The Power and Purpose of Pentecost

HOOK

Most Christians could not imagine having a year go by without celebrating the holidays of Christmas and Easter

Christian calendar is not complete without the observance of these two events

Christmas is the event that celebrates the birth of Jesus and the beginning of His ministry of redemption on earth.

Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus and God’s ultimate victory over sin and death

Imagine a year with no poinsettias and no Easter lilies.

Imagine a year with no songs such as “Silent Night” or “Christ the Lord Is Risen Today.”

However, there is a third holiday, a third observance, a third sacred event

Central to our understanding of what it means to be a Christian and what it means to belong to the church

Though most Christians do not celebrate this event, and many never have heard of it or know little or nothing about it.

That third event is called Pentecost Sunday. This third great day in the Christian calendar is rooted in the story in Acts 2 and celebrates the day when the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles who were gathered in a room in Jerusalem

Some people mistakenly believe the observance of Pentecost has meaning only for those members of the Christian family who call themselves Pentecostals

The truth is the history of the Christian church stretches back more than 2,000 years, while the Pentecostal movement did not emerge in its fullness until the Azusa Street revival in Los Angeles, Calif., at the turn of the 20th century.

Pentecost Sunday is 1,900 years older than those Christians who call themselves Pentecostals.

In other words, observing the Day of Pentecost is no more a possession of Pentecostals than observing baptism is the possession only of those who call themselves Baptists.

Pentecost, as baptism, is a gift God gave to the whole church, the whole body of Christ.

Pentecost began as and remains one of the major holidays on the Jewish calendar that occurs 50 days after Passover.— The word Pentecost literally means “50th or 50th day.”

For Jews, Pentecost was the time when they celebrated the first harvest of the agricultural year. It was a time when they gave thanks to God for what the land had produced and for what their labor had yielded.

For Christians, Pentecost marks the birthday of the Christian church, the day when Peter preached and in response to that sermon there was also a harvest of 3,000 souls converted.

Before Pentecost, those men were hiding from the public for fear that what had happened to Jesus might also happen to them

I understand that many are fearful— with covid-19, protest across the nation due to the death of George Floyd— an African-American died in the hands of white police man— looters took the opportunity

But look what happened to the Apostles after the Pentecost— those frightened men had become suddenly and miraculously equipped and empowered to carry on the ministry Jesus had begun—in the very city of Jerusalem where Jesus recently had been put to death

Peter who 53 days earlier had said about Jesus; “I never knew Him.” — was the same Peter who preached the very first sermon recorded in Acts 2

Peter, on the Day of Pentecost, stood before a crowd of the same people he once feared, yet he boldly declared the gospel of Jesus Christ

Peter stood before many of the same people who had shouted, “Crucify Him,” on the day Jesus stood trial before Pontius Pilate in the city of Jerusalem

Now Peter declared that the Man they had ordered to be crucified was, in fact, the Son of God

How did Peter go from being frightened to being fearless?

How did Peter go from being cowardly to being courageous?

How did Peter go from denying Jesus to defending Jesus before the very same people in the very same place

Peter did not simply change his mind; Peter himself was changed.

Something happened to Peter and to the other apostles

What happened to them, and what needs to happen to everyone who calls him or herself a disciple of Jesus Christ is what Pentecost is all about

Pentecost marks the outpouring of the Holy Spirit by which human beings are equipped to do the work of God

BOOK

Acts 2:1–8 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. 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? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language?

Consider these three events this way:

If Christmas marks the birth of Jesus— Pentecost marks the birth of the church

if Easter marks the day when Jesus was raised from the dead— Pentecost marks the day when that message about Jesus began to make its way to people and places all over the world

After Peter to gospel of Jesus Christ for the very first time— people became ready to respond to the call

Acts 2:37–42 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?” 38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” 40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

The fact that we have failed to understand or observe this day on the calendar does not change the basic truth this day holds for every believer.

Unless you make room for Pentecost in your understanding of what it means to be a Christian, you never will understand your faith fully.

Remember that in Acts 1:6-8 Jesus tells the apostles to remain in the city of Jerusalem until the power of the Holy Spirit came upon them.

He was not sending them out to evangelize on the basis of their life experiences or their understanding of religious laws and teachings.

He was not suggesting that spending three years in His presence had resulted in them being equipped for the work that lay ahead.

Instead, He told them to wait for the power, wait for the anointing, wait for the Holy Spirit to come upon them.

Once they had that power, they would be ready to go. Until that happened—wait!

Pentecost Sunday is the day we remember when and how that anointing took place

You see, the power of Pentecost was not the unknown tongues in which the apostles were speaking.

The miracle was that people from every known region of the world were able to understand what was being said in his or her language.

It was immediately after the miracle of understanding that something else of equal importance took place— The work of the church in the world as an agent of reconciliation and evangelism began

What do you and I do on Christmas that is central to the story? Nothing!

There is nothing for us to do on Easter except celebrate and give thanks for the work Christ has done on our behalf \

On Pentecost, though, all of that changes—you and I are called away from our roles as spectators into the role of central characters in God’s work of redemption and salvation

As a result of Pentecost, we do not watch what somebody else is doing for God, but are being equipped by the power of the Holy Spirit so we can become actively involved in the work of salvation and redemption.

That is what Pentecost is all about; it is the day Jesus officially transfers to His disciples the responsibility of spreading the message of salvation.

