The Movement Begins
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Acts 1:4-5
(4) “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.
(5) For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
So what is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?
Is it once in history only that needs not be repeated?
Is this baptism for everyone?
What is the purpose of this baptism?
THE PROPOSITION
Promise: The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is all about the extraordinary Power that the Holy Spirit gives to the believers
Premise 1: This extraordinary power of the Holy Spirit is for witnessing or world evangelization purpose only.
Premise 2: The task of world evangelization is not yet complete.
CONCLUSION: Therefore the promise of this extraordinary power available for all believers for the purpose of world evangelization is still valid today.
Church history gives strong support for this conclusion. Crucial breakthroughs for the gospel and massive evangelization have come because of periodic extraordinary outpourings of the Spirit. In other words, from time to time, God has moved in extraordinary ways in the history of the Christian movement. He has poured out his Spirit in fresh, new, uncustomary, dramatic ways. These times have been called times of revival or awakening or reformation. And now let’s study the first of these times.
I. THE EVIDENCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT’S COMING
Acts 1:1
“When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.”
1. It was the Day of Pentecost
Note that it does not say “when the disciples had prayed,” or “when the disciples had fasted,” or “when the disciples had fulfilled some spiritual requirements,” then this occasion occurred.” It doesn’t say that at all. It says it happened “when the day of Pentecost was fully come.” Luke points then only – watch it – to the history and the divine timing of God; that’s the only thing Luke points to. This happens when God wants it to happen, not in response to anybody’s spiritual activity no matter how spiritual it may be.
Why did Jesus choose Pentecost as the day when He would pour out the Spirit on the disciples?
Now, I want you to look at the concept of Pentecost because this is a basis on which all the interpretation hinges.
A. It’s Significance
“Pentecost” means “fiftieth” from the fact that it took place 50 days after Passover. It refers to the Feast of Weeks (Ex. 34:22, 23) or Harvest (Lev. 23:16), which was celebrated fifty days after Passover in May/June (Lev. 23:15–22). On this Jewish holiday Jerusalem will be swelling with pilgrims from across the known world. It was one of three annual feasts for which the nation was to come to Jerusalem (Ex. 23:14–19 ). So it came to be very significant, and the Jews still celebrate this even today.
B. Its Symbolism
It was a feast of harvest. That's what it is called in Exodus 23:16 (cf. Deuteronomy 16:10). In other words there was a beautiful symbolism happening here: the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in extraordinary power was meant for soul harvest. And what is this but a great harvest in the field of the world. And that is exactly what happened—3,000 people were harvested for God and given eternal life on the day of Pentecost, the feast of harvest.
At Pentecost, an offering of firstfruits was made (Lev. 23:20). So on this very day, Jesus pours out the Spirit in extraordinary power and 3,000 people became firstfruits of harvest under the New Covenant economy.
Now, keep this in mind: the Spirit’s coming on the day of Pentecost then is a matter of divine chronology. The Spirit’s coming was not in response to prayer or some sort of spiritual rites. The Spirit’s coming was not in response to meeting any conditions, it was God’s sovereign timetable at work. It was the right day in the plan of redemptive history. And that day is revealed to us as the day of Pentecost.
2. It was Phenomenal (v.2-3)
Acts 1:2
And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
“Suddenly.” I want us to focus on this word to drive home the point that this is an instantaneous, unexpected, miraculous moment. It’s a wonderful thing about the church and the Holy Spirit, it suddenly happened.
The Holy Spirit is free and sovereign and is not bound to anyone's timing or technique for how to get His power. We are to depend on his daily, indwelling presence and grace, walk in the obedience of this faith, and pray day and night for the outpouring of power from on high. But we cannot make the Spirit come.
When He comes, He comes suddenly. He will never become anyone's bellman. He fills and He empowers, but He is not bound to anyone. He knows what is best for us at His own timing.
When the Holy Spirit comes in power, He comes suddenly—on His own terms and in his own time—and He comes for harvesting.
Acts 1:2
And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind,
and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
“from heaven.” If anything is amazing or supernatural we want to know the source, don’t we? This is from heaven. That takes it out of the hands of man or Satan. This is God acting.
Acts 1:2
And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
Again, the Holy Spirit is sovereign in the manner He wants to reveal Himself. At times the Holy Spirit makes Himself known with visible, audible, touchable manifestations. In the Old Testament, there was the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. With Elijah, He came through a still small whisper (1 Kings 19:12). At Jesus' baptism, there was the dove. In Acts 4:31 the building shakes. In Acts 13:2, He just spoke while the church worshipped. In Acts 16:26 there is an earthquake. At times the Spirit stoops to give us visible, audible, touchable demonstrations of his presence and power. And still, at times He is just quiet and gives us prompting in our hearts.
Now, here the Holy Spirit came like a sound of “a rushing mighty wind” and it filled the whole house. The wind in Scripture is often a symbol of the Holy Spirit.
