Pentecostal?

Acts 2:1–21 CEB

1 When Pentecost Day arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound from heaven like the howling of a fierce wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be individual flames of fire alighting on each one of them. 4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit enabled them to speak. 5 There were pious Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd gathered. They were mystified because everyone heard them speaking in their native languages. 7 They were surprised and amazed, saying, “Look, aren’t all the people who are speaking Galileans, every one of them? 8 How then can each of us hear them speaking in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; as well as residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the regions of Libya bordering Cyrene; and visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism), 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the mighty works of God in our own languages!” 12 They were all surprised and bewildered. Some asked each other, “What does this mean?” 13 Others jeered at them, saying, “They’re full of new wine!” 14 Peter stood with the other eleven apostles. He raised his voice and declared, “Judeans and everyone living in Jerusalem! Know this! Listen carefully to my words! 15 These people aren’t drunk, as you suspect; after all, it’s only nine o’clock in the morning! 16 Rather, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: 17 In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young will see visions. Your elders will dream dreams. 18 Even upon my servants, men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19 I will cause wonders to occur in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and a cloud of smoke. 20 The sun will be changed into darkness, and the moon will be changed into blood, before the great and spectacular day of the Lord comes. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

One of my favorite authors from my ministry courses was a Disciples of Christ minister, Fred Craddock. He wrote and taught about how to prepare sermons and how to preach. I hope that I’ve learned some from him.

There is a story that he told about an incident that occurred when he was teaching about preaching at a seminary out west. He related that story that went something like this.

Just before the first lecture, one of the students stood up and said, "Before you speak, I need to know if you are Pentecostal." The room grew silent. Craddock said he looked around for the Dean of the seminary! He was nowhere to be found.

The student continued with his quiz right in front of everybody. Craddock was taken aback, and so he said, "Do you mean do I belong to the Pentecostal Church?" He said, "No, I mean are you Pentecostal?"

Craddock said, "Are you asking me if I am charismatic?" the student said, "I am asking you if you are Pentecostal." Craddock said, "Do you want to know if I speak in tongues?" He said, " I want to know if you are Pentecostal."

Craddock said, "I don't know what your question is." The student said, "Obviously, you are not Pentecostal." He left.

Do you know that when the Church of the Nazarene was first started that the name was the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene. It remained that until about 1919 when the term “Pentecostal” was dropped from the name.

Pentecostal has come to mean charismatic. Pentecostal though refers back to our scripture text this morning.

One thing that I’ve learned about gardening and planting crops is that you do all the necessary preparation of tilling the soil, fertilizing it, making sure it has all the right nutrients and then you plant the seed and then you step back and wait. It’s amazing that you can take a tiny seed that for all intents and purposes appears to be dead and you put that seed in the soil and with the right conditions it will sprout and grow and produce a crop greater than the tiny seed that it sprouted from.

The disciples had just spent the past 3 plus years with Jesus. Jesus had invested his life in them, teaching them, demonstrating to them how to the live the life that he was calling them to live. Now he was gone. They had witnessed him being arrested, crucified and they had placed him into the grave. They rejoiced when they realized that he had indeed been resurrected. But, Jesus ascended into heaven and he told them to wait for the promise that the Father was going to send them, the Holy Spirit. Jesus told just before he ascended into heaven:

Acts 1:8 CEB

8 Rather, you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

The disciples head back to Jerusalem and they wait. They have no idea what is about to happen to them.

Luke writes: “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.” The day of Pentecost, what does that mean? The word Pentecost means 50 days. It was fifty days after the celebration of the Passover. There were three feasts or festivals that God had commanded the Jews to celebrate each year. Pentecost or as written in the Old Testament as the Feast of Weeks was one of those feasts that were to be celebrated every year. This was one of three times that all Jewish males were to appear before God.

Pentecost or the Feast of Weeks marked the end of the barley harvest and the beginning of the wheat harvest. It was also known in scripture as the feast of the harvest or the feast of first fruits. It was a holy day, no servant type or ordinary work could be performed on that day. Two freshly baked loaves of bread from the harvested barley flour would be brought to the Priest who would then wave them before the Lord. It was a celebration of the blessings of God.

It was during this feast that all Jewish males unless they were providentially hindered would be in Jerusalem. There would be people from literally around the known world there. So it’s not surprising that Luke mentions all those from different countries.

