The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Acts 2:1-8, “When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.
2And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.
4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.
5Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven.
6And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language.
7They were amazed and astonished, saying, “Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
8″And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born?”

The word “Pentecost” means 50; so, the “day of Pentecost” always occurred on the 50th day following the ingathering of the first fruits. Our text assures us that the believers were “together in one place.” The origin of this holy ordinance is mentioned in Leviticus 23:17.

The idea of them being “together” might well indicate that they were not only together physically, but together in their mental and spiritual focus on the LORD. Nothing works well without “togetherness.” Remember mom saying, “Well, if you kids can’t get along with each other here at home, we’ll just not go out where others can witness your despicable behavior!” It’s far-fetched to believe the LORD would not have withheld what He ultimately allowed them to witness if there had been disagreements within the group.

What arrested the attention of those early Christians that day was first, “a violent, rushing wind.” When the LORD had their attention, He sent forth visible “tongues of fire” that rested on each believer in the group. “Tongues” (?????? glossa) may be translated either as “tongue” (as in the mouth) or “language” (as also from the mouth).

The Galileans’ language dialect differed significantly from that of the Israelites, leading the Jews to ask, “…are not all these who are speaking Galileans?” Yet, despite their inability to understanding the Galilean language, they understood what was being said in the alien language (dialektos). Miracles like this can (and I am persuaded) do occur, when people are spiritually compatible.

Yet, these miracles had a far deeper mission: it was for those who were spiritually ready. Maybe our focus today is on the “miracle” instead of the “message” the miracle contained.

What kind of miracle do you need in your life? Get clean with the LORD and ask. He lives for you just as He died for you. Trust Him and see.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom