When the day of Pentecost came, [the apostles] were all together in one place. 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.
Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs–we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
Acts 2:1-11
God instructed his people to gather at the Temple at three feasts per year: Passover, Weeks, and Tabernacles. About a week after Jesus’ ascension, Jews from around the world gathered for the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) as they normally did. However, they were in for something extraordinary that year when the Spirit came, anointing the apostles with tongues of fire and enabling them to speak the languages of those gathered.
Having recently returned from Turkey, I’ve been thinking about the traveling that was needed to be done to be in Jerusalem that year. While I can hop on a jet and be almost anywhere within 24 hours or so, it wasn’t so easy for them. The Romans made it easier with their extensive network of roads, but walking 1000 miles on good roads is still walking 1000 miles. It was quite an investment for many to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. What kind of effort do I make to meet with the Lord? Think about what happens when he shows up!
As Pentecost begins this evening, I leave you with pictures from places mentioned in Acts 2 that God has enabled me to visit.
