EP16: It's Pentecost Sunday—What Does That Mean?

Welcome back or to the grace church members podcast, I'm your

host Chris rivers and am excited to be joining you today when you

think of Pentecost, what is the first thing that comes to your

mind? Do you understand?

Its meaning Old Testament beginnings and what happened on

Pentecost? Well, in this episode with Jim

Taylor and Brian Darnell, we talk about the implications of

spirit and dwelling Believers. We have a great conversation

about what members can look forward to about May.

Eight Pentecost services and how we can think about this

important discipleship moment, Okay, let's listen in on this

discussion. Alright, great to see you guys

today. Good to be here.

Well guys, just to catch us up to speed.

Brian reached out to me last week to see if we could do an

impromptu espisode to share with our members to help us prepare

for a special Pentecost teaching that we have planned on May 28

this coming weekend. So we actually had an episode

planned and that we were going to post.

But Brian, you felt. It was important for us to maybe

pause that and do this episode. So Brian why don't you tell us

what you were thinking? Yeah thanks Chris.

For letting me kind of interrupt your plan.

But I just was thinking about Pentecost coming up and this

will be our second year, taking a real swing at Pentecost and

emphasizing it in a new way as a church.

And I was just thinking, personally, I'm a worship

leader, get to lead worship every week.

I think about our services, our content, what we do on the

weekends. And I was like, what would it

look like for us to have a conversation and get a little

bit of the behind the scenes of, why should this be important to

us as a body as a church? And so I asked Jim Taylor to

come and bring His wisdom, bring all of his knowledge and

everything that he does with our teaching team.

And just give us a little context on what is Pentecost.

Anyways, yeah, the word Pentecost means 50th, which is

kind of weird name for a holiday, right?

But that comes from reference to this Feast, that was celebrated

in Israel and this feasts happened. 50 days after Passover

or seven weeks after the Sabbath after the Passover.

So, it was called the Feast of Weeks it was a one-day Harvest

Festival and probably be worth reading, Leviticus 23, 15 and 16

just because it describes it. So it says in Leviticus 23 from

the day. After the Sabbath day, you bring

the bundle of grain to be lifted up.

As a special offering count off seven full weeks, keep counting

until the day after the seventh Sabbath. 50 days later, then

present, an offering of new grain to the Lord.

So yeah, this Festival where they're growing.

Grain. And this is kind of the, the

firstfruits, right? When it starts to produce, then

you celebrate that, right? God is taking care of us.

I mean, you got to, you got to put yourself back into the

mindset of what would it be like to live in an agrarian society?

Where if God doesn't send rain and your crops, don't grow you

starve, right? So this is, this is worth

celebrating and really, that's, that's the origins of Pentecost,

50 days after Passover, we're going to celebrate New grain.

Now that's that context is fascinating is probably not the

text that we're all familiar with.

Probably not those festivals. You know you're not reading

Leviticus all the time. You know I did in college.

No this is why this is helpful so tell us a little bit.

So what happened with the apostles?

Obviously we can read it in Acts but give us a little context.

Yeah so when you read about Pentecost in Acts chapter 2, I

Acts 2 · chapter mention

mean there's there's a few things that have taken place,

right? One of the And I mean takes

takes us a little bit of work to kind of get back to what they

were feeling. But Jesus had come, you know, he

had, he had died, he'd been resurrected and then he ascends

to heaven. So he hangs around for a little

while and then all of a sudden they're looking around and he

has raised up into a cloud and there's a couple Angels there.

It says, hey don't freak out. He's going to come back someday

the same way, you saw him go, but then imagine what it would

be like to be in their world, where Are, you know, you asked

the question? Where does God live, right?

I'm and and the answer is, well, he lived originally in Eden but

then that was lost. And, you know, Adam and Eve were

exiled and then he lived in the Tabernacle, you know, between

the Ark of the Covenant. That's where his visible

presence. Dwelled.

And then Tabernacle kind of gets rolled into the temple.

That Solomon built will then when the temples destroyed and

their exiled to Babylon, then they come back and rebuild it.

