Acts Pt. 3 | Sermon Notes
Acts Pt. 3
Pastor Chris Pletcher
October 6, 2024
Acts 2:1-21 //
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”
14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:
17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
4 Observations //
“they were all together in one place”
Thank you for being committed to our Sunday and Lifegroup gatherings! It is more important than ever that we simply stay devoted to meeting together.
As we fast and pray over the next few days… our unity in prayer matters.
“there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind”
The Greek words for spirit, breath and wind are all closely related.
Remember after the resurrection when Jesus appeared to the disciples and breathed on them? “Receive the Holy Spirit,” He said.
Remember what happened in Genesis 2:7 when God formed man from the dust of the ground… “then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.”
The breath of God is blowing upon His people for their renewal and re-creation!
Psalm 104:24-30
2 Cor. 5:17 // Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
“And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
Fire Portrays the Presence of God
Cloud by day, FIRE by night
Moses and the Burning Bush
Isaiah’s Vision of the Lord - a seraphim brings a burning coal from the altar
John’s prediction that the Messiah would baptize in the Spirit and in fire
Baptism of Spirit - Happens once at the moment of faith and salvation. We become sealed with the Spirit and connected to the Body of Christ. It’s our introduction to and identification with the people of God who have been BORN AGAIN BY THE SPIRIT
Ephesians 1:13-14 // In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee[d] of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it,[e] to the praise of his glory.
1 Corinthians 12:13 // For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
This corporate Baptism of the Spirit marked the beginning of the church! Happy Birthday!
Filling of the Spirit - “The Spirit’s filling may occur not only at salvation but also on a number of occasions after salvation.”
Why tongues???
“Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?”
Could we be watching the Tower of Babel in reverse?
They were supposed to multiply and fill the earth, but they stayed together. So the Lord scattered the nations at the Tower of Babel by confusing their speech.
Here we see the Lord’s people, Jews from every nation, gathering for this feast… little did they know that they had sovereignly been summoned for a birthday party. The beginning of God’s church on the earth!
From the Jewish people came a Messiah… from the Messiah came the new wine of the Spirit… YHWH breathes new life upon His people on the earth, and this devoted little band of 120 people who obeyed Jesus and prayed togetherbecame the CATALYST for the spiritual rebirth of an entire nation!