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Acts-The Holy Spirit is Given
December 5, 2020

Today we begin a study of the Book of Acts and while the author is not explicitly named in the book, we can determine it was written by Luke in the first verse of Acts chapter one. A similar dedication is made to Theophilus in Luke chapter one verse three. Theophilus could be a real person or as the name implies, these books could be dedicated to the reader as a friend of God. Theophilus means friend of God. The Book of Acts is introduced as a book to detail what happened after Jesus ascended to heaven and reminds the reader of how the Gospel account ended.

It was after the ascension of Jesus into the clouds from Olivet, the mount of Olives, that the disciples returned to Jerusalem and we are introduced to a phrase, ‘a Sabbath’s Day journey’. A Sabbath’s Day journey is a phrase used only in Acts one verse twelve. During this time in Jerusalem, there were many rules and practices that had no commanded basis in the Bible, and the concept of a Sabbath’s Day journey is one of these man-made rules based on the Bible that is being referenced in this verse.

When we read of a Sabbath Day’s journey, we are looking at a distance of about two-thirds of a mile, not a very long distance at all, and this was a man-made concept. As we keep the Sabbath Day, we need to keep the man-made concepts out of the Sabbath Day, keeping in mind that these man-made elements are so insidious that some of these are mentioned in passing in the Bible.

The disciples returned to an upper room in a building. We don’t know if this is the same upper room where Jesus celebrated his final Passover with the disciples. We do know that this upper room is where the disciples were living. At this time, the disciples had a group of about one hundred twenty and with Jesus recently ascended to heaven, they focused on prayer. The Day of Pentecost had not fully come and the Holy Spirit had not yet been given to them and Peter prepared to speak to the group.

Peter reminded everyone how Judas had betrayed Jesus and how the betrayal was so bad that even the house of Judas would be desolate. With the betrayal and death of Judas there was a vacancy in the work that needed to be filled, and Peter shared with them that somebody who had been with Jesus from the beginning with the baptism of John would take the place of Judas. Two names were suggested, Joseph known as Barsabas and Matthias. They prayed to God to choose the person and they cast lots to show God’s will, and Matthias was chosen.

Acts 1:1-26
The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey. And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren. And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,) Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus. For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry. Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out. And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood. For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take. Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection. And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place. And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

The apostles must have been recalling their many moments with Jesus and would have remembered what He taught them. They were just beginning to understand how His death was necessary for the God’s Spirit to be given to all of man and for eternal life to come to the many. They would have known about prophecies that Jesus referenced, yet it would take the Holy Spirit to understand these. One of these prophecies from the Book of Joel would take a prominent place in Peter’s message on the Day of Pentecost.

Joel 2:28-32
And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.

On the day of Pentecost the early church was gathered together in one place. We do not know if this one place was the upper room they were gathered at in the first chapter of Acts or another place. We do know on the Day of Pentecost there came from the sky the sound of a mighty and rushing wind and that they were gathered together in what is described as a house. What came to them was not described as a mighty rushing wind, but the sound of a mighty rushing wind. Imagine hearing what sounds like a windy day only to look outside and see the trees perfectly still. This mighty rushing sound filled the house and to anyone who could hear it would be easy to understand something they could not see was happening around them. With the sound of a mighty rushing wind came a visible sign, a cloven tongue of fire, almost like a split flame of a candle upon each of them. If anyone in the house could not hear but had their sight, they would have easily seen this. For those who could hear and see, the experience must have been overwhelming and unmistakable. At this very instance the Holy Spirit was given to them and they began to speak in tongues.

Word soon got out the community what had happened and because Jerusalem was an international city at the crossroads of civilization, there were religious people from all over the world. When these people came to the house and heard the early church speaking in tongues, right away they heard their own language. In an era of free online translation services and dubbed and subtitled movies on streaming services, it could be easy for us today to lose sight of the incredible spectacle these foreigners were seeing. Beyond hearing the language were the people who were speaking in a foreign language, Galileans, the part of Israel that was considered backwards and uneducated. People were intrigued that uneducated people could be speaking in their own language. For the international traveler in Jerusalem and foreigner, the fact that the early church from Galilee was speaking in a foreign language was more fantastic than anything the early church was saying about Jesus and the opportunity for eternal life. Many thought these people were already drunk early in the morning with new wine and only some saw it as a miracle of God that in their own language they could understand God’s plan for humanity.

