"He appeared first to Mary Magdalene out of whom He had cast seven demons. This same Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven (Acts 1:1-11). Colossians 2:15, tells us that He disarmed the powers with His death. Pentecost is regarded as the birthday of the Christian church, and the start of the church's mission to the world. They looked upon them then as liars, charlatans, or fools, maybe a bit delusional. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20, emphasis mine). 10 As they were still staring into the sky while he was going, suddenly two men in white clothing stood near them 11 and said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up into the sky? They came together, in verse 1 of chapter 2, "On the day of Pentecost when it was fully come, they were with one accord in one place. We can take on that nature and we can live. Long before modern advertising, the Bible had its own versions of before and after. In Genesis, we have a picture of man before the fall and after. In the Book of Judges, we have Gideon as a fearful and reticent man (before), and then we have Gideon after as the brave warrior. Doubt, some of them doubt, what did they doubt? That He had to rebuke them and teach them. 5In this regard, it is similar to the words of the two angels to the women at the tomb, as seen in Luke 24:4-7. We can internalize that and think that through. Four fishermen - Peter, Andrew, James and John - are landing their catch when they are approached by Jesus. 10 For indeed, what had been glorious now has no glory because of the tremendously greater glory of what replaced it. The mystery of this paragraph is to explain why Luke went to so much effort (and space) to describe an event which appears to have little impact on the events that follow Pentecost. Again, what they thought that they were becoming a part of was a movement that was noble, that was good, there had been many movements of other Messiah-type figures at this period of time in Judea. These are the ones who are not defiled with women, they are virgins, spiritual virgins. That's the famous road to Emmaus experienced from the book of Luke, "and they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either." First few verses of Acts chapter 1, beginning in verse 3, Luke in his prologue to the account as he writes to this man named Theophilus, about all that had been done by Jesus until the day in which He was taken up through the Holy Spirit and had given commandments to the apostles, whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during 40 days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God., So Luke gives us an explicit reference point that this went on. Acts 1, consistent with the rest of the Book of Acts, reminds us that it is not about us; it is about God. Pentecost is a happy festival. The apostles then found themselves speaking in foreign languages, inspired by the Holy Spirit. For if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you. What's the next step?" ), Two angels suddenly appear near them. We can accomplish the work of God, and we can then be the firstfruits who follow the Lamb and who know their God and do mighty deeds and mighty exploits. Having said this, our Lord ascended into heaven. And you can begin to imagine how this dynamic begins to must have been being set up within the disciples, because when you begin to doubt one another, you begin to lose trust. Jerusalem was swelled with pilgrims, at this point in time, and this added to the drama of the moment. After seeing how God works through His Spirit in Acts 2 and beyond, who would ever want to go back to the old? During the Temple period, the first fruits of the harvest were brought to the Temple, and two loaves of bread made from the new wheat were offered . In days gone by, I have sided with those who found the selection of Matthias as an example of fleshly action hastily taken. And this express bus took Route 66 out of St. Louis all the way to Los Angeles, my first time to get on that fabled highway, Route 66. We often think a miracle would be just what we need. And I sat, and I sat, and I thought somebody will come along and tell me what to do. And they chose Matthias by casting lots. They call attention to references tothe twelveafter this (Acts 6:2; 1 Corinthians 15:5). After Pentecost, the selection of leadership (as well as the seeking of divine guidance) is heavily dependent upon the presence and power of the Holy Spirit: But carefully select from among you, brothers, seven men who are well-attested,full of the Spiritand of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this necessary task (Acts 6:3, emphasis mine). We are not, however, given any indication as to just what things Jesus taught them. All of these qualities are to the divine nature, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness, love. We are going to be taking giant steps toward creating that kind of Church that we read about here in the book of Acts, that has been imbued with the power of the Holy Spirit, and changes are being made. Jesus was appearing to the apostles for 40 days until His ascension, and so there had to be 10 days left until Pentecost. Peter was quoting Scripture and applying it to something that had happened and that is Jesus, His death and His resurrection. Christ did not leave His disciples as orphans. That is what we shall seek to discover in our study. And let's look at it beginning in verse 36, this is after His resurrection, "As they said these things," this is the two that He had appeared to on the road to Emmaus, "Jesus himself stood in the midst of them and said to them, 'Peace to you.' 3 To the same apostles also, after his suffering, he presented himself alive with many convincing proofs. What we read about back in Matthew 28:19 of the gospel being taken to the world. Not many days, we would look at it roughly 10 days from that 40-day period. And because both were working together, the mission and the vision, there was a remarkable picture being described here by Luke, of the Church at peace. 