …

In verse 14 he says that if he prays in a tongue, his spirit prays … he also talks about singing with his spirit as well

So the gift of tongues is normally a spiritual language where people utter mysteries by the Spirit … they pray and sing with their spirits … they edify themselves … and this is beautiful

And then there is also the gift of the ‘interpretation of tongues’ … which interprets the incomprehensible tongue into something that the church can understand … and that way the church is edified … and then it functions like prophecy.

Now, if we go back to Acts, we see something a bit different from what Paul is describing in 1 Corinthians.

In Acts 2, we have people speaking in ‘other’ ‘tongues’ … and the people who gather to listen ‘hear the wonders of God in their own ‘languages’ … but the word there is different and it means ‘language’ … there are two words being used in this passage and our Bibles translate them differently so that we can see that … we have ‘tongue’ and we have ‘language’

So, in Acts we’re not completely sure what is going on … it could be that people are speaking in other languages … so on this particular occasion the ‘tongues’ that they speak are actual different languages. Or it could be that they are speaking in the same type of tongues as in 1 Corinthians 14 and what the Holy Spirit does is make it so that the person listening hears their own language being spoken.

I have experienced tongues being spoken and interpreted many times the way Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 14 but I have also heard of examples where people have spoken in tongues and other people have understood exactly what they were saying because they have said that they were speaking their language … and the tongues speaker doesn’t know the language.

But mostly I think we see that tongues is a gift that builds up the individual … it’s a way of speaking to God in spirit … but when it is interpreted … it functions like prophecy.

Prophecy - sons and daughters will prophesy -

In 1 Corinthians 14, as we heard, prophecy is when someone communicates something from God to edify or build up the church. They speak to people for their strengthening, encouragment and comfort.

In 1 Corinthians 14:6 “Now, brothers and sisters, if I come to you and speak in tongues, what good will I be to you, unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or word of instruction?”

Seeing visions - young men

Dreaming dreams - old men

Wonders in the heavens

Signs on the earth

- end times prophecy too

Universal sense for the gifts - for male and female, young and old

The Father wants to communicate with his people through the Holy Spirit - all of these gifts are communication gifts that are part of God speaking to his people - know what he is calling them to do

Purpose

End goal - not 'weird experiences' for the sake of it

To know the presence of God with us ... down payment guaranteeing our inheritance

To know joy ... the fruit of the Spirit is what we bear as God works in our lives ... fruit of the Spirit at work in us: love, joy, peace etc

But when we encounter the Spirit - we experience the presence of God who is full of love, joy, peace ...

God speaking to us / communicating with us … so that we know his love and his truth to us …

Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved