The Perfect Storm

Pentecost – Acts 2:1-13

Have you ever wondered how a small group of uneducated people, in an insignificant part of the world, turned the world upside down?

(Pause)

There is no doubt that Jesus was an attractive and charismatic figure. Thousands of people travelled to hear him. He was eloquent, controversial, compassionate, unpredictable, dynamic …a natural leader.

He was causing quite a stir, and the religious and political leaders who felt threatened by Jesus’s popularity were convinced that, if they could kill him, this movement that he had started would soon fade away.

After all, there had been countless examples, both before and since, of charismatic leaders wanting to change the world. And then they’re killed, and nothing comes of it.

But this time it was different. Jesus knew he was going to be killed, and he had put his faith in this small group of men and women, …and they turned the world upside down.

Today, Christianity is the world’s largest religious group. With 2.3 billion believers, which represents about a third of the global population.

But none of this would have happened without the day of Pentecost.

The day of Pentecost really was the day that the church was born.

So Happy Birthday.

Let us pray.

Let’s start with verses 1 and 2 of our reading:

“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.”

Some people have compared it to like being in the middle of a tropical storm.

And I want to use the metaphor of the perfect storm throughout this sermon.

The first know use of the expression in the meteorological sense is found in a news report in Texas in 1936. Several factors were involved in the chain of circumstances which led to flood.

And so, for example,

warm air from a low-pressure system coming from one direction;

a flow of cool air generated by a high-pressure from another direction;

and then tropical moisture provided by a hurricane.

Just one of those conditions on their own might create a storm, but bring them all together at the same time, and you have the perfect storm …often with devastating results.

But in more recent times, the phrase has been used in other contexts (nothing to do with the weather) where separate circumstances have come together with devastating results.

The Day of Pentecost was a perfect storm with twist.

As we will see, God brought together three separate circumstances, which together turned the world upside down. And it was a devastating event for the enemies of Jesus …but the twist is that it was brought about the birth of the worldwide Church.

So, what were the three conditions that God brought together.

Well, the first is mentioned in verse 5:

“Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.”

Christians talk about the Day of Pentecost as if it were a single event. But for God-fearing Jews it was a long-established annual festival.

As you know, Jews worshipped in their local synagogues, but three times a year, devout Jews would travel to Jerusalem to worship at the Temple.

You might remember the story of Jesus and his family traveling to Jerusalem and others Nazareth when he was 12 years old. From Nazareth it was a journey of 90 miles which, on foot, would have taken around 4 days to walk.

Devout Jews would have made that journey three times a year. And, as we shall see, some people travelled much longer distances (but, presumable, not of foot).

A few verses later there is a list of some of the places that they had come from…

There were:

“Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome; Cretans and Arabs.

And they had all come to Jerusalem for the Jewish festival of Pentecost.

Now, the Hebrew name for the festival meant the Festival of Weeks, but the in Greek it was Pentecost because it took place 50 days after the other great feast of Passover.

And both festivals marked important events from the Old Testament.

Passover was a celebration of salvation. When they remembered how God had rescued their ancestors from slavery in Egypt. The Exodus as we now call it.

Pentecost was a celebration of the birth of their nation. When God gave Moses the Old Testament Law and he made covenant with his people.

And can you see how God transforms both of these Old Testament events. First be sending Jesus, and then by sending the Holy Spirit.

First, God sends Jesus who dies at Passover. And so, at the very time when Jews are remembered how God had rescued their ancestors from slavery in Egypt… Jesus dies so that the world can be rescued from the slavery of sin.

And then, 50 days later…

God sends the Holy Spirit. And so, at the very time when the Jews are remembering the birth of their nation… God creates the perfect storm which resulted in the birth of the church.

(Pause)

And in order to create this perfect storm, God brings to Jerusalem “God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.”

Next, God brings to Jerusalem this motley band of disciples.

On their own, they are the most unlikely group of world-changers, but they are not on their own.

For a start, Jesus himself has been preparing them for this day.

Jesus spent three years preparing the disciples for his death and resurrection, but he only had 50 days to prepare them for their vital role in the perfect storm.

Despite his earlier preparation, his death and resurrection had really shaken them up.

They had doubts …at first they couldn’t believe that Jesus had risen from the dead.

They were afraid… hiding behind locked doors

They were filled with guilt …having deserted Jesus in his hour of greatest need.

But over a period of weeks, Jesus meets with them, eats with them, sends them to Galilee, brings them back to Jerusalem, and gradually:

Their doubts are replaced by faith;

Their fear is replaced by hope;

Their guilt is replaced by love.

And armed with faith, hope and love, after 40 days, Jesus leaves them for the final (and perhaps the most difficult) stage of their preparation… They are to wait…

(1 minute pause)

Waiting can be very difficult.

Especially when you don’t know how long you need to wait.

Especially when you’re not sure what exactly you are waiting for.