The time for following Jesus as a disciple or learner is over, and the time to carry His message forth as apostles has come

Those disciples were no longer spectators; the time had come for them to do the work themselves.

It is one thing to watch while somebody else does all the work. It is another matter to do the job yourself.

However, that is what God called those disciples to do on the day of Pentecost.

PERSONAL STORY ABOUT SOMEONE DOING THNIGS FOR ME

TOOK

Let me make several brief observations about Pentecost based on the two biblical texts we read today

I MUST BE BAPTIZED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT

We need to receive the Holy Spirit so we can do the work of discipleship that awaits each one of us.

You cannot preach correctly unless you have received and depend on the Holy Spirit.

You cannot pray, sing, serve or live correctly as a Christian unless and until you have been empowered and enlightened by the Holy Spirit, which first fell on the Lord’s apostles in Jerusalem on Pentecost!

Do you remember when God made Adam from the dust of the earth in Genesis 2:7? Although God had the body of Adam, nothing happened with that body until God breathed His Spirit into the nostrils of Adam, who then became a living soul

Do you remember the dry bones in the valley in Ezekiel 37? Although Ezekiel spoke to the bones and they came together to form a body, the body could not and did not move until the Spirit of God blew over those bones.

The same thing is true with the church and with every Christian; no matter what our spiritual gifts might be, they never will function to their full capacity until we allow the Holy Spirit to blow over us, fill us and equip us for God’s service.

John said it not just once— when he testified about Jesus, he said…

John 1:33 NIV

33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’

And then later on in Chapter 7 of his gospel— when he wrote about the division who Jesus is— he said

John 7:39 NIV

39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

Jesus Christ Himself said it— Luke quoted him in..

Acts 1:5 NIV

5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

Paul also confirmed this when they were sent by the Apostles in Jerusalem to go to Samaria

Acts 8:15–16 NIV

15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

And after the Pentecost, Peter remembered what Jesus said

Acts 11:16 NIV

16 Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’

we cannot do our work, employ our gifts or exercise our ministry areas until God has filled us and transformed us by the power of the Holy Spirit.

However, once the Holy Spirit has come, we can have the same boldness, conviction and possibly the same results Peter had on the Day of Pentecost when 3,000 souls were added to the church at the end of his sermon. We need the power of Pentecost!

GOD’s PURPOSE WAS TO CONVERT PEOPLE AND ESTABLISH A CHURCH

When we do that, we will see how far short we are falling from what I believe to be God’s will for the church.

If you held a map of the world as it was known in the first century A.D. and then listened to the roll call of nations represented in Jerusalem on Pentecost, you would see that every known continent, race and ethnic group was gathered there that day.

Remember that Jews had, by this time, spread into every region of the world.

On Pentecost, as on Passover and the other major Jewish holidays, some Jews returned to Jerusalem to celebrate by making a sacrifice in the Temple of Solomon.

That is why there were people there from Africa, Asia and Europe. That is why Egyptians, Greeks, Romans and Persians all were present in one place at one time.

God was doing two wonderful things at once: He was converting people who could take the message back to their respective countries and establish the gospel throughout the world; and perhaps more importantly for today, He was establishing a church that consisted of and welcomed people from every race and region of the world.

I am sure God hates the fact that in this city and across this country most Christians gather together for worship in all-white, all-black, all-Hispanic or all-Asian congregations.

I am sure God hates the fact that the racism and segregation that still grips our society is strongest in the Christian church. [George Floyd— Minneapolis]

How can the church be the light that draws the world to salvation in the name of Jesus when the world sees inside our walls the same ugly divisions as in the rest of society?

1 John 2:9 NIV

9 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister is still in the darkness.

1 John 4:20 NIV

20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.

By the way, the diversity God created is not limited to white people and black people or any other distinctions based on race or ethnic background.

Diversity also is reflected in issues of social class, economic levels, educational and political points of view

MEN AND WOMEN WILL PROPHESY

Pentecost is the day when gender walls seem to come down.

Peter said Pentecost is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel who said...

Acts 2:17 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.

Pentecost is the day when God tears down all the walls of division in the world and the church

We need to move beyond the idea that God cannot use men and women in the ministry of the gospel.

Paul said in...

Galatians 3:28 NIV

28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

The same Paul who commended Timothy ...

2 Timothy 1:2 NIV

2 To Timothy, my dear son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Also commended Phoebe in ...

Romans 16:1 NIV

1 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon, of the church in Cenchreae.

Do not be confused with what Paul said in...

1 Timothy 2:12 NIV

12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.

Take notice of the tense— it was present tense— he was dealing with a situation about women at Ephesus

Paul’s prohibition against teaching by the Ephesian women was due to their gullibility and instability [ 1 Timothy 5:11-13, 2 Timothy 3:6-7]

These times in which we live are another embodiment of the Spirit of Pentecost, as God is once again pouring out His Spirit upon our sons and daughters. We need to embrace this aspect of the power and purpose of Pentecost!

Finally, I want you to notice that when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, there are some people who might laugh at you or look funny at you because of what you might start to do under the influence of that power and anointing

MY STORY OF PERSECUTION

Finally, I want you to notice that when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, there are some people who might laugh at you or look funny at you because of what you might start to do under the influence of that power and anointing

I invite you to celebrate the third great holiday of the Christian faith which is Pentecost. I invite you to open your hearts to receive the Holy Spirit