The meaning of Pentecost
The signs of the times are all around us. The events of the gospel recorded in the pages of Scripture are similarly riddled with signs that indicate the changing time in which these saving events occurred. A pilgrim through Jerusalem in the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry may have heard testimony about the miracles he’d performed; they may have heard accounts of his resurrection from the dead; they may even have been present on the day of Pentecost and heard the sound like the blowing of a violent wind and seen the tongues of fire that came to rest on people who began declaring the great acts of God in any one of fifteen languages.
But the signs given by Jesus in this amazing time were not understood. On the day of Pentecost the crowd who saw and heard evidence of the Spirit’s outpouring asked one another, “What does this mean?” (Acts 2:12) And so the Apostle Peter addressed the crowd, “let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.” (Acts 2:14) In light of the modern confusion over the events of Pentecost, we cannot do better than to give all of our attention to a careful reading of the apostolic explanation of the true meaning of Pentecost.
The miracles
Peter’s Pentecost explanation began with the last days, before which God had said, “I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below… before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.” (Acts 2:17-21) To the surprise of his listeners Peter declared “Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him...” (Acts 2:22) God had already signaled the arrival of the day of the Lord with the miracles, wonders and signs performed by Jesus.
The resurrection
The miracles of Jesus were just the prelude. To the already amazed crowd Peter then dropped a bomb with his announcement of the Resurrection. The news would have come as a great shock: one whom they had crucified was the one whom God had raised from the dead (Acts 2:22-24), about which their hero King David had said in Psalm 16, “God will not let his Holy One see decay” (Acts 2:27). Peter’s point was clear: God’s Christ is this Jesus of Nazareth (Acts 2:30-32).
The outpouring of the Spirit
But the resurrection of Jesus was only the beginning: Peter claimed that what they had witnessed only moments earlier was evidence of Jesus’ activity from heaven: “Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.” (Acts 2:33) The tongues of fire they saw and the tongues-speaking they heard were not only evidence of the reception of God's Spirit but also a demonstration that Jesus is the Lord God himself. God had said through Joel, “I will pour out my Spirit.” (Acts 2:17) The fact that Jesus is he who gives God’s Spirit is therefore a demonstration of his divinity. David also spoke prophetically in Psalm 110 about the ascension of one of his descendents, whom he thus referred to as ‘Lord’ (Acts 2:34): “'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand...” The Lord God had made a promise to place one of King David’s sons at his own right hand and bring all of his enemies under his judgment (Acts 2:35). The Spirit’s outpouring at the hands of Jesus is therefore a demonstration of his position as this son of David in heaven under whom God’s judgment will fall.
The time to repent
The crowd understood Peter’s point perfectly: Jesus’ resurrection showed him to the Christ and his giving of the Spirit showed him to the Lord God himself. (Acts 2:36) And this is the very one whom not many days ago they had hung upon a cross. “They were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?"” (Acts 2:37) What possibly could those who had crucified the Lord Christ himself do?
The good news that began on the day of Pentecost is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: “...everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved' (Acts 2:21). Still, it took the Apostle Peter to reveal the true application of these words that had for so long been a mystery. Now, in these final days, everyone who calls on Jesus Christ as Lord will be saved. It is on his name that people must call; it is in his name that everyone may be saved. (Acts 2:38)
Peter’s statement in Acts 2:38-39 is complete: Salvation is forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Spirit and is promised for all whom Jesus the Lord God will call; that is, baptism in the Spirit is related to the forgiveness of sins: it is Christ’s new covenant work of washing with the Spirit all who turn to him as Lord. And this gift is promised for all of God’s people; just as Christ’s death was for our sins and his resurrection for our justification, his ascension was so that he might pour out God’s Spirit on all who seek forgiveness in his name.
The Apostle Paul’s words about the gift of the Holy Spirit similarly shows that salvation in the new covenant marries together cleansing from sin and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit: “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior.” (Titus 3:5-6)
The only right response to the events of Pentecost is repentance for the forgiveness of sins in Jesus’ name because the revelation of Jesus as Lord and Christ is the true meaning of the day of Pentecost. Whatever one might think about the events of the day of Pentecost and the meaning of Joel’s famous prophecy, a true reading of Acts 2 falls into line behind the Apostle Peter’s own explanation in terms of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
More on this topic
Baptism in the Spirit: The Apostles' experience
Baptism in the Spirit: What the Scriptures say
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts - Part II
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on Pentecost Sunday, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Showing posts with label Pentecost. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pentecost. Show all posts
The day of Pentecost: Part II - The Promise
The Promise of Pentecost
They had come to Jerusalem from all over the world. And when the sound of a group of Jews speaking each of their native languages reached their ears they were perplexed and bewildered. To their amazement they heard a declaration of the great works of God; what they couldn’t understand was how this group of Hebrew speaking Jews spoke their foreign languages – Parthian, Egyptian, Italian, Arabian. It took them an Apostle of Jesus to explain it to them: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.” (Acts 2:14, NIV) So began the Apostle Peter’s address to the crowd of utterly amazed on-listeners on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2).
