I get nervous. I feel fear. I get anxiety. In big moments, those emotional reactions can grow bigger and bigger and cause me to freeze and not take action. But on the days when I put God first, He always sends me a message that shows that He is with me and that everything is going to be okay.
Sometimes that message is something small, like a note or email from a teammate. Sometimes that message is big. One of the biggest messages that God has ever sent the world happened on Pentecost.
To some, Pentecost is the true birth of Christianity because it was on this day, 50 days after Jesus's death, that the Holy Spirit came into all the apostles.
Going back to the Last Supper, Jesus told his 12 disciples to go out into the world to minister and heal the sick; this made them apostles.
On the 50th day after Jesus died, all the believers were meeting together in one place and suddenly there was a loud sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them, and everyone there was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
This great message that God sent down through the loud noise was that He is always with us and in us as the Holy Spirit.
After working through the confusion of hearing everyone speaking different languages, Peter stepped up and started preaching:
King David said this about him: ‘I see that the LORD is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. No wonder my heart is glad, and my tongue shouts his praises! My body rests in hope. For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your Holy One to rot in the grave. You have shown me the way of life, and you will fill me with the joy of your presence.’
I see that the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken for he is right beside me.
God is always with us if we believe. We don't have to be shaken or afraid. We can be happy, our hearts can be glad, and we can find rest in hope. We can be filled with joy because God is always with us.
For more, read Acts 2.
Click here for an interesting perspective on the roots of Pentecost.
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