MELVIN M. NEWLAND, MINISTER
RIDGE CHAPEL, KANSAS, OK
(REVISED: 2022)
(Powerpoints used with this sermon are available free. Email me at mnewland@sstelco.com and request #134.)
TEXT: Acts 2:1-16
A. We celebrate the birth of Jesus & most of the world pauses to celebrate Christmas with us. We celebrate His resurrection, & much of the world recognizes Easter as a very special day on the calendar.
But today is Pentecost, & hardly anyone, except Jews, realize it. Yet, this day is important to us, because Pentecost is the birthday of the Church, & God has given us the wonderful opportunity of being a part of it.
It is in the 2nd chapter of the Book of Acts that we read about the beginning of the Church. The first chapter tells us of Jesus meeting with the apostles on the Mt. of Olives & telling them that they are to be His witnesses to all the world.
He also tells them that they are to wait in Jerusalem until they receive power from on high. Then He ascends out of their sight.
So they go to Jerusalem to wait & pray. And now I want to read the first 12 verses of chapter 2, & then skip down to vs's 14-16. Please listen as I read those verses.
(Acts 2:1-12) “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 & filled the whole house where they were sitting.
They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated & came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit & 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 them speaking in his own language.
"Utterly amazed, they asked: ‘Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes & Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia,
“Judea & Cappadocia, Pontus & Asia, Phrygia & Pamphylia, Egypt & the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews & converts to Judaism); Cretans & Arabs – we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!’
“Amazed & perplexed, they asked one another, ‘What does this mean?’ Some, however, made fun of them & said, ‘They have had too much wine.’”
B. In the midst of all this excitement, the apostle Peter spoke up & got the crowd’s attention. Then he said to them,
(Acts 2:14-16) “Fellow Jews & all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken of by the prophet Joel…”
And beginning with those words he preached about Jesus. He told them, (Acts 2:22-24) “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.
…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…”
Listen also to Vs’s 36-41, “’Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord & Christ.’ When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart & said to Peter & the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’
“Peter replied, ‘Repent & 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 & your children & for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God will call.’
‘With many other words he warned them; & he pleaded with them, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ Those who accepted his message were baptized, & about 3,000 were added to their number that day.”
ILL. I like the story about 3 prospectors who found a rich vein of gold in California during the gold rush days. They realized what a great discovery they had, & decided, "We have a really good thing going here as long as no one else finds out about it." So they each took a vow to keep it secret.
Then they headed for town to file their claim & get the equipment necessary to mine the gold. True to their vows, they didn't say a word to anybody. They filed their claim, bought the equipment, & headed back to their mine. But when they did, a crowd followed them.
And the reason was because the expression on their faces had given them away. Their faces were aglow in anticipation of the wealth that soon would be theirs. People knew that they must have found something very special. So a crowd followed them out of town.
ILL. A famous motivational speaker was once asked about his most difficult speech. He answered, "Well, it was when I was asked to speak at a national convention of undertakers. My topic was to explain to them how to look sad during a $20,000 funeral." You see, when there is happiness inside, it's hard to keep it from showing.
ILL. Then there is the story that Erma Bombeck told about a little boy at church with his mother. He was a good little boy, quiet & well behaved. He didn't cause any problems. But every once in a while he would turn around, look at the people behind him & smile at them.
His smile was infectious, & soon those behind him were smiling back at him. It was all going fine until his mother realized what the little boy was doing. When she did, she grabbed him by his ear, twisted it a bit, & told him to remember that he was in church.
Then he started sniffling & crying softly, & she said to him, "That's better." It's sad, isn't it, that some have the impression that when we go to church that it is all gloom & doom, & that there is nothing here to bring joy into their lives?
SUM. But Pentecost says that the early Christians discovered joy unspeakable in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Again & again, Paul writes, “Rejoice in the Lord. Rejoice in the Lord always, & again I say, Rejoice!”
PROP. Pentecost was a once in history event, when the Church was born. So let me share with you three things that we learn from "Pentecost."
I. THE CHURCH WAS CREATED BY GOD
First, we see that the Church was created by God.
A. From the beginning of time, before the foundation of the world, God had in His mind the Church. And He promised that even the gates of Hades would not prevail against it.
So Jesus came into the world, & after His death, burial & resurrection, the Church is formed. It begins on the Day of Pentecost.
Sometimes we act as if we think Peter called a meeting of the apostles & said to them, "We’re here today to talk about whether or not to start a Church." They discuss that for a while, & then James makes a motion that they start a Church. John seconds the motion, & they vote to start a Church in Jerusalem.
B. It didn't happen that way! Listen again to what the Word said, "Suddenly, a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from. . ." Where? "from heaven."
God started the Church! God brought the Church into existence & it is His Church, not ours. We are just a part of it. It is essential for us to realize that.
ILL. I don't know if you remember, but about 15 years ago radio stations were running commercials for 2 major Christian denominations. And both sets of commercials were saying almost the same thing. They were advertising for their members to come back to them.
