[The following is a full manuscript of my sermon delivered on Sunday morning, the 15th of May, 2016. Look for the video on our Vimeo channel, http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]
Jesus was dead and buried, but then He conquered death and rose from the grave. Over the next forty days He appeared to hundreds of people before finally ascending into heaven and taking His rightful place alongside God the Father.
During that time He instructed His disciples not to leave Jerusalem until God had sent the gift He promised, the gift of the Holy Spirit. So they stayed, and when about 120 of them were together in one place, they prayerfully chose Matthias to replace Judas and become an apostle with the other eleven.
What happened next altered the course of the world. It changed the relationship between God and mankind. Listen and follow along as I read to you from the Apostle Luke’s Book of the Acts of the Apostles, the 2nd chapter, verses 1 through 4, from the New Living Translation…
During that time He instructed His disciples not to leave Jerusalem until God had sent the gift He promised, the gift of the Holy Spirit. So they stayed, and when about 120 of them were together in one place, they prayerfully chose Matthias to replace Judas and become an apostle with the other eleven.
What happened next altered the course of the world. It changed the relationship between God and mankind. Listen and follow along as I read to you from the Apostle Luke’s Book of the Acts of the Apostles, the 2nd chapter, verses 1 through 4, from the New Living Translation…
1 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
--Acts 2:1-4 (NLT)
Let us pray… Father God, we come into Your presence this morning to celebrate the day so long ago when You first offered a part of Yourself to live within us, if only we would believe in and accept Your Son Jesus as our Lord and Master. Help us understand, please Lord, why You made this remarkable gift available to us. Help us follow Your Holy Spirit in our walk through life. Help us receive the message You have for us on this Day of Pentecost. In the blessed name of Your Son Jesus we pray. Amen.
It was Pentecost Sunday, and as the congregation filed into church, the ushers handed each person a bright red carnation to symbolize the festive spirit of the day. The people listened attentively to the reading of the Pentecost story from the Book of Acts about how the disciples had heard “what sounded like a powerful wind from heaven”; about how the Holy Spirit had appeared “like tongues of fire”. Then came the sermon. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon us,” the preacher began. “Like the powerful wind from heaven!”, shouted a woman sitting in the first pew. Then she threw one of the red carnations toward the altar. The preacher began again. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon us.” The same woman’s voce rang out yet again, “Like the tongues of fire, the tongues of fire!” And once more she threw a red carnation toward the altar. The preacher looked straight at her and said, “Now throw your pocketbook.” To which the woman replied, “Preacher, you have just calmed the wind and put out the fire.”
The Reverend Doctor Carlyle Fielding Stewart once wrote:
"Too many churches today are devoid of the Spirit of Pentecost because they are dry and stale, where people are in a stupor; where worship services are wooden and so scripted that they are hollow; where the preaching is dull and flat; where the singing is Geritol-tired and without the vim and vigor which speaks of a crucified, died and risen Lord; where if anyone taps his foot and says, 'Amen', he is stared into silence, and if anyone shouts, 'Thank you, Jesus!' the people call EMS or 9-1-1. Too many churches have become mausoleums for the dead rather than coliseums of praise for a living God. They have lost the spirit of Pentecost! They have lost their enthusiasm. They have lost their joy for Jesus and find themselves suffering from what William Willimon calls 'Institutional and Spiritual Dry Rot'. If the Church is to survive the next millennium it must recapture some of the praise and enthusiasm it had two millennia ago."
And I might add to Dr. Stewart’s comments that in too many cases the wind has been calmed and the fire put out.
Do we still have that spirit of Pentecost? What does that word “Pentecost” mean to us today? Many think of it as the day when the Holy Spirit first came down to live in man. And that is true, as far as it goes.
The word “Pentecost” in Hebrew means “fiftieth day”. And Pentecost itself was first of all one of the three main Jewish feasts, coming 50 days after the feast of Passover, including the day of Passover. It was to celebrate the very first fruits of harvest, and to tithe of those first fruits.
Remember how I said at the start that Jesus spent 40 days after His resurrection appearing to His disciples and others before ascending into heaven? Do you also remember the time of Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion and resurrection? That was during the Feast of Passover. And there were a few days after His ascension while His disciples tried to get everything in order and selected a new apostle and…
Well… Do you see how the timing all lines up?
What happened on that day of Pentecost was foretold centuries before, by the prophet Joel speaking for God. Listen to God’s promise as recorded in the Book of Joel, chapter 2, verses 28 and 29…
It was Pentecost Sunday, and as the congregation filed into church, the ushers handed each person a bright red carnation to symbolize the festive spirit of the day. The people listened attentively to the reading of the Pentecost story from the Book of Acts about how the disciples had heard “what sounded like a powerful wind from heaven”; about how the Holy Spirit had appeared “like tongues of fire”. Then came the sermon. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon us,” the preacher began. “Like the powerful wind from heaven!”, shouted a woman sitting in the first pew. Then she threw one of the red carnations toward the altar. The preacher began again. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon us.” The same woman’s voce rang out yet again, “Like the tongues of fire, the tongues of fire!” And once more she threw a red carnation toward the altar. The preacher looked straight at her and said, “Now throw your pocketbook.” To which the woman replied, “Preacher, you have just calmed the wind and put out the fire.”
