Sat 29th August – Acts chapter 2:1-4:

Sat 29^th August    –   Read Acts chapter 2:1-4:

V1:  Now comes the day of Pentecost, originally the Jewish ” feast of weeks”, long held to commemorate the giving of the Law, and now to become the day God would give the Holy Spirit to his NT people, first to the Apostles. The believers were still gathered together, still totally obedient to theLord’s command – are we?

V2:  Outward physical signs are given – first, a sound like a powerful wind – that is, not just a natural wind, but only describable as ” like” one. Both in OT Hebrew and NT Greek it is surely significant that the same word can mean wind or spirit. The noise fills the house where the believers are.

V3:  Again, we are told of the appearance of ” tongues as of fire”. What occured is compared to things in normal human experience – not exactly these things, but they help us to visualise what they experienced – physical likenesses to spiritual realities.These “tongues” are seen to rest on each of the Apostles.

V4:   The reality behind the appearances is now declared – the Holy Spirit comes upon them and fills them. It is not quite clear whether this speaks of just the Apostles or all the believers who were gathered. All would receive the Spirit, as would all believers since that day ( v 38-39.) but perhaps the next stage – the speaking in other tongues as the Spirit enables them to do – was just the Apostles. Note, these are not the ecstatic (“charismatic”) tongues of which other NT Scriptures speak, which some claim still happens in worship. Clearly, as the next verses show, these are ordinary human languages, but supernaturally given to men who have never learned them, for the proclamation of the gospel, a “one-off” for that day, evidence of the Spirit filling these believers, for others to hear and understand the gospel on this seminal day.