The prophecy in Joel 2:28 came to pass on the day of Pentecost: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions (ESV). John the Baptist also told of the coming of the Spirit: “I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11, ESV). Jesus promised the Spirit when He was still among the disciples, teaching them: “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. You know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:16-17, ESV). As He was ascending into Heaven, Jesus again told His disciples: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon youk, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8, ESV).
And now that day had arrived! The day of Pentecost was the fiftieth day after Passover, counting from the second day of the feast (Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of the NT, 1996, p. 465). The coming of the Holy Spirit was audible, visible, and powerful. The Spirit was audible in the sound of a mighty rushing wind; visible as divided tongues of fire; and powerful in that He filled each one of those who had been waiting and praying. They began to do amazing things, one of which was to speak in and understand languages not native to them and which they had not studied. The speaking at the time of the coming of the Spirit may also have been in ecstatic spiritual utterances as well. They had been waiting for and praying for the Holy Spirit. They didn’t have to wonder, when He came; He demonstrated His presence. The mighty wind showed the power and energy of the Spirit. Fire in the Old Testament indicated the presence of God; the disciples would have known this and the Spirit was demonstrating it. The fire represented God’s holiness and the burning away of impurities. Dr. Vance Havner, commenting on the coming of the Holy Spirit, wrote: “We are not going to move this world by criticism of it nor conformity to it, but by the combustion within it of lives ignited by the Spirit of God.” (Quoted in The Wiersbe Bible Commentary, NT, 2007, p. 325). The Spirit had “combusted” the hearts of the followers on the day of Pentecost. This was the baptism by or the coming of the Holy Spirit to them as promised. Christ had pledged to the disciples that when the Spirit came upon them they would be able to accomplish great deeds. Indeed, that promise was fulfilled. Now the third person of the Trinity lived and moved among believers.
Daniel Iverson (1890-1977) penned the words of the chorus: “Spirit of the living God, fall fresh on me; Spirit of the living God, fall fresh on me. