Daily Devotion, May 17, 2021

 

Devotion:

Read Acts 2:1-11.

Pentecost means “fiftieth” and was a Jewish festival of early harvest, coming seven weeks and one day (fifty days) after the Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover. This was one of the three most sacred festivals for Jewish people, and many of them would make pilgrimages from their homelands to Jerusalem in order to worship and make their offering at the temple. Luke tells us the apostles were gathered together on this first Pentecost after the crucifixion of their Lord. He had promised to send the Holy Spirit to be with them as counselor and advocate.

 

Their baptism with the Holy Spirit came in dramatic fashion with the sound of rushing wind and the appearance of tongues of fire that separated and settled on each of them. Immediately, they began to speak in real languages they had never known. Luke lists the many places from which Jewish persons and Jewish converts had traveled, from Rome to Arabia and from North Africa to Asia Minor! This unexpected new gift from the Holy Spirit enabled the apostles to declare the wonders of God to foreigners in their native tongues, and three thousand of them would accept Christ on that day of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit still fills us, still gives us gifts, and is still God’s sustaining presence in us. We too are called to go and speak the Good News in ways people can understand and will accept.

Personal Worship Option:

As we come to Pentecost this coming Sunday, give thanks to God for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, God with us and present in our lives. Be especially mindful this week of the presence and leading of the Holy Spirit in your life and reflect on the gifts the Spirit has given you for serving others.