January 18, 2008 Acts 2:1

01/18/2008

Acts 2:1 - 8 (KJV)

¹And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. ²And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. ³And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. ⁴And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. ⁵And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.

⁶Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. ⁷And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? ⁸And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?

Pentecost was a celebration that occurred 50 days after the Passover (7-weeks = 49 days with the celebration the following day). Many Jews from remote regions would still have been in Jerusalem since Passover. In addition there were many Jews living in Jerusalem that still spoke in languages of the different places to which they had been displaced by prior conquering armies.

The Apostles were in Jerusalem, basically just waiting for further instructions. This event occurs on the day of Pentecost and is the advent of the Holy Spirit, which had been promised. As this happened, all of the apostles and probably even some disciples there as well, began speaking in various languages. From all indications, it was not something they were trying to do, but was a spontaneous eruption of different languages.

Those nearby, began to hear this and word quickly spread and soon there was a great crowd around this group of Jesus’ disciples. At first, some of the listeners thought these disciples were just drunk and babbling. But it soon became apparent that they were speaking actual languages – and Jews from different regions were hearing and understanding. Furthermore, it was clear that all the men speaking were from Galilee and would not have known all the various languages they were speaking. Something supernatural was happening.

This is how it is with the Holy Spirit: you can’t explain how it works. The Holy Spirit does work in us and it works in ways that sometimes we don’t quite understand. These apostles did not pray to speak in tongues – it just happened. And the purpose was to introduce the Holy Spirit to the world. Remember, when Jesus came, Angels heralded His arrival. At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit manifested Himself in the speaking of tongues.

The focus here is not the speaking of tongues; rather the focus is that the Holy Spirit can work in us when we are open and willing to allow Him to. The Holy Spirit knows what works need to be done and we should allow Him to work at His diecretion and not choose or refuse Him to act according to His will. The act may be speaking another language, healing, or simply making a right turn just in time to avoid an accident.

This same Holy Spirit that moved so dramatically at Pentecost is alive and with us today. Will you allow Him to act with such influence in you today?

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