The Holy Spirit filled the disciples in a dramatic fashion. This gift looks at the gift of the Comforter from God.
Nuggets
- It reads like the disciples had no advanced warning of the exact when the Spirit would show up.
- I wonder if God was going for a sense of urgency.
- Look how many people believed — just because of the disciples’ spoken testimonies.
- God wasn’t chucking everything that had come before.
Let me just start off by saying thank you for reading these devotions. At the beginning of the week, I give the devotions in the series working titles and figure out what I what them to focus on.
When I dig down into the research, God has invariably taken me on the scenic route. I am afraid my writing follows those twists and turns, so I hope they are coherent by the time we park.
This is another one that took a figurative drive. However, I think it is one that needs to be told.
So, strap in, and let’s look at a wonderful gift.
Let's Put It into Context
“Then all the disciples deserted him and ran away” (Mt. 26: 56 CSB)
Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane when He was arrested. All of the disciples except Judas were with Him.
Trouble came — they were gone.
Yeah, Peter tried to defend Jesus. He took his sword and cut off the high priest’s servant’s ear (Mt. 26: 51).
In the end, though, all of the disciples ran away.
How in the world was God going to build a church with these chickens?
I mean, their resumes weren’t stellar. They had limited to no education. They only reached the bar mitzvah stage. They weren’t priest material.
What most of them were were fishermen. Back in the day, that was considered a menial job.
But these ordinary men did change the world. How did that happen? They received a gift.
To read a related devotion, click the appropriate button below.
The Spirit Came on Them
“Suddenly a sound like that of a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were staying. They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and rested on each one of them. Then they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them” (Ac. 2: 2-4 CSB)
Ooo, baby. I bet the fear of the Lord started out as terror before it turned into the love and reverence.
How would you feel if this entrance of the Holy Spirit took place in your house?
It reads like the disciples had no advanced warning of the exact when the Spirit would show up. The Spirit just suddenly showed up.
Oh, yeah. The Spirit was probably already working on them. He was probably helping them to remember what Jesus had told them. He was probably starting to interpret what He had told them so they could start making the connections.
But then whoosh!
Sound — God works behind the scenes a lot, but when He is ready to roll things out, He does it in dramatic fashion. The sound would have gotten their attention.
Did you catch that? “… it filled the whole house where they were staying” (Ac. 2: 2 CSB). It filled the house, not the Temple (Burrell).
Morris thought — and Parkhurst thought it possible — it was an apartment of the temple. I don’t think so — I go with Burrell.
These men were hiding out, afraid for their lives. The leaders of the Temple were the ones hunting for them. I doubt they would hide in plain sight here.
A second reason I don’t think they were hiding in the Temple is because the Spirit is coming to live within us. We are to be the Temple, not the building associated pre-Christ.
But you know, it probably doesn’t matter where they were. What matters is they were “… in one accord …” (Ac. 2: 1 KJV). This ragtag bunch of guys were united.
The disciples were not the only ones to hear the sound. “When this sound occurred, a crowd came together …” (Ac. 2: 6 CSB).
The Spirit was not only working on the disciples, but He was also working on those who would hear them. He was preparing their hearts to listen to the message.
Wind —I wonder if the wind was like the wind associated with a tornado. We’re told that it sounds like a freight train is coming. Here, it says it was a “… violent rushing wind came from heaven …” (Ac. 2: 2 CSB). It definitely wasn’t a gentle breeze.
Since it was a rapid wind, God didn’t give the disciples long to be scared. Oh, yes. God is very good at shaking things up and taking us out of our comfort zones.
But God is also a loving God. It isn’t His desire to scare us.
I wonder if God was going for a sense of urgency. “Okay, guys. You have been sitting around long enough. Get outside and get started preaching.”
Fire — What did John the Baptist say? “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” (Mt. 3: 11 NLT emphasis added).
But it is more than that. Peter said fire is used “so that the proven character of your faith — more valuable than gold which, though perishable, is refined by fire — may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (I Pet. 1: 7 CSB). The fire of the Spirit takes away the impurities (sin) and leaves a regenerated person.
Fire consumes. I think that is an accurate picture of what happened in that room. The fire was lit, and these ordinary men had a new mission. These men who had probably not gone more than 100 miles or so in their lifetimes were now traveling missionaries.
“Then they were all filled with the Holy Spirit …” (Ac. 2: 4 CSB). Mind, body, and soul — all of them.
But that is how we are supposed to love God. “And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength” (Mk. 12:30 NLT).
Andrewes made a good point. The Holy Spirit is invisible. But not on this day. This day, the disciples saw the Spirit.
People knew something was up when they started hearing the disciples talk in different languages. Here were these uneducated fishermen all of the sudden speaking in different languages.
I wonder what the disciples felt. I bet it threw them for a loop at first, but I think they settled into it really quickly. They knew what their job was.
Time to Preach
“So those who accepted his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand people were added to them” (Ac. 2: 41 CSB)
Look how many people believed — just because of the disciples’ spoken testimonies. God wants to expand His kingdom.
No, it isn’t about enlarging the numbers. It is about increasing the number of people He has individual relationships with so, that when the end comes, they will spend eternity with Him.
The crowd believed because the disciples shared with them. Have you really looked at what Peter said?
- “And it will be in the last days …” (Ac. 2: 17 CSB)
- “Fellow Israelites, listen to these words: This Jesus of Nazareth was a man attested to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs that God did among you through him, just as you yourselves know” (Ac. 2: 22 CSB)
- “For David says of him …” (Ac. 2: 25 CSB)
Peter used past events, current events, and future events to get His point across. He used the building blocks of learning by saying, “… just as you yourselves know” (Ac. 2: 22 CSB).
Not bad for a fisherman.
It may just have been a sermon, but the Holy Spirit worked in the people so they would receive what was needed for conversion.
What is needed? “When they heard this, they were pierced to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles: ‘Brothers, what should we do?’” (Ac. 2: 37 CSB).
The Holy Spirit is very good at piercing our hearts.
Did you notice how diverse the crowd was? No, it wasn’t just the Jews to whom Peter was preaching. It was ordinary folk from a number of different countries.
This is evidence that God is One “who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” (I Tim. 2: 4 NIV).
God wasn’t chucking everything that had come before. What did Jesus say? “Don’t think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill” (Mt. 5: 17 CSB). He started with the Jews.
What else did Jesus say? “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Ac. 1: 8 CSB).
Yes, Jerusalem was associated with the old. It was the starting place for the new.
But it also shows One God. The message is for everyone.
Making the Connections
Ooo, baby. Was this evidence that Jesus was Who He said He was or what!!! He said He would send the Holy Spirit to the disciples. Yes, that happened in a great way.
No, the Spirit doesn’t come on us in as great a dramatic fashion. He generally doesn’t do Hollywood splash.
That doesn’t mean it isn’t dramatic for us. That doesn’t mean He doesn’t come on us.
I think we get the Holy Spirit during the regeneration process. Regeneration is the change in us that God brings about when we go from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive.
Think about how encouraging Pentecost must have been to the disciples. They were told to wait, and they did. They were rewarded for their waiting.
Now, they were being told to go. Okay, it was just out of the room and onto the street for right now. It wasn’t the ends of the earth (Ac. 1: 8) — yet.
But they weren’t alone. They had a Guide. They had the Spirit giving them the words to say in the languages needed.
Making the Connections to Self-Discipline
We are also considering what we would say if a non-believer asked us. Here is the worksheet again. What would you tell someone about God forgiving and forgetting sins?
- What does the Scriptures say?
- What do I believe?
- Why do I believe the same/differently than the Scriptures?
- What are the talking points when witnessing to a non-believer?
Related Links
I have created a worksheet of the questions above. Click on the button below to access it.
How Do We Apply This?
- Expect
- Wait
- Pray
- Fellowship
- Hope
- Switch from learners to teachers
- Speak
Jones made a good argument that “… language is the only weapon in the propagation of the gospel …” True, man may be thickheaded and just downright stubborn upon hearing.
But each of us have words we can use to witness — whether we speak or write. We have Scriptures, and we have our own experiences.
We have the Holy Spirit. And we are told to go, also.
Heavenly Father. Thank You for sending the Spirit to us. Send us out — even if it is out of our comfort zones — to speak of You. Amen.
What do you think?
Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
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