I did some additional digging into the Feast of First Fruits, Pentecost to try to understand it better. In the Old Testament when it was instituted it was to celebrate God’s provision of grain so that flour could be ground. Winter was over and the first grain was harvested, God had provided for them once again.

Think about tithing. When you put your tithe into the offering plate you’re celebrating the fact that God has provided for you. It all belongs to God to begin with but when you give that one small portion to God you’re celebrating God’s blessing on you. If you don’t tithe you’re not only violating God’s requirement but you’re also missing out on God’s blessings on you.

A second thing and more important is the linkage to Jesus. I was reading Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian church. It was interesting to read that Paul referred to Jesus as the first fruits in chapter 15 when he wrote:

1 Corinthians 15:20–23 CEB

20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead. He’s the first crop of the harvest of those who have died. 21 Since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead came through one too. 22 In the same way that everyone dies in Adam, so also everyone will be given life in Christ. 23 Each event will happen in the right order: Christ, the first crop of the harvest, then those who belong to Christ at his coming,

Jesus in John 6 said “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” With the celebration of the Feast of Weeks there was the yearly reminder that they had to plant crops and harvest them and then prepare loaves of bread to bring to the Priest as a thank offering of praise to God for His provision to them.

Jesus came as the bread of life. When we come to Jesus, when we’re nourished by Him we will never go hungry spiritually because He will give us all we need. Do you remember what Jesus said in the Beatitudes? Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Do you feel like you’re running on empty spiritually? If so, are you hungering and thirsting for righteousness? Jesus, the bread of life will fill you full to overflowing. He does it. Pentecost is another reminder that God has done everything necessary for us.

Jesus is the firstfruits of the dead. He’s the first to die and be resurrected and is still living. Paul says that just like Jesus, we who are Christians will be resurrected just like Him. I don’t think it’s any coincidence that God choose the Pentecost as the day to send the Holy Spirit.

God the source and giver of life that Pentecost celebrated choose that day to send the Holy Spirit to fill the lives of the Disciples and to empower them for the mission that Jesus was sending them on. Pentecost had celebrated the life giving bread to sustain the people physically and now it celebrated the fact that God the Holy Spirit had come to indwell and empower us.

Do you know where the Church of the Nazarene is growing the fastest? It is not here in the United States. It is in Asia, Africa, and South America.

There are many reasons why the church is growing in those areas. It is true not only in our denomination but in denominations across the board. I believe that one of the key factors in that growth is prayer.

Pastor Brett Blair wrote:

While it is true that churches that are together, in one accord can accomplish much, no church can be truly Pentecostal, if it does not pray. And it seems to me that much of the church has lapsed into a weekly routine of Sunday morning sermons and Sunday school. We have lost our desire to dedicate ourselves to prayer expecting the Holy Spirit to move in our presence and change lives. [1]

An unknown author captured the need for prayer in a poem that captures the need very well.

I got up early one morning and rushed right into the day; I had so much to accomplish that I didn’t have time to pray.

Problems just tumbled about me, and heavier came each task. “Why doesn’t God help me?” I wondered, He answered, “You didn’t ask.”

I wanted to see joy and beauty, but the day toiled on, gray and bleak; I wondered why God didn’t show me, He said, “But you didn’t seek.”

I tried to come into God’s presence; I used all my keys at the lock. God gently and lovingly chided, “My child, you didn’t knock.”

I woke up early this morning, and paused before entering the day; I had so much to accomplish that I had to take time to pray. Author Unknown

I was reading something recently that Pope Francis said. He said:

Knowing and doing what God wants is not possible with mere human effort -- it takes the transformative action of the Holy Spirit. – Pope Francis

That is what the Holy Spirit has come to do, to transform us.

Notice the symbolism of that event.

Acts 2:2–4 CEB

2 Suddenly a sound from heaven like the howling of a fierce wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be individual flames of fire alighting on each one of them. 4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit enabled them to speak.

The sound like a violent wind was heard and filled the room, what appeared like tongues of fire were seen on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and they began to speak and all those within hearing distance heard them speaking in their language.

Remember in the Feast of Pentecost it was a time to praise God for providing to the Jews their physical food. Notice in verse 11 what Luke records those that were witnesses to this event said, they said: “we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues.” On this special day they are declaring the wonders of God by the power of the Holy Spirit so that all those around hear and they are amazed and perplexed.

