By Guest Writer | Dennis Gladden
Just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ… Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. —1 Corinthians 12:12, 24.
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By all accounts, Pentecost is considered the birthday of the church. From that day on, as recorded in the book of Acts, the disciples were dramatically different from their three years with Jesus and their livelihoods before that.
As different as a newborn from an embryo.
As stated in 1 Corinthians 12:12 and verse 14, celebrating a day when the church was born connects with the Apostle Paul’s concept of the church as the body of Christ.
This means we may think of Pentecost as a replay of the incarnation we commemorate at Christmas.
As an angel had announced, the Holy Spirit came upon Mary, who had never known a man, and she conceived and bore the Christ in her body. Ever since, we have associated Christmas with Emmanuel, God with us.
As promised by Jesus, the Holy Spirit came upon men and women who had not truly known God but believed the One He sent, and Emmanuel was now God in them. Paul would say later they were like Mary—Christ-bearers. “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
The season of Pentecost and the birthday of the church have me reminiscing about the births of our two children. When our daughter and son were born, my wife and I immediately wanted to know two things:
Was everything there? Ten fingers and toes, two arms and legs? Were ears and eyes, nose and mouth, all in place?
Was the baby alive; did it cry?
As we will see, we can ask these questions upon the birth of the church at Pentecost, and God answers.
The scene opens with these amazing statements about those whom Jesus told to wait in Jerusalem:
They all joined together “constantly in prayer.” Acts 1:14
They were all together in one place. Acts 2:1
This is amazing because 120 men and women were waiting in unison—just as Jesus had commanded. They were all accounted for, which makes the replacement of Judas in Acts 1 significant. After Judas betrayed Jesus and committed suicide, the body of disciples was not whole. Recognizing the breach, Peter led the group in replacing the betrayer as the scriptures instructed.
Peter acted as Paul would later counsel the church: “If anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him” (Galatians 6:1). Judas, of course, could not be restored, but the body as a whole needed repair. Paul’s wording suggests the medical procedure of setting a broken bone or repairing a dislocated joint.
Replacing the transgressor restored their wholeness for the Day of Pentecost. “One of these must become a witness with us,” said Peter (Acts 1:22), and Mathias, under the Spirit’s guidance, was chosen.
The church has passed the first test: everyone is accounted for; all the parts are there, formed in unison. The church is healthy.
Next, is the church alive? Is there a cry?
The first sound that draws the crowd is men and women crying out about the wonderful things God was doing—both that day and before (Acts 2:11).
It is significant that Mary, the mother of Jesus, is among them because the Greek word for wonderful works is used only twice, both by Mary. She spoke of the great things God had done for her upon meeting her cousin Elizabeth when they were pregnant (Luke 1:49).
God had favored her, was with her, and chose her to bear the king who would reign over Israel and be called Holy, the Son of God (Luke 1:30-35). With these things in her mind, no wonder Mary burst into praise when she met Elizabeth.
And here she is at Pentecost, again proclaiming the wonderful—the magnificent—works of God. Before, she was bearing the Christ; now, she is filled with the Spirit, and Christ is in her in a new way.
Another one of the women, no doubt, is Mary Magdalene, from whom Jesus had cast out seven demons. At one time she was a child of wrath, but I can hear her saying now, “Behold, what manner of love the Lord has toward me, that I should be called a child of God!”
The first cry from the church is upward, to God, for His wonderful works.
His message has two parts:
What does God think about Jesus?
What do you think about Jesus?
Peter opened with a blunt statement of God’s assessment. “Jesus of Nazareth was a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs.” He gave three signs of God's approval:
Restoration (via miracles, wonders, and signs):
Legs that had been lame for years walked;
Hands that couldn't grip, held tight;
Sightless eyes saw the light of day;
Children and adults imprisoned by demons broke free at the word of Jesus.
Preservation: God stymied the decomposition of Jesus's body. “You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will you allow your holy one to see corruption.” (Acts 2:27).
Resurrection: God raised Jesus from the grave and exalted Him into heaven.
Others also bore witness to God’s approval throughout Jesus’s ministry.
“If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing,” said the blind man who Jesus healed (John 9:33).
Nicodemus, a chief teacher in Israel, acknowledged, “We know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” (John 3:2).
No question, that God and others approved of Jesus.
Then Peter turned to the crowd.
God put Jesus into your hands, and you put Him to death (Acts 2:23).
Pilate presented Him to you, saying, “I find no fault in Him,” but you rejected Him. You had the choice, and you cried, “Give us Barabbas. Crucify Jesus.”
You conceded Jesus was a teacher, a prophet—someone who did good—but, in the end, He was dispensable. You thought like the demons: “What have I to do with you?” You acted like Pharaoh, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey him?”
Peter hammered the message home.
2:32 “This Jesus God has raised.”
2:33 “This Jesus has poured out the Holy Spirit, which you now see and hear.”
2:36 “This Jesus, whom you crucified, God has made both Lord and Christ.”
The crowd gets it.
God sent Jesus to us, and we sent Jesus to the cross.
How do you come back from that? How do you ever recover?
Faced with their action, they are cut to the heart and ask Peter, “What shall we do?”
And here is the cry of the newborn church.
Even now, after all this, God will restore you.
Acknowledge what you have done. Consider the danger you are in and “be saved from this perverse generation. Repent, everyone of you.”
But we also proclaim the wonderful work of God. Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He will take away yours.
You are not so far gone that you cannot recover. Turn to the Lord. Call upon Him and be saved.
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He will make you a part of His body, both now and forevermore.
-Dennis @ Dennis Gladden
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