Stephen spoke tonight from 1 Tim 2:1-6, which might seem a strange reading for Pentecost, but shows the actions and effects of Pentecost on believers. The Holy Spirit is one of God’s greatest gifts to us. Gifts are freely given and are ‘something for nothing‘, so to speak. Pentecost happened because of Christ and what He did; after He ascended to heaven, we received the gift that keeps on giving. God wants us to receive His Holy Spirit with open arms.
One of the most amazing things about the description of Pentecost in Acts 2 is how the believers spoke in other languages and the impact this had on the crowd in Jerusalem. Effectively, this led to a new sphere of communication, and Paul urges us all to walk with a correct attitude and foster our relationship with our Father God, because our communication with God now covers everyone and every situation. Everybody is included and it pleases God when our prayer life is for everybody. Communication is a key and active part of our lives and Jesus acts as the facilitator of this new union between God and mankind. God wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth, but He entrusts His message of good news to us to pass on.
Our ‘circumference’ is increased as now we are Christ’s ambassadors to everyone – family, friends, neighbours, work colleagues, those in authority, and even kings! Like those early disciples, we may not understand the significance of what we say to others, but God can work through us by His mighty power. The trend today is for us to be ‘carbon neutral’ to save the environment, with zero-emission, ‘greener’ cars being manufactured, but just as the problem with this form of energy is currently connected to how long a battery can last, our lives can often seem limited by our own energy. When we are dependent on the Holy Spirit, however, we are connected to a source of power that never runs out! As we learn to rely on Him more, He can help us to keep on going (better than the Duracell batteries!) and to become so much more than we can be on our own.
