3 During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.
4 Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before.
- Jesus is referring to an earlier conversation that John recorded for us.
- “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. 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.” John 14:15-17
- Once you get the Holy Spirit, He never leaves
- He lives INSIDE the believer
- But not inside every person
- He leads people to truth
5 John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” 6 So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?” 7 He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know.
- They kept thinking the Messiah’s mission was the Kingdom of Man
- Almost like they hadn’t listened to anything he said during the Holy Week
- And then He tells them what the Holy Spirit will help them do…
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. [Acts 1:3-9]
- Their job is not building the Kingdom of God
- Give everyone, everywhere a chance to turn from their sin and be reconciled to God.
- That’s why HE CAME and it’s what he’s sending them to do.
- So they wait, for 10 more days
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. 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]
- Fire = Presence of God
- When Abraham was called to the promised land in the dream, the presence of God was a fire that walked between halves of sacrifice
- Burning Bush
- On Mount Sinai
- Pillar of Fire
- Elijah compared the presence of God to fire
- Fire filled the temple when Solomon dedicated the Temple
- “Smoke filled the temple from the presence of God”
- Before, if you wanted to experience the presence of God, you went to the temple. Because that’s where the fire was. But now, where is the fire?
- The Holy of Holies (presence of God) was separated from common people until Jesus resurrected from the Dead. Then the curtain was torn and the Holy Of Holies was available to everyone
- NOW, the presence of God moves from a PLACE TO A PEOPLE
- “19 So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. 20 Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. 21 We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord.” Ephesians 2:19-21
- “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God?…” 1 Corinthians 6:19
Watch what happens when God’s Spirit fills them…
5 “At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers. 7 They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8 and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! 9 Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!” 12 They stood there amazed and perplexed. “What can this mean?” they asked each other. 13 But others in the crowd ridiculed them, saying, “They’re just drunk, that’s all!” 14 Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this. 15 These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that.” Acts 2:5-15
- Remember that the power of the Holy Spirit would give them the ability to be a witness of what Jesus had done
- They are talking about Jesus in their native language and others are hearing them in THEIR native language
- And then goes into the first sermon preached after the resurrection of Jesus
- If it’s the first sermon ever, it’s probably got the most important content…
“22 People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know. 23 But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. 24 But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip.” Acts 2:22-24
- None of them argued any of Peter’s points
- Why? Because they knew it was true
“36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!” 37 Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” 38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 This promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away —all who have been called by the Lord our God.”
- Repentance and belief = Salvation
- “Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.” Galatians 2:16
40 Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!” 41 Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all.” Acts 2:36-41
APPLICATION:
This Jesus, you thought was a good man, a holy person, was way more than that.
- He volunteered to be a substitute for you.
- He took all of God’s anger and judgement for sin, on himself, so that none of it would fall on you.
- He was buried and rose from the dead with new life, so that your life could be made new also.
Your response should be the same as theirs.
- Believe that his death, burial and resurrection is the only thing that fully pays off your debt.
- Repent of your sins
- Follow Jesus and be baptized.
What if you have already done that?
- What are you looking for, from God?
- He gave you his Spirit, not to make you happy but to make you holy
- Not to make you rich but to make you generous
- Not to make your life comfortable but to make your life meaningful
What are you doing with the Holy Spirit filled life that you’ve been given?
- What are you chasing?
- How are you leveraging your life to be a witness to the goodness and greatness of Jesus?
- What needs to change to do that better?