What was spoken
To the confused crowd, Peter quoted the prophet Joel at length (Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:17-21): “…this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel” (Acts 2:16). Joel had spoken of a time at the end of the world when the day of the Lord would come – the great and dreadful day of God’s judgment (Joel 2:11). After judgment, God would pour his Spirit onto all types of people (Joel 2:28-29; Acts 2:17-18). There would be wonders in heaven and signs on earth before the arrival of this day to signal its coming (Joel 2:30-31; Acts 2:19-20) and there would be salvation for anyone who called on the Lord by name (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21). It was to the shock of Peter’s audience that, following this quotation, he reminded them that God had recently given signs on earth through the man Jesus of Nazareth (Acts 2:22). Even more, a shock would have been his case that Jesus was the one who had just now poured out God’s Spirit and given from heaven the signs that they had just witnessed (Acts 2:33). They were cut to the heart by his point: This Jesus, whom they had crucified, was the Lord, now raised up into heaven itself – Jesus is the name in whom salvation is now given (Acts 2:38).
Before talking in detail about Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prophecy (beginning in v. 22), notice what the prophet had promised about the Spirit:
Peter announced that the time Joel described has now arrived: that is, the day of the Lord has arrived; in Peter’s words, these are “the last days.” This time is characterised by God’s pouring out of His Spirit on all; that is, the Spirit is no longer reserved for certain ones within God’s people who have special tasks, such as judges, kings and prophets. Now God's Spirit is given to all of God's people (the young and the old; women as well as men; slave and free).
A new revelation
Joel also indicated that the result of God’s outpouring of this Spirit would be the prophecy, visions and dreams of all (Acts 2:17-18). Twice Peter emphasized, “They will prophesy.” The reception of visions and dreams was the usual way God revealed Himself in the Old Testament: “When a prophet of the LORD is among you, I reveal myself to him in visions, I speak to him in dreams” (Numbers 12:6). However such revelation in the past had only come to certain ones, particularly prophets. In promising visions and dreams, Joel predicted a new stage in salvation history when there would be a new revelation from God. Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prediction (beginning in Acts 2:22) sees these words as applying to God’s new revelation of Jesus as both Lord and Christ.
A new prophecy
In promising prophecy, Joel also described the last days as a time when every one of God's people would declare this new revelation from God; sons and daughters, young men and old, even servants will be the prophets of this new revelation from God. Pentecostalism is not wrong in wanting to see evidence for the reception of the Spirit in God’s people. Here in this prediction of Joel quoted on the day of Pentecost by the Apostle Peter, the result of the reception of God’s Spirit is prophecy. The speech in the tongues of the various nations gathered in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost was the beginning of such prophecy: “we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” (Acts 2:11, ESV). The last days began with a simultaneous declaration of the gospel to representatives from ‘every nation under heaven.’
A new series of signs
Before the arrival of the day of the Lord, Joel predicted that God would show a new series of signs and wonders. The Exodus is an example of a new stage in salvation history when God displayed signs and wonders (the 10 plagues) before the arrival of his great acts of judgment on Pharaoh in Egypt and his salvation through Moses for Israel. Joel predicted God would in cosmic proportions signal the coming of the Lord’s great and dreadful day of judgment and salvation with wonders in heaven and signs on earth. This news must have left Peter’s audience anxious, to say the least: For if as Peter indicated Joel’s words about the Spirit’s outpouring described the events of the day of Pentecost, what and when were the signs and wonders that were to precede it and what of God’s impending judgment? Again, Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prediction (beginning in Acts 2:22) sees these words as applying to the signs and wonders that God did through Jesus.
A new name
The final point in Peter’s quotation of Joel is a pointy application concerning the means of salvation for those who seek to escape God’s judgment in the day of the Lord that is now upon us. Once again, Peter’s message comes as a shock: In these last days when God’s time of judging the whole world has begun, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; that is, it will be possible for anyone who knows the Lord by name to be saved, but anyone who does not know the name of the Lord, or calls on the wrong name will not escape God’s judgment. Peter begins at this very point (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21) to apply Joel’s words to the events of the gospel in order to reveal the new name under heaven by which people must be saved: The Lord Jesus Christ.
In part III of this article, we’ll talk in detail about Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prophecy and the events of the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:22-38).
