Pentecost Day  - Its Significance, Powers & Blessings for the 21st Century Christian and Christian Church, Rev Dr Koku Foli Adomdza HRH, Chancellor, President & Senir Fellow, Corpus Jehovah Fellowship

Post date: May 26, 2015 5:54:9 PM

Corpus Jehovah Fellowship – Pentecost Power

The number ten (days between the Christ Ascension and Pentecost Days) represents completeness in the Bible. God gave Moses Ten Commandments. Abraham faced ten trials in the completeness of his faith. Tithing is the giving of ten percent of your money, talents, and time. Pentecost signalled the completeness of the first journey of Christ.

Pentecost was the Manifestation of the Announced Gifting of the Holy Spirit. The arrival was celebrated by the Gathered Christians who celebrated by/with the demonstration of their acquired and outpoured Spiritual Gifts. On display were:

The Apostle Peter, the disciple chosen to be deliverer of the GOSPEL to the Jews upon arriving on the Scene of Bewilderment caused by ignorance to the Supernatural Manifestations of The Holy Spirit, announced to onlookers that “these” men (speaking in tongues) were not drunk after which he preached his first sermon.

Pentecost should also be a reminder to all Christians of the importance of celebrating Christ as Faithful to His Promises not the least Promise to Return and of course the Journey of Divine Relationship Building with The Holy Trinity through the Medium of the Indwelling God The Holy Spirit.

Exuding exceptional uniqueness, the Sacred Book of Acts Chapter 10 of the New Testament, stands out towering in elucidating the Significance of Pentecost Day, as well as exemplifying the Meaning of The Pentecost Season. In effect, Pentecost Day is the precursor to, announcer of and ushering in of the Great Holy Pentecost Season of Relationship Building with The Holy Trinity – God The Father, God The Son and God The Holy Spirit through the replacement on Earth of The Lord Christ Jesus with the Comforter God The Holy Spirit.

Whilst Pentecost Day depicts a Feast of 24 hours, Pentecost Season unravels over an average of 6 Months. Acts 10 commences by introducing the reader to a splendid citizen of Caesarea, a Roman centurion whose name was Cornelius. Though a Gentile, Cornelius had been attracted to the concept of Spiritual Israel’s i.e. Global Christians’ One God. As such, he was devoutly Spiritual and a Splendid Embodiment of High Moral Standards. He was, in fact, held in high regard by the Jews, a rather unusual circumstance in that era of religious bigotry.

Cornelius’ Angelic Encounter:

As this General Cornelius was observing one of his regular hours of prayer, an angel appeared to him, instructing the centurion to send for Peter, the apostle of Christ, who was at Joppa some thirty miles to the south. No Gentile, of course, had entered the Christian Construct at this point, insofar as the record is explicit. It was thus necessary for God to prepare his Jewish apostle for this experience.

Peters’ Vision:

According to the Narrative, as the messengers dispatched by Cornelius made their way toward Joppa, Peter experienced a vision. It involved a sheet let down from heaven containing various creatures, classified by Old Testament law as “unclean,” which the apostle was commanded to eat. Peter initially resisted, but finally, as the messengers arrived at the residence he was visiting, the apostle was persuaded by the Lord that this supernatural scene represented the “cleansing” of the Gentiles, i.e., their right to share in the blessings of the gospel.

Peter invited the Gentile servants to lodge with him overnight (a remarkable example of insight and courage), and the next day, accompanied by six Jewish companions, the obedient apostle made his way to Caesarea. There he found a willing company waiting—Cornelius and his family and near friends. The facts of the gospel were proclaimed to these eager Gentiles. They believed the message and Peter commanded them to be immersed (10:48).

Significantly, in conjunction with this momentous event, there was an outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon that Gentile Fellowship; as evidence of it, they were empowered to speak in foreign languages and they magnified God. Actually, the Lord was providing divine documentation that this acceptation of the Gentiles had the validation of Heaven. This proof would surely be needed in the face of Jewish prejudice.

