DEFINITION:
Pentecost is a Christian holiday that takes place on the 50th day after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers of Jesus Christ while they were in Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles.
Or: Jewish holiday celebrated seven weeks after the second day of Passover.
ETYMOLOGICALLY:
The term Pentecost comes from the ancient Greek PENTEKOSTE HEMERA which means fiftieth day because it takes place fifty days after Easter, the following seventh Sunday, to be exact. Its origin is described in the Bible: fifty days after Easter, a crowd gathered to celebrate Shavuot, a Jewish holiday.
THE STORY OF PENTECOST:
But what is the origin of this festival? This religious holiday, which appeared in the 4th century AD, commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit among the apostles, among Christians. The event of Pentecost is inseparable from the feasts of Easter and Ascension.
Because without Easter the Ascension would not have taken place and without the Ascension Pentecost would not have taken place, which is why we cannot dissociate these three festivals because they are linked together.
This means that after his last exchange with his disciples, Jesus ascends to heaven to join God. The ascension of Christ to heaven therefore takes place 40 days after his resurrection.
This means that Pentecost takes place 10 days after the ascension of Jesus Christ and 50 days after his resurrection.
Pentecost in the Bible
Acts1:1-12
Acts 2:1-10
WHAT PENTECOST DOES IN THE LIVES OF CHRISTIANS:
1) TO FILL YOU FULLY WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT
Reference; (Acts 3:31)
When they had prayed, the place where they were gathered shook; they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness.
2) TO RECEIVE THE FIRE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT:
Reference; (Acts 2:3-4)
Tongues that looked like fire appeared to them, separated from each other, and they landed on each of them. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
3) PROCLAIM GOD'S WORD WITH ASSURANCE.
The holy spirit does not come to you to stay in your home but to empower you to rise up and preach the gospel of God with great boldness.
Reference; (Acts 3:31)
When they had prayed, the place where they were gathered shook; they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness.
4) MANIFEST THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT:
When the Spirit of God comes to you, He will transform you into another person and empower you to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. He will also activate all the gifts you were born with and use them to further the work of God.
Reference; (Acts 2:3-4)
Tongues that looked like fire appeared to them, separated from each other, and they landed on each of them. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
(Acts 2:38)
Peter said to them, “Change your attitude and let each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
5) BECOME A WITNESS OF JESUS CHRIST:
Reference; (Acts 2:3-4)
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Process to become a witness:
It is clearly in this scripture that God has promised us to receive power, and it is evidence confirming the perfect will of God to see the church manifest the full power of the Holy Spirit.
Second, this scripture shows us that you can only receive power when the Holy Spirit comes to you. This means that if you are not baptised with the Holy Spirit, you will not receive and manifest the power of the Holy Spirit.
Finally, after being baptized by the Holy Spirit and receiving the power of the Holy Spirit, you will become a witness of Jesus Christ. So, the process for you to become a witness is clearly mentioned in this scripture.
Who is a witness?
According to the dictionary:
A witness is someone who saw an event, typically a crime or accident happen and agreed to testify about it in public. And God's will is to see you testify of the name of Jesus Christ city by city to the ends of the earth.
According to the Bible:
A witness is someone who is willing to sacrifice anything for the cause of the gospel of Jesus Christ. A witness of Christ also means being ready to die for Christ.
NB:
Biblically The original word which was translated as the word witness in English means martyros so what Jesus said to his apostles means that you will be my martyrs, or you will die for me.
What you have to testify, you have to testify to the world what you have seen, what you have heard and all the good things that God has done for you and continues to do for you. and You should not be ashamed to witness it in public.
6)TO OPEN YOUR KNOWLEDGE FINALLY BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND THE WORD OF GOD:
Reference; (John 14:26)
But the defender, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of all that I have told you.
According to this scripture, the best teacher that Jesus promised his apostles was the Holy Spirit, Jesus said that when he comes, he will do 2 things to open your mind and your knowledge of the word of God. First, He will teach you and second, He will remind you of what you have already received or read in the Bible.
7)TO GIVE YOU SOMEONE WHO CAN DEFEND YOU.
You must understand from the day you celebrate this Pentecost that you will never walk alone again, Pentecost comes to give you a good destiny friends as Jesus Christ promised in the bible, he will not leave you alone, but he will send you the comforter.
So, from the day of Pentecost stone, you are no longer alone you have a good friend called HOLLY SPIRTY who will be there for you to defend you from any bad situation and to help you accomplish the mission that God has given you in this land.
Reference; (John 14:16)
As for me, I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another defender to stay with you forever.
You no longer need to worry about your spiritual battles because Jesus promised us that our father will send for us the Holy Spirit who will be there every day to defend us.
(John 14:26)
But the defender, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of all that I have told you.
8)PENTECOST COMES TO CONVINCE YOU OF YOUR SINS, JUSTICE AND GOD'S JUDGMENT.
Reference; (John 16:8)
And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment.
When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, one of the first things He will do is convince you of your spiritual condition. He will show you your weaknesses, your errors and your sins and will warn you of the justice and judgment of God what will happen to you if you do not repent yourself.
9)TO LEAD YOU INTO TRUTH:
Reference; (John 16:13)
When the Counsellor has come, the "Spirit of truth", he will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak on his own, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will tell you things to come.
When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, another thing He will do is show you if you are going in the wrong direction and try to point you in the right direction which is the path of truth.
Example: If you live with a wrong person or visit a fake church, he will tell you and guide you to the right person or a good church.
TO GLORIFY JESUS IN YOU:
Reference; (John 16:14-15)
He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15All that the father has is mine; therefore, I said that he takes from me, and he will declare it to you.
Ultimately, the presence of the Holy Spirit in you is to glorify Jesus in you. If the spirit within you does not move you to glorify Jesus, you are possessed by the spirit of the devil.
PRAYER REQUEST:
(Acts 11:15)
When I started to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them, as on us
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