More on this topic
The day of Pentecost: Part III - The meaning
Baptism in the Spirit: The Apostles' experience
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts – Part I
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on Pentecost Sunday, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
They had come to Jerusalem from all over the world. And when the sound of a group of Jews speaking each of their native languages reached their ears they were perplexed and bewildered. To their amazement they heard a declaration of the great works of God; what they couldn’t understand was how this group of Hebrew speaking Jews spoke their foreign languages – Parthian, Egyptian, Italian, Arabian. It took them an Apostle of Jesus to explain it to them: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.” (Acts 2:14, NIV) So began the Apostle Peter’s address to the crowd of utterly amazed on-listeners on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2).
What was spoken
To the confused crowd, Peter quoted the prophet Joel at length (Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:17-21): “…this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel” (Acts 2:16). Joel had spoken of a time at the end of the world when the day of the Lord would come – the great and dreadful day of God’s judgment (Joel 2:11). After judgment, God would pour his Spirit onto all types of people (Joel 2:28-29; Acts 2:17-18). There would be wonders in heaven and signs on earth before the arrival of this day to signal its coming (Joel 2:30-31; Acts 2:19-20) and there would be salvation for anyone who called on the Lord by name (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21). It was to the shock of Peter’s audience that, following this quotation, he reminded them that God had recently given signs on earth through the man Jesus of Nazareth (Acts 2:22). Even more, a shock would have been his case that Jesus was the one who had just now poured out God’s Spirit and given from heaven the signs that they had just witnessed (Acts 2:33). They were cut to the heart by his point: This Jesus, whom they had crucified, was the Lord, now raised up into heaven itself – Jesus is the name in whom salvation is now given (Acts 2:38).
Before talking in detail about Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prophecy (beginning in v. 22), notice what the prophet had promised about the Spirit:
“'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'” (Acts 2:17-21, NIV)A new time
Peter announced that the time Joel described has now arrived: that is, the day of the Lord has arrived; in Peter’s words, these are “the last days.” This time is characterised by God’s pouring out of His Spirit on all; that is, the Spirit is no longer reserved for certain ones within God’s people who have special tasks, such as judges, kings and prophets. Now God's Spirit is given to all of God's people (the young and the old; women as well as men; slave and free).
A new revelation
Joel also indicated that the result of God’s outpouring of this Spirit would be the prophecy, visions and dreams of all (Acts 2:17-18). Twice Peter emphasized, “They will prophesy.” The reception of visions and dreams was the usual way God revealed Himself in the Old Testament: “When a prophet of the LORD is among you, I reveal myself to him in visions, I speak to him in dreams” (Numbers 12:6). However such revelation in the past had only come to certain ones, particularly prophets. In promising visions and dreams, Joel predicted a new stage in salvation history when there would be a new revelation from God. Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prediction (beginning in Acts 2:22) sees these words as applying to God’s new revelation of Jesus as both Lord and Christ.
A new prophecy
In promising prophecy, Joel also described the last days as a time when every one of God's people would declare this new revelation from God; sons and daughters, young men and old, even servants will be the prophets of this new revelation from God. Pentecostalism is not wrong in wanting to see evidence for the reception of the Spirit in God’s people. Here in this prediction of Joel quoted on the day of Pentecost by the Apostle Peter, the result of the reception of God’s Spirit is prophecy. The speech in the tongues of the various nations gathered in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost was the beginning of such prophecy: “we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” (Acts 2:11, ESV). The last days began with a simultaneous declaration of the gospel to representatives from ‘every nation under heaven.’
A new series of signs
Before the arrival of the day of the Lord, Joel predicted that God would show a new series of signs and wonders. The Exodus is an example of a new stage in salvation history when God displayed signs and wonders (the 10 plagues) before the arrival of his great acts of judgment on Pharaoh in Egypt and his salvation through Moses for Israel. Joel predicted God would in cosmic proportions signal the coming of the Lord’s great and dreadful day of judgment and salvation with wonders in heaven and signs on earth. This news must have left Peter’s audience anxious, to say the least: For if as Peter indicated Joel’s words about the Spirit’s outpouring described the events of the day of Pentecost, what and when were the signs and wonders that were to precede it and what of God’s impending judgment? Again, Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prediction (beginning in Acts 2:22) sees these words as applying to the signs and wonders that God did through Jesus.
A new name
The final point in Peter’s quotation of Joel is a pointy application concerning the means of salvation for those who seek to escape God’s judgment in the day of the Lord that is now upon us. Once again, Peter’s message comes as a shock: In these last days when God’s time of judging the whole world has begun, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; that is, it will be possible for anyone who knows the Lord by name to be saved, but anyone who does not know the name of the Lord, or calls on the wrong name will not escape God’s judgment. Peter begins at this very point (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21) to apply Joel’s words to the events of the gospel in order to reveal the new name under heaven by which people must be saved: The Lord Jesus Christ.
