“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.”
The day of Pentecost in Acts 2 is actually the launching of Christ’s church. Jesus told His disciples to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came, and this is what happened in Jerusalem on that particular celebration of Pentecost. Pentecost literally means “fifty days,” which meant fifty days after Passover and was also called the “Feast of Weeks.” It was a celebration of the gathering of the grain harvest, and came to be a celebration of the giving of the law to Moses. (The Revel Bible Dictionary) It took on new meaning because of Jesus. It is important to see what occurred in this launching of Christ’s church. The first thing to note is that it happened as Jesus told His disciples it would happen. He told them that the Holy Spirit would come upon them and that they would be witnesses of Him in “Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost part of the earth.” It was fitting that the witness of the disciples under the power of the Holy Spirit took place in Jerusalem, since that is where Jesus told them that they would begin their witness. This was an example of witnessing under the power of the Holy Spirit. It was amazing that people from all over the world heard the gospel in their own language. The second thing to note is that they were “all with one accord in one place.” This means that there was no disagreement among them as to their purpose. Since that church, like ours, was made up of human beings, there were eventually disagreements and differences that needed to be worked out, but it was important for them to be of one accord on the matter of being witnesses of Jesus. In spite of our differences, we are Christ’s witnesses to the world. The third thing to note is that it was the Holy Spirit who made the gospel clear to the people who received the witness. Let’s look at Acts 2:6-9 as an example of what I mean: “Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. 7. And they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? 8. And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born.” The marvelous thing here is that it was the Holy Spirit who communicated the truth of the gospel about Jesus Christ to people from all over the world. Only the Holy Spirit can cause such a miracle. The bottom line of this launching of Christ’s church on the day of Pentecost is that the disciples, not just the apostles but all of the believers at that time, went in one accord to witness under the power of the Holy Spirit and at the end of the day, after Peter’s sermon in Acts 2:14-41, three thousand people were saved. We need to catch the spirit of Pentecost in Acts 2. Don’t you agree? Bro. Joe
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Ecclesiastes 10:1: “Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour (odor): so does a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor."
Matthew 13:33: “Another parable spoke He unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.” I do not mean to change the word of God, but I want to propose that one dead fly in the ointment would make it stink. I know that if I found a dead fly in anything that I was going to apply to myself, or eat, it would be time to throw whatever it was away. In the same way, it takes only a little leaven, or yeast, to cause the dough to rise. The same is true of events in the world, our churches and our lives. Sometimes it just takes just one bad influence to ruin everything. As the old saying goes: “One rotten apple can spoil the whole barrel.” This has been true in history. There are plenty of historical examples, but one comes to my mind – Adolph Hitler. I am a student, not a scholar, of WWII, and one can’t study that war and not study about Hitler. He was one man who had twisted ideas about human nature, and about Jews, and that one man stirred a whole nation to follow him into the folly of his ideas. Let us say that Hitler was a “fly in the ointment of history.” One thinks of Joseph Stalin, who took the idea of communism and turned it into a murderous weapon against his own people. Both Hitler and Stalin had people who influenced their lives, but they sure muddled things when they were in charge. This has been true in churches. It doesn’t take a whole lot of people to “stir up a mess” in a church. Most of the time it is one person who has an ax to grind, and they grind it for all that they are worth. The problem is that they can usually get other people in cahoots with them, and can stir up trouble for everybody. Sometimes it begins in a Sunday School class, or some other organization in the church, and it permeates the whole church. This is bad but it happens and it happens when a little leaven is put in the dough, or a dead fly gets in the ointment. Now that I have you depressed about the human situation (lol) let me go in a more positive direction. This principle also applies to the good that can be done in the world and in the church. Dwight L. Moody, the great 19th Century evangelist, when asked about how revival starts said: “Every great movement of God began with a kneeling figure.” Great revivals have started because one person caught on fire for the Lord and “leavened the whole lump.” When one thinks of the “Great Awakening” he thinks of Jonathan Edwards, whose sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” helped to stir a nation to revival. Edwards didn’t do it by himself, but his influence was felt throughout the movement. Now I will go to the source –the Bible – God’s word. Of course, we think of Jesus who was one God/man who changed the world, but I want to illustrate this point with a man. This man’s name was Saul of Tarsus. He caused havoc for the followers of Jesus Christ. He was bent on destroying the churches, and his influence was felt throughout the church. But when Saul of Tarsus met Christ on the Damascus Road, and became Paul the Apostle, he was influential in the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the area, beginning at Damascus and reaching all the way to Rome. Paul didn’t do it by himself, but he was the “leaven” that made a difference in his time for the Lord’s work. I will conclude by asking you about yourself. What difference are you making where you are? Are you a “fly in the ointment” or are you an influence for good in your family, your community, your church and etc. Something to think about isn’t it? Bro. Joe "Wilth thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee."
It is an understatement to say that we need revival in churches. By "revival" I do not mean a series of meetings where we call in a preacher to preach for a few days. We need a revival where people really get serious about Jesus in their daily lives. It is difficult to have great services on Sunday when we live for the world all week and attempt to worship Him on Sunday. We need a revival where people actually fall in love with Jesus and where they pray, and spend time in His word daily. We need a revival where people, because of their love for Jesus, love their fellow Christians. This does not seem to be the case in a lot of our churches, because people are more prone to argue than to pray together. We need a revival where we decide that the church, that's right the old organized church, should get priority in our lives. I know that the church does not come before family, but it should come before, let us say, the Falcons or the Braves. If we will view the church as a catalyst for Christian service instead of just the place to go on Sunday, we will learn to love her more and give her greater priority. It is important to attend church services, but it is equally important to be the church scattered in the community all week. This would give church more meaning. Let's say with the Psalmist, "Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee." Wouldn't it be great !!!! Bro. Joe |
AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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