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.
Jesus grew up to become a carpenter in Bethlehem. He continued to do this until the age of 30; at which he started his ministry, approximately at 24 BCE. He gathered 12 apostles (Peter, James the Greater, James the Lesser, Andrew, Bartholomew, Judas Iscariot, John, Simon, Phillip, Jude, Matthew, Thomas), who were his innermost circle of supporters, and hundreds of disciples, who followed him and agreed with his views on religion. As Jesus proliferated his message all over Judea, he also performed many miracles, such as turning water into wine and walking on water. About a week before his death, Jesus returned triumphantly to Jerusalem, a day that is still celebrated by Christians all over the world as Palm Sunday. However, just as soon as Jesus gained popularity, everything suddenly changed.
The Temple of Freedom Under God, Church of God, is one of the oldest religious organizations located in the District of Colombia, whose congregation is currently being led under the supervision of Elder Walter D. Roman, Sr. Like many of the Pentecostal churches in this day and age, the Temple of Freedom Under God’s practices and beliefs coincide with the traditional practices of the earlier Pentecostal African American churches, holding tightly onto the doctrines that were instilled in The Gospel Spreading Church during the 1900s.
"The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles." Letter. Salt Lake City: Intellectual Reserve, 2000. Lds.org. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 1 Jan. 2000. Web. 15 Feb. 2012.
The Charismatic debate on whether the gifts of the Spirit have ceased or continue to be used in modern times divides the Christian church. There have been some extremes on both sides of the fence. One view believes that, if a person speaks tongues, the person is under some demonic control and the other says that, if a person does not speaks tongues as evidence of receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit, he or she is not saved. Both views use Scripture to defend their positions. The Scripture was not written to divide, but to bring us closer to God. The Apostle Paul states, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16, NIV). He also reminds Christians that, if “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind” (Romans 14:5). Two views dominate the debate, on one side you have the Cessationists who believes the charismatic gift were intended to cease after the New Testament was completed and on the other side, you have the Continuationsts who believes the Charismatic gift were intended to continue throughout the church. Consider some of the central questions that will be answered in this paper. Are the gifts for today or have they ceased? What is the purpose of the sign gifts, and if they are being practiced today, are they being practiced in a biblical manner?
Pentecostalism is considered one of the greatest universal movement that transformed immensely the history of Christianity. It emphasized a personal interaction with God facilitated by baptism of the individual by Holy Spirit (Alexander, 43). One of the proponents of Pentecostalism is William Seymour. He is regarded as the initiator of Pentecostal movement because of his fundamental teachings on the role of Holy Spirit in a Christian’s life (Heaton 35). Therefore, this research paper aims to describe the contributions of William Seymour to evolution of Pentecostalism. The guiding thesis is that Seymour orchestrated the Pentecostal movement that swept the nation all over the world, which later contributed to the creation of new religious denominations that shared common beliefs, practices, and customs.
Pentecost was a one-time event. We don’t need to repeat Pentecost as the NT church today in fact we can’t. As the church we should partner with the Holy Spirit to continue the work he has started. When we do this we allow the Holy Spirit to do his will in our lives.
From a spiritual view, this is when the spirit was bought into existence and enlivened the church and the people. The day of Pentecost is referred to as the church’s birthday.
Biblical witness centers on the Spirits activity of “binding believers to Christ, incorporation them into the church as the body of Christ and equipping the church for mission.” Despite the best effort of the Church to be the hands and feet of Christ it is reassuring to know that the Spirit is still present and working in the hearts of people outside of the church’s work. Without the work of the Spirit in the hearts of believers and throughout the word, humanity would not know the love of God. The Holy Spirit gives liberates and brings new life it unites, encourages and brings hope to a world pledged by darkness.
Jesus had 12 disciples, disciple means follower or pupil, even long after the death of Jesus these disciples would continue teaching about Jesus. The first four books of the bible were written by the Disciple these books are called apostles they are as follows Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Jesus became famous, because he appealed to the rich and poor alike, he had few or no possessions and he traveled all over what was then considered to be the world. Jesus attracted attention from both Jewish and Roman leaders.
Pentecost, J Dwight. Things to Come: A Study in Biblical Eschatology. Grand Rapids, MI: Academie Books, 1964.
After the civil war, protestant churches began to ignore the significance of emotional expression in worship. According to historian Thomas Nicole, American churches transformed into ‘dignified, rational, middle class congregations’ which limited emotional expression. In contrast, various fringe groups fought the cold formalism that had developed in American Christianity as they believed that the power of the Holy Spirit would soon move in charismatic power as prophesied in Joel 2:28-32. By 1906, great anticipation had built up in such groups located in Los Angeles as Menzies explains that several congregations held prayer meetings which cried for ‘a Pentecost’ in Los Angeles’. It appears that ministers began to represent Los Angeles as the centre, out of which a charismatic outpouring would inevitably occur. Frank Bartleman for example reported that the people of Los Angeles would soon find themselves ‘in the throes of a mighty...
The Book of Acts was written to provide a history of the early church. Acts emphasis the importance of the day of Pentecost and being empowered to be effective witnesses for Jesus Christ. Acts sheds light on the ministry gift of the Holy Spirit, which empowers, guides, teaches, and serves as our Counselor. When reading the Book of Acts many of the readers will be enlightened and encouraged by the many miracles that were being performed during this time by the disciples Peter, John, and Paul. The Book of Acts emphasizes the importance of obedience to God’s Word and the transformation that occurs as a result of knowing Christ. There are also many references to those that rejected the truth that the disciples preached about in Jesus Christ. Power, greed, and many other vices of the devil or evidenced in the book of Acts. Acts 1:8 serves as a good summary of the Book of Acts. Acts records the apostles being Christ's witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the rest of the surrounding world.
There, Christ gave specific instructions to his disciples as to how to eat and drink in the futures as a remembrance to him. This was the first celebration of the Eucharist. "The Last Supper" precisely illustrates the seconds after Christ informs everyone that one disciple would betray him before sunrise. The twelve disciples all responded to this information with different levels of horror, anger and shock.
First major theme of the book of Acts is the work of the Holy Spirit in the apostles and the early church. Jesus appeared to his disciples and commanded them not to leave Jerusalem but wait for the gift, the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:3b-5) As they gathered together and prayed in one place, the Holy Spirit came to rest on each of them (2:1-3). The disciples who were filled with the Holy Spirit boldly proclaimed God’s word and performed miracles (2:14-42, 3:1-10). Throughout the book, the author focuses on how the Holy Spirt ministers the apostles and the believers in their lives and the community.
... Mark and Matthew say in eight verses, Luke needs 11 verses. The two men questioning the women's faith and then the disciples not believing the women emphasizes that Luke's version challenges believers to put their faith into practice more fully.