DEVOTION ~ PENTECOST

Theme: Pentecost

Text: Acts 2:1-4

2 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

On the seventh Sunday after Easter, Christians all over the world celebrate Pentecost. It is a festival that marks the descending of the Holy Spirit unto the Church.

The Holy Spirit existed long ago but has no dwelling in man until Christ asked of the Father to send Him down to those who believe in Him. He is with us and manifests distinctively in our lives unlike in the past where He manifests for a while and departs from man until needed to perform a function amongst mankind. In Numbers 11 the seventy elders to help Moses experienced the Holy Spirit but for a while; "Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied, although they never did so again (Numbers 11:25)." The elders prophesied for that moment but afterwards they couldn't. The same divine Spirit came upon the Apostles and they did extraordinarily in propagation of the Gospel.

Our dispensation isn't different from that of the Apostles, the Holy Spirit still lives in us, but we are unable to experience His marvelous works because of our way of living. To experience this, you need to take note of the following;

 Be of oneness with God. To be in one accord with God, you need to study His Word and apply it in your life. It was in unity (of one mind) in the days of Moses and likewise on the day of Pentecost that the Holy Spirit descended (Numbers 11:16-30; Acts 2:1).

Make the Lord your habitation. If you dwell in the presence of God, He opens your ears to hear from Him and your eyes to behold His glory. The Apostles heard the sound from heaven but the people who were outside of the room didn't hear it. If you want to hear from God, you need to dwell in His shelter so as to be filled with His Spirit. When you're filled by the Spirit of God, then your eyes will be opened to see the invisible (what the ordinary eyes cannot see). What the eyes beheld gave strength to the mouth of the Apostles to speak it out.

The appearance of the divided tongues as of fire  is the Holy Spirit. He openly made them understand the power to proclaim has come to rest amongst them. This also comes to affirm the assurance Jesus gave in Luke 12:11-12 that; 11 “Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. 12 For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

Hallelujah! Peter who was timid and denied Jesus on the day of His trial openly declared the Gospel to all and won three thousand souls to the Kingdom (Acts 2:5-47). You have the Holy Spirit in you and you're qualified to also reach out to others with the message of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's Pentecost, receive grace and power to overcome every storm of your life and may your testimonies outweigh your expectations even now and forevermore in Jesus name.

Prayer: Dear God, praise be to Your name for coming to dwell in me Your vessel. I pray You have your total way in me. Holy Spirit divine, may Your tongue of fire give me a touch in Jesus' name have I asked. AMEN!