As we continue our review of Pentecost, today we discuss what occurred when the Holy Spirit arrived. First, there was a loud sound. Luke describes it as the sound of a violent wind. Think of it as the roaring sound of a hurricane or tornado. However, he does not say there was actual wind.
Second, there was a light that rested above each person. Luke says it looked like a tongue of fire. He does not say it was actual fire. He then states the Holy Spirit filled them and they spoke in languages they did not know. A very special gift from the Holy Spirit to communicate with the Jewish pilgrims in Jerusalem.
As you read those first two paragraphs, were you surprised? Did anything stand out to you? Perhaps you have been told or seen in movies that there really was a violent wind. Maybe you have told there was fire above their heads. This is just one example of why it is important that we read Scripture for ourselves and we read it carefully.
They all heard the loud sound. They saw the flickering light above each head. This may have meant as many as one-hundred-twenty of them seeing the lights above each other’s heads. The Holy Spirit of God announced his arrival in a “booming voice” and indicated those who believed visibly. He then fills them with himself.
The Holy Spirit then uses each of them by giving them the ability to speak a previously unknown language to them. This is called xenolalia, which means speaking an unlearned language. There are fifteen locations from which the crowd represented in verses 9 – 11. The Galileans would not have grown up knowing any of these languages nor would they have learned them for their trades. The Holy Spirit gave them this ability for this specific day and purpose.
Tomorrow, we will see how the crowd reacted to the disciples.
Acts 2:2-4 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.
Marty Pressey 