SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP SERVICE, 2 November 2025
Sermon Series: “The Acts of the Apostles” (#4)
Sermon Text: Acts 2:1-47
Main Points:
Introduction
I. Gathering Israel from the nations
II. Making them one undivided kingdom
III. The ongoing stream of Pentecost
Conclusion
John B. Phillips was an Anglican clergyman who, back in 1952, published a well-known book titled ‘Your God Is Too Small.’ In it, he points out that many people’s spiritual struggles come from holding inadequate, childish or distorted ideas about God. Phillips challenges readers to think more biblically and more deeply about who God truly is. I’d encourage you to read it, if you haven’t already.
In making his point, Phillips mentions that some Sunday School children imagine God as ‘a very old gentleman living in heaven.’ It’s a funny picture, but his point is quite serious – that not only some children but many adults carry a similar image of God in their minds. I think Phillips really captured a deep insight here. Some believers think of God – if not as an old man in the sky – then at least as a distant God, somehow detached from the ordinary details of their daily life. They think God is too holy to get involved in anything as ordinary as their daily routines, or too grand – ruling the vast cosmos – to notice the small details of their day-to-day lives.
The same kind of misunderstanding can creep in when people read parts of the Bible, including the passage we’ve read today from Acts 2. When some people hear about what happened on the day of Pentecost, they think of it as something that happened a very long time ago – about two thousand years back – and not really relevant to us here in the 21st century. If they see any relevance at all, they treat it simply as a lesson to remember or as a fascinating story – the Spirit coming like tongues of fire and people suddenly speaking in other languages. They might be impressed for a moment, but once they walk out of church, what amazed them quickly fades away. The message of Pentecost doesn’t stay long in their hearts because they don’t see how deeply it is connected to their own faith and life.
Because of that, some people see Pentecost mainly as the event when the apostles were specially anointed for their unique mission. That view can make others wish they had the same kind of experience – to feel that power and excitement, thinking then, they’d be able to witness to Jesus more boldly.
But the problem with that understanding is that it misses the true significance of the outpouring of the Spirit. If that’s been your view, or something like it, I want to invite you to listen carefully this morning. What we’ll see today can reshape the way you understand what happened in the first century – and how that same event is inseparably linked to you, right now. In fact, it’s not only connected to you; it has already taken place in your life if you’re a believer – and it continues to shape you as you follow Christ. To put it simply, Pentecost has happened to you, and it is calling you to take your place in Christ’s ongoing work.
I. Gathering Israel From The Nations (Eze. 37:21; Acts 2:7-11, 47)
The first thing we need to notice is the true meaning of what happened in Acts 2 – namely, God’s work of ‘gathering Israel from the nations.’ Some of you might wonder why we don’t start with the coming of the Holy Spirit. But, trust me – this is the right place to start, because it reveals the true purpose and significance of the Spirit’s outpouring.
What took place on the day of Pentecost was God’s work of gathering His people, Israel, from among the nations. That idea should sound familiar, especially from Eze. 37:21, where the Lord says, “Behold, I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land.”
Ezekiel is describing God’s plan to restore His people. That restoration, as the prophets tell us, is inseparable from the outpouring of God’s Spirit. Joel 2:28 declares, “I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh.” In other words, the Spirit’s outpouring and the gathering of God’s people go hand in hand – one without the other would be incomplete.
This means that the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost was not a random or isolated event. It was God’s way of authenticating and confirming that His long-promised gathering of Israel had begun – a spiritual regathering from all corners of the earth.
No wonder Acts 2 carefully lists all the nations from which those witnesses came. V. 5 tells us, “Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven.” Look at the map of those regions listed – Parthia, Media, Elam, Mesopotamia, Cappadocia, Egypt, and so on – they encircle Jerusalem from every direction. Luke wants us to see that the promise spoken through Ezekiel was being fulfilled before their very eyes.
Ezekiel wasn’t the only one who spoke of this. Moses said it first. Before Israel even entered the Promised Land, Moses declared in Dt. 30:3-4, “the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you, and He will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you.” That’s how the story of Israel began – with the promise that even after exile and scattering, God would gather His people again.
King David prayed the same hope in 1 Chron. 16:35, saying, “Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather and deliver us from among the nations.” The Prophet Isaiah repeats this promise eight or more times; Jeremiah and Ezekiel about ten times each. Other prophets – like Hosea, Micah, Zephaniah and Zechariah – also spoke about it. Altogether the Lord’s promise to gather His people appears over 40 times across at least 14 OT books, often directly tied to the pouring out of God’s Spirit!
So, here’s the key point to remember: the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles and those gathered with them on the day of Pentecost to confirm and seal the fulfilment of God’s ancient promise – the gathering of His people from every nation under heaven.
That’s what the outpouring of the Spirit means – God’s promise to re-gather His people has come true in Christ.
II. Making Them One Undivided Kingdom (Eze. 37:22-23; Acts 2:42-46)
Then, what is the purpose of God gathering His people? It is to make them one undivided kingdom – the kingdom under the one and only King, Jesus Christ! And this brings us to our second point.