When the report of the Gentile conversions reached Jerusalem, Peter, taking his half-dozen Hebrew witnesses with him, journeyed to that city to deal with the unrest generated over the matter. Certain Jews “contended with him” (11:2), accusing the apostle of violating decorum by fraternizing with these undesirable people. Peter needed to make a defence of his actions. He thus rehearsed the details of his encounter at Caesarea. He affirmed that the entire episode was God’s working. His convincing, compelling, clinching argument was this: as he had begun his preaching to the Gentiles, the Holy Spirit “fell on them, even as on us at the beginning” (11:15). 

The Divine Imperative of Holy Spirit Baptism

There is an important inference that must be drawn from this apostolic incident. For readers looking simply for a finished ecclesiology the events of the day of Pentecost simply kick off the institution of the church in dramatic fashion. They are proof that the church is something special—a Spirit-filled community, a new covenant people, a temple of the Holy Spirit, a body in which gifted people cooperate, and so on. All of that is good and true and no doubt worthy to be preached, but it misses the whole point of the story. The outpouring of the Spirit on a small number of Jews meeting in an upper room in Jerusalem a few weeks after the death of Jesus has very little to do with ecclesiology and everything to do with eschatology.

In the first place, we should make note of the continuity with the argument about the Spirit in the Gospels. The disciples are told that whereas John baptised with water, they will be baptised with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5). I suggested earlier that when John told his audience that Jesus would baptize “with the Holy Spirit and fire”, he meant that Jesus would bring upon Israel an eschatological crisis that would entail both the destruction of the wicked and the refining and restoration of the penitent. Those connotations remain active.

Jesus’ own baptism with the Spirit identified him as the servant in whom YHWH delights, in whom God put his Spirit—the embodiment of restored Israel, who would bring judgment or justice to the nations, in whom the Gentiles would come to hope. The relevance of Isaiah 42:1-4 for understanding the narrative-historical significance of the Spirit in the synoptic Gospels is underlined by its quotation in Matthew 12:18-21.

Because Isaiah’s servant very easily assumes corporate dimensions, it is a simple interpretive step to suppose that the baptism of Jesus’ disciples with the Holy Spirit would incorporate them into his prophetic and messianic mission. They would be anointed and empowered to share in his vocation as the one through whom God would “save” and transform his people. They simply picked up where he left off. It has often been observed that Pentecost mirrors the baptism of Jesus in Luke’s first volume.

This is what Pentecost was all about. It marked the beginning of the church as a charismatic body, but in a specific sense: through the power of the Spirit—evidenced especially as worship, prophecy and glossolalia—the Jewish believing communities, and later the Jewish-Gentile believing communities, became agents of eschatological transformation. There may have been connotations of covenant renewal and celebration of the giving of the Law attached to the event (cf. 2 Chron. 15:10-12; Jub. 6:17-21; 1QS 1.16-2.18), but these aspects are not highlighted by Luke. His focus is elsewhere.

The decisive interpretive framework is given in Peter’s quotation of Joel 2:28-32. In the build-up to a “great and awesome day of the Lord”, the Spirit of prophecy will be poured out on many in Israel. What they will foresee is a day of judgment against Jerusalem, the terrible significance of which is indicated by the symbolic language of heavenly disorder and collapse. In this time of great danger some will escape and survive destruction by calling on the name of the Lord.

Peter relocates this account in the “last days” (Acts 2:17), but he is essentially narrating the same story: the Spirit of prophecy has been poured out on many in Israel, who now foresee what John the Baptist and Jesus foresaw before them—that Jerusalem faced war and destruction, and that only those who called on the name of the Lord at this time would be saved.

Many of the Jews are persuaded by this argument and ask what they should do. They are to “repent and be baptized” for the forgiveness of the sins that had brought judgment on the nation. They will receive the Holy Spirit; and they will be saved from the destruction that is coming upon this “crooked generation” of unrighteous Israel. As Peter will later say to the Council, there is “no other name under heaven given among men” by which first century Jews might be saved (Acts 4:12).

If we have to ask, finally, what Pentecost now means for us, I would say that we continue to exist as prophetic communities, called to be agents of eschatological transformation in some sense of other, in some context or other. Our eschatological horizon is not the same, but if we are to be authentically “Pentecostals”, I think we have to recover something of the corporate prophetic dynamic that was so powerfully unleashed in Jerusalem prior to the great and awesome day of God’s judgment on his people.

