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The story of the church begins not with a building or a program, but with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2 describes this moment with vivid detail: “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them” (Acts 2:1–4).
Pentecost was more than an event. It was the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise in Acts 1:8, where He told His disciples that they would receive power to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth. It was the birth of the church, the moment when God’s people were equipped for their mission.
It is significant that the Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, one of the great Jewish festivals. Pentecost, or the Feast of Weeks, was celebrated 50 days after Passover. It was a harvest festival, thanking God for the first fruits of the grain. It also came to be associated with the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai, when God formed Israel as His covenant people.
How fitting, then, that God chose this day to pour out His Spirit and form a new covenant people. Just as the Law was given at Sinai to guide Israel, now the Spirit was given in Jerusalem to empower the church. Just as Pentecost celebrated first fruits, so this Pentecost marked the first fruits of the global harvest of souls.
And because Jews from all over the world had gathered in Jerusalem for the feast, the gospel was proclaimed to a diverse crowd from the very beginning. Acts 2 lists Parthians, Medes, Elamites, Egyptians, Libyans, Cretans, Arabs, and many more — all hearing the wonders of God in their own languages. The church’s mission was global from day one.
Before Pentecost, the disciples were fearful, hiding behind locked doors. But when the Spirit came, everything changed. Peter, who had denied Jesus three times, now stood boldly before thousands and preached the gospel. The same Spirit who empowered Jesus in His ministry now filled His followers with courage, clarity, and conviction.
This transformation shows us that the church does not exist by human strength. It exists by divine power. Programs, strategies, and efforts all have their place, but the true power of the church comes from the Spirit. Without Him, the disciples could not have faced the hostility of Jerusalem, let alone carried the gospel to Rome. With Him, they turned the world upside down.
When the Spirit came, some accused the disciples of being drunk. But Peter stood up and explained what was happening. He quoted the prophet Joel: “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” (Acts 2:17).
Peter then preached Christ crucified and risen. He declared that Jesus, whom they had crucified, was both Lord and Messiah. His sermon cut the listeners to the heart, and about 3,000 were baptized that day.
Pentecost was not about strange experiences or emotional highs. It was about power to proclaim the gospel. The Spirit enabled the disciples to declare the truth of Jesus, and the Spirit convicted hearts to respond. That remains the central work of the Spirit today — empowering God’s people to witness to Christ.
There is also a beautiful connection between Pentecost and the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11. At Babel, human pride led God to scatter the nations and confuse their languages. At Pentecost, God brought people from many nations together and enabled them to hear the gospel in their own tongues. Babel scattered; Pentecost gathered. Babel confused; Pentecost clarified. The curse of division was being undone in Christ.