But everybody's real sad, you know, and God got a silent.

There's like 400 years of Silence where he's not speaking,

nobody's prophesying Jesus comes on the scene and Jesus is like,

I'm the temple. I mean, we just studied that in

John Chapter 2, not too long ago.

John 2 · chapter mention

And so, then everybody kind of these disciples.

They see him as the Messiah, they rally around him.

He's crucified resurrected and then a sins.

And now, what would you be thinking?

I guess we just pray and wait, you know, he promised that his

Spirit would come but that's what they're doing.

That's what you see happening and the beginning of the book of

Acts as they're just, you got about 120 people who are

gathered together and they're just waiting and praying and

that's kind of the set up for Pentecost, right?

Like God, we don't know where God is, what's he doing?

We're just kind of waiting and so that's that's kind of What

was going on at the time when the spirit actually arrives?

Yeah, that's great. You were talking me through some

of that earlier, and I was trying to put myself in the

shoes of an Old Testament follower without the spirit.

What it would have looked like today Lee attempt to walk in

obedience without that kind of access to the spirit.

Yeah, yeah. And it's just hard to get your

mind around what it would look like.

We're so used to it, such a comfortable thing for us to know

we have a comforter right an advocate with us an access to

him. Yeah.

It's fascinating. So could you maybe like bet.

We see the gospels, the gospels end.

Jesus is gone. And so, then the church is born.

We see work is happening. And then, could you like bring

us up, like, what happened at Pentecost?

Sure. Yeah.

Yeah. Let me, let me start by kind of

going back into the Old Testament, a little time, right?

I think that'll give us a good. A good sense of the significance

of what we see happening on that day.

Yeah, so if you go back, Back, you know, all the way back to

Genesis 15 when God Appears to Abram.

And he makes a covenant with Abram when God Appears to him.

It says that that he appeared like a smoking cauldron or

flaming torch. I that's what passes through

these animals that have been severed.

When God makes this promise to Abraham and God is basically

saying, hey, if I don't keep my Covenant, then maybe what

happened to these animals happened to me and ironically,

it does happen to him. I mean, Jesus killed.

Was killed to keep that promise and but but the appearance of

God that flaming torch you know is an important image because

when you get to Moses you know the Israelites are enslaved.

God raises up Moses and calls him to go deliver the Israelites

from Egypt. And remember how God first

appears to him and a burning bush, like a flaming Bush but it

isn't burned up. It isn't consumed.

And then when God leads the Israelites out of Egypt, when he

leads them through the Wilderness at night, he appears

to them like a pillar of fire. So you have all these images of

fire, burning glowing light and those are carried into the New

Testament, as well. When is worth mentioning at

Mount Sinai, when God gives them the law.

I mean the mountain is shaking smoking and then they're at the

Pinnacle. There's the swirling fire at the

top, that symbolizes God's presence.

So fire is associated with his presence, right?

And even in the New Testament, I mean, John describes Jesus in

Revelation having eyes like a flame, a fire.

There's just there's other places in the scriptures to

Ezekiel 1 and, and all these different spots, but that's

important. Because when you get to

Pentecost what happens is, you have the sound like a rushing

wind and wind breath Spirits, all the same word in Greek.

I so the spirit comes and the 120 disciples are gathered

together praying, and then you see fire the scent, but then It

doesn't just descend says, it's divided.

It's divided. And little little flames of

fire, rest on each of them, right?

And then there's this thing happening with tongues and

people hearing what God has done in their own languages because

you got all these people gathered together for nation

different nations, right? But that image of fire, what

does that symbolize? That symbolizes God's presence.

And so so just contrast that to what an Israelite would have

been used to. Like if you wanted to worship

God, you had to go to where God lift.

That's right. And where did God live?

He lived in Jerusalem, we're in Jerusalem and the temple in the

holy of holies, right? But what happened when Jesus was

crucified is that veil in the temple was torn in two.

And so the most holy place, you know, that was supposed to house

the Ark of the Covenant where God's presence to, well, the

Shekinah Glory between the cherubim like that's ripped

open. So it's symbolizing.

