Some Things Never Change

Remembering Pentecost Sunday

While many of our day to day activities have been significantly curtailed over the last two months, it has been difficult not to become fatigued by the rapid onslaught of information dealing with the changes taking place in our society in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost daily, residents tune in to press conferences to learn what businesses and activities have closed and which ones will be reopening in the coming days. The blistering rate of change that has, up to this point, come to define the year 2020, leaves many wondering what the future holds. Will our favorite summer events and festivals go on as planned? What will school look like in the fall? Will a “second wave” of the virus emerge? Will we have to modify our holiday traditions at the end of the year?
 
While many of these questions may lack definitive answers in the coming weeks and months, we can look to the birth of Jesus’ church, which occurred just over 2,000 years ago, to learn that, in the face of unprecedented circumstances, some things never change. While there are many cultural and situational differences between the first Christians and us, the first two chapters of Acts share some interesting parallels with our time.
 
We learn in 1 Corinthians 15 that, following His death and resurrection, Jesus appeared to His disciples, along with over five hundred other believers, proving His victory over sin and death. Imagine being one of those first witnesses who, with their very own eyes, saw the risen Savior. Their hearts were, no doubt, filled with awe, joy, courage, and passion for telling the world about what they had seen!
 
However, Jesus, before ascending back to Heaven, gives His disciples what amounts to a “stay at home order.” Acts 1:4 reads, “While staying with them He ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father.” After waiting, Jesus promised, His disciples would be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, and become gospel witnesses across the world.
 
So, why did Jesus command them to wait? God could have sent the Holy Spirit upon these believers the very day Jesus returned to Heaven. Instead, He instructed them to wait for what would amount to ten days in an upper room in Jerusalem. During their time of waiting, they had the opportunity to think about and process all they had witnessed, from Jesus’ teaching ministry to His death on the cross, to His triumphal resurrection. They had the opportunity to coalesce around their identity as brothers and sisters in Christ. They had the opportunity to pray together. The divinely-ordained, ten day “stay at home order” prepared the hearts of the disciples for a great move of God that was yet to come.
 
Then, on Pentecost Sunday, when the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles, they emerged from the upper room and, quite literally, changed the world through their proclamation of the gospel of Jesus. As we regather as a church on Pentecost Sunday 2020, we can be encouraged in knowing that what was true for those first Christians thousands of years ago is still true today!
 
#1 - The Holy Spirit still uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
 
“And suddenly there came from Heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.” (Acts 2:2-4).
 
Acts chapter 2 describes an important day in history. The church was born into existence. Thousands of people were saved and baptized. The Spirit of God moved in a new, fresh way during that time. Who did God choose to usher in this new era? These first apostles had no religious or academic pedigree. Conversely, several were fishermen, while others were converts saved from markedly public failures and sinful lifestyles. They were, in short, very ordinary in relation to their cultural surroundings. When Holy Spirit rushed into the room on Pentecost Sunday, taking residence in those ordinary people, they began to do some very extraordinary things, namely, preaching the gospel of Jesus in languages of those who were gathered in Jerusalem from surrounding nations.
 
The quarantine life, for many of us, has felt very ordinary. Even now, as restrictions have begun to ease, we realize that opportunities to share the gospel with others appear to be few and far between. However, just as he did in that upper room thousands of years ago, the Holy Spirit has taken up residence in the life of every believer from the moment they put their faith in Jesus. We may feel unimportant and ordinary, and, in the eyes of the world, we may be, but through the power of the Holy Spirit, God will do extraordinary things to us when we yield to His will and His mission, even during a pandemic.
 
#2 - The gospel still has the power to change hearts.
 
“Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:37-38).
 
Barely a month ago, a crowd in Jerusalem, dead set on killing Jesus, cried out, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” On Pentecost Sunday, we, once again, find a crowd in Jerusalem talking about Jesus. However, this time, their hearts are broken over His death, and they are ready to confess Him as Lord of their lives.
 
To what can we attribute this sudden, drastic change in attitudes and thinking? Scripture leaves no ambiguity here. The proclamation of the gospel, the “good news” about Jesus, was the driving force behind the crowd’s repentance. The Apostle Peter, one of those ordinary men, did an extraordinary thing as he proclaimed to the crowd the news of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Upon hearing the gospel, the crowd was “Cut to the heart”. Further reading of Acts chapter 2 reveals that over 3,000 people were saved and baptized that day!

Why was Peter’s message so successful? Peter did not wax eloquent with oratory skills but quoted extensively from the Hebrew Scriptures, word for word. Peter was not a prominent influencer of the day, but rather a Galilean fisherman who held little to no social standing. The power of Peter’s sermon had nothing to do with the skill or status of the messenger and everything to do with the message. There is power in the name of Jesus.
 
In our times, we face new barriers in communicating the gospel. How can we reach the world with the gospel in the age of social distancing? How can we persuade others to trust in Jesus from behind a mask? While we may need to be innovative in the method by which we communicate the gospel, the message will always be the same, and it is just as powerful to change hearts today as it was 2,000 years ago.
 
#3 - We still need each other.
 
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:42-47).
 
After the “big day” on Pentecost, the quickly-growing church was a very exciting place to be. Their first gatherings were defined by teaching, prayer, friendship, and, apparently, food! Of all the characteristics that marked the new, exciting movement, this group of believers was ultimately marked by love. They loved doctrine, sitting under the teaching of the Apostles, who recounted the life and teaching of Jesus. They loved to pray, devoting themselves to holding powerful prayer meetings that shook buildings (Acts 4:31)! They loved the lost, refusing to allow the nascent group to become a “holy huddle,” but rather adding new believers to their gathering on a daily basis. They loved to gather, meeting together in the temple courts in one large group, and also in small groups at homes.
 
Finally, they loved each other. While this early church represented a diverse group of people from literally, all over the world, they demonstrated a remarkable, unshakeable love for one another. They shared meals together. They prayed together. They sold property and possessions to meet each other’s financial needs. Tertullian, an early Christian leader and author, remarked of this new group of believers, “See they say, how they love one another…how they are ready to die for one another.”
 
Gathering as a church looks a little different these days. Is it really worth the extra guidelines, constantly adjusting uncomfortable masks, and acclimating to new service times? Acts chapter 2 is one of many portions of Scripture that answers our question with a big, resounding “YES!” We need each other now more than ever.