One commercial said that the denomination realized that they had made a mistake. "We drifted away from the foundation upon which the Church was built, & now we're returning. We're turning back to the Bible. Please come back home again." That is basically what the commercials were saying.
That's interesting, because for many churches the temptation has been to look at what the world is doing, & then try to get the Church in step with the world. But that's just as wrong as it can be.
You see, God wants the Church to proclaim the truth, to be unshakable in our presentation of the Gospel, because the Church belongs to God. It is His Church, not ours.
II. OUR MISSION IS TO COMMUNICATE THE LOVE OF GOD
Secondly, we see that the mission of the Church is to communicate the love of God to a lost & dying world.
A. The theme of Pentecost, believe it or not, is communication. It is really a shame that the whole idea of speaking in tongues has become such a controversial issue.
When you read about Pentecost, the truth that comes to the surface is that God gave the gift of tongues to the apostles for one purpose, & that was for the purpose of communication.
They had a problem because people were there from many different nations. And when you read the list of nations, you realize that a language barrier existed.
Because God wanted each of them to hear the message in his own language, He performed a miracle, & gave the apostles the gift of tongues so they could communicate His message to everyone there.
The mission of the Church is to communicate the message. Now if God wants to give us a miracle to do that, praise Him for it. But today, we have translated the Bible into more than 10,000 different languages & dialects, as we're reaching out to win converts all over the world.
B. We must do whatever we can, but the mission has never changed, & the moment you become a Christian - the moment I become a Christian, God commissions us to share His message to all the world.
ILL. Have you ever heard of “Rockin' Rollin” Stewart? Have you ever watched a sporting event, a Super Bowl or Monday night football game, & seen the sign saying "John 3:16"?
Rockin' Rollin Stewart is responsible for that happening. "Rockin'" is a nick name. His name is Rollin Stewart. His story appeared in Peoples Magazine a few years ago, & it is a fascinating story.
Rollin Stewart was an alcoholic. He met Jesus, accepted Him as his Savior, & became a Christian. One day, the idea struck him that if he could just get into major sporting events & put the Word of God before the people, it would be seen by hundreds of thousands, & maybe even millions of people.
So for several years Rockin' Rollin Stewart & his wife, Margaret, & a friend named William James, lived a very simple life. They averaged driving 55,000 miles a year in an old beat up van, telling their story, & using the money they collected to buy tickets for major sporting events to hang out a sheet saying, "John 3:16."
Don't you wonder how many tens of thousands have turned to John 3:16 & read, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son" because of Rockin' Rollin Stewart?
There is more to his story, but I won’t go into that this morning.
B. Now that may not be your thing. But the point is, here is a man who heard God's command to tell the world. You see, when you & I are saved by the blood of Jesus, & added to His family, then God expects us to do the best we can to communicate that message to a lost & dying world. That is the mission of the Church.
III. OUR GOAL IS TO ESTABLISH A UNIQUE FELLOWSHIP
Thirdly, the goal of the Church is to establish a unique fellowship.
A. Can't you see these early Christians after they first hear the good news about Jesus? On the Day of Pentecost there are 3,000 new converts, & they suddenly share something that has never been shared before.
All of them know they are guilty - by their sins they are guilty of crucifying Christ. But now they have repented of their sins. They've been baptized. They've been redeemed, & they've been given the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Suddenly, they are part of a new society. They've come out of a world of slavery & superstition, of selfishness & greed & dishonesty.
Now they're part of a new fellowship where they can share things about themselves with others whom they know will listen & be kind & compassionate toward them.
Suddenly a whole different atmosphere prevailed because here were 3,000 people whom God had forgiven. They were "born again."
No wonder their number quickly grew to 5,000, & then into “multitudes” as the Church grew & grew. More & more people were attracted to them. It was different from anything else in all the world.
B. The Church must always be that. Most institutions are only interested in what they can get, but the Church wants to give. Many will take advantage of you, but the Church is where you can come & hear the truth, be ministered to, & your eternal needs will be met.
We are to be a different people, a different culture. An oasis in the midst of a desert, a shade tree on a summer day, a cup of cool water when you’re thirsty, a place to know that you won't be rejected, that you'll be accepted & loved, brothers & sisters, the family of God.
Pentecost tells us that. The ancient world changed after Pentecost because of the Church's influence on that world. And it ought to be the same today.
CONCL. This morning, if you're lonely, or tired, or feel taken advantage of, then know that within these walls there are people just like you.
So we can come without pretending. We can just be ourselves with all of our warts & blemishes & scrapes & scratches, & find love & acceptance, because that is what the Church is to be, a loving family of God.
INVITATION We invite you to become a part of that family this morning as we extend God’s invitation. Will you come as we stand & sing?
(Note on Rollin Stewart: Sadly, with increasing notoriety, Rollin’s spiritual life deteriorated, and he is now in prison. A possible lesson to us is that God has the capacity to use even the most flawed vessels to accomplish that which is good.)
