The Coming of the Holy Ghost on the Day of Pentecost!
The Fulfillment of the Promise of the Holy Ghost
Acts Chapter Two starts with the fulfillment of the Promise of the Holy Ghost. Then there is Peter’s second discourse as Chief Apostle. Let us divided the advent of the Holy Ghost into two broad categories. The first division describes the coming of the Holy Ghost and the second describes how the disciples reacted when they received the gift of the Holy Spirit of Christ.
The Coming of the Holy Ghost
The Promise of the Father was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost. Approximately one hundred twenty disciples of Jesus Christ were in the Upper Room in Jerusalem waiting for the promise of the Spirit of Truth. They were of one mind and all in the same room, Acts 2:1.
It is interesting that this Scripture compares the advent of the Holy Ghost to a fast powerful storm, Acts 2:2. This is the first record of anyone receiving the Holy Ghost in the Scriptures. Jesus made a similar comparison, except he compares the Born Again Believer to the wind, John 3:8. This is an explanation of what will happen to the Believer during the Rapture.
The Holy Ghost came suddenly from heaven like a noisy and powerful storm and it filled the entire room. Then, “there appeared unto them cloven tongue like as of fire and it sat upon each of them,” Acts 2:3.
It is important to note that the Holy Ghost did not come quietly and there is, also, a physical manifestation of the Spirit.
The presence of the Lord has long been associated with fire. The Lord revealed Himself as fire to Moses. Moses saw a green tree burning but the fire was not consuming the tree, Exodus 3:2. Additionally, the Lord also revealed Himself as fire to Moses and the Children of Israel. This time, He manifest as a Cloud of Fire, which protects and provides light to Israel during the nights while they traveled in the desert, Exodus 13:21.
Elijah, a prophet of God calls fire from heaven to validates he hears from God and told the people, “and the God that” answers “by fire, let him be God”, 1 Kings 18:24. Elijah, also, went up into heaven by a chariot of fire, 2 Kings 2:11. I could write a complete piece on the fire of God. Now the Holy Ghost comes from God having the appearance of “cloven tongues like as of fire” from heaven.
Yesterday, a reader of my blog asked, how does she know she has the Holy Spirit? This Bible Study will definitely answer that question.
The Holy Ghost is of paramount importance because without it we are not Rapture Ready. The Holy Ghost enables those who possess Him, to behave like the wind at the Rapture. You will be here this minute but nobody knows where you are the next minute. Two will be in the bed and the one taken and so on.
The Lord Jesus ensured the Holy Ghost did not come quietly because the disciples NEEDED to know when He came. The disciples could not see the Holy Ghost because He is invisible like the wind. Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ had to inform His disciples this was He. The Spirit of Jesus manifested Himself like fire, which rested on the head of each disciple, Acts 2:3.
Therefore, each person bear witness that they all received the Holy Spirit. This was possible because each person could not see the initial appearance of fire that was on his head but he could see it on the other disciples’ heads.
The Lord made sure that each person knew when he got the “gift” of the Holy Ghost. Folks if you do not know the date and time you got that gift probably you did not get it. If you do not remember details fine but if you have no recollections at all about the event, it never happened. I say this because receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost speaking in other tongues is a live changing experience. It is an experience you cannot forget for the remainder of your life. It is the most important thing to possess in this life for without it we cannot be with the Lord forever. Please, be certain you have received the baptism of the Holy Ghost, “speaking with other tongues”, as the Spirit “enabled” you and He is active in your life.
Disciples Received the Holy Ghost on the Day of Pentecost
Each disciple that received the Holy Ghost “began to speak with other tongues,” Acts 2:4. I have already written on “tongues” please read that article then continue here. All these disciples were of the same nationality and spoke the same language, Acts 2:7. Why did the disciples speak in tongues seeing they all understood each other? I also wrote about this and I will not rewrite it here. Please read it via the link above.
“Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language,” Acts 2:6.
The Scripture verse above says, “this was noised abroad”, meaning at least one hundred twenty people, men and women, were all speaking with tongues simultaneously. Acts 2:4 tells us “they were all” filled with the Holy Ghost and all began to speak with other tongues.
Therefore there was nobody in that room that was not speaking, they all were. So when “this”, meaning knowledge that many “Galilaeans” in an upstairs room in Jerusalem were speaking in different languages, spread around Jerusalem. When this had circulated then the crowd, out of curiosity, came to see it for themselves and was confused. You would be “confounded” too if you saw a group of your fellow citizens speaking in foreign languages that you knew they never learnt to speak.
I have yet to see Someone Receive the Holy Ghost Quietly
This was not a quite occasion. Speaking from over thirty years of experience in the Church I have yet to see someone receive the Holy Ghost quietly. If you have, please share your experience in the comment section after this article. I would love to read it. Receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost quietly is not Scriptural and there is no quite precedence in The Book to follow. Subsequent to receiving the Spirit of God, a Believer may quietly speak in other tongues during his personal devotions.
Yesterday, I had such an experience during my personal devotions at home. However, the first time the Holy Ghost comes He is never quite or stationary. Remember, He comes from heaven like a “rushing mighty wind”, therefore, do not expect that when He enters into your body you shall be still, quite, prim and proper, no way baby!
“And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven,” Acts 2:5.
Grasp the extent of this situation; Jews from every country in the world were living in Jerusalem when the Holy Ghost first came to earth. It was for this reason they crowd was “amazed and marveled” for the Jews from Jerusalem were speaking in myriads of different languages from countries all over the world.
Therefore, the disciples were speaking with tongues not for their personal benefits but for the crowd that came. The crowd said, “we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God,” Acts 2:11.
In closing, the fulfillment of the Promise of the Father served at least two purposes. First, it was the return of the Spirit of Jesus to earth to finish the work he started. The outpouring of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost represents a fulfillment of an old prophecy and Jesus’ promise to his disciples. Through this one event in Jerusalem, on the day of Pentecost, over two thousand years ago, Jews from all over the world heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ and received salvation. Pentecost was the work of Jesus Christ.
Speaking “with other tongues” is not done at will. I have seen many preachers on television demonstrate that they can speak “with other tongues” whenever they desire. These actions demonstrate their ignorance concerning how the Holy Ghost functions and reveal that they do not possess the Holy Ghost. The disciples spoke “with other tongues” ONLY because the Spirit allowed them to speak. The NIV says “all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” The Scripture says, the disciples spoke with “other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance,” Acts 2:4. The disciples did not speak in tongues because they wanted or when they wanted but ONLY when the Spirit directed or “enabled” them to speak.
Everyday people receive the Holy Ghost all over the world but a repeat of the Day of Pentecost will not happen because there is no need.
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