Why Pentecost

Today is Pentecost Sunday. It the day we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit to the Early Church to STAY.

Some churches recognize it as being part of the Christian Calendar with no relevance for today. I was raised in a good church, but it was a church that didn’t really celebrate Pentecost.

We don’t talk about this enough, but we are Pentecostal which means we seek after the fullness of the Holy Spirit just like they did at Pentecost and throughout the New Testament.

We want to see everyone baptized in the Holy Spirit. OK, you can breathe. Don’t be afraid of what God wants to give you. Our church… every church needs the power of the Holy Spirit working in it.

So, what is the big deal about Pentecost? Jesus died and was raised 3 days later. Then he appeared on earth for 40 more days.

Acts 1:3 NLT

3 During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.

Then Jesus said,

Acts 1:4 NLT

4 Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before.

Then the 120 waited 10 more days and then then Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit to them.

The day of Pentecost was not an after thought, it was part of the plan all the time

On that day everything that Jesus paid for became available to the church.

In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit was poured out ON people.

The Holy Spirit would come upon a person for a certain task.

In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit was poured out INTO people.

In the NT, the Holy Spirit was poured into people permanently… to stay.

It’s important to remember that,

John 14:17 NLT

17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.

The infilling of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost is different from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that we receive when we get saved.

Then on the same day that Jesus was raised from the dead, he…

John 20:22 NLT

22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

Then 40 days later he is about to ascend into heaven, Jesus tells them to not depart from Jerusalem until the promise comes from the Father.

And he did… and there was a difference!

1 Corinthians 2:4–5 NLT

4 And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.

Without the power of the Holy Spirit, the message of the Gospel will rest on man’s wisdom … and that would be no good.

2 Timothy 3:5 NLT

5 They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!

Power is something that is and should be normal!

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit had a purpose for the First Century church and it has the same message for us today in 2021.

I want us to look at three aspects revolving around why we all should all be Pentecostal.

1. The Outpouring

2. The Explanation

3. The Result

Now I know some of you have not been raised in a church that taught you the realities

For those that think it’s historical … let me ask you. Is Salvation historical? Yes! Does salvation still occur? Yes! Just because you may not have been taught about it doesn’t make it not true.

Let’s look at the truth…

1. The Outpouring

Matthew 3:11 NLT

11 “I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be his slave and carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

Luke 24:49 NLT

49 “And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”

Acts 1:3–8 NLT

3 During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God. 4 Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. 5 John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” 6 So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?” 7 He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Jesus told his disciples to wait for the power from on high.

Jesus knew they needed power

Without the “pentecostal” we are lacking the power that Jesus wants us to have.

Without that power, we are like a baseball player that just hit a home run but he stops and stands at 3rd base. Even though he can go to home plate, he stops at 3rd base.

Pentecost gives power to preaching. It gives power to witnessing. It gives power to teaching. It gives power to overcome sin. It gives power in every aspect of our lives. Even though the apostles knew the WOG, Jesus knew they needed power.

Pentecost gives us power to speak boldly.

Acts 10:38 NLT

38 And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

Jesus himself needed the power of the Holy Spirit. He was operating as a man. He was 100% God and 100% man, but while he was on earth, He was doing all of his miracles as a man submitted to the Holy Spirit. that’s where his power came from.

Acts 1:12–14 NLT

12 Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, a distance of half a mile. 13 When they arrived, they went to the upstairs room of the house where they were staying. Here are the names of those who were present: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon (the zealot), and Judas (son of James). 14 They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.

The apostles and other followers pan was plain… to remain in Jerusalem until they received the heavenly power Jesus talked about. Now, they didn’t really now wha they were waiting on, but they waited.

For 10 days, after the ascension of Jesus, these 120 followers of Jesus stayed in a room and continued to pray and worship the Lord waiting for the gift Jesus told them to wait for. Can you imagine, a 10 day prayer meeting? For them, they didn’t know how long it would be… 10 days… 10 weeks or 10 years. That in itself was a miracle… 120 people praying for 10 straight days and focusing on Jesus.

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit changed these 120 people.

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit turned these 120 people around and turned Jerusalem upside down for Jesus. It turned Paul the persecutor into Paul the preacher.

After 10 days here is what happened.

Acts 2:1–4 NLT

1 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

Holy Spirit was not just poured out on a few, but he was poured on everyone. Holy Spirit is not for an elite few, but for everyone.

Can you imagine what it must have been like to have been there when this happened? WOW! You had faithful believers gathered together praying and expecting something. They were waiting as Jesus instructed them to do having faith that God was going to do something powerful in their midst.

