The Clarity of Pentecost


Acts 2:1-13
1When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place.
2And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.
3And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them.
4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven.
6And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.
7And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
8And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?
9Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome,
11both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”
12And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”
13But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”

Jesus came to the earth in the ordinary birth of a human baby. Now He sends His Spirit and it is hardly ordinary! Tongues of fire rest upon the head of the disciples and suddenly everything changes. The men who were only 10 days earlier asking Jesus if He was finally going to bring His Kingdom to earth now understand it all. All of His Words, stories, and miracles snap into clear insight and their message becomes so compelling they simply must tell it.

I have often wondered about this event and it is another one of those things I would love to see on “playback” once I get to heaven. Did the Apostles actually speak in different languages or did the people simply hear the message in their own language. Either miracle would be easy for God, but just logistically speaking, it must have been the hearer who experienced the miracle and not the speaker. And the text does say “And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?” It really doesn’t matter, but these are the kinds of things I think about.

At Pentecost we are finally officially introduced to the Holy Spirit. He has been active and present since the very beginning but now we get to see Him in action and experience His love and car for us. The book of Acts is filled with remarkable stories of the miraculous and the Holy Spirit lies at the center of each story. But there is a downside to this story. Verse 13 tells it all. ”But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” The Holy Spirit comes to bring faith to mankind but there are always going to be those who refuse His efforts. For some in the crowd that day the Apostles just looked like drunks. They were unwilling to participate in the miracle and thus lost out on becoming members of God’s Kingdom. That was their choice just as it remains today. Those wish to mock and refuse to believe are free to do so. That doesn’t mean we get to stop telling them the story. You’ll note the Apostles didn’t stop speaking. But neither did they try and force belief for it cannot be done. God will always speak through the power of the Holy Spirit so that we might believe but He will not force us to do so.

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