Sermon Tone Analysis

The Comforter Is Come!

 

Lev.

23:15-16

 

The Feast of Pentecost is the fourth of the special feasts recorded in Leviticus 23.

Fifty days following Firstfruits, the Feast of Pentecost occurred.

You will notice that Pentecost occurred on the 50th day, which would put it on the first day of the week, the Lord's Day.

Firstfruits and Pentecost both occurred on the first day of the week.

For Christians, this is the Lord's Day.

The Feast of Firstfruits commemorates our Lord's resurrection from the dead, and the Feast of Pentecost commemorates the coming of the Holy Spirit.

By His resurrection and by His sending of the Holy Spirit, our Lord has consecrated the first day of the week in a very special way.

You will also notice that the priest was to offer a new meal-offering (see Lev. 23:16).

Pentecost brought into the world something new—the Church.

God had always had His people on this earth, but the Church is a very special people.

Jesus said, "I will build my church" (Matt.

16:18).

"Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave-loaves of two tenth deals [parts]" (Lev.

23:17).

It goes on to explain that the loaves would be made of fine flour, baked with leaven.

This is rather interesting because the Jews were not to bring their offer­ings with leaven.

We discovered that leaven is a picture of sin, and yet these two loaves were to be baked with leaven!

Why?

Because the loaves pic­ture the Church, and there is sin in the Church.

Not until the Church arrives in heaven will it be sinless.

How can God accept a sinful people?

On the basis of the sacrifice of Christ, illustrated in the many sacrifices named in Leviticus 23:18,19.

These sacri­fices picture the work of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross.

The burnt-offering pictures complete consecration—He gave Himself completely.

The sin-offering, of course, speaks of our Lord Jesus dying for our sins.

And the peace-offering—the fact that Jesus, through His death, has made peace with God.

The fulfillment of all of this is recorded in Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost.

If you put together Acts 2 and Leviticus 23, you will learn some beautiful lessons about the Holy Spirit.

Four activities of the Spirit are recorded in Acts 2.

First of all, the Holy Spirit came.

Then the Holy Spirit baptized.

Third, the Holy Spirit filled.

Fourth, the Holy Spirit spoke.

"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they [the apostles and the other believers] were all with one accord in one place.

And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.

And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost [Spirit], and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1-4).

I.

The Spirit Came

 

On the Day of Pentecost, the Spirit came.

This does not mean that the Holy Spirit had not minis­tered on earth before Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit worked in creation.

"The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters" (Gen.

1:2).

The Spirit of God empowered men of God to serve Him.

The Holy Spirit came upon different men of God—judges and kings, warriors and workers to accomplish His purposes.

Of course, the Holy Spirit had worked in the life of Christ.

The Holy Spirit had conceived the body of Christ in the womb of Mary.

The Holy Spirit had anointed and empowered the Lord Jesus for His ministry on earth.

When our Lord preached in Nazareth, He said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor" (Luke 4:18).

So the Holy Spirit had ministered in creation, in the history of the Jewish nation and in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ.

But now the Holy Spirit was going to come in a new and special way.

"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither know­eth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you" (John 14:16,17).

The Holy Spirit had dwelt with the apostles in the Person of Jesus Christ.

But after Pentecost, the Spirit would live in them.

Furthermore, this dwelling would be per­manent, not temporary.

In the Old Testament age, the Holy Spirit had come upon men temporarily to accomplish a special work, and then He would depart.

For example, the Holy Spirit empowered King Saul, but when Saul sinned against God, God removed the Holy Spirit.

This explains why David prayed in Psalm 51, "Take not thy holy spirit from me" (v.

11).

We don't pray that way today because God will not take His Holy Spirit from us.

Jesus said, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever" (John 14:16).

Keep in mind, then, these two special truths.

First, the Holy Spirit would indwell people, not just come upon them.

Second, the Holy Spirit would be a permanent resident, not a temporary visitor.

You may ask, "Why didn't the Holy Spirit do all of this sooner?"

Because God has His calendar.

The explanation is given in John 7:37,38.

"In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.

He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly [innermost being] shall flow rivers of living water."

Now, here's the explanation: "(But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified)" (v.

39).

You see, God has His timetable.

First, Passover—the Lamb was slain.

Then the Lamb was raised from the dead—that's the Feast of Firstfruits.

Now, 50 days later, the glorified Lamb of God sends the Holy Spirit.

He could not send the Holy Spirit until He was glorified, and of course, He could not be glori­fied until He was crucified.

His glorification involved being crucified and buried, being raised from the dead and then ascending back to heaven that He might send the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit came, and He came right on schedule.

II.

The Spirit Baptized

 

Now, second, the Holy Spirit baptized.

We hear a great deal these days about "the baptism of the Holy Spirit."

We must get our facts from the Bible, not from men's experience.

We read in Acts 1:4,5: "And, being assembled together with them, [Jesus] commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.

For John [John the Baptist] truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence."

This promise of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is found in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Acts.

John the Baptist announced that the Lord Jesus Christ, who was greater than John, would baptize with the Holy Spirit.

Please notice that Jesus said nothing about the baptism of fire.

John the Baptist had said, "He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire" (Matt.

3:11).

My own personal conviction is that the "baptism of fire" is a future baptism of judgment that is going to come upon this earth to those who have rejected the Saviour.

Our Lord said nothing in Acts 1 about a baptism of fire, but He did talk about the Holy Spirit's baptizing the believers.

This baptism of the Spirit must be important, or it would not be found in all four Gospels and also in the Book of the Acts.

The word "baptize" has a twofold meaning.

There is a literal meaning and a figurative meaning.

Many words in our language have both literal and figura­tive meanings.

We say that someone is "going through the waters."

Well, that could mean he is wading out in a trout stream or that he is going through times of difficulty.

You see, there is a literal meaning, and there is a figurative meaning.

Now, literally, the word "baptize" means "to submerge, to immerse."

But figuratively it means "to be identified with."

When the Holy Spirit came at Pen­tecost, He identified the believers with their glorified Head, the Lord Jesus, and formed the body, which is the Church.

Now, this truth is amplified in I Corin­thians 12:13: "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free."