Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is from Acts, which was read earlier.
Isn’t it a good thing to be you? I mean, here you are this morning, gathered among other brothers and sisters in the faith, listening to the Word of God and receiving the gifts that He brings in Word and Sacrament. It really must be good to be you. If only it were like that for everyone.
As the day of Pentecost drew near, Jerusalem found itself flooded with an influx of people for the festival. Every pious Jew tried to be in Jerusalem for the feast. Those who could not come to Jerusalem observed it in the synagogues throughout the Roman Empire and beyond. Freewill offerings were brought and there was great celebrating. That Sunday came as it came every year, but God had special events in mind for this Pentecost. What Jesus had promised concerning the Holy Spirit would now take place.
They were all together in the same place at the same time. This probably included the 11 disciples, and possibly others mentioned earlier in Acts, namely the women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers. They were gathered for worship and prayer, as was their normal custom. There, in an instant, the Holy Spirit came and rested upon them in the form of tongues of fire. Here was the fulfillment of John the Baptist’s prediction: “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”
Loudly and clearly, they all spoke in languages other than the language they normally spoke. This was not babbling or incoherent speech; it was perfectly understandable to those who knew the languages. They were now equipped and prepared to begin carrying out the assignment that the Lord had given to His church – to go and to spread the Gospel.
What took place here was truly amazing; in fact, one could call this a miraculous act of God – sending the Holy Spirit upon the people who are gathered on that fateful Pentecost. However, for as amazing an event this was, it was just as easily seen by others and dismissed without a second thought.
As I said earlier, Jerusalem was bursting at the seams with people coming for the festival. This included many people from many nations, each with their own dialect. But now they were able to hear and understand what the apostles were speaking and teaching. The apostles were charged to go into all the world, but on this day, people from all over the world were gathering around them in Jerusalem.
The Holy Spirit had equipped the apostles to proclaim God’s saving work in many languages. The confusion of tongues that resulted at Babel when men tried to glorify themselves by building a great tower was reversed on Pentecost. On the Day of Pentecost, the Spirit moved men to glorify God in languages that were understood by all who heard.
What took place here in Jerusalem was unheard of. It was natural for everyone who heard to inquire about the significance of such an event. But some of them refused to believe either the message or the miracle. They preferred to discredit both by an explanation that slandered the Lord’s spokesmen, accusing them of drunkenness.
Herein lies the problem of that Pentecost – a lack of believing in the work of God. Why believe in a miraculous act when you can discredit it? Why put your faith in the God of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when you can easily dismiss everything as drunken behavior? The problem here was one that has plagued the Church throughout the ages: rationalism. This says that unless I can explain it, then it must not be true. This is how the miracles have been dismissed. This is how accounts such as creation, the crossing of the Red Sea, Jonah and the fish and other accounts have been dismissed. That was precisely what took place here. This was such an odd occurrence that took place, the only way to explain it was by drunkenness. However, Pentecost was not a random, drunken occurrence, but rather, it was the Holy Spirit making Himself known among the people.
As Peter answers the charge of drunkenness, he quotes from the words of Joel as to explain what was happening and why it was happening. The speaking in other languages was the sign that the Holy Spirit was being poured out. The presence of the Holy Spirit was especially evident in the miracle of languages. Not everything else that Joel prophesied was going to happen in detail that day, but the gift of speaking in other tongues was a sign that the entire prophecy would be fulfilled in God’s good time and in His way.
For some who were present, this might have been the first time they heard of the saving work of Jesus Christ. On that day, all hear of “the mighty works of God” in their own tongue. They hear of Jesus Christ, of His life, death, and resurrection; of His giving Himself on the cross for the forgiveness of the people’s sins. The message which the Holy Spirit delivered that day has been and continues to be delivered today: the message of salvation that Christ has come. The message which was proclaimed in every tongue is one which we all understand: “everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The outpouring, which began on Pentecost, continues today wherever the Gospel is preached.
The Holy Spirit draws hearts to faith. For one to call upon the Lord’s name is to call Him to our aid. It is through faith given to us by the Holy Spirit that we recognize that He alone can rescue us from all that assails us. The message of Joel that Peter quotes can be reduced to one simple statement: salvation is available to everyone. That was the message of Pentecost, that Jesus came to save all peoples from their sins. The fact that this message was delivered and heard in all languages is not just a random circumstance – it was intentional, so that all would hear of the saving work of Jesus Christ for them.
With the Holy Spirit’s work, God now stands in immediate relationship with His people. A new world was presented to those devout Jews in Jerusalem and to all who were present, just as a new world is presented to all who have been called by the Holy Spirit in faith. Christians were confessing and continue to confess what they have seen and heard: the clear message that in Jesus Christ do we find forgiveness.
It truly is a good thing to be who you are, to be where you are – a people called by the Holy Spirit, a people called to faith, a people with God’s name placed upon you. What more can we ask for than that? In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.