"WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?"
- The Truth needs to be spoken
- The Truth is what saves
As the capital city of the nation of Israel, Jerusalem was always filled with people. There was constant traffic in and out of its walls and any number of activities happening throughout the city on any given day. But this day was different. On this day there were thousands more people in Jerusalem than usual because this day was the Feast of Weeks. The Feast of Weeks was one of the three annual Jewish festivals during which believers were required to make the trip to Jerusalem no matter where they lived. This event was set at the beginning of the planting season and worshipers were supposed to offer prescribed sacrifices only at the temple in Jerusalem. And so, just like every year at this time, Jerusalem was being overrun with visitors from every part of the Mediterranean world. Most of them had been there before. And so they knew where to go. They knew what to do. They understood enough Hebrew or Aramaic to get around - even though they had their own native languages back at home. And because of this influx of visitors, the vendors and merchants of Jerusalem were lining the streets, selling their wares. The Levites and the priests were all called on to work that day, keeping order and directing traffic at the temple itself. It was a little bit hectic and a little bit crowded, but the day was progressing more or less as it normally did every year.
But it wouldn’t be “normal” for long. Because at this particular Feast of Weeks, the 12 apostles were all gathered together there in Jerusalem and all in the same place. And Acts chapter two says that, “Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” This certainly wasn’t a planned event for the celebration of the Feast of Weeks! This had never been seen before in any place! In fact, it was so incredible that from this day on the Feast of Weeks would no longer be called “the Feast of Weeks.” It would forever become known as Pentecost.
On this very first Pentecost, all of those foreigners who had traveled to Jerusalem for the Feast of Weeks heard that supernatural wind-like sound coming from heaven. And when the crowds gathered to see what it was all about, they heard these disciples speaking in their own languages! But these men were Galileans! There was Peter and his brother Andrew! There was John and his brother James! These men were the followers of that man, Jesus! How are they able to speak in dialects they have not yet learned? It doesn’t make sense! “What does this mean?”
“What does this mean?” Scripture tells us that these words were spoken by the crowds of visitors when they heard “the wonders of God” being fluently spoken in their native tongues by these disciples. “What does this mean?” The crowds wanted to know. They knew it must be a miracle from God himself, they knew something special was happening there in Jerusalem right before their eyes, but they didn’t yet know what it was all about. They didn’t know why it was happening. They didn’t know how it was happening. And they wondered out of curiosity and amazement, “What does this mean?”
And so Peter told them. The apostle Peter immediately stood up with the other eleven disciples and he told the crowds exactly what this phenomenon meant. He quoted the prophet Joel. He made it clear that this event was predicted centuries ago. He spoke about Jesus suffering, dying, and rising from the dead. He explained that Jesus was the one who had sent this Holy Spirit on the disciples. Peter even called the crowds of people sinners. Peter then urged them to repent. And Peter encouraged them to be baptized. In short: Peter spoke to them the Truth.
And that was a monumental thing for Peter to do! Remember that Peter hadn’t always been so brave to speak the Truth of Christ to those around him. Just a couple months before in the courtyard of the high priest during Jesus’ trial, Peter was intimidated by a servant girl and vehemently refused to speak about Christ… But here, in the vicinity of that same temple, Peter does not hesitate to address these massive crowds with his faith in Christ. He knew that he possessed the Truth and he was not ashamed to share it. He knew most of those people did not believe in the Truth, and he was not afraid to tell them so. Peter knew that their spiritual well-being depended on his proclamation and so he jumped at the chance to explain to them the clear words of God. The crowds were trying to figure out “What does this mean?” And Peter was the one who confidently told them.
Would you call Peter arrogant here? Was he haughty and condescending for claiming to know the only Truth and telling all those people in Jerusalem that day that what they believed was wrong? Of course not! Peter was not arrogant or haughty or condescending. He was simply repeating the simple facts of Scripture so that all of those people around him could also believe in the true words of the Lord. Peter did not speak out of arrogance, but out of love.
But you might be called arrogant or haughty or condescending for doing the same thing today, wouldn’t you? If you claimed that you knew the Truth of Scripture and that someone else was wrong about any particular teaching, you might not be treated very kindly! You might be called close-minded! You might be labeled as a bigot! You might be accused of trying to force your beliefs on someone else. “How dare you tell me that I’m wrong! I can believe whatever I want to believe! That’s very presumptuous of you to think that your interpretation of Scripture is the only right way!” If someone hasn’t conveyed those thoughts to you before in so many words, you know that’s what many people would say if the situation arose because that’s the prevailing thought about religion in this country - even among many Christians: “The truth is whatever you personally believe. You can’t tell someone that they are wrong - we can agree to disagree. There is room for multiple interpretations of the Bible depending on how you look at it...” And because that’s such a wide-spread mindset in our culture today, we in turn become intimidated when the real and only Truth needs to be spoken.
Don’t you find it hard sometimes to speak the Truth when you know someone is off base? Isn’t it difficult to stand up boldly and confidently like Peter did and firmly stand on the clear words of Scripture that you know so well? It is a hard thing to do! It is difficult to stand up for the Truth at times because we don’t want to be thought of as unloving or stuck in our ways or egotistical. We don’t want to deal with the arguments and the objections and so we oftentimes end up keeping our mouths shut. We let the error slide. We avoid the confrontation. We try not to say anything that might indicate that we think we know what’s right and this person in front of us has got it all wrong. We don’t stand up boldly like Peter in most situations. We rather try to slink back into the crowd and hope nobody knows what you know.
How pitiful. How pitiful when we are sometimes scared off by the possibility of an uncomfortable situation. How pitiful when we don’t seem to think that the Truth is worth the trouble. The Holy Spirit has worked in our hearts through this same Word of God and has convinced us that his words are true. He has made his words clear. He has solidified the truths of Scripture in different passages in different contexts in different ways so that we can be absolutely sure about what he is saying. But when it comes to conveying these clear simple truths to others, we can’t seem to get ourselves to tell others that this is the Truth - and nothing else, that there is a right and a wrong, not just a difference of opinion. Christ calls us his ambassadors. He says that we are the light of the world. He asks us to preach and teach and share the message with every nation. But what kind of preachers and teachers and lights and ambassadors are we if we are afraid to speak the Truth that we know is right? We are, in fact, a pitiful kind of Christian. We are sadly timid keepers of the Truth. And that’s the saddest thing of all: We are keepers of the Truth instead of also being sharers of the Truth.
And yet although that is true, the Lord still doesn’t stop giving us Truth. Look at the crowds in Jerusalem on that first day of Pentecost for a wonderful example of that. They didn’t know about Jesus. They were ignorant of the fact that they were sinners and that the Lord had already died on the cross to save them. God did not have to speak the Word of Truth to them. He was under no obligation to bring them to faith. But that is what the entire event of Pentecost is all about! The Holy Spirit came upon the disciples in that specific city on that specific day for the expressed purpose of spreading the Word of Truth to those who needed to hear it! The Holy Spirit wanted those people to hear about Christ. He wanted them to repent of their sins. He wanted them to trust in their forgiveness and be saved. And he wants the same for us.
Even though we do not always convey the Truth to others like we should, the Holy Spirit keeps giving it to us. He speaks the Truth to us in our worship services, in our Bible studies, in our daily devotional readings, and through the encouragements of our Christian brothers and sisters. The Holy Spirit does not pull the Truth away. He doesn’t give you a certain number of chances to get it right before he stops offering it. No! The Holy Spirit wants you to know your Savior as well as possible. He wants you to know that what Jesus did on the cross for you is true. He wants you to know that every sin you’ve ever committed and every sin that you will commit in the future is already completely forgiven. He wants you to know that you are Christ’s brother and sister, God the Father’s child, and a temple of the Holy Spirit himself. These are some of the clear and simple Truths of Scripture that the Holy Spirit is delighted to share with you. Even though you are a sinner. Because you are a sinner. The Holy Spirit presents you with these Truths of God’s Word because you are a sinner and you are the one who needs to hear them. I am the one who needs to hear them.
And others need to hear them too. And many of them genuinely want to know what God says. Think of how many people in this world ask the same question as the crowds on Pentecost did: “What does this mean?” So many people on this earth wonder: “What does life mean? What does the Bible mean? What does this passage mean? What does forgiveness and salvation and redemption and eternal life all mean?” The Lord has placed a natural knowledge of God in the heart of every person from birth, and so most people will always been searching for the answer to the question: “What does this all mean?”
And you know. You know what it all means. You have the Truth that God has written down himself. You have the clear and unchanging words of the Almighty! Don’t be embarrassed about that! Don’t be ashamed that you stand on the firm foundation of the Scriptures! Boldly and willingly share that Truth with others. They may not like it. They may not agree with it at first. But that is not your job. It is not your job to convince others. That falls under the job description of the Holy Spirit. It is your job to confidently speak the Truths you know and let the Holy Spirit do his work. It is your job to share with others that glorious gospel. It is your job to let them know what all of this means. Thank the Spirit that he has brought you to such a wonderful knowledge of these Truths. And thank him that he gives you so many opportunities to share them with others. Because although you may never experience a Pentecost like those original disciples did, you are still in a very similar situation: you are surrounded by thousands of people who are searching for the answer to the question: what does this mean? Stand up with Peter. Raise your voice. And with the power of the Spirit tell them the Truth.
Amen.
“You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” - 1 Cor. 6:11
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