God Sends The Holy Spirit - An Unforgettable Encounter | Acts 2:1-13

God Sends The Holy Spirit - An Unforgettable Encounter | Acts 2:1-13

The Holy Spirit is the fuel that runs the engine of our Christian life. That's how Chris Holcombe describes what happened at Pentecost and why it still matters today.

Chris, who works in the NHS, takes us through one of the most extraordinary scenes in the Bible: 120 confused, scared people sitting in a room, and then without warning, everything changes. This wasn't madness. It was God crashing into the world.

The Scene Before Everything Changed

Picture 120 people all together in a big room. Jesus' circle of disciples, drawn into his ministry and teaching over the last two or three years. These were people who believed, who knew that Jesus was the promised Messiah, the saviour of the Jewish people.

For first century Jews in Palestine, that meant someone who would release them from the oppression of the Romans. The Messiah was going to set them free.

But then it all went wrong, it would seem. Jesus was arrested and executed. All their hopes were dashed. But then, three days later, raised from the dead. They'd seen him down from the cross, and yet these same people saw him alive and active amongst them later. And now they're in the period where he's disappeared, gone back to heaven.

What now?

You can imagine this bunch of people sitting around in a big room, confused. They'd had such high hopes, and now he's gone. Scared, because they killed Jesus. What about us? Just trying to work out what's next. Should I go back and get the boat out and start fishing again on the Sea of Galilee?

But Jesus had said: wait for the Holy Spirit.

So here they are. Scared, confused, sad. They'd replaced Judas with Matthias. And then you can imagine them thinking, "Oh, well, we've done that. What now?" Chris jests that if they were British, someone would have put the kettle on: “Let's have a cup of tea, shall we?”

Some would have drifted away. Some chatting inappropriately. Maybe just sitting around depressed and confused.

And then, without warning, there was a sound like a strong wind, gale force. Like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks and they started speaking in different languages. Peter started preaching, and that day 3,000 took him at his word and signed up.

Not Madness After All

Everyone will have different reactions to this story. Some will think, "Wow, I wish I'd been there." Some will think, "That must have been scary." Many are probably thinking it's just madness. Impossible. Surely there's a plausible explanation.

Maybe they were drunk (although, they were quite high functioning drunks with the ability to speak fluently in a new language.) Maybe it was mass hysteria.

Or maybe, just maybe, God breaking into the time-space continuum here on earth to do something extraordinary.

Jesus had promised this. In John, he said, "I will ask the Father and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever, the spirit of truth." Later he said, "The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send, will teach you all these things."

And Jesus' final words as recorded in Acts: "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and the ends of the earth."

Here in Acts chapter two, this prophecy is being fulfilled. The Holy Spirit is the fuel that runs the engine of our Christian life, our Christian faith. That fuel turns simple fishermen into bold witnesses. It enables people to speak different languages. It causes 3,000 people to turn to Jesus in a single day.

Not drunk. But rather God crashing into the world and the lives of those early disciples, as he has done ever since.

The Holy Spirit Today

But what about today? God still gives us his Holy Spirit. Still gives us that fuel that drives our Christian life, drives indeed our whole lives. Reminds us of Jesus' teaching. Is responsible for some of the most extraordinary personal experiences and closeness to God that we ever have. Sometimes at times of ecstasy, sometimes in the deepest, darkest of valleys.

And that same Holy Spirit is with us as Paul says in Romans: as we take our everyday ordinary lives, our sleeping, eating, going to work, walking around life, and place it before God. The Holy Spirit is there with us.

It's the Holy Spirit that gives us that peace that passes understanding when it's really difficult. When your boss is an unreasonable arse. Peace when the workload is just ridiculous.

We read of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in Corinthians: wisdom, knowledge, faith, discernment. Wisdom as to how to deal with that tricky HR situation. Knowledge. Faith that God has put us where he wants us. Faith that we are in the right place, even if it feels different. Discernment for what's really going on. Gifts to help us live life in the messy business of life.

We read in Galatians of the fruit of the Spirit. Because the Holy Spirit is with us not only on a Sunday in church, but on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday and Thursday and Friday and Saturday where our faith is tested. We show the fruits of the Spirit in the same way an apple tree can't help but grow apples. So we, as Spirit-filled Christians, can't help but show the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

And sometimes too we see those other gifts of the Spirit. Miracles on occasion, where we pluck up the courage to pray, perhaps for a colleague. Where we speak in tongues and have those interpreted amongst our Christian brothers and sisters.

Chris says he doesn't know what your workplace is like, but his workplace in the NHS needs more of that. More of those Christians filled with the Spirit. More of those Christians who can make a difference, who can show that love, show that compassion.

You may not be preaching to 3,000 people like Peter did on the day of Pentecost, but you can, with the Holy Spirit, transform the culture of where you work, where you live, where you play.

So not madness after all, but a gracious God-given resource to help us get up in the morning and live life. The fuel that makes the difference.

Conversation Street

What jumped out from Chris's talk?

John Farrington said he was wrapping his head around the different ways the Holy Spirit is presented in the Bible. He particularly enjoyed Chris's point about the disciples being accused of being drunk, and Chris pointing out they were "very high functioning drunks."

