Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Pentecost, or the Feast of Weeks, was the Jewish holiday that was celebrated 50 days after Passover, and which celebrated and presented offerings for the wheat harvest. All Jewish men were commanded to appear before God in Jerusalem for the festival (Deuteronomy 16:16). No one was permitted to receive a harvest from God’s hand without saying “thank You!” This explains why so many Jewish people were present in Jerusalem that day from all over the Roman Empire (Acts 2:5).
The group of about 120 followers of Jesus (Acts 1:15) were still waiting and praying in the upper room. They were waiting for the baptism with the Holy Spirit that had been promised by Jesus (Acts 1:5), and which would also act as the starting signal for them to begin bearing witness to Jesus.
At about 9:00 that morning (Acts 2:15), the Holy Spirit arrived. There were three signs which accompanied His arrival:
- The sound of a violent wind, which could be heard for quite a distance. In both Hebrew and Greek, the word for Spirit (“ruach” and “pneuma” respectively) was also the word for “wind” and “breath.” So, the sound of a powerful wind was an appropriate auditory symbol for the arrival of the powerful Holy Spirit. As a side note, according to these witnesses, there was no actual wind that swept through the place; just the sound of a powerful, violent wind.
- Tongues of fire. John the Baptist frequently combined his teaching about the promised Holy Spirit with imagery of fire (for example, Matthew 3:11-12). The fire that he promised was an unquenchable, purifying fire that would burn up the chaff in and among the people of God.
- The ability to speak in other languages. This was a powerful sign to all who heard and were drawn to the sound of the wind, and the immediately subsequent sound of more than 120 voices loudly praising God in many different languages. It also was symbolic of the breaking down of barriers of language and culture that had divided mankind since the days of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:7-9), and the ability of the gospel to be proclaimed to all the peoples of the world, and to once again unite all humanity.
The promised Holy Spirit had arrived, and those people who received Him, and the world itself, would never be the same.
Father, that same Spirit, that same person of your Godhead who breathes spiritual life into us, who purifies our hearts, and who gives us the supernatural power to bear witness to Jesus is still promised to us today. Lord, we need Your Spirit today as much as those first followers did then, because the work of bearing witness to Jesus is still needed, is still essential today, and still needs Your supernatural empowerment to be most effective. Fill us, Lord, so that we can do Your work in Your power. Amen.
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