Of particular interest, though, in this context is the signification and indexing of the expression “the beginning” (11:15). It certainly does not refer to the beginning of Creation of the Universe by The Abba Father – or the origin of the human family. Rather, it denotes the Commencement of Christianity – where The Lord Christ Jesus fulfilled His Promise of sending us a Comforter, God The Holy Spirit, The Indweller God which is Greatest than anything in the World and with which Believing Christian Saints are More Than ConQuerors. It is a reference to the events of the day of Pentecost – The Great Empowered Outpouring of The Holy Spirit. There is scarcely a New Testament scholar who does not acknowledge this fact (see Hackett, Robertson, Bruce, Kistemaker, etc.). The fact is, the day of Pentecost was the beginning of a number of very significant events associated with the Christian Faith. 

Human existence may be divided into three major eras of religious history. First, there was the Patriarchal dispensation, a universal period of “father rule,” from the time of Eden to the giving of the Law of Moses. At Sinai, the Israelite people were separated from the balance of humanity, and for fifteen centuries they lived under the Mosaic regime. The Mosaic system was never intended primarily for Gentiles.

Finally, at Pentecost, the Christian age began. This is the final era of earth’s history, and it spans the period from Pentecost to the second coming of Christ. For this reason it is known as “the last days.” It was foretold by the prophets (cf. Isaiah 2:2-4; Joel 2:28-30) and identified with the day of Pentecost by the inspired apostle (Acts 2:16, 17; cf. Hebrews 1:1). This truth clearly militates against the notion that there is yet to be an earthly reign of Christ consisting of a thousand years.

Prior to the day of Pentecost, the remission of sins was technically available only on a “promissory” basis, i.e., through the animal sacrificial system of the Old Testament regime. Forgiveness of sin was granted upon the ground of shed blood (Hebrews 9:22). The problem was, those systems prior to the death of Christ had only animal blood, which had no permanent efficacious power (Hebrews 10:1-4). Even the remission of sins connected with John’s baptism (Mark 1:4) was dependent upon the sacrifice of the Lamb of God (John 1:29).

The death of Jesus was required for ultimate forgiveness of all sinners, both before and since the Savior’s atoning mission (cf. Galatians 4:4; Hebrews 9:15-17), though, of course, the citizens of ancient societies, from a practical vantage point, enjoyed pardon as they yielded to the divine requirements of the systems to which they were amenable. In view of this, shortly before his ascension into heaven, the Lord proclaimed: “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer, and rise again from the dead the third day; and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name unto all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem” (Luke 24:46, 47). This began to unfold on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:38f).

Pentecost was the beginning of the Proclamation of the GOSPEL in the fullest sense of that term.

The word “gospel” translates a Greek term literally meaning “good tidings.” A verbal form of the word is translated in that fashion in Luke 2:10, where an angel declared to those Judean shepherds, “Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy.” There is a sense in which those good tidings had been proclaimed for centuries. At the beginning, God had announced that eventually the woman’s seed would crush Satan’s head (Genesis 3:15). Scholars refer to this as the protevangelium, the “first gospel.” It was the good news of Christ’s final victory over the enemy, and so has been called the gospel “in promise.” Later, Jehovah declared to Abraham that through his seed all families of the earth (the Gentiles) would be blessed (Genesis 22:18). In a sense, this was a prophetic gospel proclamation to the patriarch, as Paul indeed affirmed in Galatians 3:8. John the baptizer, as the harbinger of Christ, preached the gospel in a preparatory fashion (see Mark 1:1-4). It was not until the day of Pentecost, however, that the full facts of the gospel, namely the good news regarding the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord, were announced (see 1 Corinthians 15:1-4). Pentecost was, therefore, the beginning of gospel proclamation in the fullest sense of that term. 

It has been common across the years for denominationalists to allege that the church existed in actuality throughout the centuries of Old Testament history. Some would argue for its origin in Eden; others suggest the church was set up in the time of John the baptizer, or perhaps during the personal ministry of Jesus. None of these views is correct.

