The Power of PentecostSample

Sometimes when something monumental happens, it is hard to fully grasp the significance of the event.

For example, Michael Jordan was the third person chosen in the 1984 NBA draft. At the time, many people thought the two teams made a mistake when they chose other players over Jordan, but no one could have anticipated just how significant their decision truly was. Another example we still do not understand its significance is the evacuation of the troops at Dunkirk. We do not know how the results of WWII may have been impacted if this desperate plan had not been successful and had nearly the entire British army been wiped out on the beaches of Dunkirk instead.

In the first example, looking back from a distance gives us the opportunity to realize the significance of decisions. In the second example, we still do not know, but we are able to see the “big picture” more than those involved at the time could have.

In this same way, we can perhaps understand the significance of the Day of Pentecost better than those who experienced it firsthand. In that moment, several things happened which would have stood out as memorable.

• There was a sound like a mighty rushing wind. It does not say there was a big wind that blew, but rather the sound of one. That would have been noticeable.
• There was also a single flame that split into almost 120 different flames of fire. These flames “rested” on everyone in the room. That would have been unforgettable.
• They also began to speak in languages they had no human right to know, and they were speaking accurately, because people from various nations understood what they were saying. That was truly miraculous.

Each was a spectacular phenomenon, but they are not what was the most significant thing that happened on Pentecost. 

On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came to fill the lives of those believers who were gathered in that upper room. The sound and the flame heralded it, and the tongues were a by-product, but the significance of Pentecost was that now, God the Holy Spirit, filled the lives of those who were Believers in Jesus.

That which John the Baptist had prophesied, and what Jesus had told His followers to wait for, and what the Father had promised… had now happened. The followers of Jesus Christ were filled with the Holy Spirit. This was not only the greatest event of Pentecost, it is the true significance of Pentecost. If Pentecost had been a one-time experience, with no broader impact, its significance would have been exclusive to the moment. But the true significance of Pentecost is that from that moment on, all those who are surrendered to Jesus as their Lord, can be filled with the very Spirit of God! Nothing was more significant on that day, and nothing could be more significant today!