In part III of this article, we’ll talk in detail about Peter’s explanation of Joel’s prophecy and the events of the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:22-38).
The day of Pentecost: Part III - The meaning
Baptism in the Spirit: The Apostles' experience
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts – Part I
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on Pentecost Sunday, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
The Day of Pentecost: Part I - The Event
The Event of Pentecost
Jews from fifteen different nations came together in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, each speaking with their own language. Then, when a group among them began declaring God’s mighty works in these fifteen languages, a crowd developed of amazed and confused listeners. What the group were saying the crowd could understand well enough; what they couldn’t understand was why they could understand them. (Acts 2:5-12)
Jesus promised to send God’s Spirit (Acts 1:4-5) before being taken up into heaven (Acts 1:11), commanding his followers to stay in Jerusalem until they had received him. When on the day of Pentecost the 120 followers were all filled with the Holy Spirit three signs were given from heaven to demonstrate beyond any doubt their reception of Jesus’ baptism with the Spirit (Acts 2:2-4): wind signifying the creative work of the Spirit, as it had done at the creation of the world; fire signifying the saving work of God, as it had done at Mount Sinai; and the Spirit enabled declaration of God’s wonders in the languages (tongues) of the nations of the world.
What did the sign of tongues show? What is the significance of the Spirit enabled utterances of the first Christians? This is the first part of an article in which we'll talk about the Pentecost Sermon, where the Apostle Peter answers this very question.
Confusion over Pentecost
With the proliferation of the worldwide Pentecostal movement in the last few decades, this chapter in the New Testament, Acts 2, has become the most misunderstood passage in the Bible within 21st century Christianity. It's not hard to understand why; the events described in Acts 2 were met with misunderstanding when they occurred. In fact, Acts 2 is a record of the Apostle Peter’s explanation of the events of that day because of the ignorance that surrounded him: “Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?"” (Acts 2:12) And so Peter stood to answer this very question: “let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say” (Acts 2:14).
Old Testament Prophecy: Promises of the Spirit
Peter began his explanation by quoting the Old Testament prophet Joel (Acts 2:17-21). His claim was that the events of the day were what Joel had prophesied about (v. 16). Naturally he follows his quotation with his own explanation of the events in terms of Joel’s prophecy. He doesn’t give Joel’s prophecy as the answer; he gives a gospel sermon that explains the Old Testament prophecy as the answer. His sermon in Acts 2:22-36 is a declaration of the meaning of what the crowd had just witnessed, for he says about Jesus in Acts 2:33, “he has poured out what you now see and hear.” His sermon was not an evangelistic add-on: His sermon is the apostolic interpretation of the events of Pentecost; it is God’s own version of events; it is the Spirit himself speaking about what his own activity signifies.
The only way to understand the Spirit
Even though this was a genuine work of the Spirit, it could not simply be understood by observing it, or even experiencing it. The only way to interpret it correctly was to listen to the apostolic explanation of the OT prophetic expectation. Peter’s sermon in Acts 2:22-36 demonstrates the fact that the events of Pentecost can only be understood with a New Testament comprehension of the promises of the Old Testament prophets, such as Joel. Much to their suprise, Peter explained that Pentecost was not primarily about the Spirit, but about Jesus of Nazareth, whom they crucified: "Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear." (Acts 2:33).
In Part 2 of this article we'll be talking about Peter's explanation of Joel's prophecy and the events of his day. (Acts 2:14-32)
More on this topic
The day of Pentecost: Part II - The Promise
Baptism in the Spirit: The Apostles' experience
The day of Pentecost: Part III - The meaning
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on Pentecost Sunday, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Jews from fifteen different nations came together in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, each speaking with their own language. Then, when a group among them began declaring God’s mighty works in these fifteen languages, a crowd developed of amazed and confused listeners. What the group were saying the crowd could understand well enough; what they couldn’t understand was why they could understand them. (Acts 2:5-12)
Jesus promised to send God’s Spirit (Acts 1:4-5) before being taken up into heaven (Acts 1:11), commanding his followers to stay in Jerusalem until they had received him. When on the day of Pentecost the 120 followers were all filled with the Holy Spirit three signs were given from heaven to demonstrate beyond any doubt their reception of Jesus’ baptism with the Spirit (Acts 2:2-4): wind signifying the creative work of the Spirit, as it had done at the creation of the world; fire signifying the saving work of God, as it had done at Mount Sinai; and the Spirit enabled declaration of God’s wonders in the languages (tongues) of the nations of the world.
What did the sign of tongues show? What is the significance of the Spirit enabled utterances of the first Christians? This is the first part of an article in which we'll talk about the Pentecost Sermon, where the Apostle Peter answers this very question.
