Well, That Was Fast!

Todd Sellers

Central Truth

God is now going to use people to spread the good news of Him from Jerusalem to Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the earth. People will now have complete access to the gospel.

And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested^{1

2:3
Or And tongues as of fire appeared to them, distributed among them, and rested} on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”

Footnotes

[1] 2:3 Or And tongues as of fire appeared to them, distributed among them, and rested

When I read this passage, I was surprised by how quickly God moved. So often in my own life, it seems God moves slower to make changes. Why did God move so quickly after Jesus ascended to send the Holy Spirit among them? To answer that question, let us start by answering these simple questions:

Who? There were Jews gathered from distant nations, and many spoke in different languages and dialects.

What? The remaining apostles and others had just seen Jesus ascend into heaven, at which time they were commanded to be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth (Acts 1:8).

When? This takes place during Pentecost, a significant festival to the Jewish nation.

Where? Devout Jews from all nations, were gathered in Jerusalem for Pentecost.

So why did God move quickly? When Jesus ascended, He commanded them to be witnesses to the end of the earth, and that is a lot of ground and people to cover! I would consider it an overwhelming task in a world where transportation was limited and people did not know languages outside of their own, but God had a plan.

First, He sent the Holy Spirit to bless them with the gift of communication. To spread the gospel to the end of the earth, His followers needed to be able to communicate clearly to those from other nations. The passage says that those who heard them recognized their native language. The Greek text uses the word dialektos, meaning language or dialect. This is like an American speaking perfect British English and the Englishman not telling the difference.

Also, God's timing is not random. All of this occurred during Pentecost when Jews from multiple nations gathered in Jerusalem, one centralized location. Jesus' followers only needed to walk out the door to begin sharing the gospel with people from the end of the earth during this time.

When we wonder why God moves at the speed He does, we can remember His purpose and timing are always perfect. We only need to be obedient and faithful.

1. Are you stuck asking God when He is going to make changes in your life, or are you being faithful and obedient now? How can you remember that He has a perfect plan and that you are a part of it?

2. Do you see how God has gifted you to spread the gospel to others? Are you willing to be used? If you feel that you cannot be used, why do you feel this way?

3. If you were a witness to people speaking in different languages that were new to them, how would you have responded? Would you have been amazed by God working in their lives? Or would you have criticized and thought they were drunk?