Dan Orange loved that when the Holy Spirit comes, the passage lists all the people from different countries who heard Peter's first talk. This wasn't just a message for native speakers or one culture. Right from the start, God got it out there to everyone. He loves that God doesn't do things the way humans would plan. He mixes things up.

John added that if he was thinking about it, he'd start small, let it grow nice and slow. But they did start small, and then straightaway 3,000 people come to faith through the Holy Spirit at work in front of them.

What is speaking in tongues?

Dan put John on the spot to explain. John said there are different interpretations. Some people say tongues just references different languages across the world. For John, his interpretation is that God can supernaturally give you a language others can understand, but it's also a heavenly language that goes beyond our understanding. It's a way of our spirit being able to communicate with God and to pray.

He referenced 1 Corinthians 14, which says the person speaking in tongues speaks not to man but to God. Paul says, "My spirit prays, even though my mind isn't fruitful." So your mind might not understand what you're saying, but your spirit has a sense of what you're communicating, even if you don't have the English to express it.

Dan agreed. Often when he speaks in tongues, he hasn't got the English words to say what he wants to say to God. God gives him those words, and although he doesn't understand them, he knows they're allowing him to convey that message of love or pleading, or asking for help.

Dan shared stories: A lady in church heard a guy speaking in tongues and asked him afterwards, "I didn't know you spoke Welsh." He didn't. He was speaking in tongues, and she could understand because she spoke Welsh.

Another story: A man who used to go to India met a guy on a train. They talked through the whole journey, said goodbye, and saw each other again in church the next day. The guy didn't speak English and the man didn't speak that dialect of Indian. God had given them both a language for the journey.

Have the spiritual gifts stopped?

Anya asked how to approach the concept that tongues and spiritual gifts stopped with the first church.

John said he'd tie it in with the rest of the spiritual gifts. When the curtain was torn in two after Jesus died, the Spirit was given to us across the world. He doesn't see a clear indication in Scripture that it was just for that time, or just for when the Bible was written. He doesn't see an indication that there was a stopping point.

Dan agreed. Jesus said "you'll do these things and greater things." He didn't say it would phase out. Dan is glad it hasn't phased out. We can pray for healings, we can pray for miracles.

Matt added in the comments that you are a Christian even if you don't speak in tongues. This is not a deal breaker. Speaking in tongues is more prolific in Pentecostal and evangelical churches, but it's not something that says you have to speak in tongues.

What comforts you about the Holy Spirit?

Miriam asked this question and shared her own answer: for her, it's the joy he brings and the way he helps her to love others.

Dan said for him it's hope. The disciples waited, but we don't have to live this life without God's words and Jesus' teaching. We live this life with the Holy Spirit now. We have access to God through the Holy Spirit.

John quoted the verse: "Don't worry about anything, but pray about everything, so you may know the peace that surpasses all understanding." He reflected on the nature of the Holy Spirit being compared to fire, water, and represented as a dove. It's like all of these things but still outside our understanding and comprehension. So when it talks about receiving peace, it's a peace that goes beyond his understanding. That's a huge comfort in any situation: knowing he can pray to God and receive the Spirit's comfort and peace.

Is the church still growing?

John asked Dan how he'd respond to people who say the growth of the church has slowed down or diminished since Pentecost.

Dan questioned that assumption. Almost every culture, almost every country, if not all, has heard this gospel. The Bible is the most translated book in the world, still the most popular book in the world. In Western culture there are many competing things for our time and our soul, things that can distract us. But the underground church is growing in places like China and the Middle East where Christianity is pretty much banned or dangerous.

Dan reflected that perhaps when you really have to bet your life on it, not just your eternal life but your life now, you go fully into it.

Your Next Step This Week

Here are practical ways to respond to this message:

1. Remember you're not alone — As a Christian, you are filled with the Holy Spirit. He's with you. He will give you wisdom, insight. He'll help you be loving, kind, faithful. Whether you like it or not, you're taking him into work, to the gym, to that family reunion.

2. Watch The Shack — Chris's homework suggestion. It's a Hollywood film available from all the usual channels, and it's a great example of some of the ways the Holy Spirit works and how he interacts with us. The book is also a great read.

3. Search the Scriptures — Get a Bible app and type "Holy Spirit" into the search function. Chris gets 88 hits in the New Testament. Look at each of those, dig around deeper to see what the Holy Spirit does in the lives of Christians.

4. Ask for the gifts — The gifts of the Spirit are available to help you in the messy business of life. Wisdom for that tricky situation. Peace when the workload is ridiculous. Discernment for what's really going on.

5. Transform your environment — You may not preach to 3,000 people, but you can, with the Holy Spirit, transform the culture of where you work, where you live, where you play.

The Fuel That Makes the Difference

Chris concludes: remember that as a Christian, you are filled with the Holy Spirit. He's with you. He will give you wisdom, he'll give you insight. He'll help you be loving, help you be kind, help you be faithful.

Not madness after all, but rather pretty much as Jesus said. To paraphrase: "I'll send you the Holy Spirit to be alongside you and to help you do life."

The Holy Spirit is the fuel that runs the engine. What will you do with that fuel this week?