The Reverend Doctor Carlyle Fielding Stewart once wrote:
"Too many churches today are devoid of the Spirit of Pentecost because they are dry and stale, where people are in a stupor; where worship services are wooden and so scripted that they are hollow; where the preaching is dull and flat; where the singing is Geritol-tired and without the vim and vigor which speaks of a crucified, died and risen Lord; where if anyone taps his foot and says, 'Amen', he is stared into silence, and if anyone shouts, 'Thank you, Jesus!' the people call EMS or 9-1-1. Too many churches have become mausoleums for the dead rather than coliseums of praise for a living God. They have lost the spirit of Pentecost! They have lost their enthusiasm. They have lost their joy for Jesus and find themselves suffering from what William Willimon calls 'Institutional and Spiritual Dry Rot'. If the Church is to survive the next millennium it must recapture some of the praise and enthusiasm it had two millennia ago."
And I might add to Dr. Stewart’s comments that in too many cases the wind has been calmed and the fire put out.
Do we still have that spirit of Pentecost? What does that word “Pentecost” mean to us today? Many think of it as the day when the Holy Spirit first came down to live in man. And that is true, as far as it goes.
The word “Pentecost” in Hebrew means “fiftieth day”. And Pentecost itself was first of all one of the three main Jewish feasts, coming 50 days after the feast of Passover, including the day of Passover. It was to celebrate the very first fruits of harvest, and to tithe of those first fruits.
Remember how I said at the start that Jesus spent 40 days after His resurrection appearing to His disciples and others before ascending into heaven? Do you also remember the time of Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion and resurrection? That was during the Feast of Passover. And there were a few days after His ascension while His disciples tried to get everything in order and selected a new apostle and…
Well… Do you see how the timing all lines up?
What happened on that day of Pentecost was foretold centuries before, by the prophet Joel speaking for God. Listen to God’s promise as recorded in the Book of Joel, chapter 2, verses 28 and 29…
28 “Then, after doing all those things,
I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
Your old men will dream dreams,
and your young men will see visions.
29 In those days I will pour out my Spirit
even on servants — men and women alike."
--Joel 2:28-29 (NLT)
That is exactly what happened as we just read in the Book of Acts. And that pouring out of God’s Holy Spirit, filling the hole in man’s own spirit, created a sound so loud that others heard it and rushed into the place where the disciples stood just to see what was going on. There they witnessed the power of the Holy Spirit first hand for themselves. And they were amazed. Luke tells us about 3000 people came to believe in Jesus as Christ that day!
Evangelist Francis Chan, in one of his many messages, refers to the Holy Spirit as the forgotten God. We often talk about God the Father and Jesus His Son. But the Holy Spirit can be a little tougher to get a handle on.
He has been with God all along and with us since the very beginning. In fact, Genesis chapter 1 verses 1 and 2 tell us that…
I love that image, of the Holy Spirit hovering over the surface of the waters, just waiting for God to command Him into action. Just as I can imagine the Spirit hovering over the Jordan River one day, until the Father sent Him to descend like a dove onto God’s Son Jesus at His baptism. And shortly after that baptism, the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness, there to be tempted for forty days by Satan, giving evidence to the true identity of the Messiah.
Jesus spoke of the Holy Spirit before His death, telling His followers of God’s promise to man. Let me read to you from the Gospel account of the Apostle John, from chapter 14, verses 16 through 18 and verse 26…
Jesus did not want us to be alone after He returned to heaven, so He asked God our Father to send His Holy Spirit to each of us that believe.
We need to fully understand what Jesus said there. The world cannot receive the Holy Spirit because the world does not recognize Him! Only believers will receive God’s Holy Spirit. And Jesus said the disciples knew the Spirit because He lives with them, but soon He would be in them!
Up until the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit only entered and lived within those individuals that God directed Him to indwell. Only people directly specified by God received the Holy Spirit. And that even includes Jesus His Son, there at His baptism.
But when Jesus returned to heaven, God sent His Holy Spirit to live within all believers, to be in us. This marked a dramatic change in God’s relationship with mankind! This made it all personal. We now have God living inside us! It’s His gift to us for believing in His Son and following Him. It is the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise and the basis of our hope. And the Apostle Paul tells us in the 5th verse of the 5th chapter of his letter to the Romans…
God loves us and He fills our hearts with love by filling us with His Holy Spirit. Through Pentecost, God equipped His Son’s church with the power of His own Holy Spirit so that He will be glorified among the nations. We are the church of Jesus. We are equipped with the mightiest power.
