Pentecost

"Pentecost" means "fifty" and is a festival marking the fiftieth day after Passover. Deuteronomy 16:9-10 spells out the guidelines for this festival, also known as the Feast of Weeks. The Israelites were to count out 7 weeks from the Passover and were to celebrate pentecost with an offering of thanksgiving for the wheat harvest. Jesus, not coincidentally, was crucified just after the Passover and then appeared numerous times over the subsequent 40 days before His ascension. So, there must have been only a few days between His ascension and the day of Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit had been promised, but the disciples did not yet have it. This would explain the casting of lots to determine the 12th disciple in the verse immediately preceding the account of Pentecost. This was the last time in Scripture that decisions were made by this method, because the indwelling of the Holy Spirit made discernment of God's will possible through prayer. What happened at Pentecost was an unmistakable introduction to New Testament Christianity. Power would come upon believers in Christ through His helper, the Holy Spirit. From this point forward, the Spirit would indwell believers at the time of salvation and equip them for service and worship unto the Lord. And for the disciples, the Spirit equipped them to carry out the Great Commission. From this core group of Christians at Pentecost, Christianity was born.

Pentecostal churches teach that baptism of the Holy Spirit is an event separate from salvation and characterized by speaking in tongues. Pentecostals have verses to substantiate their doctrine and non-Pentecostals have an equal amount to refute them. This is not an area of expertise for me by any means, but it seems illogical to think of anyone being saved but not having the Holy Spirit. That the Spirit would be reserved for certain people seems contrary to the message of the gospel. No doubt there are some who tap into the power of the Holy Spirit to a greater degree than others, and I don't even question the validity of speaking in tongues, but to say that essentially there is a "level two" of salvation, and if you're not speaking in tongues you're not there, is a stretch.

Tomorrow's reading: Acts 3:1-5:42