Confusion over Pentecost
With the proliferation of the worldwide Pentecostal movement in the last few decades, this chapter in the New Testament, Acts 2, has become the most misunderstood passage in the Bible within 21st century Christianity. It's not hard to understand why; the events described in Acts 2 were met with misunderstanding when they occurred. In fact, Acts 2 is a record of the Apostle Peter’s explanation of the events of that day because of the ignorance that surrounded him: “Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?"” (Acts 2:12) And so Peter stood to answer this very question: “let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say” (Acts 2:14).
Old Testament Prophecy: Promises of the Spirit
Peter began his explanation by quoting the Old Testament prophet Joel (Acts 2:17-21). His claim was that the events of the day were what Joel had prophesied about (v. 16). Naturally he follows his quotation with his own explanation of the events in terms of Joel’s prophecy. He doesn’t give Joel’s prophecy as the answer; he gives a gospel sermon that explains the Old Testament prophecy as the answer. His sermon in Acts 2:22-36 is a declaration of the meaning of what the crowd had just witnessed, for he says about Jesus in Acts 2:33, “he has poured out what you now see and hear.” His sermon was not an evangelistic add-on: His sermon is the apostolic interpretation of the events of Pentecost; it is God’s own version of events; it is the Spirit himself speaking about what his own activity signifies.
The only way to understand the Spirit
Even though this was a genuine work of the Spirit, it could not simply be understood by observing it, or even experiencing it. The only way to interpret it correctly was to listen to the apostolic explanation of the OT prophetic expectation. Peter’s sermon in Acts 2:22-36 demonstrates the fact that the events of Pentecost can only be understood with a New Testament comprehension of the promises of the Old Testament prophets, such as Joel. Much to their suprise, Peter explained that Pentecost was not primarily about the Spirit, but about Jesus of Nazareth, whom they crucified: "Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear." (Acts 2:33).
In Part 2 of this article we'll be talking about Peter's explanation of Joel's prophecy and the events of his day. (Acts 2:14-32)
The day of Pentecost: Part II - The Promise
Baptism in the Spirit: The Apostles' experience
The day of Pentecost: Part III - The meaning
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on Pentecost Sunday, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Comment: Born again at Pentecost?
Pentecostals have reasoned that the disciples were “born again” after Christ’s resurrection but before the day of Pentecost. Their understanding is that when Jesus breathed on (emphusao) the disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:20-23), this was the moment of their new birth. Accordingly, the Spirit now dwells in them. Pointing out the significance of Christ’s action by comparing Genesis 2:7 and 1 Corinthians 15:45, they are not impressed with what they perceive to be a lack of attention given by broarder Evangelicalism to John 20:22.
My article, The Apostle's experience, is a reply to this view specifically.
- -
More on this topic
Baptism in the Spirit: What the Scriptures say
Baptism in the Spirit: The Apostles' experience
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts – Part I
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on pentecost, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
My article, The Apostle's experience, is a reply to this view specifically.
- -
Baptism in the Spirit: What the Scriptures say
Baptism in the Spirit: The Apostles' experience
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts – Part I
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on pentecost, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit Baptism: The Apostles' experience
Pentecostals believe that the Apostles had a two-stage experience of the Spirit involving firstly the reception of the Spirit after Jesus’ resurrection and secondly the baptism in the Spirit after Jesus’ ascension into heaven. John 20:22 is used to support this position, where Jesus, after His resurrection, breathes on his disciples and says to them "receive the Holy Spirit”. If the disciples received the Spirit at this moment, Pentecostals reason that on the day of Pentecost their experience must have been a second work of the Spirit. But is this seemingly straight-forward logic reasonable? Is it possible? Did the disciples receive the Spirit from Jesus before his ascension? What actually was the experience of the Apostles?
“The Spirit had not been given”
The Apostle John, speaking about the Spirit “whom those who believed in him were to receive,” in John 7:39 explains that “as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” This brief note of explanation in John’s Gospel is enough to show that the classic teaching of Pentecostalism is inconsistent with Scripture and the true experience of the Apostles. For John says that although the disciples were to later receive the Spirit, this could not happen until Jesus had been glorified; that is until he had returned to his Father in the glory of heaven (John 17:5).
“I will send him to you”
Jesus himself made it clear that the Spirit would not be given to his disciples before his ascension into heaven when he said, “I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7 ESV). It was only after Jesus ‘went away’ that he sent the Holy Spirit into his disciples. It says Jesus ‘sent’ the Spirit from heaven; he did not ‘bring him’ or ‘leave him’ with them while he was on earth. According to Jesus’ own word, the Holy Spirit would ‘not come’ before this point; for “the Spirit had not been given.”