It has been refreshing to observe these theories increasingly have been repudiated by some sectarian scholars. For example, theologian H. C. Thiessen declared that the book of Acts “recounts the founding of the Church on the Day of Pentecost” (1955, 187). The fact is, approximately six months before his death, the Lord spoke of building his church as a future event (Matthew 16:18). The church did not become an established reality until Acts 2. Pentecost is thus the beginning of the church, the commencement of Christianity. 

The prophet Jeremiah foretold of a coming day when Jehovah would make a “new covenant” with Spiritual Israel and Judah i.e. All Spiritual Children of GOD, which, in many respects, would stand in marked contrast to the Mosaic code (see Jeremiah 31:31-34). Isaiah, in speaking of the same system, declared that it would be a law for all nations (2:2-4). When did this new law become operative? It could not have been functional before the death of Christ, for a testament avails only after the death of its testator (Hebrews 9:15-17). Moreover, it is clear that the old covenant was not a legal obligation after the event of Calvary, for, figuratively speaking, that system was “nailed to the cross” (Colossians 2:14), abrogated by the death of Jesus’ body (Ephesians 2:14-16). All of the relevant biblical data lead only to the conclusion that the new covenant, ratified by the Lord’s blood (cf. Matthew 26:28), became operative on the day of Pentecost as that new law went forth from Jerusalem (cf. Isaiah 2:3).

There are numerous religionists (e.g., our sabbatarian friends) who desperately need to learn that we are not under the Mosaic regime today, and that attempted allegiance to two systems places one in a position of being in spiritual adultery (see Romans 7:1-4). Pentecost marks the beginning of human obligation to the new covenant.

Pentecost was the beginning of a New, Spiritual Order of Worship.

In the ninth chapter of Hebrews, the inspired writer has a discussion of the Mosaic tabernacle system and the various components that characterized it. These things, says he, serve as “a figure” for the “time present” (v. 9). The author goes on to describe the Old Testament economy as one of “carnal ordinances” which were imposed “until a time of reformation,” that is, until superseded by the Christian system. The term “carnal” is interesting. It derives from a Greek term meaning “flesh.” It represents a lower element of service than that which animates the nature of Christianity.

Under the new regime, animal sacrifices are no longer offered; they have been replaced by the offering of the Lamb of God (John 1:29) and the spiritual sacrifice of the Christian’s body (Romans 12:1). We do not burn incense, for our prayers go up as incense before the creator (Revelation 5:8). We have no fleshly priesthood, as such was the case under the law; rather, all children of God are priests (1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6). We do not pluck the harp (or use other instruments) as an act of worship to Jehovah; we “pluck” the strings of our hearts when we sing songs of praise in worship (Ephesians 5:19). Why would anyone want to abandon the spiritual emphasis of the new covenant arrangement and clamor for the carnality of the Mosaic law?

God’s original plan for marriage, as evidenced by the home’s initial design at the beginning, was a lifelong, monogamous relationship between a man and a woman. As humanity drifted from Jehovah’s perfect domestic pattern, such digressions as polygamy and capricious divorce became common. Due to the hardness of heart that was a part of the fabric of the antique world, God permitted a relaxation of the divine marital standard during that era (Matthew 19:8; cf. Acts 14:16; 17:30). Jesus Christ declared, however, that with the implementation of his reign, marriage would be restored to its original status. The day of Pentecost initiated a new era of marital responsibility

In light of the points emphasized above and perhaps other considerations, the expression “at the beginning” (Acts 11:15) takes on a very enlightening significance. The day of Pentecost was one of the most important days in world history. It is ushers in the longest Seasons of the Christian Annual Calendar i.e. an average 6 months with Emphasis on Divine Relationship Building with The Holy Trinity. It signals a Season of Miracles, Signs, Wonders and Great Works proving that Jehovah GOD is the Lord of ALL Flesh, there is nothing too difficult for HIM.

