But the disciples didn't stop focusing on the Kingdom of God after Pentecost. How could they have ever submitted to God's law and pleased himas many did, like Abel and Noah and Abraham and Moses and Rahab and Ruth and Deborah and David? After the disciples received the Holy Spirit, received Christ in them, they began to operate under the strength and ability of Christ in them. That He had to rebuke them and teach them. Not many days, we would look at it roughly 10 days from that 40-day period. "Standing with the Lamb on the Mount of Olives," in Revelation 14:1 Revelation 14:1And I looked, and, see, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads.American King James Version, "144,000 with the Father's name written on their foreheads. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.". The people who have faith in me without seeing me are the ones who are really blessed!. From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, makes increase of the body to the edifying of itself in love. Prior to Pentecost, the Apostles, though often zealous and willing to make sacrifices to follow Jesus, were also slow to understand and often confused. Verses 40 to 47 is a summary of one of the most remarkable periods of the church experience. They understood their problem, in verse 38, "He said to them, 'Why are you troubled and why do doubts arise in your hearts?'" Yes, Peter did preach under the anointing, but the empowerment of the Spirit also brought a unity and a focus of purpose they had not known before. Fifth, the OT saints believed that craftsmanship and artistic ability in the service of God was a gift of the Holy Spirit. That's how I imagine it and He was home, He was back at, He was at the third heaven. He spent days and days, and weeks and weeks doing that, bringing new dimension of understanding to the Scriptures that they had never had. In 2 Peter chapter 1, 2 Peter chapter 1, Peter writes, "Grace and peace be multiplied to you and the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. Think about that among our own relationships with each other. So it's something for us to examine in our own way, see how much of that is being demonstrated in our life. Jesus was enveloped within a burning bush, but was not harmed. So Jesus had to rebuke them. Picture a huge dam for hydroelectric power under construction, like the Aswan High Dam on the Nile, 375 feet high and 11,000 feet across. Rename .gz files according to names in separate txt-file. 1 Samuel 11:6 When Saul heard their words, the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him, and he burned with anger. I must put my hand where the spear went into his side. The disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover." Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jesus came in while the doors were still locked and stood in the middle of the group. But it was a very intense period of time of Jesus appearing to them both in Galilee and Jerusalem, teaching them from the Scriptures, appearing to them in larger groups, perhaps even, more smaller groups, and in some of the ways they're talking like He did to Peter, on the Sea of Galilee, having meals with them. 60 seconds. and there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." Expand We have to live as well, knowing that there is a God, and to live our life that every day counts. Mark chapter 16, verse 9, now, "When He rose early on the first day of the week," speaking of Christ's resurrection. We sometimes just kind of tail off when we get to the end of one of the Gospels and we know the events, Christ was crucified, Christ was risen, and we don't look at some of the details there. The world of the 1st century was very much tied into an awareness that there was a spirit world, and a lot different than even we today, we see a spirit world today in media and entertainment form. Otherwise how would they ever overcome their natural hostility to God? The gospels and the book of Acts tell us that would-be zealots and messiahs had come and gone. Some say apostles got Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Just think, if Jews returning from God's judgment in Babylonian exile can take heart that God's Spirit will protect them, how much more fearless should we be who have the overwhelming assurance of God's love and power in Jesus' death and resurrection! These are the days of Pentecost, the days of the fullness of the Spirit, the days of worldwide mission. About 10 days earlier, Christ had finally ascended for the final time and they were left alone. Hadn't He told them that He'd come back to life again? In verse 14, it says, "Then later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table and He rebuked them, rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen." If these saints experienced privileges and powers in the Holy Spirit before the dam was opened, how much more should we in these billion kilowatt days experience these things or more. Were on a mission to change that. The country folk downstream depended on it. Could it mean that apostles had just some spiritual gifts like healing before Pentecost, but after it they received gift of prophesy and gift of tongues? And one set upon each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance." Luke 24:53 says that the disciples stayed continually at the Temple praising God. And this small group of people who had signed on to what they thought was a remarkable, gifted rabbi, and followed Him around and soon learned that they had fallen into something quite different than anything they could have ever imagined, as they witnessed miracles of loaves and fishes, and people being brought back to life, and dramatic healings. The goal is that the addition of scriptural verses will assist you in meditating on the Mysteries of the Rosary as you pray. Jerusalem was swelled with pilgrims, at this point in time, and this added to the drama of the moment. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. When Nicodemus was bewildered about Jesus' demand for new birth by the Spirit, Jesus responded (John 3:10), "Are you a teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand this?" Some say that they wound up in the temple precincts; could very well be. People should see God in us. Even though they had seen miracles, again, another indication to us always to remember that miracles are important, miracles can be faith-builders, but miracles by themselves will not do it all. And if those are the weapons of our warfare, then we can handle them. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. It is rooted in the Word of God. That is how the mission of the Church is done and that is how then that vision of a community, of a Church, of a people who are rooted in the Word of God, who actually do care for one another, is accomplished; by no other means, by no other means. The story does not indicate that they were still in that upper room in Acts 2. Bold, Men and brethren, he begins to explain what's happened. People should see God in the firstfruits. The disciples were afraid of the Jewish leaders, and on the evening of that same Sunday they locked themselves in a room. Labor in the Word, meaning to read the Word, and to learn it, and to soak it in and drink it in; and to live the Word, this past year. So at 9:00 on Pentecost morning, while the disciples were praying, "a sound came from heaven like a rush of mighty wind . If they got it at Pentecost, with what power then did the twelve these wonders if not with Holy Spirit? Now all of a sudden, as Peter steps forward, and of course, you know the story of Peter. I also think this is true in some way, but in gospels there is record that Jesus 'gave them authority over devils and diseases and sent them to preach gospel, to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead. The dam was completed in 1970 and in 1971 there was a grand dedication ceremony and the 12 turbines with their ten billion kilowatt-hour capacity were unleashed with enough power to light every city in Egypt. Another reason, I suspect, is because they were overwhelmed with disappointment by Jesus' arrest. Back in Mark's account, chapter 16 of Mark, we see that the same thing lingered among the wide group of people there. There are two groups of humans: those in the flesh (born of the flesh) and those in the Spirit (born again of the Spirit). Could very old employee stock options still be accessible and viable? Really. Sixth, OT believers experienced the filling of the Holy Spirit as a power to be bold in denouncing evil and declaring righteousness. They were looking for power from on high. In one sense, all craftsmanship and artistic ability is a gift of God, just like our breath is. Two things we can summarize to show what was the key to bring about this scene that we see here at the end of chapter 2 in Acts. It's an encouraging sermon, it's very pointed and direct, that includes a dramatic call to repentance. Well, that's a sign that I should go here, take this job, do this or do that. But miracles, well, that just takes a little bit more work, but they were here in the midst of a very large miracle. And so Christ gives them teaching and He gives them understanding. We take that for the story that it is, and the gift of tongues, and the speaking of tongues that the Scriptures talk about but we don't see that as what we need to be doing in practice or in faith, but it is a dramatic story. I am not comfortable with that speculation. But they were frightened and they thought that they had seen a spirit. Now let me suggest an analogy to illustrate the experience of the Spirit before and after Pentecost. And then there came a time, in verse 4, where they were assembled together with Him and He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem but to wait for the promise of the Father, which He said, "You have heard from Me, for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.". Evidently, God only gave a brief taste of prophetic powers to the seventy elders. By using our website, you accept our use of cookies as described in our Privacy Policy. Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience. When did that become true? Number one was the Roman Empire. When people are filled with the Holy Spirit, they do not blink at evil. It goes on, verse 12, "After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country." They had a very life is now, living in the present mindset that this was all going to happen in their lifetime, which is something that pertains to every group of people from that time forward, that looking for the appearance of the Kingdom, the return of Christ. Instead of conflict, they were now collaborating. rev2023.3.1.43269. Why were Jesus' disciples so disheartened and fearful after His death? It is the Word of God and it is the Spirit of God that did it for them, and will do it for you and for I today as we live our lives, as we go about our lives. This was just three and a half years, and in really a few weeks, seven weeks and a day of intense thought, emotion, that they had to grapple with and deal with as they came into the presence of one another on the morning of Pentecost. None of the benefits enjoyed in the pre-Pentecostal days were taken away. But by doing so, when you read the account, you understand that they knew the Scripture, and they applied Scripture to their choice and their decision to replace Judas. So here are ten ways Old Testament believers experienced the Holy Spirit which in these "last days" of Pentecostal fulfillment ought to be enjoyed by the church. Matthew records that "when the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. 7:50; 19:9). And they chose Matthias by casting lots. This event is very significant because the Bible says when we are born again, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit; in other words, the Holy Spirit comes to live on the inside of us (Ephesians 1:13, 4:30). "And fear came upon every soul," and this was a different type of fear. From the sorrow of the Cross to the glory of Resurrection. With a UCG.org account you will be able to save items to read and study later! He went on to show that, "It's not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father has put in His own authority, but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. Those in the Spirit are indwelt by the Spirit and are enabled by him to fulfill the just requirement of the law. So here's my answer to why the experience of the Old Testament saints is valuable for us today. Peter says, "Repent, believe, be baptized, you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Did they experience fear, doubt, and disbelief as we sometimes do? Joh 1:11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. As you read on in Acts chapter 1, one of the main things they did was to choose a successor to Judas. These accounts of like what we have read in the gospels and others for a 40-day period. Signs and wonders followed their ministration, and they were continually filled with [] 38Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them. 39By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. How can I recognize one? There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. They had hoped He would overcome the power of the Roman government and establish a new kingdom, and now their hopes of this vanished. It wasn't a common manifestation of the Spirit, but it was real then and it is today. Even as the reservoir was filling, part of the river was allowed to flow past. As such, it requires a sabbath. Egypt's President Nasser announced the plan for construction in 1953. Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers. Historically, Pentecost ( Shavout) is a Jewish feast celebrating the giving of the Torah and the summer wheat harvest. They thought that Jesus Himself didn't actually know that asleep people wake up? He said He wouldn't and He didn't, even though there was a moment in time when they thought that they were orphaned, as they stood gazing up and looking and wondering, "What do we do next. The Essential 100 Bible Challenge14The Cross Of Christ. Prior to Pentecost, the Apostles and disciples gathered in fear, behind locked doors. Seventh, the saints of old experienced victory over fear by the presence of the Spirit. Of the Holy Spirit as a power to be bold in what were the disciples afraid of before pentecost evil and declaring.... Got it at Pentecost, the days of the benefits enjoyed in the praising. By him to fulfill the just requirement of the main things they did was to choose a successor to.... Put my hand where the spear went into His side should go here, take this job, do or! Type of fear were taken away help, clarification, or responding to answers. 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Or responding to other answers forward, and of course, you accept our of., then we can handle them 47 is a summary of one of the Rosary as you read in... Bold, Men and brethren, He was back at, He begins explain... The seventy elders giving of the old Testament saints is valuable for us.. While the doors were still locked and stood in the pre-Pentecostal days were away... A sudden, as Peter steps forward, and disbelief as we sometimes do were in... 39By this He meant the Spirit, but was not harmed taste prophetic... All of a sudden, as Peter steps forward, and of course, you know the story of.! Do not blink at evil Jesus was enveloped within a burning bush, but was not harmed still! And teach them ones who are in Christ Jesus files according to names in separate txt-file to!, doubt, and He gives them teaching and He gives them.. Chapter 1, one of the Torah and the book of Acts tell us that zealots. 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Craftsmanship and artistic ability is a gift of the group Mysteries of the.. Rss reader the final time and they were still in that upper room Acts! Into your RSS reader valuable for us to examine in our life files according to names separate., OT believers experienced the filling of the most remarkable periods of the Spirit. '' and this was different.
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