Pentecost: Spirit and new beginnings
Although we can read in the Bible what happened after Jesus' resurrection, we are not able to understand the feelings of Jesus' disciples. They had already seen more miracles than most people could have imagined. They had heard Jesus' message for three years and still didn't understand it and yet they continued to follow him. His boldness, his awareness of God, and his sense of destiny made Jesus unique. The crucifixion was a shocking event for her. All the hopes of Jesus' disciples were dashed. Their excitement turned to fear - they locked the doors and planned to return home to the jobs they once had. You probably felt numb, psychologically paralyzed.
Then Jesus appeared and showed by many convincing signs that he was alive. What an amazing turn of events! What the disciples had seen, heard, and touched contradicted everything they previously knew about reality. It was incomprehensible, disorienting, enigmatic, electrifying, invigorating and all at once.
After 40 days, Jesus was lifted up into heaven by a cloud, and the disciples stared at the sky, presumably speechless. Two angels said to them: “Men of Galilee, why are you standing looking toward heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come again just as you saw him go into heaven" (Acts 1,11). The disciples returned and with spiritual conviction and a sense of their mission sought in prayer a new apostle (Acts 1,24-25). They knew they had work to do and a mission to accomplish, and they knew they needed help doing it. They needed strength, a strength that would give them new life for the long haul, a strength that would regenerate, renew and transform them. They needed the Holy Spirit.
A Christian festival
«And when the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven like a mighty storm, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues divided and as of fire, and they sat upon each one of them; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to preach in other tongues, as the Spirit inspired them to speak" (Acts 2,1-4).
In the books of Moses, Pentecost was described as a harvest festival that occurred toward the end of the grain harvest. Pentecost was unique among the festivals because leaven was used in the sacrifice: "You shall bring out of your houses two loaves for a wave offering, of two tenths of fine flour, leavened and baked, as a firstfruits offering to the Lord" (3. Moses 23,17). In Jewish tradition, Pentecost was also associated with the giving of the laws at Mount Sinai.
Nothing in the law or tradition would have prepared the disciples for the dramatic arrival of the Holy Spirit on this special day. Nothing in the symbolism of leaven, for example, would have led the disciples to expect that the Holy Spirit would cause them to speak in other languages. God did something new. This was not an attempt to enhance or update the festival, to change the symbols, or to introduce a new method of celebrating the ancient festival. No, this was something completely new.
People heard them speaking in the languages of Parthia, Libya, Crete and other areas. Many began to ask: what does this amazing miracle mean? Peter was inspired to explain the meaning, and his explanation had nothing to do with the Old Testament feast. Rather, it fulfilled a prophecy of Joel about the last days.
We are living in the last days, he told his audience - and the meaning of this is even more amazing than the miracle of tongues. In Jewish thought, “the last days” were associated with Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah and the Kingdom of God. Peter was essentially saying that a new age had dawned.
Other New Testament writings add details about this change of ages: The old covenant was fulfilled through Jesus' sacrifice and the shedding of his blood. It is outdated and no longer in force. The age of faith, truth, spirit and grace replaced the age of the law of Moses: "But before faith came, we were kept under the law and shut up until faith should be revealed" (Galatians 3,23). Although faith, truth, grace and Spirit existed in the Old Testament, it was dominated by laws and characterized by the law, in contrast to the new era, which is characterized by faith in Jesus Christ: «For the law was given through Moses; Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John 1,17).
We should ask ourselves, as they did in the first century, “What does this mean?” (Acts of the Apostles 2,12). We must listen to Peter to learn the inspired meaning: We are living in the last days, in the end times, in a new and different age. No longer do we look at a physical nation, a physical country, or a physical temple. We are a spiritual nation, a spiritual house, a temple of the Holy Spirit. We are the people of God, the body of Christ, the kingdom of God.
God did something new: He sent his Son, who died and rose again for us. This is the message we proclaim. We are the heirs of a great harvest, a harvest that takes place not only on this earth but also in eternity. The Holy Spirit is in us to give us strength, renew us, transform us, and help us live a life of faith. We are grateful not only for the past, but also for the future that God has promised us. We are grateful for the gift of the Holy Spirit, which fills us with strength and spiritual life. May we live in this faith, appreciating the gift of the Holy Spirit and proving ourselves to be witnesses of Christ's love in this world.
We live in an age of good news - a proclamation of the kingdom of God, which we enter by faith, accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
How should we respond to this message? Peter answered the question this way: "Repent" - turn to God - "and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2,38 ). We continue to respond by committing ourselves to “the teaching of the apostles and fellowship, the breaking of bread and prayers” (Acts 2,42 ).
Lessons from Pentecost
The Christian Church continues to commemorate the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. In most traditions, Pentecost comes 50 days after Easter. The Christian festival looks back on the beginnings of the Christian church. Based on the events of Acts, I see numerous valuable lessons in the feast:
- The Need for the Holy Spirit: We cannot proclaim the gospel without the Holy Spirit who dwells in us and empowers us for the work of God. Jesus told his disciples to preach in all nations - but first they had to wait in Jerusalem until they were "clothed with power from on high" (Luke 24,49) would. The church needs strength - we need enthusiasm (literally: God in us) for the work that lies ahead.
- The diversity of the church: The gospel goes to all nations and is preached to all people. God's work is no longer focused on one ethnic group. Since Jesus is the second Adam and the seed of Abraham, the promises are extended to all of humanity. The diverse languages of Pentecost are a picture of the global scope of the work.
- We live in a new age, a new era. Peter called them the last days; we might also call it the Age of Grace and Truth, the Church Age, or the Age of the Holy Spirit and the New Covenant. There is an important difference in the way God works in the world now.
- The message now focuses on Jesus Christ, crucified, risen, bringing salvation and forgiveness to those who believe. The sermons in Acts repeat the basic truths over and over again. Paul's letters provide further explanation of the theological significance of Jesus Christ, for only through him can we enter the kingdom of God. We do this by faith and enter there even in this life. We share in the life of the age to come because the Holy Spirit dwells in us.
- The Holy Spirit unites all believers into one body and the church grows through the message of Jesus Christ. The church should not only be characterized by the Great Commission, but also by community, breaking bread and prayer. We are not saved by doing these things, but the Spirit leads us into such expressions of our new life in Christ.
We live and work by the power of the Holy Spirit; it is God within us who brings us the joy of salvation, perseverance in the midst of persecution, and love that transcends cultural differences within the Church. Friends, fellow citizens in the Kingdom of God, be blessed as you celebrate the New Covenant Pentecost, transformed by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
by Joseph Tkach
More articles about Pentecost:
