Pentecost - What it is

 

Andd, here we are. 
It's one of the milestones on our church calendar.

Pentecost.
The birth of the Church.
The promised coming of the Holy Spirit.
Those are just some bare bone facts that we all seem to know and accept. 
But, that is it? What is Pentecost?
What happens on this day causes it to be such a stir in the life of the church?
And, maybe a better quetion is, why don't we pay more attention to it?
Those questions have their answers in these next two messages.
Today, we are going to focus on what Pentecost is, directly. 
Next week, we will take a moment to look at what Pentecost is not. 
There are factors that play into what we have predetermined in our minds about the truth surrounding this special day. Some of those factors are turn offs about the biblical event that might cause some to say, "You know what, how 'bout we skip this passage." 
That is a travesty. We need to appreciate and envelope ourselves in wha this day is all abut let the new life we have in the Holy Spirit be central to all we do. 

Lets take a look at what's going on here...

Twelve guys go out on a ledge. Way out on a ledge. A balcony to be precise.
They trust. They believe. They go on the word of their Savior.
They can't have any idea exactly how these events will play out before they happen. 
When Jesus tells them to go and wait for the Holy Spirit to come upon them, there is no way they had in mind anything even remotely close to the way it came to be on that early summer day. A mighty rushing wind. Fire faling and coming down to rest on their tongues. Speaking to a large crowd of people and being accused of day drinking. It's quite a scene.

If we are to speak about what Pentecost is, then we don't have to look much further than what is right on the page in front of us. We don't need some far fetched, wild eyed story. There's enough wild in these openings moments. 

Pentecost is a promise. - "When the day of Pentecost came"
The prophet Joel is quoted by our eloquent speaker, Peter, as we will read in a moment. 
This day has been forecasted. Jesus told these disciples that He would send the Holy Spirit down upon them. And, it quite literally came to be. When God says he is going to do something, He actually does it. Scripture can confirm it. The testimony of people who have experienced life with Jesus speaks loudly.

Over at Dry Bar Comedy, comedian Karen Rontowski can be quoted as she shares what people are thinking about worshiping their god. "I don't think we're ever not going to have war though. I don't think human beings will ever get along. And you know why? Because, every person, every country, thinks their God is right. But, that makes sense. You want to worship a confident being who knows what they're talking about, right? You wouldn't go to a church if the people were like... "Hey what is your God like?" and the guy went like, really insecure actually. He mumbles alot. We're not sure what he's talking about. "Really?? Is he an all knowing God?" He knows enough. - He's not Jeopardy smart. He's Wheel of Fortune smart. Wow! Did he send his son to die for my sins? Son in Law. Yep son in law. Nobody really likes him anyway. Now we have these stupid What Would Murray Do bracelets laying around. Nobody knows what to do with them.

Quite different from what we can know we can say. These men were there. They saw it with their own eyes. They touched it with their own hands. They beheld the Glory of God's one and only Son. Peter would make it clear in his own words what exactly these men are doing on this morning. They are where they are because they believe and because they were witnesses to what God has done. 

Pentecost is a time for people to come together.

That can be a dangerous thing, as Karen Rontowski eludes too. It's not easy when a large group of people assemble in one place. Everyone has their own ideas about what God should be and what God can do. One of my favorite Christian bands from the 1990's used to say it perfectly in one of their songs. Geoff Moore and the Distance in their song "One Brand of Truth". 

I hear them saying
You've just got to believe
Whatever's working for you personally
This is their brand of truth

I have to question a philosophy
What we envision is what God will be
There are so many paths up the mountain
That point to the top
All but one is a dead end street
Few find the narrow way that leads

To the one brand of truth
To the one empty tomb
It is pure and simple
It is sure and strong
And I serve the one
Who is the Lord alone
And His one brand of truth

The people in this crowd have questions. Peter has answers. Not everyone is going to accept those answers. But, it seems some three or more that day would accept that Jesus Christ is the answer. 

Pentecost is a celebration. 

One of he best celebrations there is. It happens right on top of what the people would have been there is remember. A time of Passover. The Old Testament story of when God passed over them, causing trouble and chaos to come upon the land of Egypt. After 400 years of bondage and corruption at the hands of the Egyptian people, these Israelites would find a way to walk free. The Israelites of Jesus' day are also experiencing a bondage to a different ruler and country. It has been their own corruption that landed them here in this situation. Now, God is ready to set them free. However, it migth not be the kind of freedom they were expecting. Right up until this moment some of have been asking whether or not Jesus would set them free from this Roman rule over their heads. The freedom our Savior offers is not one of nationality but one of spiritual means. 

What it is.
It's not that hard to understand if we are willing to simply sit and listen and believe what we see in front of our eyes. Next week, we are taking a long hard look at what Pentecost is not. What happens when people take simply truth and turn it into something crazy and incomprehensible? Mayhem occurs. Many of us have seen what that looks like. Be thankful. Be assured that you stand on a solid rock. His name is Jesus. You have salvation in His name.

Blessings