There are at least
four ways in which we may think of the Day of Pentecost.
First, it
was the final act of the saving ministry of Jesus before the
Parousia.. He who was born into our humanity, lived our life, died
for our sins, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, now
sent his Spirit to his people to constitute them his body and to
work out in them what he had won for them. In this sense the Day
of Pentecost is unrepeatable. Christmas Day, Good Friday, Easter
Day, Ascension Day and Whit Sunday are annual celebrations, but
the birth, death, resurrection, ascension and Spirit-gift they
commemorate happened once and for all.
Secondly, Pentecost brought
to the apostles the equipment they needed for their special role.
Christ had appointed them to be his primary and authoritative
witnesses, and had promised them the reminding and teaching
ministry of the Holy Spirit (John 14-16). Pentecost was the
fulfilment of that promise.
Thirdly, Pentecost was the
inauguration of the new era of the Spirit. Although his coming was
a unique and unrepeatable historical event, all the people of God
can now always and everywhere benefit from his ministry. Although
he equipped the apostles to be the primary witnesses, he also
equips us to be his secondary witnesses. Although the inspiration
of the Spirit was given to the apostles alone, the fullness of the
Spirit is for us all.
Fourthly, Pentecost has been called - and
rightly - the first `revival', using this word to denote one of
those altogether unusual visitations of God, in which the whole
community becomes vividly aware of his immediate, overpowering
presence. It may be, therefore, that not only the physical
phenomena (2ff), but the deep conviction of sin (37), the 3,000
conversions (41) and the widespread sense of awe (43) were signs
of `revival'. We must be careful, however, not to use this
possibility as an excuse to lower our expectations, or to relegate
to the category of the exceptional what God may intend to be the
church's normal experience. The wind and the fire are abnormal,
and probably the languages too; the new life and joy, fellowship
and worship, freedom, boldness and power were not.
