Chapter 9.

The “Age of the Holy Spirit” Dawns

 

 

We live in the “Age of the Holy Spirit”.  It began on the holiday called “Pentecost”, which occurred 49 days after Jesus was Crucified.  It will last until Jesus returns to Earth to establish His kingdom and reign over the whole world from Jerusalem.  At that time, our prayer, “Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done on Earth ...”, will be fulfilled.

 

When Jesus was ministering on the Earth, mankind experienced the “Age of the Son of God”.  Forty days after His Resurrection, Jesus ascended to Heaven to share the Throne with Father God.  When He left Earth, Jesus told His disciples that He would send them a new leader, the Holy Spirit, another facet of the Triune God.  He told them to wait in Jerusalem for the arrival of this Spirit.  About a week later, the Almighty sent “God, the Holy Spirit” to Earth to lead the followers of Christ.  He dwells in each believer.  He is the “Inner Light” that propels the Church and will do so  till Jesus returns.

 

In the days of Jesus sojourn on Earth, “Pentecost” was a Jewish holiday named “Shavuot”.  It occurred 49 days after the first day of Passover.  The day commemorated God's giving of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai.  Since the holiday was observed on the 50th day after the beginning of the “Feast of Unleavened Bread”, Hellenist Jews called it “Pentecost”, which means “the 50th day”.  Today, Christians observe Pentecost as the first day of the “Age of the Holy Spirit” and celebrate it on the 7th Sunday after Easter.

 

Jesus was buried on the first day of the “Feast of Unleavened Bread”.  He was in the earth for 3 days and 3 nights.  And then, after He arose, He was on Earth for 40 days before He ascended to sit at the right hand of Father God.  So, the Pentecost following Jesus’ Sacrifice was observed about a week after Jesus left planet Earth.

 

 

 

The Spirit Energized the Church.

 

During the week that the early Christians waited for the arrival of the Holy Spirit, they spent most of their waking hours in the Temple, praising and worshipping God and studying the Scriptures.  But, when the Day of Pentecost dawned, apparently, they were gathered together in a large house.  It was a Jewish holiday and some of the believers had arranged a festive breakfast.  After eating, the group was preparing to return to the Temple when, suddenly, the Holy Spirit descended from Heaven with great commotion.  A mighty wind shook Jerusalem, and as it roared, glowing, cloven tongues of illumination, like flames, appeared above the head of each believer, indicating that he or she had received the Spirit.  And, each of those present began speaking in languages they had never learned.  It was awe inspiring and bewildering.  Luke says ...

... when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 

(Acts 2:1-4)

 

 

 

A Crowd

Raced To the Scene.

 

Drawn to the spot where the boisterous, heaven-sent whirlwind had touched down, a great crowd poured into the plaza facing the house where the Christians were gathered.  And, the Christians moved into the streets, proclaiming the Gospel in a wide variety of languages.  Soon, Egyptians surrounded a believer speaking their tongue, and Greeks drew close to a saint telling the story of Jesus in Greek.  Many such clusters formed.  And, all present were amazed, even the Christians.  Everyone there spoke enough Hebrew to communicate amongst themselves, but, for each, hearing the Gospel in his or her mother-tongue was like drinking a cup of cold water in a hot and thirsty land.  The miracle grabbed the attention of all.  They wondered what it portended.  Luke says ...

... there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.  Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.  (Acts 2:5-13)

A few bystanders refused to acknowledge the amazing miracle unfolding before them.  They jeered and claimed that the excited witnessing in foreign tongues was simply the jabber of drunks.

 

 

 

The Spirit Urged Peter

To Explain What Had Happened.

 

The Holy Spirit energized Peter.  He filled him with power and authority.  Peter stepped up onto an elevated abutment and preached a soul-winning, Gospel sermon.  Remember, Luke’s account of that address is an outline of the speech.  Much more was said.  In full detail, Peter proclaimed the import of the arrival of the Holy Spirit.

 

 

Peter Declared,

“A New Day Has Dawned!”

 

As we noted earlier, Jesus and the Holy Spirit had instilled in the Apostles a deep understanding of Old Testament Scriptures.  At that historic moment on the Day of Pentecost, Peter pointed to a passage from the writings of the prophet Joel to make his point, “A new era is here!  It began moments ago when the Holy Spirit descended from Heaven and took up residence in every saved soul on Earth.  It will last till Jesus, who is now in Heaven, returns to establish His Kingdom on Earth, placing His throne right here in Jerusalem.”  Luke states ...

... Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;

And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and

notable day of the Lord come: And it shall

come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

(Acts 2:14-21)

 

This excerpt from Joel is so concise that every phrase in it is packed with meaning.  Surely, Peter explained it well, verse by verse.  Here, Joel calls the new era the “Last Days”.  Peter may have added another name for the period, the “Age of the Holy Spirit”.  He declared, “Jesus is back in Heaven.  And, God has sent the Holy Spirit to be the Inner, Guiding Light of Christians during this age.  Joel says that this period he calls the  ‘Last Days’ will continue until the ‘Day of the Lord’, when Jesus will return and become the King of the whole world.”

 

Also, Peter discussed some notable events that would occur in the “Last Days”, according to Joel.  Most importantly, God would pour out His Spirit on “all flesh”.  He would see to it that everyone on Earth would feel a compulsion to worship Him frequently, perhaps, as they viewed a spectacular sunset or admired the lovely face of a child or noticed an ornamental orchid.  Some souls would be open to this wooing of the Holy Spirit, acquire a saving faith, and ascend to Heaven when their bodies died.  Others would resist the call of God, repeatedly, and be consigned to Hell when they passed.

 

And, saved “sons and daughters”, being filled with the Spirit, would prophesy.  They would proclaim the Gospel to all nations.  And, some of these believing souls would be blessed by visions of God or His angelic messengers.  Similarly, some older, believing men would dream divine dreams and share these in their testimonies.  And, Peter noted that Joel had heard God say, “I will pour out My Spirit on ‘My servants’.  Every Christian will be filled with this blessing, and they will tell the world about Me.”

 

And, Peter noted that in the last days of the “Last Days”, mankind would face dire circumstances.  A God-hating dictator would become the ruler of the world.  Christians would call him the “Anti-Christ”.  He would seek to exterminate them.  The remaining citizens of Earth would become as wicked as the people of Noah’s day.  And, God would punish them with plagues reminiscent of those that were aimed at the Pharaoh and the Egyptians in ancient times.

 

There would be “wonders in heaven above”, ominous changes in the sun and the moon and hailstones and comets raining down on Earth.  There would be “signs in the earth beneath” ... earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis.  There would be “blood”, shed as the Anti-Christ massacred countless believers and, again, as Christ slaughtered the Anti-Christ and his armies.  And, there would be “fire, and vapour of smoke” when fire mixed with hail and blood would be hurled down to Earth from Heaven.  In the end, Joel had said, “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into [the color of] blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord [shall] come.”

 

Joel had concluded his depiction of the “Age of the Holy Spirit” with an optimistic observation: “It shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”  We are sure Peter emphasized this possibility as he strove to win the members of his audience to the Christian faith.

 

 

Peter Exclaimed,

“You Killed Christ!”

 

Peter continued his sermon.  “Friends, just now you have seen a miracle.  You heard the roar of the whirlwind.  You felt the shaking of the buildings.  Each of you heard one of us extoll the virtues of Jesus in your mother-tongue.  You know there’s something new ... something important ... going on here.  You have just now witnessed the dawning of the ‘Age of the Holy Spirit’.

 

“Just like you, I was raised to recite, ‘The Lord our God is one Lord.’  That’s true.  But, when I met Jesus of Nazareth, I knew that He was more than a mere man.  He was God in human flesh.  He told me that our ‘one Lord’ has 3 personalities.  He is God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.  This is hard for us ordinary mortals to grasp, because we have just 1 personality, but the Triune God is much different than us. 

 

“For the last few years, I have been a follower of Jesus, the Son of God.  He was a wonder worker.  I saw Him heal the sick, the lame, and the blind.  I saw Him turn a few fish and loaves into enough food to feed thousands.  I saw Him raise Lazarus from the dead.  And, many of you saw some of His miracles, too.  But, at the last Passover, you killed Him.  You Crucified Christ!

“You are guilty of this enormous sin, whether you were in the mob that arrested Him or in the Council that condemned Him to death or in the crowd that demanded His Crucifixion or even if you just stood by without protesting the wicked way He was murdered.  And, this sin has left a crimson stain on your soul.  You are in extreme danger.  You must cleanse your soul of this sin or go to Hell when you die. 

