When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Many times, people will make promises they can’t keep or promises they shouldn’t keep. For example:
A boy approached a lady in his church and promised, “Lady, if you give me a quarter, my little brother will imitate a chicken,”
The lady was not impressed, and she replied, “So, what will he do for this quarter, cluck and flap his arms?”
“No,” the boy replied, “he wouldn’t do a cheap imitation like that. He’ll eat a worm!”
Another fellow knocked on his neighbor’s door. When his neighbor answered his knock, he said, “I’m so sorry, I just ran over your cat with my car. I want to do the right thing and replace him.”
His neighbor said, “O.K. then, there’s a mouse in my kitchen. Go get it!”
A final example of this comes from the personal ads of a newspaper: “If Jack Smith, who deserted his wife and baby twenty years ago will return, the aforementioned baby will knock the socks off of him.”
Unlike people, God keeps all of His promises. Jesus had promised that the church would receive power for its work. Today we will see how that power came and what it helps us to do.
Heavenly Power:
The power which descended on the first members of the church was unlike anything that they had ever seen before. Suddenly there was a, fierce, unearthly sound that filled the whole house and then something appeared that looked like fire. Immediately the Apostles were filled with the Spirit of God and this enabled them to speak in other languages.
Many missionaries have jokingly said that they prayed for the gift of tongues while trying to learn a difficult foreign language, but for the gathered disciples, this was an overwhelming and life-altering event. Try to think back to the first time you ever tasted coffee. It was foreign, hot, pungent, and overpowering. As immersive as this experience may have been, it was child’s play compared the what happened on Pentecost.
Verses 12 and 13 tell us that the people who were present there were stunned: “Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, ‘What does this mean?’ Some, however, made fun of them and said, ‘They have had too much wine.’”
Many just sat and watched in awe and wonder but others tried to blame what happened on sin. People often attribute good things to sin or Satan. I remember when a deacon once doubted a person’s repentance saying, “You know, people never really change much.” The fact is that God’s power is far beyond what we understand, and we shouldn’t try to explain it or scoff at it.
The fact is, this was the power that Jesus had promised before his Ascension in Acts 1:8. It was power from God Himself: a power to supernaturally relate to God and a power to work outside our own strength in God’s Kingdom.
This is like a hunter who was walking through the jungle. He found a huge dead elephant with a pygmy standing beside it. Amazed, he asked: "Did you kill that?" The pigmy said, "Yes." The hunter asked, "How could a little fellow like you kill a huge beast like that?" "I killed it with my club," the pygmy replied. The astonished hunter asked, "How big is your club?" The pygmy replied, "I think there are about 60 of us."
A bad joke, yes, but it illustrates the point that in Christ we are not alone, and we don’t act in our own power.
Relational Power:
Next, let’s look at Verses 5-11:
Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
The church is about people. God created this world for people. He revealed Himself through the Scriptures to people and Jesus died for people. So, the church needs to be about people.
The problem we face is that sin divides people from each other. In fact, the first sin mentioned in the Bible after the fall was murder. Furthermore, half of the Ten Commandments dealt with how people are to treat each other. We know that all people are made in the image of God, but we have trouble treating them that way.
Anger, outrage, and tumult are common today in our nation. Very few political moderates are left in the USA today, and the rise of social media has done nothing but make it easier for people to cast aspersions on one another with Ad Homonym attacks. We are a sharply divided nation, and social discourse is at a low not seen since before the Civil War.
Sadly, the same situation is often found in our churches. In a previous ministry, in which I was responsible for helping start new churches in Alabama, I was told by a denominational leader of a neighboring state that, “We start most of our new churches by splitting old ones.”
Contrast this state of affairs with what happened on Pentecost. God gave the early church the power to relate to all kinds of people from all walks of life. On that day, every person from the over 14 nations present in that place heard the Gospel in a way that they could relate to effectively. According to the Great Commission this is the task of every missionary, every pastor, and every Christian.
When my wife and I were missionaries we used a number of different techniques to try to relate well to our local partners. We wore the same kind of clothes, we ate the same kind of food, and we learned their language. We did have some success in doing this but the success of relating on Pentecost was even more dynamic and more powerful.
Preaching Power:
Next, beginning in Verse 14, we see Peter preach the first Christian sermon, “Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: ‘Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.’”
Relating to others can be difficult but it can also be easier than preaching!
If we relate well to people without sharing the Gospel, we are simply not doing the job. A missionary colleague once admitted that she spent so much time being culturally sensitive that she found she wasn’t witnessing.
Churches often try to attract people by artificially adapting to their culture, but as the old preacher said, “If you get them with a hotdog you have to keep them with hotdogs.” The offense of the Gospel must take place. God’s truth has to be revealed and He has chosen us to do it!
Look at how Peter completed the first Christian sermon by issuing the first altar call in Verses 37-41:
When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
How can we do what Peter did? The same way that Peter did it:
Peter was an uneducated fisherman. He had run away from Jesus and denied Him with a curse. After the crucifixion, Peter went back to fishing. Yet, now, he preached the first Christian sermon. How did he do it? By letting God empower him!
God empowered Peter’s natural personality for supernatural ministry. Peter was bold, but now his boldness was directed properly. Loose cannons are dangerous! They can sink a ship. Peter was a rough man, but now God used that roughness to witness for Himself. Peter was also a die-hard Jew, but now the Spirit interpreted that Jewishness properly.
When we submit to His will, whatever we have that we place in God’s hands he will use effectively!
Growth Power:
The Verses that follow Peter’s sermon give us valuable insight into God’s intentions for the church:
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
It is clear that the church was always intended to grow. The church is an organism not an organization. Organisms must grow and develop, or they will die. God did not buy us from slavery to sin to have us wither and die. We are divinely appointed to grow!
This passage tells us how God wants us to grow:
- Growth by salvation (Verses 40 & 41).
- Growth in doctrine, in fellowship, and in prayer (Verse 42).
- Growth in our awe of God (Verse 43)
- Growth in meeting peoples’ needs (Verses 44 & 5).
- Growth in our worship together (Verses 46 & 47).
- Growth that happens daily (Verse 47)
We need to ask some hard questions, both individually and collectively. Are we growing effectively? Are we growing consistently? Are we growing in all of these areas and more? The answer is that we should be, because we have the power we need to do so!
Conclusion:
God does not believe in wasted effort. He has given us power to relate to people, to preach the Gospel, and to grow in fellowship, and in ministry.
Are we being faithful stewards with what God has given us?
Every blessing,
Dr. Otis Corbitt
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