Hey there. Barrier anymore, right?

And eventually that Temple is going to be destroyed in 70 AD

and Jesus you know clearly says I'm the new Temple, ya got God

lives in me, you know, and so there's this transition that's

happening. So when you get to Pentecost now

this visible fiery presence of God.

What's significant is? It's not just in one location.

What happens? It gets divided among all of

these people And so then they're speaking to all the nations,

it's a it's a huge reversal of what has happened in the Old

Testament instead of all the nations having to come to

Jerusalem to get to God. Now what happens, God comes and

he's being dispersed to all the nations and there's direct

access there's no barrier. I mean it is it is an incredibly

significant event and the New Testament you know, will

reiterate this idea over and over that It's not just, we had

this Temple, where God lived, then Jesus became the temple.

Then Jesus ascends, and he sends his spirit.

And what's the new Temple? It's us as Believers like, God

lives inside of me, not just in me individually, but in every

believer, and not, just in every believer individually, but even

in Believers corporately. So Paul picks up on this idea in

1st Corinthians 3, and First Corinthians 6, he says, don't

you know that? You plural are the temple of God

is a very interesting language. Mean, he's speaking plural and

all these context and he's saying, you corporately are the

temple of God and God, dwells in you, it's plural also.

So, you know, there's a sense where God inhabits me not just

as an individual, but when I gather with his people, he

corporately indwells us as a body.

So, all that mean that's very Nificant language.

And those are, those are Big Ideas, right?

And if you were living at this time, you were one of these

people that's revolutionary like, oh my gosh, is that me?

Yeah, it's not just there, and it's not just in this person.

But like, in me on me in me and that's that's a different deal.

We need a minute to just let that sit on a lot of

information, but it's also really helpful context.

So I'm curious just to go back to the beginning.

Jim, so we said this idea of Pentecost means 50.

So, what is what do you think? The significance?

Is that 50 days later the spirit comes on Pentecost?

Yeah, I don't know. Here's what, here's what I

think. So you've got that, you know,

the Feast of Weeks. Was 50 days.

So, I mean, that was, that was set.

It's almost to me, like God hijacks his own feast and adds a

new meaning to it, right? So, if you go back, and you

think, okay? 50 days later, the first heads

of grain are coming in, right? Okay.

God has got his cared for us. It's bearing fruit.

The Harvest is happening. Well, that, that in itself is

worth celebrating, but I think the significance of the spirit

coming on Pentecost. It's Almost to me like that is

the fruit or the Harvest of Jesus work.

So Jesus came lived, a perfect life died in our place so that

when I put my faith in him there's a couple things that

happen right? My sinfulness got imputed to

him. So he was actually judged

crucified was separated from his father from God the father

because of that sin but that's not the only thing that happens.

His righteousness. Gets imputed to me.

So both of those things happen through faith, right?

And if you think about this idea that where does God live, where

does God dwell? Well wherever he lives has to be

a holy place. It can't like, he doesn't just

listen, you know, I mean this is the significance of reading the

Old Testament, you know, when he talks an exodus he's like, hey

have commands, Moses have my people, build me a sanctuary, a

holy place a tabernacle, so that I can live among them.

And all of these things that have to be crafted and created

or overlaid with gold and their, holy their set apart.

No one goes in there. No one goes in the holy of

holies except the high priest, once a year to make atonement

for his own sin and for the unintentional sins of the

people, it's a very holy place like you just walk in, you don't

want back out right? I mean, you got a story of the

guy reaching out to touch the Ark of the Covenant to try to

keep it steady and just Falls over dead.

So wherever God, Dwells like that's a holy space, Sacred

Space. I he doesn't live in an unclean

space. So how in the world can God

inhabit? A sinful person.

How can that happen? Well, that only happens through

the work of Jesus. And so if Jesus Takes your

uncleanness, he takes your unrighteousness and he imputes

his righteousness to you through faith.

Well then there can be a harvest right there can be a result,

there can be a fruit of his labor.

I mean that's work. So so now on this Festival of

harvest, you know, where you're celebrating man.