Conclusion

Significance of Meaning – The word Pentecost is from the Greek word “pentekostos” and it’s literally a translation of the word “fifty” or “fiftieth” day.  It was significant to ancient Israel for it was the “Feast of First Fruits” called Shavuot.  It was a day of celebration for the early harvest that enabled Israel to have sustenance until the greater fall harvest.  Originally a harvest festival, it became a  traditional Jewish celebration of the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai.  Some churches today still celebrate this day as holy in the Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Roman Catholic, and even some Lutheran churches.  Pentecost comes fifty days after the Passover.  In the New Testament, Pentecost has significant meaning.

Significance for the Era of The Empowered Anointed Christian Church i.e. Gathering of the Brethren – Before Jesus’ Ascension, He told the disciples to wait (or tarry) in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit would come.   Jesus commanded the disciples to “not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4-5).  The church could not even exist without the Holy Spirit and so on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was given to the church and the church was begun.

“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues [or literally, languages] as the Spirit enabled them.” Acts 2:1-4.

On Pentecost the Spirit came as fire. When Jesus was baptized He came like a dove. So Pentecost was the day when the Holy Spirit was given and thus, Jesus’ church was founded.

Significance of Pentecost to the Christian Church – Pentecost had significant meaning to the church then as it still does today.  It symbolized the birth or beginning of the church.  It identified those who were saved as a type of “first fruits” of God’s harvest of those who became or would later become members of the Body of Christ, the church.  It was the day that the Holy Spirit was made available to humanity in general so that they could be drawn by the Father and see their need for a Savior (John 6:44).  The Holy Spirit empowered believers to overcome and to have power to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world.  This day also revealed that the Body of Christ was not about nationality or religion but about a relationship with Jesus Christ.  Jews, Gentiles…all people are to be part of God’s church without respect to their human identity or gender.  God is no respecter of persons and so God revealed Himself not just to the Jews but to the whole world and as Paul said, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).

Pentecost can be seen as the birthday of the Church of Jesus Christ – One Church under One Jehovah GOD, through His Son The lord Christ Jesus.  The church was born out of the will of the Father, made possible by the purchase of the members by Jesus’ shed blood, and then, on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came to enable those who would trust in Christ to see their need for repentance and faith in Christ.  Peter on that great day said, “Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know.  This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.  But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him” (Acts 2:22-24), and continued by saying, “God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear” (Acts 2:32-33) and so you must “repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call” (Acts 2:38-39).

This message by the Apostle Peter is still relevant today – You must repent of our sins and past life, confess our sins to God, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you too will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and be saved.  This promise is for you if you have not yet put your trust in Christ.  One way or the other, the penalty of your sins will be paid.  It can either be you paying for them for all eternity or by the Lamb of God because “God made him who had no sin to be sin [or literally, “a sin offering”] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).  On that Pentecost day, “those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day” (Acts 2:41) and “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47).

Please understand that ALL the Priceless GIFTS of The Supreme Jehovah GOD, Creator of the Universe are Precious and Free. Christians spend the best part of the lives chasing after costly, overpriced man-made stuff, prioritizing them over the Priceless Gifts of The Abba Father. Man-made stuff will not make you Identify your Divine Assignment, Purpose for Being, the reason for which you were created free of charge, but acquisition of the Priceless Gifts of The Abba Father which as the Holy Spirit and Benefits of the Holy Pentecost Day and Season are capable of.

My fervent prayer is that you Embrace the Free, but Priceless Gifts of The Holy Spirit and avail yourself of the Blessings of the Longest Season on the Christian Calendar and begin the journey iof building a Strong Divine Relationship with God The Father, God The son and God The Holy Spirit – through whom Total Triumph in All Aspects and Strands of Life are possible.

To your Pentecost Season Triumphs, Miracles, Signs and Wonders.

In The Most Exalted Name, Authority & Power of The Lord Christ Jesus. Amen.

Rev Dr Koku Foli Adomdza HRH

Chancellor, President & Senior Fellow

Corpus Jehovah Fellowship

Supreme Jehovah GOD Ministries & Missionaries 

-Equipping Christendom with Divine Holistic Enlightenment for Total Triumph in Fulfilment of the 5 GREAT Commissions in the 21st Century and Beyond-

Corpus Jehovah Fellowship – Pentecost The Comforter Has Come