1 Now there were these prophets and teachers in the church at Antioch: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius the Cyrenian, Manaen (a close friend of Herod the tetrarch from childhood) and Saul. Here,the twelveaddressed a problem of inequity in the care and feeding of their widows. First, there was an unmistakable "sound like a mighty rushing wind" that "filled the entire house" where the believers had gathered. 8 And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong concerning sin and righteousness and judgment 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; 11 and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned (John 16:7-11, emphasis mine). Now all of a sudden, as Peter steps forward, and of course, you know the story of Peter. It was a mighty, powerful machine, the most powerful that the world in that day had ever seen. He now consistently refers to them asapostles.The termdiscipleis now employed when reference is made to new believers in Acts. Simply because there were 10 days of waiting, watching, and praying before Something Big happened to the church. Now, when we turn over to Acts chapter 1, and we look at, kind of summing up of this as it is. It sounded like a very strong wind, and it looked like tongues of fire. But as Christ begins to give them the teaching from the Scriptures, of how He had fulfilled literally, in every way, the scriptures about the Messiah. The same Jesus who's been taken up will come in a like manner as you saw Him go into heaven." And so they had become a part of something that again, they were still trying to understand. Verse 41, "But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, 'Have you any food?'" Day of Pentecost And Skepticisms And then there came a time, in verse 4, where they were assembled together with Him and He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem but to wait for the promise of the Father, which He said, "You have heard from Me, for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.". The "before" and "after" theme is found frequently in the media. The same things were going through their minds that go through our minds. Let us give thought to the way Luke prepares us for what is yet to come. The Jewish authoritiesthe Sanhedrin, the Scribes, the Pharisees, the Sadduceesthat authority was intact in Jerusalem, running the temple, running the religious side of the culture and the social life of Judea under the Roman cap, and it too was a very, very powerful force you didn't run up against. John has another set of accounts, and then he kind of ends and he leaves it wide open. But that was a life lesson that I had to learn. Peter says, "Repent, believe, be baptized, you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." I like that phrase. Prior to His death, the disciples were constantly with Jesus. And the tomb was empty, and the disciples had seen Jesus, and the authorities were beside themselves trying to figure it out, looked for the body. "And He said to them, 'Thus it is written, thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer, to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and the remissions of sins would be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem, and you are witnesses of these things. 5 Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as if it were coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, 6 who made us adequate to be servants of a new covenant not based on the letter but on the Spirit, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called the Mount of Olives (which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath days journey away). This is the threefold commission that is given to this group of disciples where they are to be witnesses of Him in the city of Jerusalem, and Judea, and Samariathe wider region of the country, look at it as kind of the wider counties of the country of Israel at the timeand then ultimately, to the end of the earth, to take the Gospel and to be a witness of God, to do this. The events surrounding Judas death7were interpreted as the fulfillment of the prophecy of Psalm 69:25. What I would like to underscore is the role of the Holy Spirit in our Lords giving of the Great Commission. Before the church could begin Jesus had to die, rise again, and then ascend into heaven. Ben Hadad, the king of Syria, was threatening war against Israel and its King, Ahab. It had been organized quite well and in that remote backwater of Judea, the Roman government kept things in order. What do I do about calling a priest father at my Catholic University? 13 When they had entered Jerusalem, they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. And when they saw Him they worshiped him. People passing by at first thought that they must be drunk, but the apostle Peter told the crowd that the apostles were full of the Holy Spirit. But on that morning as they gathered, made their preparations, put on their clothes, walked to the location where they all were gathered, and they were about 120 disciples as chapter 1 of Acts tells us, they no doubt had a lot on their mind. 3 And tongues spreading out like a fire appeared to them and came to rest on each one of them. Now it has become popular to carry this theme over to homes, where pitiful or plain houses are transformed into palatial homes. Pentecost is one of the Great feasts in the Eastern Orthodox Church, a Solemnity in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, a Festival in the Lutheran Churches, and a Principal Feast in the Anglican Communion. As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped corruption that is in the world through lust." And there was fear of the unknown, of what was going to take place, fear of the future. In the midst of all of the gnats, let us not miss the camel of this text, namely that the Holy Spirit was soon (not many days from now, verse 5) to come upon them, empowering them to carry out the Great Commission. (2 Corinthians 3:4-11). Our sins will find us out. But let's go back, let's look at a few of these scriptures in a little bit more detail and see exactly what had been taking place among the disciples during this period of time, that brought them to that morning of Pentecost. Acts is the record of how our Lord is fulfilling the Great Commission by using weak and fallible men. People should see God in us. Did they doubt what they were seeing? 