 

“I am going to tell you how to wash this sin away from your soul,  but first, I want to say something about the sovereignty of God.  I know that many Jews and Romans proudly take credit for killing Jesus.  But in fact, the Father, Son and Spirit planned the Crucifixion before the world was formed.  They knew that Adam and Eve and everyone else would sin.  So, they gave us a method for erasing our sins.  I’m sure you have offered many sin-sacrifices.  You laid your hands on an appropriate animal, asked God to transfer your sins to it, and when it died, your sins went with it.  But, that old sin-sacrifice system was temporary.  It is no longer valid.

 

“Now, as John the Baptist taught, ‘Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.’  The old sin-sacrifice system did not completely erase your sins.  The sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross completed the sin-cures that the old system initiated.  From now on, we must, in prayer, reach back into time and space and lay our sins on the suffering Jesus.  Then, His sacrificial death will erase our sins completely.  So, lock this thought into your mind, ‘The Triune God foreordained that Jesus would die on Golgotha.’  Some may think they originated the idea that Christ should be murdered, but in reality, they were fulfilling God’s ancient plan.  Still, that doesn’t excuse the sin of you who worked to kill Christ.  But, please understand, God is Sovereign.  God was not defeated at Calvary.  The Crucifixion was His idea.  It is His Most Precious Gift to man.

 

“If you want to get rid of your sins, today ... if you want to be forgiven for your part in killing Christ, you need to use the new Sin-Sacrifice system.  The old doesn’t work anymore.  You must lay your sins on the Crucified Christ and have His death erase your sins.  Because you are a sinner, you deserve to die and spend eternity in Hell.  But, if you put your trust in Jesus, it will be as if He died in your place and erased your sin-debt.  You’ll be sin-free and Heaven-bound.”

 

Here are Luke’s brief notes of the first portion of Peter’s sermon ...

Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.  (Acts 2:22-24)

 

 

Peter Emphasized,

“Jesus Arose From His Grave!”

 

Returning to his earlier assertion, Peter said, “I told you that Jesus arose from His grave.  Now, you all know that His tomb is empty.  You all know how hard the Roman soldiers and the servants of the Jewish rulers have combed the countryside, looking for His corpse.  In his exasperation, the High Priest has even accused us, His disciples, of having stolen the body of Jesus and having buried it in a secret place.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Jesus arose on the Sunday following His Crucifixion.  And, He arose transformed.  He came forth from the tomb wearing His eternal body.  It is glorious and dazzling.  And, we Christians have seen Him and fellowshipped with Him many times in the last few weeks.

 

“Now, this should not be surprising to us.  We have access to the Scriptures.  Many ancient Bible passages predicted that the Messiah would die and be buried and arise from His grave.  Listen while I recite part of Psalm 16, a song written by King David.”

 

After quoting the passage from Psalm 16, Peter explained, “In this paragraph, David was not speaking of himself.  Rather, he was prophetically writing down the thoughts the Messiah would have as He experienced His time on Earth as a man named Jesus.  David shared Jesus’ thoughts, ‘Father God, You are leading Me and supporting Me.  I shall not be moved away from My mission.  I will pursue it with joy.  And, after I am Sacrificed and buried, My flesh will rest with great expectations.  I am certain You will not leave My soul in Hades, the abode of the dead, and You will not allow My flesh to decay.  I am glad You have allowed Me to experience the ways of life on Earth, but I will be very pleased to return to Heaven and see Your face again.’

 

“So, Jesus is the Messiah.  He is a descendant of David, and He will someday set on David’s throne, ruling the whole Earth from Jerusalem.  He is not buried in some secret place.  He lives!”

 

Luke states ...

For David speaketh concerning him,

I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved: Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance. 

(Psalm 16:8-11)

Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.  (Acts 2:25-32)

 

 

Peter Restated,

“Jesus Is In Heaven.

The Holy Spirit Has Come.”

 

As Peter ended his sermon, he summarized his main points, “Jesus is in Heaven.  The Holy Spirit has come to live inside each saved soul.  And, Israel has Crucified Christ.”  Again, he quoted from the writings of King David, and again, he explained that in Psalm 110, David was not speaking of himself.  No, he was writing down words that, in a prophetic vision, he had heard Father God speak to Jesus, “Sit on My right hand, Until I make your foes your footstool.”  In soaring words, Luke has Peter saying ...

Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself,

The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool.  (Psalm 110:1)

Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. 

(Acts 2:33-36)

 

 

 

Many Souls Were Added

To the New Testament Church.

 

As Peter had preached, the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit had proceeded.  The Spirit had filled Peter’s mind with thoughts that would urge Peter’s listeners to make profound changes in their lives.  Changes so radical that it would seem that they had been “born again”.  And simultaneously, the Spirit had moved each listener’s heart, inviting him or her to form a personal relationship with Jesus. 

 

All at once, many in the crowd wanted to get right with the Lord.  They interrupted Peter with a cry for help ... a question ... “What shall we do?”  And, the Holy Spirit helped Peter formulate and proclaim a perfect answer ...

 

·        “Repent!  Chandge your ways.  Determine to live your life as a follower of Jesus.  Ask Him to remove all your sins.  Reach back to the Cross and lay your sin-load on Him.  You have sinned and you deserve to die and go to Hell, but if you give Him your sins, it will be as if He died in your place.   

 

·        Be baptized!  So show the world you have been washed clean by the Sin-Sacrifice of Jesus.  He was buried in the earth.  You will be buried in water.  He rose as a magnificent, eternal Being.  You will rise to live as Jesus taught us to live and to follow Him into Heaven when you die. 

 

·        Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit!  ‘God, the Holy Spirit’ caused the mighty whirlwind that brought you to this spot.  He enabled us to speak in the many languages represented here.  And now, this same aspect of God wants to abide in you and empower you to live for Jesus.”

 

Luke has Peter saying ...

... when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

(Acts 2:37-38)

 

 

 

Peter Added,

“This Gift Is For the Whole World and

For Future Generations.”

 

Peter made it clear, “This way of life is not limited to Israelites.  God wants everyone to place their trust in Jesus.  Today, you have the opportunity to become a part of this worldwide movement and take Christ to the nations.  Luke declared ...

... the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the LORD our God shall call.  (Acts 2:39)

 

 

 

Peter Urged,

“Save Yourselves!”

 

A great spiritual explosion rocked Jerusalem.  As Peter continued to dialog with enquirers, penitent new believers sought the assistance of established Christians who helped them take their sins to the Cross, immersed them in pools of water, and prayed for them to receive the Holy Spirit.  And, throughout the day, these activities multiplied.  New Christians helped others to become Christians.  By day’s end, about 3000 souls were added to the New Testament Church.  Luke declares ...

... with many other words did he [Peter] testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.  (Acts 2:40-41)

 

 

 

The New Testament Church

Coalesced.

 

Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Church began to function.  Its members “continued steadfastly” in the doctrines taught by the Apostles.  They fellowshipped.  They memorialized the Sacrifice of the Lord by re-enacting the “Last Supper”, using wine to represent the Lord’s shed blood and unleavened bread to represent His broken body.  They participated in prayer meetings.  And, they were in great awe as they witnessed miracles and signs from God done by the Apostles.  Luke discloses ...

... they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.  (Acts 2:42-43)

 

 

 

The Jerusalem Church Became

One Huge Extended Family.

 

“God the Holy Spirit” knew that persecution would soon descend upon the Church.  He motivated the Jerusalem Christians to pool their resources and free themselves from financial and property entanglements.  He knew they would soon be fleeing from Jerusalem.  They condensed their wealth into small, portable valuables like precious metals, jewels, pearls, and rare ointments and medicines.  

 

And, the Christians spent much of their time with each other, praying in the Temple, sharing the Lord’s Supper in their homes, and dining together.  They knew they were saved, and they were celebrating. 

 

And, they were evangelistic.  They wanted everyone to become a believer and enjoy the happiness they felt.  Daily, the Lord added to their number.

 

But, almost imperceptibly, the Holy Spirit was preparing His people for dispersion into the nations of the world.  In a few years, the last Jewish rebellion against Rome would commence.  In less than 40 years there would be no Jerusalem.  The Christians needed to re-locate, for their own safety and to spread the Gospel to the world.  Luke states ...

... all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. 

(Acts 2:44-47)