By Jonathan Keller
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
“This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 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 2:1-4, 32-33, ESV)
Every Monday morning, you stumble into the same diner. The first time you came here, rain poured down your back as you fought through traffic to stop in for a quick bite. Today, the sun blinded you off the reflection from the metallic roof. Chuck, your same waiter, greets you with a warm smile, a pot of coffee that most artisanal roasters could dream of concocting, and a nod to meet your nod that you’ll have the usual. Frankie, the head chef in the back, plates your eggs and pancakes to perfection with her worn-through-experience hands. In torrential downpours or scorching summer days, the diner staff will remain constant to prepare you for the week ahead. Looking ahead to Pentecost today, I’d rather we think of Jesus and the Holy Spirit less like miracle workers and more like Chuck and Frankie.
Like coffee waking up your weary soul, flaming tongues from the Holy Spirit rested upon the apostles as they proclaimed the Good News that the resurrected Christ had sent His Spirit. The Holy Spirit poured out like gushing water upon the apostles to create the church anew, a memory of when He hovered over the waters of creation: the regeneration of the Holy Spirit, a baptism of the soul, arrived! The Jesus they witnessed – the One who ministered, was crucified by Peter’s hearers, rose up on the third day, and ascended forty days later – is the Lord Christ who reigns in heaven to send His Holy Spirit in great power. Such news is good enough to amaze, and it is good enough to save even traitors guilty of betraying the Lord of heaven!
What changed since Pentecost? Is the Spirit different then from now? Is the Lord Jesus off of His throne? Has His Word ever failed from the beginning till now? No! The Spirit at creation, who is the Spirit at Pentecost, is the same Spirit of the church today. The Word through whom all creation was made is the same Word who is incarnate and now reigns till today. Salvation poured out then is salvation ready for us. If we know diner staff like Chuck and Frankie can perk us up on a Monday morning, how much more should we expect the Lord of the universe and His Spirit to be with us in all things? This gives us great confidence that the Lord of yesteryear still hears His people and works for their good today. If He sent good gifts for His church’s new birth back then, why would He withhold good gifts for His church’s continued growth today?
Nowadays we have many growing pains. As the Good News has spread across the globe, there remains corruption in our nature to be rooted out by the work of God’s Pentecost Spirit. There remains disobedience at least in my heart (and probably yours) that the Word must cut out. Better than these, though, is the great fruit of righteousness waiting for us to see. How much peace could God work through us today while nations war against each other? How much joy could God ignite in a dark world? How much self-control could God establish in His people in a world consuming everything and everyone? Let us pray for these and more fruits.
O heavenly Father, may You be praised as the God of creation, of Pentecost, and of your church today. You are the same God yesterday, today, and forever, and You love for your church to spread across the whole world. As You worked mightily to proclaim Your Good News at Pentecost in many languages, work mightily in us that the Gospel might be spoken in our lives and tongues. Produce more fruits of righteousness in us today than Peter or John saw. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.