Do we believe in Jesus as the one true Son of God? Do we accept Him as our Lord and Master and strive to obey His commands? Then we have within us a force more powerful than the mightiest wind. A force that can rage like a thundering fire, or that can quietly lead us in the paths our Lord would have us walk.
In the Holy Spirit we have an Advocate, a Counselor, a guide, a constant and ever-present Companion. And we have that power of resurrection. How are we going to use that power? Or are we going to even use it at all?
Don’t be afraid of the Holy Spirit or of His power. Don’t be ashamed to let others know when He has moved you. If you feel a “Thank You, Jesus!” building up inside you, let it out before you burst! It’s just the Holy Spirit, making Himself heard through you.
Let us revive and keep alive the Spirit of Pentecost in our church family, and others will rush in just to see what is going on. Thank You, Jesus! Amen.
Let us pray… Father God, when Your Son Jesus asked You to send Your Holy Spirit to all of His believers so none would ever be alone, You did not hesitate but did just as He asked. You give us Your very own Spirit to live within us when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Master, our personal Friend and Savior. Your Spirit is now our constant Companion and Guide - ever present, ever faithful. Thank You, Father!
Hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment in the silence to personally give You our thanks, to seek Your forgiveness, to ask for Your help…
Lord Jesus, You asked our Father to give us a wonderful gift just because You love us and don’t want us to be alone in this life. Please, Lord, help us always remember the Holy Spirit within us. Help us keep His temple clean and pure. Help us use the power He brings for the expansion of our Father’s kingdom across this earth. It is in Your blessed name, dear Jesus, we pray. Amen.
Evangelist Francis Chan, in one of his many messages, refers to the Holy Spirit as the forgotten God. We often talk about God the Father and Jesus His Son. But the Holy Spirit can be a little tougher to get a handle on.
He has been with God all along and with us since the very beginning. In fact, Genesis chapter 1 verses 1 and 2 tell us that…
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
--Genesis 1:1-2 (NLT)
Jesus spoke of the Holy Spirit before His death, telling His followers of God’s promise to man. Let me read to you from the Gospel account of the Apostle John, from chapter 14, verses 16 through 18 and verse 26…
16 “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it isn’t looking for Him and doesn’t recognize Him. But you know Him, because He lives with you now and later will be in you. 18 No, I will not abandon you as orphans — I will come to you.
26 “But when the Father sends the Advocate as My representative — that is, the Holy Spirit — He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.”
--John 14:16-18, 26 (NLT)
We need to fully understand what Jesus said there. The world cannot receive the Holy Spirit because the world does not recognize Him! Only believers will receive God’s Holy Spirit. And Jesus said the disciples knew the Spirit because He lives with them, but soon He would be in them!
Up until the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit only entered and lived within those individuals that God directed Him to indwell. Only people directly specified by God received the Holy Spirit. And that even includes Jesus His Son, there at His baptism.
But when Jesus returned to heaven, God sent His Holy Spirit to live within all believers, to be in us. This marked a dramatic change in God’s relationship with mankind! This made it all personal. We now have God living inside us! It’s His gift to us for believing in His Son and following Him. It is the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise and the basis of our hope. And the Apostle Paul tells us in the 5th verse of the 5th chapter of his letter to the Romans…
5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
--Romans 5:5 (NLT)
Do we believe in Jesus as the one true Son of God? Do we accept Him as our Lord and Master and strive to obey His commands? Then we have within us a force more powerful than the mightiest wind. A force that can rage like a thundering fire, or that can quietly lead us in the paths our Lord would have us walk.
In the Holy Spirit we have an Advocate, a Counselor, a guide, a constant and ever-present Companion. And we have that power of resurrection. How are we going to use that power? Or are we going to even use it at all?
Don’t be afraid of the Holy Spirit or of His power. Don’t be ashamed to let others know when He has moved you. If you feel a “Thank You, Jesus!” building up inside you, let it out before you burst! It’s just the Holy Spirit, making Himself heard through you.
Let us revive and keep alive the Spirit of Pentecost in our church family, and others will rush in just to see what is going on. Thank You, Jesus! Amen.
Let us pray… Father God, when Your Son Jesus asked You to send Your Holy Spirit to all of His believers so none would ever be alone, You did not hesitate but did just as He asked. You give us Your very own Spirit to live within us when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Master, our personal Friend and Savior. Your Spirit is now our constant Companion and Guide - ever present, ever faithful. Thank You, Father!
Hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment in the silence to personally give You our thanks, to seek Your forgiveness, to ask for Your help…
Lord Jesus, You asked our Father to give us a wonderful gift just because You love us and don’t want us to be alone in this life. Please, Lord, help us always remember the Holy Spirit within us. Help us keep His temple clean and pure. Help us use the power He brings for the expansion of our Father’s kingdom across this earth. It is in Your blessed name, dear Jesus, we pray. Amen.
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