Look at what God has done. He's taking care of us and now

there's This bounty. There's this you know, this

heart. Well it's almost like you have

the Harvest of Jesus work coming to fruition by the spirit coming

and living inside of Believers. You know?

Now, I don't, if there's not a verse that says that right, but

I just think that, that is a very ironic thing that that

happens, that that happens to line up.

It's very, very interesting. And just seems like listen to

you talk the applications for us as Believers to bring it all the

way to Greenville South Carolina.

China May 2023, right? So, the application for me, as a

follower of Jesus, with this idea that now God dwells within

me. Yeah, my sin has been taken by

the death of Jesus, so that idea.

And then the idea of what is, what does that mean for us as a

church body and how we interact and how we fellowship and serve

and love one another and worship.

That's right. And so we're speaking together.

So this just feels right with applications for us.

And so it's where I'd love for us to get to As a body is to

think about, okay? Pentecost is not just another

day on the calendar that comes and goes every year, right?

It's it feels like a very important moment for us to

pause. Reflect, remember on what does

all this mean, you know? So, when I think about for me,

as a Believer, what based on that context of what happened,

what should I be thinking about? What should I be preparing

myself for this weekend? We're is I'm preparing for

worship and bring them. My family, we have a reading

plan that is going to help. Give us some guidance as we're

leading into Sunday. But for me, personally, in my

prayer, life in my walk with God, what should I be thinking

about this week? Yeah, I mean it's worth

celebrating because, you know, just think about what it would

be like to. We don't have any concept of

what it would be like to try to follow God without the Holy

Spirit living inside of us. But I mean that's been the

majority of History, right? I mean, every I mean, if you

just read your Bible Mo, most people in history have had to

try to follow God without his Spirit, indwelling them.

And so, you know, I mean to give an example, when David prays in

Psalm 51, one of the things he says is God, please don't take

your Holy Spirit from me. He's repenting after he's

committed a great sin. Well, that was a very real

possibility that God could have just Drawn from him and he would

have been devoid of the spirit. I mean, that that's a terrible

thought to have right. The fact that God dwells in US

permanently is an amazing idea. That, you know, I do, he's

always with me, he's always available to comfort me.

You know, to point me to truth to reassure me to convict me

when I step out of bounds to produce fruit and me to gift me

to empower me too. Be useful and functional and

powerful, and his kingdom. I mean, it's all those are new

ideas and those are worth celebrating.

And before Pentecost, none of that was really true.

I mean, the spirit could come up on someone and Empower someone

for a specific task or Inspire, someone to write a letter, that

would be, you know, a prophecy That Be Inspired or something

like that. But that, that's a new idea.

And so, I actually, as I was thinking This, I just did a

quick search for Spirit in the New Testament and I put down a

few verses that I thought were significant for us.

So I'll just run through these if that's okay.

That's great. So, John 6:63 spirit gives life,

John 6:63

you know, the holy spirit is a person.

He's a member of the godhead of the Trinity.

He creates life, he regenerates people, he creates life in them.

That, that continues to spring up.

Like Jesus talked about, Out leading to eternal life.

John 14:26, the spirit teaches us, and reminds us of what Jesus

John 14:26

taught, John 16:8, the spirit convicts, the world of sin of

John 16:8

righteousness, and a coming judgment John. 16:13 the Spirit

John 16:13

guides us to the truth Acts 1:8 the spirit empowers us to

Acts 1:8

witness about Jesus, carry out his mission.

Romans 8, the spirit removes, our slavery, to the law gives

us, life gives us freedom and the ability to 0 Obey.

God Romans 15:13, the spirit gives us hope so that we don't

Romans 15:13

have to live in despair. First Corinthians 2:12.

1 Corinthians 2:12

The spirit allows us to understand the things of God,

which is a very interesting verse.

First Corinthians 6:11, the spirit.