John 3:8,
“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
The Spirit of God moves about like a wind in Scripture. And it’s the same word. Spirit is Pneuma, and that’s the same word for breath or wind. But here there’s a different word. The word translated “wind” is not the ordinary pneuma, but it’s an interesting word used only one other place in the New Testament – I think it’s Act 17:25 – and it’s the word Pnoē, and it means a blast of breath or breeze. It’s not just a gentle breathing, it’s a blowing just as if somebody was blasting breath.
Now, remember, this is not a real wind. There’s no physical wind any more than there’s physical fires – we’ll see in verse 3. But it’s just the sound of it. This must have been fantastic phenomena. Can you imagine? No motion in the air, yet the sound is if a hurricane is raging out of heaven; and no movement at all, just the noise of a hurricane without the wind.
It suddenly happens. A great sound out of heaven as if the very blast of God’s breath had reached the earth. And, my friends, that’s exactly what happened. Who is the breath of God? The Holy Spirit. And God just blew His breath on the earth. The blast of breath came from God, and at that point, the Spirit of God came to the earth.
Now, notice another phenomenon that happened in verse 3 accompanying the first; and this is all proof that the Spirit came.
Acts 1:3
“Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.”
Taker note they weren’t fire, they were as like fire.” NIV says, “what seemed to be tongues of fire.” They look like tongues and they look like fire, and you can use your own imagination to determine what was going on. But they were separated unto each individual, parted. Not each tongue parted, but the total was parted into little pieces, each on a top of an individual.
Now, here’s another interesting phenomenon. These parted tongues that appeared over everyone of them was testimony that with no exception, each of them had received the Holy Spirit. Amen?
This was the visible evidence of the descent of the Spirit. You see, they had to know that something really happened. They didn’t have the senses spiritually to comprehend it apart from seeing it and experiencing it, and so they did. God gave them that.
It’s kind of like – you remember at the baptism of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit descended to equip Christ for His ministry, and it says that “He descended on Christ in the form of” – what? – “of a dove.” And so here you have again a visible manifestation of the Holy Spirit, this time an apparent tongues shaped like a tongue, and also looking like a flame, which is an obvious comparison. And so they are on each one. And that indicates that every believer, at this point, received the Holy Spirit.
Why He does this for some and not others, and at some times and not other times is part of His sovereign wisdom. The Holy Spirit is not fire. He is not wind. He is not a dove. He is not a warm glow. So He will not use these manifestations in a way that allows us to confuse him with them. He is free. But when He pleases, there may be fire, or wind or sound. The Holy Spirit is sovereign.
Having known the phenomenal evidence of the Holy Spirit’s coming, let us now move to the effects of the Holy Spirit’s coming.
II. THE EFFECTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT’S COMING
Acts 2:4
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Notice the two immediate effects of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit upon the believers: 1) they were filled with the Presence of God; 2) they were fired up to Proclaim God.
1. They were filled up with the Presence of God
Part of the effects of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is the filling with the Holy Spirit. The coming of the Holy Spirit upon them filled them with an overwhelming sense of the presence of God. The coming of the Holy Spirit suddenly transformed their evidence of God's presence into an experience of God's presence.
Then notice the second effect.
2. They were fired up to Proclaim God
Acts 2:4
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
What were they speaking or proclaiming?
Acts 2:11
“We hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.”
The literal translation of verse 11 is that they were speaking "the greatnesses of God." So as they were filled with the presence of God, the fire begins to burn in their hearts (Luke 24:32) and through their mouths ("tongues of fire"). They are simply overwhelmed with the presence of God and then it begins to spill out in praise.
That's the essence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit that they received—an overwhelming experience of the presence of God and spilling over in courageous, passionate praise and witness about the greatness of God.
Now, what about the miracle of speaking in other tongues or languages? Should this always accompany the coming of the Holy Spirit?
I don’t think so because the Spirit fell on the church again in Acts 4:31 and the house was shaken and the fullness came and the passion and boldness were there, but there were no new tongues. Nor were there wind and fire. In other words, the Holy Spirit seems to give whatever manifestations He pleases at different times. They are not the essence.
The speaking in tongues in Acts 2 has a very definite role to play. It's directly connected to the presence of people from all the nations who need to understand the great things the disciples were saying.
(5) And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. (6) And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. (7) Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? (8) And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? (9) Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, (10) Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, (11) Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.” (12) So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?”
In other words, the miracle of tongues was a demonstration of God's sovereign power, and it showed that this power promised in Acts 1:8 really was intended to advance the spread of the gospel to the ends of the earth. It was a token that God means for all peoples to understand His greatness and that He is willing to do miracles to make His glory known among the nations.
Acts 2:12
So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?”
III. THE EXPLANATION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT’S COMING
1. It is an accomplishment of a Promise
Acts 1:4-5
(4) “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. (5) For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
2. It is a fulfillment of a Prophecy
Acts 2:14
(14) But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. (15) For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. (16) But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
(17) ’And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.
(18) And on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
And they shall prophesy.
3. It is an endowment of Power
Acts 1:8
But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”