Peter stood with the eleven apostles and spoke loud enough so that others could hear. He addressed both the people of Judea and the people living in Jerusalem, and by default this would include descendants of Israel and foreigners. He asked them to listen carefully to his words as he probably heard some of the conversation between the onlookers. He told them that they were not looking at a group of people who had nothing better to do than to get drunk at nine in the morning, but a fulfillment of a prophecy given by the prophet Joel who had proclaimed that in the last days God would pour out His Spirit upon all people. Peter was the person proclaiming the fulfillment of the message that God would pour out His Spirit upon all people and yet was biased to the descendants of Israel. Later we will see how it would take a dream and verbal sparring with an apostle who Peter could not yet consider to understand that when God talked about pouring His Spirit on all people this included more than the house of Israel. Peter went on to share other parts of the message of Joel that this pouring out of the Spirit would give some to prophesy and others to have visions and dreams.

Joel’s prophecy showed wonders in the heaven above and signs in the earth beneath. It would be hard for anyone to deny that God was working a miracle on earth unless the denial was an intentional act of disregarding what they had seen. Peter by citing this verse shows from the death of Jesus we have been living in the last times and thousands of years later we are still living in the last times and must never intentionally disregard the message of the Bible lest we suffer the fate outlined in the Bible. As is spoken of in many other prophecies we know there will come a time when the sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the coming of the Day of the Lord. Peter went on to tell those listening that whoever called on the name of Jesus would be saved. He reminded them that Jesus was a man from Nazareth, a backwards city from a backwards part of the nation, and yet was a man who was of God who performed miracles, wonders, and signs that many who were in attendance that day got to see first-hand. He spoke of Jesus who was falsely accused and crucified so that many could have eternal life through his resurrection.

Peter reminded everyone that even David knew the Lord as his strength and solid rock. As David never moved and was solid in his reliance on God, so we must be solid in our reliance on Jesus Christ, and not only be solid in our reliance, but solid in our happiness knowing we have hope of the Kingdom of God, knowing that even if we die, we will not die eternally but like Jesus we will be resurrected into the eternal life that we have been promised as we live a life of joy.

He reminded them that David died and David’s tomb was still with them during that time knowing that Jesus who died and was resurrected to sit on the throne of heaven. He reminded them that they at that time were witnesses to the events leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus and His resurrection, and that like David who is still awaiting his resurrection is waiting until Jesus makes his enemies to be a footstool. When we die in God and Jesus Christ, when we die in the faith, we too await our resurrection, until like David, our enemies are made our footstools, knowing that God who brought Jesus into the world as a baby and crucified him has made Jesus both lord and savior. Through Jesus, if we do not succumb to the spirit of antichrist, if we endure to the end, we will be saved and resurrected when, like David, our enemies will be our footstools.

The crowd upon hearing this message wanted to know what they needed to do, and Peter told them to repent and be baptized so their sins would be forgiven and so that they could receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, that this promise was to them and generations not yet born, and to whoever God would call. That day three thousand people were baptized and they stayed with the apostles and learned more about Jesus. They stayed for meals and even during time of prayers.

The church led a life or reverent awe. Just like Jesus performed miracles, so did the apostles. The church believed together and stayed together and got rid of possessions sharing with others in need. The possessions the people parted with were probably their excess possessions because if everyone gave away everything, everyone would be in need and nobody would have goods to share. We also know they kept their homes as they would share meals from house to house. The early church continued to learn and they choose to learn in the temple, still under control of the religious elite, and yet instead of living a life of fear, they lived a life of reverent awe with joyfulness and unity. They praised God and the people who were not called, liked them, and every day more and more people were added to the church.

Acts 2:1-47
And 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. And 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. But 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 that 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now 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. For 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. And with many other words did he 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. And 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. And 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.

The Holy Spirit was given to the church and the people were filled with incredible happiness. It wouldn’t take long before the religious elite would begin to challenge the church.

All verses are from the King James Version.
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