1 Corinthians 6:11

Washes us sanctifies us. That means he makes us holy and

he justifies us before God. First Corinthians, 6:17, this

Spirit joins with our spirit, which is a very interesting

idea. First Corinthians, 12 and

several other places in New Testament, the spirit gives

gifts, or supernatural abilities for the common good and for the

edification of the Church, Second Corinthians 5:5 the

2 Corinthians 5:5

spirit is the guarantee that we belong to God.

Second Corinthians 13:14, the spirit puts us in fellowship

2 Corinthians 13:14

with God, Galatians 5, the spirit produces good things or

good fruit in our lives and it stands in opposition to evil

Ephesians. 4:4 the spirit creates Unity among Believers.

Ephesians 4:4

Philippians 3, & John, Ford the spirit enables us to truly

worship God and second, Timothy 1:7.

The spirit grants us power, love and self-control Roll.

And then this is the last one, I'll mention.

But first, John 4:13, the spirit is what assures us that we abide

John 4:13

in God and that God lives inside of us.

So, I mean, that's, that's pretty significant list, and

that's not all the references. That's just a handful, and all

that is new at Pentecost. Yeah.

So it's pretty clear that the role of the spirit plays a huge

role in our life, and our devotion to God and our devotion

to others. Can you maybe help land the

plane and this weekend coming up and just help us, like, how can

we prepare for this weekend? Yeah, sure.

Last, last thought I'll offer is, you know, based out of 1st

Corinthians 3 First, Corinthians 6, where Paul says you you all,

you know, in the South this is where y'all is actually helpful

pronoun, right? The don't, you know, y'all all

of you are the are the, you know, and dwelt by the spirit.

You are God's Temple corporately.

So there is this idea that God lives in the corporate body and

maybe a different or distinct way than he lives inside the

individual. So what implications does that

have for me? Well that means it's very

important that I gather together with other believers.

Because if God inhabits a corporate group of people

differently than an individual, well that's why you have versus

like in Hebrews 10 that says, hey be careful.

Don't don't forsake the assembling of yourselves

together that God may speak in a certain way he may he may move

in a certain way. He may do things among this body

of people that I if I don't gather if I'm not part of that

or if I neglect that If it's not important to me, I'm going to

miss out on something, right? That's that's that's a big deal.

That's an important piece. So I think you know, for us is,

I mean, there's lots of different applications for this

but that means, like coming to church on the weekends

important, it means being in biblical Community is important.

Like if I want to hear certain things from God, if I want to

experience certain aspects of who God is and what he's doing,

I've got a, I've got to be a part of all that, right?

I mean even Jesus said, Ed, you know where two or three are

gathered in my name, I am there among you.

So you know, I think we've become a little bit dismissive

of that in our culture. We think that well I can just

listen to the podcast or I can just watch later or I you know,

I'll just do the Bible study by myself.

Would that your shortchanging yourself right?

In the scripture speak against that.

And so, as Believers, you know, if the spirit indwells and us

there ought to be a yearning for us to gather together to

experience, God in a way that I just am not going to experience

him and isolation, it's good. There should be an anticipation.

Yeah, yeah. And you have a contribution to

bring right? I mean it's it's like you bring

a bunch of little lights together and the room gets a lot

brighter. Yeah.

So I mean that's not just I'm coming to receive but I'm I'm

coming to be a part of something.

I'm coming to join this corporate activity where God is

somehow more present. I don't know if more present but

it's Going to do, maybe something unique or different

than I can experience, if I'm not a part of that Gathering and

that's worth celebrating. I mean, all those realities and

truths of the scripture of what the spirit does, in me for me,

through me, you know, and that's worth rejoicing over and just

being like, this is a big deal. Yeah, it's a big deal.

It helps me thinking about this weekend because I think some

direction around. How should I be walking in on

Sunday morning? I should have Spiritus A

celebratory Spirit. That's ready to Rejoice

acknowledging, who the spirit is, and what he's done, being

reflective upon that. But really, we celebrate.

This is we get to party because of what the spirit done and what

he's given us and get do this for one another, what a powerful

thing that God has given us. Amen.

Let's not take it lightly. I agree for sure.

Well thank you guys very much for sharing.

Thank you for all these passages to reflect on this has been

great. Thanks Chris.

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