Acts - 2:1-13 - The Baptism of the Spirit

Acts 2:1–13 The Baptism of the Holy Spirit Lesson 4 & 5 — Chapter 1 & Chapter 2

Preparation for the Birth of the Church → Church Born — Waiting for the Holy Spirit → The Holy Spirit Comes — Anticipating the Church’s Birth → The Church is Born — Disciples Equipped → Disciples Empowered — Believers Held Back → Believers Sent Forth

Acts 1:8 — Promise and Fulfillment “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Three key points emerge from this passage:

THE EVIDENCE OF THE SPIRIT’S COMING (1-4)

THE EFFECT OF TEH SPIRIT’S COMING (5-11)

THE EXPLANATION OF THE SPIRIT’S COMING (12-13)

1. The Evidence of the Spirit’s Coming (vv. 1–4)

Note that the Spirit did not come because the disciples prayed or did something spiritual—He came in God’s timing, not in response to human effort.

Pentecost "Pentecost" means "fifty." It refers to a Jewish feast celebrated 50 days after Passover. In the Old Testament, this was called: — Chag HaKatzir — Feast of Harvest — Shavuot — Feast of Weeks — Yom HaBikkurim — Day of Firstfruits (Leviticus 23)

This feast celebrated: — The first fruits of the wheat harvest — The giving of the Mosaic Law — Occurred 50 days after the 14th of Nisan (Passover)

Theological Significance — The first feast (Passover) pictured the death of Christ. Jesus died on Passover, the 14th of Nisan. — The Feast of Firstfruits occurred on the Sunday after Passover, representing the resurrection. Jesus is the fulfillment of this, as seen in 1 Corinthians 15:20 — “Christ is the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”

50 Days Later: Pentecost (Feast of Harvest) — This corresponds with the wheat harvest, and loaves of bread were baked as an offering. — This typologically predicts the birth of the Church—one body made of many (loaves blended from many grains). — Barley (used earlier) had no leaven — a picture of Christ’s sinlessness. — Wheat had leaven — a picture of the Church, where sin still exists. — The Church was sovereignly designed to be born at Pentecost as a fulfillment of this typology.

Verse 2 — It was not literal wind, but “a sound like a mighty rushing wind.” — It happened suddenly. — The word for "Spirit" here is not pneuma (breath), but pnoē (a blast of breath). — There was sound, but no physical wind — like the noise of a hurricane without the wind itself.

Spiritual Baptism: Key Scriptures — Romans 6:3–4: We are baptized into the body of Christ and united with other believers at salvation. — Colossians 2:12: “Buried with Him in baptism and raised through your faith in the power of God.” — 1 Peter 3:21: It’s not water baptism that saves, but the spiritual reality it represents. — Ephesians 2:22: The Spirit once filled the house (Acts 2:2); now, He dwells in the believer.

Jesus’ prayer in John 17:11, 21–23 is fulfilled — that believers would be one in Him. The baptism of the Spirit places us into Christ positionally.

Note: In Acts 2:2, they were sitting (not kneeling or standing). This emphasizes it wasn’t a response to prayer—it was God’s initiative.

Verse 3 — The baptism of the Spirit brings all believers into one body. — No one was excluded.

Verse 4 — They were all filled with the Holy Spirit. — Don’t confuse filling with baptism. — Baptism is once-for-all at salvation; filling can happen repeatedly (see Ephesians 5:18). — Acts 4:8: Peter, filled with the Spirit, preached. — Acts 6:5, 11:22, 13:9, 13:52: Fullness of the Spirit empowers boldness, preaching, and service.

Baptism vs. Filling of the Holy Spirit — Baptism places you in the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). — Filling is the yielding of control to the Spirit already within you (Ephesians 5:18). — Every Christian possesses the Spirit—it’s a question of yielding to Him.

Hebrews 2:3 — “How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?”

On Tongues and Language — If the gift of tongues still existed in the original form, why do missionaries need language schools? — In Acts, tongues were real languages—given as a sign to authenticate the Gospel and prepare hearers for preaching (Acts 2:4; 10:46; 19:6).

2. The Effect of the Spirit’s Coming (vv. 5–11)

Verse 5 — "God-fearing Jews" — devout men who came to Jerusalem for the feast. — Proverbs 9:10: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

Verses 6–7 — The crowd is amazed: “Are not all these men Galileans?” — Galileans were looked down upon — considered uneducated, with poor grammar (Matthew 26:69; Mark 14:70). — Yet they were speaking in diverse languages!

Verse 8 — The people wonder: “How are they speaking our languages?”

Verses 9–10 — Lists all the nationalities represented.

Verse 11 — The Spirit caused the sound that gathered the crowd. — The people heard praises to God in their own language. — This affirmed God’s involvement and prepared the crowd to receive the message. — Peter then preaches Christ, and 3,000 are saved.

3. The Explanation of the Spirit’s Coming (vv. 12–13)

Verse 12 — Some were amazed, but didn’t understand what was happening.

Verse 13 — Others mocked: “They are full of new wine.” — The Greek word here refers to sweet wine—grape juice. — The mockers were sarcastic: “These men are so immature, they’re drunk on grape juice.” — This mockery sets the stage for increasing opposition: — Acts 4:7 — They question the apostles — Acts 4:17 — They threaten them — Acts 5:18 — They imprison them — Acts 5:40 — They beat them — Acts 7:58 — They kill Stephen

The coming of the Holy Spirit causes a division: people either come to Christ or reject Him with hostility. The Spirit confronts the world and calls for a decision.