“He dwells with you and will be in you”
In teaching that the disciples did not yet ‘have the Spirit,’ Jesus was not suggesting that the Apostles were ‘unbelievers’ before the day of Pentecost; nor were they ‘without the Spirit.’ Speaking to his disciples about the Holy Spirit in John 14:17 Jesus said: “You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” Jesus here explained that although the disciples knew the Spirit, indeed he already dwelt ‘with’ them, yet they did not still experience the ‘indwelling’ of the Holy Spirit; that is, he was not ‘in’ them. Jesus promised himself to give them God’s Spirit to live in them after his glorification to God’s right hand.
“The gift my Father promised”
On one occasion before Jesus’ ascension into heaven, he said to his disciples: “"Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."” (Acts 1:4-5 NIV) Jesus here again showed that the Pentecostal event was the moment when his disciples received for the first time the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. For he spoke to the disciples about "what the Father promised" as something also that his disciples had ‘heard him speak about.’ (Acts 1:4) He refers to this gift here also as the ‘baptism with the Holy Spirit,’ using the language of John the Baptist (Acts 1:5). This is the first (and only) recorded time when Jesus spoke with the phraseology of ‘baptism with the Spirit.’ The point is that the disciples had already heard Jesus speak again and again about his baptism with the Spirit when he’d taught them about his gift of the Spirit (E.g. John 3:24; 4:14; 7:37-39; 14:16-21; 16:5-7; 20:22). Therefore, John's words about Jesus’ baptism with the Spirit spoke of the same thing as Jesus’ words about his gift and the disciples' reception of the Spirit; that is, the disciples were baptised with the Spirit the moment that Jesus gave God’s Spirit to indwell them.
“He has poured out this”
On the day of Pentecost, after Jesus’ ascension into heaven (Acts 1:11) and after the disciples were all ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’ (Acts 2:4), Peter proclaimed the meaning of their experience to the crowd: “Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.” (Acts 2:33 ESV) Again, this point of explanation in Peter’s sermon is enough to show that the classic teaching of Pentecostalism is counter-Scripture. It says that what they saw and heard on the day of Pentecost, after Jesus’ exaltation, was the sign that Jesus himself had just given the Father’s gift of the Spirit to these disciples. Jesus gave what the Father promised to give; he gave what was (only) God’s to give: God’s own Spirit. John (the baptist with water) had said, “"I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” (Matthew 3:11 ESV) The Pentecostal event was the ultimate display of Jesus’ might and his worth, for it shows him to be God overall. It was not a secondary experience, it was the primary experience of Jesus’ lordship and divinity.
As a side point, Acts 2:33 also shows why the image of ‘baptism’ is appropriate for this experience, for this verse uses the metaphorical language of baptism also: It says that Jesus ‘poured out’ the Spirit onto them as one pours out water in baptism. But unlike baptism that poured water onto one merely to symbolise the removal of uncleanliness before God, Jesus baptised with the Spirit because by pouring him onto people they actually would be free from the power of sin that makes one unacceptable to God. (Ez 36:27; Rom 8:2).
“I will put my Spirit in you”
The statements about the Spirit here in the Gospels and Acts highlight the changing time in salvation history that the disciples experienced: “the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified;” “he dwells with you and will be in you;” “if I go, I will send him to you;” “exalted to the right hand of God... [he] has poured out what you now see and hear.” The only reason that the disciples, as believers already in Christ, were not baptised in the Spirit before the day of Pentecost was that it wasn’t until that very moment in history that Jesus’ new covenant ministry of giving the Spirit began. Before the day of Pentecost, the disciples were still under the covenant that did not give the Spirit. Though they had eternal life through faith in his name – as John the Baptist also did – before the day of Pentecost they were not indwelt by the Spirit. (John 14:17).
The Old Testament indicated that the coming of the new covenant was to be inaugurated by the coming of the Spirit. Jeremiah wrote: "The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant…"I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.” (Jeremiah 31:31, 33 NIV) Ezekiel adds: “And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” (Ezekiel 36:27 NIV) And so Jesus promised, “"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever--the Spirit of truth”” (John 14:15-17 NIV)
What to Pentecostals seems as a two-stage experience of salvation for the disciples, in that they ‘believed’ first and were ‘baptised in the Spirit’ second, relates only to their unique time in salvation history: they lived half of their lives under the ‘old’ covenant and half of their lives under the ‘new’. Their conversion into the new covenant was a movement from life in the ‘old’ to life in the ‘new.’ Our conversion into the new covenant is a move from ‘death’ to ‘life;’ it is a movement from ‘no’ covenant into the new covenant through Christ.
“Receive the Holy Spirit”
What then is the meaning of John 20:22? Before Jesus’ return into heaven, he said to his disciples: “"As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit…”” (John 20:21-23 ESV) If the surrounding context of Jesus’ teaching about the Spirit (Jn 7:39; 14:17; 16: 7; Ac 2:33) makes it impossible to read this statement as an indication that his disciples did at that moment receive the Holy Spirit, what then did Jesus mean?