The last words that Jesus said to his disciples can be found in the previous chapter

Acts 1:4-9

“After his suffering, he [Jesus] presented himself to them [the disciples] and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.

That’s why the church celebrates Ascension Day on the 40 day after Easter.

“On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do 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.”

Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.”

So, they were told to wait in Jerusalem.

And since Pentecost is about 50 days after Passover, it means that the disciples were waiting about 10 days.

I can imagine the disciples looking to Peter during this time, and there being conversations like this:

“What are we going to do, Peter?”

“We are going to wait?”

“How long for?”

“I don’t know, Jesus just said a few days.”

“But we have been waiting eight days. How much longer?”

“I don’t know.”

“And what exactly are we waiting for? What did Jesus mean by the Holy Spirit?”

“I don’t know.”

“So, what shall we do while we are waiting?”

“We just wait.”

Why did Jesus make them wait?

After all, he didn’t have to. If he was preparing them for Pentecost, why would he leave them after 40 days, rather than staying for the full 50.

Imagine a coach preparing his team for the Olympics. He’d be with them right up to the event, keeping them focused, keeping them calm. He wouldn’t leave them 10 days earlier, and tell them to go to the Olympic village and wait.

So, why did Jesus make them wait?

(Pause)

I guess all of us have had times in our lives when we’ve had to wait.

Sometimes, I’ve waited for something very specific.

Sometimes, like the disciples, I’ve been less clear about what I’m waiting for.

Sometimes, I knew exactly how long I’d have to wait.

Sometimes, like the disciples, I didn’t know how long it would take.

But waiting can be very difficult.

So, why does God make us wait?

Well, waiting can be difficult, but it’s also very important.

And that’s because, waiting reminds us that we are helpless.

We like to feel that we are in control of our lives, that we have the gifts and skills and resources to do whatever we want.

But waiting reminds us that we don’t.

Waiting helps us to look to God, rather than ourselves.

To do things in God’s strength rather than our own.

And waiting prompts us to pray.

That was the final preparation that the disciples needed before Pentecost. They needed to feel helpless.

And that’s a lesson that God repeated needs to teach us too.

If you are a follower of Jesus, you can expect there to be long periods of waiting.

So now we have two elements for the perfect storm.

Devout Jews from all over the known world who have come to Jerusalem …and a band of helpless disciples who are waiting in Jerusalem.

But God needs one thing more …Peter.

(Pause)

Now, I know that Peter was one of disciples who was waiting in Jerusalem …but Peter was to play a key role at Pentecost and Jesus needed to prepare him in a special way.

Remember how, three years previously, Jesus had single out “Simon” as he was then called, and gave him a new name. Jesus had said to him, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.”

Well Pentecost was to be the fulfilment of that promise.

The gospels describe Peter as a rather impulsive man, who was full of self-confidence.

At the last supper, Peter had said to Jesus: “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”

But Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”

And, after Peter had denied Jesus three time, he became a broken man.

So, during this time of preparation before Pentecost, Jesus spends time alone with Peter, restoring him and recommissioning him for the important role that he must play.

I think that’s why Jesus told the disciples to go to Galilee.

When Jesus rose from the dead, all the disciples were in Jerusalem, and the events of Pentecost took place in Jerusalem, …but in between Jesus sends the disciples back to Galilee (about 100 miles away).

I think he did that for the sake of Peter. To take him back to where he first called him, by lake Galilee, the perfect place to restore and recommission him.

(Pause)

I suspect that Peter found the waiting in Jerusalem harder than any of the other disciples. But he had learnt his lesson. He would kerb his impulsiveness. He would wait.

So, there we have it. The stage is set.

In is masterful plan, God has brought together people from the know world, he has prepared a group of helpless disciples, and he has prepared Peter.

That’s everyone God needed for the perfect storm in Jerusalem.

Cue the Holy Spirit…

Acts 2: 1-7

“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 as the Spirit enabled them.

Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language?”

Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

And now cue Peter…

Acts 2:14

“Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.”

Peter then preaches the sermon of his life… not in his own strength, but through the power of the Holy Spirit.

And then we read…

Acts 2:37-41

“When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Peter replied, “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.”

With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.”

And that’s how the Church was born.

No doubt some of those three thousand we residents of Jerusalem, but many would have been visitors from neighbouring countries and beyond. And they would have taken the good news of Jesus back home with them.

As Jesus had promised ten days earlier:

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

That’s how God worked on the day of Pentecost.

And God still works that way today.

It’s not usually so dramatic, but in quieter ways, God brings people, and situations together, in his perfect timing.

God might have brought you here this morning, to hear this sermon, or to hear it on the podcast. Because he wants you to repent and to be baptised. (If so, just have a word with me or any of the church leaders after the service).

Or you might already be a follower of Jesus, feeling helpless, praying and waiting for God to do something. And God is saying to you, the time is not quite right, you need to keep waiting.

Waiting can be difficult, frustrating, challenging and testing …but it’s the way that God brings about his perfect plan.