Prayer – Holy Spirit—I call on You—as well as my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, confessing that He is my Savior. It is in obedience that I work out my salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in me, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:12-13
On the day of Pentecost all the believers were
meeting together in one place. Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the
roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting.
Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each
of them. And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began
speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability. At that
time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. When they
heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear
their own languages being spoken by the believers. Acts 2:1-6
Meditate. Listen for the sound of the Holy Spirit.
 |
| Harvest in Israel |
As
a fulfillment of the Old Testament, a spiritual harvest began on Pentecost when
Jesus told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the gift of Holy Spirit as
God the Father had promised (Acts 1:4-5). The disciples began to speak in
languages of visitors from every nation—with the power of the Holy Spirit—so
that everyone could understand God’s message in their own language. There were
about three thousand people in Jerusalem that day who believed in Jesus and
were baptized after they heard Peter preach following his infilling of the Holy
Spirit. Three thousand! That is a lot of people—more than the population in the
small farming community in which I grew up.
Part
of what Peter preached was from the Old Testament prophet, Joel:
'In the last days,' God says, 'I
will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. In those
days I will pour out my Spirit even on my servants--men and women alike--and
they will prophesy. And I will cause wonders in the heavens above and signs on
the earth below--blood and fire and clouds of smoke. The sun will become dark,
and the moon will turn blood red before that great and glorious day of the LORD
arrives. But everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.' Acts 2:17-21
Things
may get a little scary in the last days…smoke and fire…the sun darkened and the
moon looking blood red. But don’t be alarmed. God will be with us—He will never
leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Keep your account short—confess your
shortcomings—your sins—daily and be at peace with the Lord. Be prepared for
those last days. Claim that promise in Joel—repeated in Acts 2… But
everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved. Like those
visitors to Jerusalem, are you calling on the name of the Lord? Are you or will
you be saved?
Verse of Salvation ~ But the one who endures to the end
will be saved. Matthew 24:13
© 2023 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Reviesed from September 11, 2015
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com
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