This particular day probably didn’t seem any different that the previous 9 days did, but little did they know what was fixing to take place.

Suddenly, the sound like a rushing wind filled the room. The sound was loud but the wind wasn’t blowing. Imagine that you are there and you look at your friend next to you and see a flaming tongue of fire above their head.

Something that looked like flames appeared over the whole group. Then it broke up into smakller flames and settled above the head of each believer… both men and women. The flames were distributed equally to everyone. These flaming tongues looked like fire but were not actually fire… no one was burned.

They all received the same measure of the Holy Spirit. Peter didn’t get more than Mary or anyone else. Pastors don’t get more than church members. The Holy Spirit was distributed equally to everyone.

Then with jaw dropping wonder, a new sound filled the air. Voices were speaking in unfamiliar languages. Can you imagine being there?

Some on the outside thought they were drunk… they had no other explanation for what they saw. I think as the Holy Spirit was being poured out that there was GREAT joy in that place.

Next comes,

2. Peter’s explanation

Acts 2:14–41 NLT

14 Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this. 15 These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that. 16 No, what you see was predicted long ago by the prophet Joel: 17 ‘In the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. 18 In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on my servants—men and women alike— and they will prophesy. 19 And I will cause wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below— blood and fire and clouds of smoke. 20 The sun will become dark, and the moon will turn blood red before that great and glorious day of the Lord arrives. 21 But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ 22 “People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know. 23 But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. 24 But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip. 25 King David said this about him: ‘I see that the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. 26 No wonder my heart is glad, and my tongue shouts his praises! My body rests in hope. 27 For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your Holy One to rot in the grave. 28 You have shown me the way of life, and you will fill me with the joy of your presence.’ 29 “Dear brothers, think about this! You can be sure that the patriarch David wasn’t referring to himself, for he died and was buried, and his tomb is still here among us. 30 But he was a prophet, and he knew God had promised with an oath that one of David’s own descendants would sit on his throne. 31 David was looking into the future and speaking of the Messiah’s resurrection. He was saying that God would not leave him among the dead or allow his body to rot in the grave. 32 “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. 33 Now he is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today. 34 For David himself never ascended into heaven, yet he said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit in the place of honor at my right hand 35 until I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet.” ’ 36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!” 37 Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” 38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 This promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away—all who have been called by the Lord our God.” 40 Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!” 41 Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all.

After Peter preached, 3000 people were saved and added to the Church. That’s a pretty good day.

When Peter preached and 3,000 were saved the power of th eHoly Spirit was no longer contained inside the four walls of the upper room. Look at the 120. They were excited and knew each other and felt like family, but the Holy Spirit did not allow them to sit there and be comfortable. He put them to work. There were more important things for them to do for the Lord than have a prayer meeting.

Pentecost had come and gone public and the news (without FB) spread like wildfire through out the city.

3. The result of Pentecost was that the 1st century church had power to accomplish things for God.

When someone has been Baptized in the Holy Spirit, the have more power to witness effectively.

Acts 1:8 NLT

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

The results were that the church had more power than ever before. They had the power of the Holy Spirit, which convicts of sin today just as he did on they day Peter preached. Think about that. 2021 years later, we have the same access to His awesome power as did Peter and Paul and the others.

God’s plan is the same today as it was back then.

God’s plan is to empower people to become strong and effective witnesses

He wants to give you and I the same power He gave Peter.

World evangelism missionaries study - The Gospel was being spread more effectively in areas where people were filled with the Holy Spirit.

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit makes a difference

We have more power to witness and more power to perform miracles.

Conclusion

Why Pentecost? Why should we all want the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?

It’s a gift from God to you.

If Jesus thought the disciples needed it after seeing him for 3 years and after seeing him resurrected from the dead, don’t you think we may need that same power too?

So we can preach the Gospel with power and be His wintesses.

Galatians 5:22–23 NLT

22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Does anyone besides me need more of these?

Too often we are afraid because of tongues...

1 Corinthians 14:18 NLT

18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you.

Paul understood the benefits of speaking in tongues.

Today we celebrate Pentecost Sunday and it reminds us of the reality that when we are Baptized in the Holy Spirit, we have new power that we did not have before.

The first century church saw the Baptism of the Holy Spirit as the normal Christian Experience for empowering believers to spread the Gospel.

The power we need to grow individually… to grow this church is not another program, it’s the power of Pentecost.

Don’t be the baseball player standing on 3rd base, refusing to run to home plate.

Altar

Salvation -

2 reasons whey people don’t receive the Baptism

Fear

Lack of understanding

You may be like others who have both.

Come forward for prayer