28For it seemed best to the Holy Spirit and to usnot to place any greater burden on you than these necessary rules: 29 that you abstain from meat that has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what has been strangled and from sexual immorality. What we are seeing here is again, the power of the Word of God. Some say that they wound up in the temple precincts; could very well be. 9. From this point, they had only 10 days. The apostles were all Galileans (see Acts 1:11; 2:7; see also Matthew 26:73), so they could not stay in their own homes. Jesus promised authority within the boundaries of what God purposed, because the coming of the Spirit was the promise of the Father (verse 4). John had earlier said of Jesus. Like others, I have called attention to the fact that after this account, the name of Matthias is never found again in the New Testament.8I also called attention to the fact that Jesus told His apostles to wait until the coming of the Spirit.9. Lukes Great Commission (unlike those in the Gospel of Matthew, Mark, and John) was given just prior to His ascension. And yet some doubted. They gave him a piece of broiled fish and honey comb, He takes it and he sits down and eats in their presence. Thus, whether it was the selection of leaders or making important doctrinal distinctions, the Holy Spirit played a key role from Pentecost on. 2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. There they encountered the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Maybe they had their hands in their pockets kind of like this, thinking, "Wow, that was neat. 14 And because they saw the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say against this (Acts 4:13-14). Fourth, the Holy Spirit is portrayed as the Author of the Old Testament Scriptures.He is the One who inspired the words of David in the psalms: 16 Brothers, the scripture had to be fulfilled that the Holy Spirit foretold through David concerning Judaswho became the guide for those who arrested Jesus (Acts 1:16). Like others, I have pointed to Paul as the most likely candidate for Judas replacement. He certainly became one of the boldest witnesses for the faith. Pentecost was the occasion which God chose to bestow this power on His apostles. And when those come in, how do we process them? In Colossians chapter 1, Colossians 1:27, Paul writes, "To them, God will to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." Ministers in church often wear robes with red in the design as a symbol of the flames in which the Holy Spirit came to earth. Peter was the first one to preach on the day of Pentecost after the coming of the Holy Spirit and he was the first one to proclaim Christ to a . It is the Word of God and it is the Spirit of God that did it for them, and will do it for you and for I today as we live our lives, as we go about our lives. 2 While they were serving the Lord and fasting,the Holy Spirit said, Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. 3 Then, after they had fasted and prayed and placed their hands on them, they sent them off. 9 For if there was glory in the ministry that produced condemnation, how much more does the ministry that produces righteousness excel in glory! And those days you didn't fear getting on a Greyhound bus, and you could go all over the country on a very cheap pass. Somewhere along the line, the apostles were enlightened by our Lord concerning the mystery of the church. And what happened? That is what caused people to see something in those disciples and to want to be a part of it. They watched Him rise until a cloud obscured their vision. Because Easter is a moveable feast without a fixed date, and Pentecost. Some of the women mentioned in Acts 1:14 may well have been those who accompanied Jesus and His disciples, and who also contributed to His support (Luke 8:1-3). I believe the first chapter of Acts could be titled Before, because it precedes Pentecost in chapter two, and from there on it is definitely after. While we may be eager to get to Pentecost, let us pause long enough to consider Lukes introduction to the Book of Acts and to the transforming power of Pentecost. And it is in that, we reach the real nexus, the real critical point of our life before God, where we recognize that, with the Holy Spirit, we are taking on the very nature of God, the divine nature. I do not think that verses 12-14 describe only the activity of the believers during the 10-day gap between our Lords ascension and Pentecost, however. What do we do now? God's Word and Spirit give us power to overcome and to change to accomplish the work of God. This should also be our focus before Pentecost and before Jesus Christ's return. The apostles were celebrating this festival when the Holy Spirit descended on them. They understood their problem, in verse 38, "He said to them, 'Why are you troubled and why do doubts arise in your hearts?'" If Jesus is the vine and we are the branches, then the Spirit is the sap equipping us for the Christian life. I must tell you that the most problematic passage in Acts 1 is the final paragraph which describes the selection of Matthias as the twelfth apostle. In verse 38, after everyone has calmed down, they realize theyve been involved and they were responsible for the death of Jesus. During those 40 days, He provided them with many convincing proofs that He had indeed risen from the dead. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. This same Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven (Acts 1:9-11). Between the Easter and Pentecost, there's a span of 50 days. It is rooted in the Word of God. We are told in verse 2 that Jesus gave orders by the Holy Spirit. He was the one who was the leader of that doubt and fear and terrified approach, because he denied Christ three times, and he had to be pointedly taught by Jesus. And to live with the reality that there is a God who judges, who sees, and who knows. They had come up against the two most powerful authorities of their day in their world. We take that for the story that it is, and the gift of tongues, and the speaking of tongues that the Scriptures talk about but we don't see that as what we need to be doing in practice or in faith, but it is a dramatic story. Somebody will tap me on the shoulder and tell me what to do next, but you know what? The Roots of Pentecost . It's God's Spirit that is the only thing that we can have to overcome those fears, because really, it's all the Church of God has ever had. The Cross And Christs Suffering For Sins (1 Peter 3:18-22), 6. Q. Acts 2. Bold, Men and brethren, he begins to explain what's happened. So there is going to be a gap. Number one was the Roman Empire. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Then I finally figured out, "Oh, I got to do this myself. They remind us that most of the twelve apostles disappear in Acts and the Epistles, and not just Matthias. Find the date for Pentecost 2014 in the multifaith calendar. Let us never consider going back to the old. And what was the key to that? In the context of Acts (and the Epistles), we should see that the Holy Spirit is a significant part of the enablement we need. 1 I wrote the former account, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after he had given orders by the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. This was just three and a half years, and in really a few weeks, seven weeks and a day of intense thought, emotion, that they had to grapple with and deal with as they came into the presence of one another on the morning of Pentecost. And Peter thence begins to quote Scripture. 11 Now look, the hand of the Lord is against you, and you will be blind, unable to see the sun for a time! Immediately mistiness and darkness came over him, and he went around seeking people to lead him by the hand. What is of particular interest is that this revelation came about through the Spirit.. This then begins to be the anchor and the soil into which they can anchor a life of faith that they were to have and to develop. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak in other languages as the Spirit . 1. The second power that they'd run up against was that of the Jewish authorities. After Pentecost: Every believer has received the Holy Spirit. If we can learn to take on the divine nature and drink that in, in our lives, then we can banish doubt, uncertainty, and fear, unbelief, that will creep in at various times as we go through our lives, and stages in the developments of life. There is a theme which dominates the 40-day period between the resurrection and ascension of our Lord. And God will expose sin, ours to ourselves, sometimes to others. Acts 2 states early Christians were "filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them . The world of the 1st century was very much tied into an awareness that there was a spirit world, and a lot different than even we today, we see a spirit world today in media and entertainment form. Apostle Peter explains the meaning of what was happening on the Day of Pentecost. And it was the high priest and those people who had engineered His death, and they knew the power that they did have. It is a remarkable period of church history, because right here we have a vision being fulfilled that Jesus Christ has for His Church. Who wouldnt want to look like that? What they needed was power, power to proclaim the gospel so that men would believe and be saved. What was on their mind? (I wonder if they were waiting for that cloud to move out of their line of sight. Indeed, Acts 2:1 literally reads, "As the Day of Pentecost was being fulfilled." What was fulfilled was the prophecy given by both Jesus and John the Baptist concerning the coming of the Holy Spirit. "Behold, He said, My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Lukes account of our Lords ascension is brief, but informative: 9 After he had said this, while they were watching, he was lifted up and a cloud hid him from their sight. There were several festivals, celebrations, or observances that took place before Pentecost. But she said, "Go ahead Ruth, you go home too," and Ruth says, "Your God will be my God, wherever you go, I will go." In addition, anyone who wants to share the Bible with others can print unlimited copies and give them away free to others. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. In Eastern branches of Christianity, the Day of Pentecost is one of the Great Feasts. It isnt about us, my friend; it is about God. If I were to summarize it, it would probably be like this: Your mission until I return is to preach the gospel to all nations. Bob was born and raised in a Christian home i More, concerning righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, For it seemed best to the Holy Spirit and to us, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Pentecost is celebrated 50 days after Easter and is when Christians remember the gift of the Holy Spirit. 28 Watch out for yourselves and for all the flockof which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own Son (Acts 20:28, emphasis mine). Shavuot, also called Pentecost, in full ag Shavuot, ("Festival of the Weeks"), second of the three Pilgrim Festivals of the Jewish religious calendar. The apostles sought greater knowledge. So, let's continue our Book of Acts Bible Study. They saw it in different ways and understood it completely different from anything from our frame of reference and they were ascribing, would have been ascribing then even to Jesus something that was not of God, which in itself can be a problem. Behold I send the promise of My Father upon you, but tarryor waitin the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high. They had a very life is now, living in the present mindset that this was all going to happen in their lifetime, which is something that pertains to every group of people from that time forward, that looking for the appearance of the Kingdom, the return of Christ.
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