Those about 120 people who received the Holy Spirit were made one in the Spirit. They spoke in many different tongues, yet their message was unified – all about the Messiah, Jesus, as Lord and King over His people.
The Apostle Peter explains this in vs. 17-21, quoting the Prophet Joel. When he mentions the sun turning to darkness and the moon to blood, he is pointing to the day of Israel’s true King – the day He comes to enthrone Himself, deliver Zion and judge the nations. That day marks the restoration of His people – ultimately, the last day. On Pentecost, this prophecy began to be fulfilled: first, through the 120 who received the Spirit, then, through the 3,000 who repented, believed, and were baptised that day, joining the others as citizens of this new kingdom.
In this way, the giving of the Holy Spirit signified the reign of a Davidic King – one King over one united kingdom! In other words, the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost inaugurated the kingdom of God on earth, bringing the promises of Scripture to life before everyone.
Acts 2:42-46 describes life in this one, undivided kingdom. The believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and the prayer. Awe came upon every soul. They were united not only physically or materially, but also spiritually, sharing everything in common. With joy and gladness in their hearts, they praised and worshipped God daily, and God’s favour rested upon them, as well as the favour of all the people. This Spirit-wrought unity was heavenly, out of this world.
Truth is that this was a new kind of nation – one the world had never known, but long awaited by God’s people. The beginning of this kingdom, which we often refer to as the early church in Jerusalem, was exactly what the OT had promised and what the faithful had longed to see. Abraham dreamed of it as he remembered God’s promise of innumerable descendants. Moses also longed for it as he delivered God’s promise that Israel would be God’s people and He would be their God forever. Every faithful one in the OT anticipated this kingdom as they reflected on the glorious era of King David.
This kingdom, which the faithful had longed to see, was united in mind and purpose, speaking one truth – that the Lord is King, and to Him alone we worship. And the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost brought that kingdom into being on earth, among those upon whom the Spirit had come!
III. The Ongoing Stream Of Pentecost (Eze. 37:26-27; Acts 2:47)
What amazes you, me, and all true believers throughout the generations is this: we all belong to that kingdom of God and Christ. Those 120 plus 3,000 who were added that day, were simply the first citizens of this kingdom. You and I have now joined them, becoming fellow citizens of the one and same kingdom of Christ.
From that moment of Acts 2 onward, it doesn’t really matter, therefore, whether the Spirit is poured out in the same form or in a different way. What matters is that every citizen of Christ’s kingdom has received – through faith – the same Spirit of God and of Christ. Although our faith and daily lives may fall short of the example set by the early church – the first model of Christ’s kingdom on earth – we share the same Spirit. It is this Spirit that stirs us to grow into the fullness of Christ in our faith, to be guided by Him in every aspect of our lives, and to shape our daily walk so that we follow the Lord alone. In that sense, we stand shoulder to shoulder with the apostles and the first Christians – right there with the 3,000 souls on the day of Pentecost!
You must know that the very same Holy Spirit who came down upon them in Acts 2 has come down upon us as well. Every true believer of Christ Jesus has received the Spirit that the apostles received that day. Scripture confirms this: “No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except in the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:3). And again, “When you believe in Him [Christ], you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance” (Eph. 1:13-14). Through faith in Jesus, you know that you have been set free from sin, don’t you? This freedom is what the Holy Spirit has brought to you. 2 Cor. 3:17 declares, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Consider also the language we now speak. I don’t mean speaking in tongues specifically, but the spiritual language that has marked our lives since conversion. We speak about our Heavenly Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. We talk about new life, about being made holy through Jesus, and about serving in His Church. We speak of the love of Christ; we share brotherly love among believers; we pray for one another; we rejoice to hear of new converts and of others growing in faith, don’t we? We speak of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. This, truly, is a new tongue – a new language given by the Spirit.
Once, our native tongue was filled with the language of sin – sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these, wasn’t it? But, everyone who has received the Holy Spirit now speaks a new language – the tongue of heaven – the same language the apostles spoke on the day of Pentecost!
No wonder there were more than the twelve apostles in that upper room – at least 108 others, men and women, young and old – representing you, me and all true believers from every nation and generation! You and I have the same Spirit, and we now speak the language of heaven, my fellow citizens of Christ’s kingdom!
Conclusion
The awe-inspiring truth is that this kingdom has been expanding ever since. Like a vast, unending, far-reaching stream, God continues to gather His people from every nation and every generation. You and I have been brought into this great stream – and called to part in it. As Spirit-filled believers, we’re part of the ongoing fulfilment of the ancient prophecies – bearing witness to Christ and taking our place in the expansion of His kingdom.
So, what took place in the upper room and in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost is not something for us to envy, nor merely a Sunday School story to remember. It is the very reality that has happened to you and me when we repented of our sins and believed in Jesus. In a word, Acts 2 is your story and mine.
What you read in the book of Acts, then, is the story of how the Spirit of God leads each of us in His grace and power, and how He continues to expand His kingdom through us – just as He did through Peter, Paul, and many others.
All praise to God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit! Amen. ***
St Columba's Presbyterian Church 