Scripture Acts 2:1-42
What is the Origin of Pentecost?
What is the Origin of Pentecost?
Pentecost was
the celebration of the beginning of the early weeks of harvest. In Palestine,
there were two harvests each year. The early harvest came during the months of
May and June; the final harvest came in the Fall. Pentecost was the celebration
of the beginning of the early wheat harvest, which meant that Pentecost always
fell sometime during the middle of the month of May or sometimes in early June.
There were
several festivals, celebrations, or observances that took place before
Pentecost. There was Passover,
there was Unleavened Bread, and there was the Feast of Firstfruits. The Feast
of Firstfruits was the celebration of the beginning of the barley harvest.
Here's the way you figured out the date of Pentecost.
According to the
Old Testament, you would go to the day of the celebration of Firstfruits, and
beginning with that day, you would count off 50 days. The fiftieth day would be
the Day of Pentecost. So Firstfruits is the beginning of the barley harvest and
Pentecost the celebration of the beginning of the wheat harvest.
Since it was
always 50 days after Firstfruits, and since 50 days equals seven weeks, it
always came a "week of weeks" later. Therefore, they either called it
the Feast of Harvest or the Feast of Weeks.
Therefore,
when the Holy Spirit was poured out – in place of Jesus presence – it was a
means of providing Pentecost Wheat = Bread. Jesus was born in Bethlehem =
“House of Bread” and he said of
himself, John 6:47-51 I tell you the truth, he who
believes has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your forefathers
ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes
down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. I am the living bread that
came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This
bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
Acts 2
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.
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 them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own
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!"
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."
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. These men are not
drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! No, this is what was
spoken by the prophet Joel:
"'In the last days, God
says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will
prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even
on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and
they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the
earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to
darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day
of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'
"Men of Israel, listen to
this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders
and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. This
man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you,
with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But
God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was
impossible for death to keep its hold on him. David said about him:
"'I saw the Lord always
before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my
heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, because
you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your
presence.'
"Brothers, I can tell you
confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here
to this day. But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath
that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was
ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to
the grave, nor did his body see decay. God has raised this Jesus to life, and
we are all witnesses of the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has
received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you
now see and hear. For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
"'The Lord said to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand until I make your footstool for your feet." '
"Therefore let all Israel
be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and
Christ."
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."
40
With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from this
corrupt generation." 41 Those who accepted his
message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that
day. (dismiss the crowd)
42
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and to prayer.
COMMUNION
Partake at any point while
singing “Surely the presence of the Lord is in this place”
Now, we know
what the original festival of Pentecost was about – the wheat harvest, we know
it is 50 days after the barley harvest and after Easter. We know it is the day
the Holy Spirit empowered the disciples. We know it was the Holy Spirit that
empowered Peter to preach and that 3000 people were saved that day – the
birthday of the church. We have received communion and are cleansed of our
sins.
Now what? Well - 42 They
devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and to prayer. That all has to do with personal and
corporate study, worship, fellowship, and prayer. There is something else that
is not specifically listed but is just assumed.
How did those 3000 come to faith in Jesus? 40 With many
other words Peter warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save
yourselves from this corrupt generation." 41 Those who
accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to
their number that day.
I
have devoted my life to preaching – 36+ years of preaching, a doctorate degree
in preaching. Why? Why is preaching so important? One young man told his
father-in-law he thought the sermon should be done away with because there are
enough study tools available for everyone to do their own study. What is wrong
with that argument? That suggests that preaching is just an intellectual
exercise. Someone could argue that there are already enough really great
sermons online to last you 100 lifetimes. What is wrong with that argument?
That is like suggesting Jesus could have saved the world through a zoom
meeting. God knew His word had to become incarnate. Likewise, there is
something about incarnational preaching – coming from a living, breathing real
human being – not from someone on a screen whose illustrations and stories may
become quickly out of date and unrelatable.
The
sermon preached in person to those in person (BTW I am thankful for online
streaming for those who are not able, for one reason or another, to be present.
But those who primarily watch online will tell you it is not the same as being
there). Why? Because personal bible reading goes only as far as your knowledge
and attention span can go? Why, because Bible study is a conversation between
you and the teacher and the class. Why? Because the sermon, and only the
sermon, is a conversation between you and the Holy Spirit facilitated by the
preacher.
There
are two things happening during every sermon. There is a collaborative or
corporate experience – you receive the word in the midst of community – coming
in and being with others who share the same core beliefs you have and so you receive
the same message together. Secondly, you are not in a group discussion with
people giving opinions, you are hearing
the scripture preached by a person set apart for that specific task because they
have proven their ability to accurately handle the word of truth and they are, therefore, assisting you in having that conversation with the Holy Spirit. And
when that happens, you can each week experience a Pentecostal Sermon.
3
things you must do to have that happen regularly.
1) Pray
for the preacher as they are preparing and delivering the sermon.
2) Pray
for yourself to come expectantly – ready to hear a word from God for your life.
3) Be
fully present during the sermon in the midst of the gathered body of believers
who are doing the same as you.
Once you have done those 3 things
and practice them regularly, all of a sudden, your life will become a sermon to
others because you will not be able to help going out and…
Shout it! Go on and scream it from
the mountains!
Go on and tell it to the masses, That
Jesus is God!
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