The Promise Of Pentecost

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The Promise of Pentecost

"I am going to send you what my Father promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."

Luke 24:49(NIV)

Since the Old Testament, the Spirit of God was promised to come to the people of God. The prophet Joel wrote: "And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions." (Joel 2:28 NIV) Nine hundred years later, the Spirit of the living God was poured upon His church in an event named Pentecost. The purpose of the following research is to show the Pentecost as a major point in the life of the apostles, as well as the beginning of the church of Christ.

Fifty days after Jesus was risen form the grave, in Jerusalem was taking place a celebration called the Feast of Weeks, time in which every Jewish male was required to appear at the sanctuary. This celebration, used to bring Jewish people from all around Asia and Europe to Jerusalem. It was about this time when the Pentecost took place (Grieb).

The eleven disciples were "all together in one place" waiting for the promise to come. Katherine Grieb tells us in her article Church on Fire that "Luke is careful to tell us that along with the 11 "apostles" he names, there were some women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and also his brothers."(Grieb) After ten days waiting at the upper room without really knowing what to do, the promise came to the disciples. "It was attested by miraculous signs in the form of a rushing mighty wind, a tongue of fire which sat upon each of them, and the ability to speak ecstatic tongues in praise of God."(Ockenga 17) Arno Clemens in his book for seminaries and biblical institutes wrote: "…He came not as a dove, but in the form of cloven tongues like as of fire. He came on the Lord in the shape of a dove, because He was not to make His voice heard in the streets. But His disciples were to give the testimony, the Word with power, which is like consuming fire."(33) Like mentioned before, by that time, Jerusalem had several visitants from different countries, who spoke different languages, and the testimony the disciples were supposed to give was magnified by the fact that this Galileans were speaking in languages these visitants could understand.

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