Peter, the one who was all boastful and claiming he’d never deny Jesus and did just that 3 times is now filled with the Holy Spirit and he preaches his first sermon. His scripture text is from Joel 2:28-32 which he quotes.

Joel 2:28–32 CEB

28 After that I will pour out my spirit upon everyone; your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. 29 In those days, I will also pour out my spirit on the male and female slaves. 30 I will give signs in the heavens and on the earth—blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood before the great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. 32 But everyone who calls on the Lord’s name will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be security, as the Lord has promised; and in Jerusalem, the Lord will summon those who survive.

Peter empowered by the Holy Spirit quotes from Joel and says that what is happening is exactly what Joel prophesied would happen. Joel said that “in the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.”

Folks we are living in the last days. One of these days soon God is going to call it quits and call the Church home and forever we will be with Jesus forever. Oh how much work we have to do between now and then. The great thing, the exciting thing is that we don’t have to do it ourselves! God, the Holy Spirit has come. God has poured out His Spirit on us and He is continually pouring out His Spirit on us. It was the Holy Spirit that gave Peter the boldness and the ability to stand up on that first Pentecost Sunday and proclaim the Gospel. It is that very same Holy Spirit who fills us and transforms us and gives us the boldness to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus.

If you feel like you’re missing out on something from God it’s probably because you’re trying to do it yourself. The old timers growing up talked about staying under the spout where the blessings come out. What they were saying is that we have to stay connected to the source.

Look at what Joel said would happen as a result of the out pouring of God’s Holy Spirit. He said that “your sons and daughters will prophesy.” We need to see God raise up a new generation of preachers and evangelists and lay leaders who will boldly proclaim the Gospel message. In these last days our world is becoming more and more vile and sinful. People need to hear the liberating message of the Gospel, a message that has the power to set people free.

Joel went on to say “your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.” What are your dreams? What are your dreams for the church?

One of our presidents wrote a proclamation for the United States. It was a proclamation for a national day of prayer:

We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.

It behooves us, then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.

That proclamation was written by President Lincoln on March 30, 1863.

Isn’t that what we need today? Way too many of us try to do it on our own without seeking God’s power. Way to many churches try to do stuff for God without asking for God’s power. It is almost like we don’t believe in the power of prayer any longer.

If we are to come into God’s presence, then we must ask to be in His presence. [1]

If we are to be a Pentecostal church we need to repent. If we believe in the power of the Holy Spirit to transform a life, then we must repent. We cannot just sit and moan and complain that people aren’t coming to church. We have to do something about it. We have to pray. We need to pray and repent.

If there is a moral crisis in the life of a person, they must repent.

If there is a moral crisis in the life of a nation, it must repent.

If there is a moral crisis in the life of a church, the church must repent.

Pentecost is possible only where sin is adequately dealt with.

Peter understood this. In his first sermon that he ever preached he had people on the edge of their seats. He reached the end of his message about Jesus. There is a southern Gospel song about a young preacher who is struggling to connect with the people. The lyrics tell the story of him going to an older pastor and asking his advice. The older preacher tells him:

Just preach Jesus born and crucified and risen from the dead Just preach Jesus as He paid for sin with the precious blood he shed Lord and savior, King of Kings, son of God and son of man Just preach Jesus son til Jesus comes again [2]

When Peter had finished preaching that sermon, which takes up the last half of chapter two, the people ask of him:

Acts 2:37 TPT

37 When they heard this they were crushed and realized what they had done to Jesus. Deeply moved, they said to Peter and the other apostles, “What do we need to do, brothers?”

Peter’s response is the same response that we are called to do. He said:

Acts 2:38 TPT

38 Peter replied, “Repent and return to God, and each one of you must be baptized in the name of Jesus, the Anointed One, to have your sins removed. Then you may take hold of the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Those disciples were hiding in that upper room. They were praying. They were seeking what God was going to do next. God heard their prayers and came in a powerful, miraculous way.

The Holy Spirit was poured out on them. The Spirit totally transformed their lives. We are not meant to stay the way we were. We are meant to be transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Do you need to repent?

[1] Acts 2:1-21 | Are You Pentecostal? | Sermon and Worship Resources (sermons.com)

[2] (43) Kingdom Heirs - Just Preach Jesus - YouTube