The Beginning of the Last Days: Acts 2 (1)

Pray Psalm 104.24-30.
O LORD, how manifold are Your works!
In wisdom You have made them all.
The earth is full of Your possessions—
This great and wide sea,
In which are innumerable teeming things,
Living things both small and great.
There the ships sail about;
There is that Leviathan
Which You have made to play there.
These all wait for You,
That You may give them their food in due season.
What You give them they gather in;
You open Your hand, they are filled with good.
You hide Your face, they are troubled;
You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
You send forth Your Spirit, they are created;
And You renew the face of the earth.

Sing Psalm 104.24-30.

(Creation: The Spacious Firmament Above)
How many are Your works, O Lord, which You have created by Your Word!
The earth and sea with creatures teem – they look to You to care and feed.
You give to them, they gather all; You hide Your face, they fail and fall.
You take their breath, they gasp and die; You send Your Spirit, they revive.

Read Acts 2.1-4.

Preparation
1. How did the Promise come to the disciples?

2. What was their first indication of His having arrived?

Meditation
The outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon and into the assembled believers carries several layers of significance, the most important of which Peter will explain in just a bit. This is the promised “circumcision of the heart” foretold in Deuteronomy 30.1-10 and Ezekiel 36.26, 27. The coming of the Spirit upon and within the believers marks the beginning of the last days and the launching of the ongoing work of Jesus. By His Spirit, Jesus is transforming His followers into His own image (2 Cor. 3.12-18); and through them, He is building His Church, advancing His Kingdom, and restoring the world to its pristine state for the glory of the Lord (2 Cor. 5.17-21; Rev. 21.5).

We note that the “fire” of the Spirit divided itself, yet remained the same “fire.” Each believer receives the same Spirit of God with the same fullness, albeit with different expressions of that fullness, depending on our station and calling in life (1 Cor. 12.7-11). The speaking with other tongues has both a practical and symbolic significance. Practically, this spiritual gift would have facilitated the effort that was about to ensue among the many visitors in Jerusalem. Symbolically, here we see God “reversing” the judgment at the tower of Babel, where He created many languages to separate the nations. With the outpouring of the Spirit He is creating one “spiritual language” – life in the Spirit and Kingdom of God – to unite people of many languages in the Tower which is our Lord Jesus Christ and His Church.

This passage also recalls the event in Joshua 5 where the new generation about to inherit the land of promise was circumcised first, so that they would be a people fit to receive the covenant blessings of God. Here the “new generation” of the new people of God is circumcised in their hearts before they undertake the “conquest” of the earth (Acts 1.8).

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the Promise of the Father, marks the beginning of an entirely new phase of human history. A new Kingdom has come, with a new power to advance it, and a new people through whom it comes on earth as it is in heaven.

Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
There they were. Sitting. Praying. Waiting… “all with one accord in one place” (Acts 2.1).
Quietly. Reverently. Waiting.
And then the sound of a tornado, a derecho, a hurricane, a rushing mighty wind. Deafening.
But only the sound. Not the destructive force.
It was the Spirit! The Delivered Promise.

It was just as Jesus had said.
“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit” (Jn. 3. 8).
As with everything else that had already happened with Jesus and the disciples, He had told them beforehand what would happen and what it would be like. (Mk. 13.23).

The thing is, though, that what we imagine will happen is never as amazing and powerful as what actually does happen! When the Holy Spirit is involved.  “‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways’, says the LORD. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts’” (Is. 55.8, 9).

“For who is like Me?” (Jer. 49.19; 50.44)
“Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite” (Ps. 147.5).
“O LORD, how great are Your works! Your thoughts are very deep” (Ps. 92.5).

Because our thoughts are not His thoughts nor His ways our ways, we can get ready for an exciting life being filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. For He does not always speak to us through a roaring wind. It is often very different. We can learn an important lesson from His exchange with the prophet Elijah: “‘Go out, and stand on the mountain before the LORD.’ And behold, the LORDpassed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD wasnot in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’” (1 Kgs. 19. 11, 12, 13).

God speaks. We listen. However it is delivered.

“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (Gal. 5.25).
And walking in the Spirit requires daily seeking the Lord in His Word and through prayer.
(It may not always be a whirlwind, but it will be His voice nonetheless.)

Then taking up our cross daily we follow Him (Lk. 9.23) into “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 14.17). Into our Personal Mission Field. “Launching the ongoing work of Jesus.”

Abundant Life! (Jn. 10.10)

For reflection
1. The Spirit gives life (Jn. 6.63). What would you say are the primary attributes of life in the Spirit?

2. What are the primary evidences indicating the Spirit is at work within us (Phil. 2.13)?

3. Where would you most like to see increasing evidence of the Spirit’s work in your life?

Upon the feast day, wherein a great multitude was wont to resort to Jerusalem, was this miracle wrought, that it might be more famous. And truly by means hereof was it spread abroad, even unto the uttermost parts and borders of the earth. John Calvin (1509-1564), Commentary on Acts 2.1, 2

Pray Psalm 104.31-35.
Praise and glorify the Lord for the gift of His Spirit. Ask Him to fill you with His Spirit, and go forth from prayer to walk in the Spirit throughout the day.

Sing Psalm 104.31-35.

(Creation: The Spacious Firmament Above)
Lord, let Your glory long endure; rejoice! His works are ever sure!
He looks on earth, it quails and quakes, as we our songs of praises make.
Lord, let our meditation rise and bring great pleasure in Your eyes.
Consumed shall sinners ever be; O, bless and praise the Lord with me!

T. M. and Susie Moore

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We’re happy to provide a free companion study to our study of the book of Acts. The Ongoing Work of Christ considers the book of Acts thematically. It is suitable for personal or group use, and you may have a free PDF copy of The Ongoing Work of Christ by requesting it from us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (Williston: Waxed Tablet Publications, 2006), available by clicking here.