In John 20:22, Jesus addresses his disciples about their future, telling them to ‘receive the Holy Spirit’. This is a command, analogous to Luke's account of the same conversation on the same evening: "I am going to send you what my Father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." (Luke 24:29). Jesus’ instruction to ‘receive the Spirit’ comes in the context of his departing and his promise to send the Spirit after his leaving. An everyday modern situation might employ similar language: “I’m returning to Sydney. When I get there I’ll send you my replacement, James. When he comes, receive him.”
Jesus demonstrated the meaning of his words in this narrative by the type of actions that bring to remembrance the way in which he taught his disciples about his love for them in John 13: there he rose from supper, laid aside his garments and began washing his disciples' feet. In so doing he played out in metaphorical actions the way in which he would wash his disciples by way of his humiliation on the cross. Here Jesus again plays out what he will do for his disciples in the not too distant future: He breathes on them, and in so doing pointed to the day of Pentecost when he would send God’s Spirit of life to be in them – the very Breath of God that would give them resurrection life.
“I am in you”
The disciples may have had two stages in their experience, in that they believed in Christ first before the Spirit was given, and then secondly received the indwelling of his Spirit after this on the day of Pentecost. However, they had only one work of the Spirit in the new covenant. For they received for the first time the promised new covenant gift of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost. This was their conversion experience; the moment when their spirits were regenerated, when Christ put his own Spirit to live in them. As Jesus had said, “On that day you will realise that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” (John 14:20 NIV).
More on this topic
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts – Part I
Baptism in the Spirit: What the Scriptures say
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts - Part II
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on pentecost, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
“The Spirit had not been given”
The Apostle John, speaking about the Spirit “whom those who believed in him were to receive,” in John 7:39 explains that “as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” This brief note of explanation in John’s Gospel is enough to show that the classic teaching of Pentecostalism is inconsistent with Scripture and the true experience of the Apostles. For John says that although the disciples were to later receive the Spirit, this could not happen until Jesus had been glorified; that is until he had returned to his Father in the glory of heaven (John 17:5).
“I will send him to you”
Jesus himself made it clear that the Spirit would not be given to his disciples before his ascension into heaven when he said, “I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7 ESV). It was only after Jesus ‘went away’ that he sent the Holy Spirit into his disciples. It says Jesus ‘sent’ the Spirit from heaven; he did not ‘bring him’ or ‘leave him’ with them while he was on earth. According to Jesus’ own word, the Holy Spirit would ‘not come’ before this point; for “the Spirit had not been given.”
“He dwells with you and will be in you”
In teaching that the disciples did not yet ‘have the Spirit,’ Jesus was not suggesting that the Apostles were ‘unbelievers’ before the day of Pentecost; nor were they ‘without the Spirit.’ Speaking to his disciples about the Holy Spirit in John 14:17 Jesus said: “You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” Jesus here explained that although the disciples knew the Spirit, indeed he already dwelt ‘with’ them, yet they did not still experience the ‘indwelling’ of the Holy Spirit; that is, he was not ‘in’ them. Jesus promised himself to give them God’s Spirit to live in them after his glorification to God’s right hand.
“The gift my Father promised”
On one occasion before Jesus’ ascension into heaven, he said to his disciples: “"Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."” (Acts 1:4-5 NIV) Jesus here again showed that the Pentecostal event was the moment when his disciples received for the first time the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. For he spoke to the disciples about "what the Father promised" as something also that his disciples had ‘heard him speak about.’ (Acts 1:4) He refers to this gift here also as the ‘baptism with the Holy Spirit,’ using the language of John the Baptist (Acts 1:5). This is the first (and only) recorded time when Jesus spoke with the phraseology of ‘baptism with the Spirit.’ The point is that the disciples had already heard Jesus speak again and again about his baptism with the Spirit when he’d taught them about his gift of the Spirit (E.g. John 3:24; 4:14; 7:37-39; 14:16-21; 16:5-7; 20:22). Therefore, John's words about Jesus’ baptism with the Spirit spoke of the same thing as Jesus’ words about his gift and the disciples' reception of the Spirit; that is, the disciples were baptised with the Spirit the moment that Jesus gave God’s Spirit to indwell them.
“He has poured out this”
On the day of Pentecost, after Jesus’ ascension into heaven (Acts 1:11) and after the disciples were all ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’ (Acts 2:4), Peter proclaimed the meaning of their experience to the crowd: “Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.” (Acts 2:33 ESV) Again, this point of explanation in Peter’s sermon is enough to show that the classic teaching of Pentecostalism is counter-Scripture. It says that what they saw and heard on the day of Pentecost, after Jesus’ exaltation, was the sign that Jesus himself had just given the Father’s gift of the Spirit to these disciples. Jesus gave what the Father promised to give; he gave what was (only) God’s to give: God’s own Spirit. John (the baptist with water) had said, “"I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” (Matthew 3:11 ESV) The Pentecostal event was the ultimate display of Jesus’ might and his worth, for it shows him to be God overall. It was not a secondary experience, it was the primary experience of Jesus’ lordship and divinity.
As a side point, Acts 2:33 also shows why the image of ‘baptism’ is appropriate for this experience, for this verse uses the metaphorical language of baptism also: It says that Jesus ‘poured out’ the Spirit onto them as one pours out water in baptism. But unlike baptism that poured water onto one merely to symbolise the removal of uncleanliness before God, Jesus baptised with the Spirit because by pouring him onto people they actually would be free from the power of sin that makes one unacceptable to God. (Ez 36:27; Rom 8:2).
“I will put my Spirit in you”
The statements about the Spirit here in the Gospels and Acts highlight the changing time in salvation history that the disciples experienced: “the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified;” “he dwells with you and will be in you;” “if I go, I will send him to you;” “exalted to the right hand of God... [he] has poured out what you now see and hear.” The only reason that the disciples, as believers already in Christ, were not baptised in the Spirit before the day of Pentecost was that it wasn’t until that very moment in history that Jesus’ new covenant ministry of giving the Spirit began. Before the day of Pentecost, the disciples were still under the covenant that did not give the Spirit. Though they had eternal life through faith in his name – as John the Baptist also did – before the day of Pentecost they were not indwelt by the Spirit. (John 14:17).
The Old Testament indicated that the coming of the new covenant was to be inaugurated by the coming of the Spirit. Jeremiah wrote: "The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant…"I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.” (Jeremiah 31:31, 33 NIV) Ezekiel adds: “And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” (Ezekiel 36:27 NIV) And so Jesus promised, “"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever--the Spirit of truth”” (John 14:15-17 NIV)
What to Pentecostals seems as a two-stage experience of salvation for the disciples, in that they ‘believed’ first and were ‘baptised in the Spirit’ second, relates only to their unique time in salvation history: they lived half of their lives under the ‘old’ covenant and half of their lives under the ‘new’. Their conversion into the new covenant was a movement from life in the ‘old’ to life in the ‘new.’ Our conversion into the new covenant is a move from ‘death’ to ‘life;’ it is a movement from ‘no’ covenant into the new covenant through Christ.
“Receive the Holy Spirit”
What then is the meaning of John 20:22? Before Jesus’ return into heaven, he said to his disciples: “"As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit…”” (John 20:21-23 ESV) If the surrounding context of Jesus’ teaching about the Spirit (Jn 7:39; 14:17; 16: 7; Ac 2:33) makes it impossible to read this statement as an indication that his disciples did at that moment receive the Holy Spirit, what then did Jesus mean?
In John 20:22, Jesus addresses his disciples about their future, telling them to ‘receive the Holy Spirit’. This is a command, analogous to Luke's account of the same conversation on the same evening: "I am going to send you what my Father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." (Luke 24:29). Jesus’ instruction to ‘receive the Spirit’ comes in the context of his departing and his promise to send the Spirit after his leaving. An everyday modern situation might employ similar language: “I’m returning to Sydney. When I get there I’ll send you my replacement, James. When he comes, receive him.”
Jesus demonstrated the meaning of his words in this narrative by the type of actions that bring to remembrance the way in which he taught his disciples about his love for them in John 13: there he rose from supper, laid aside his garments and began washing his disciples' feet. In so doing he played out in metaphorical actions the way in which he would wash his disciples by way of his humiliation on the cross. Here Jesus again plays out what he will do for his disciples in the not too distant future: He breathes on them, and in so doing pointed to the day of Pentecost when he would send God’s Spirit of life to be in them – the very Breath of God that would give them resurrection life.
“I am in you”
The disciples may have had two stages in their experience, in that they believed in Christ first before the Spirit was given, and then secondly received the indwelling of his Spirit after this on the day of Pentecost. However, they had only one work of the Spirit in the new covenant. For they received for the first time the promised new covenant gift of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost. This was their conversion experience; the moment when their spirits were regenerated, when Christ put his own Spirit to live in them. As Jesus had said, “On that day you will realise that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” (John 14:20 NIV).
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts – Part I
Baptism in the Spirit: What the Scriptures say
Baptism in the Spirit: The examples in Acts - Part II
talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com | joe towns: christian discussion on pentecost, charisma, pentecostal and charismatic beliefs, the Bible and Jesus; including the origin and history of pentecostalism, baptism in the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, gifts and miracles, divine healing and word of faith, prosperity and wealth, praise and worship, guidance and hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
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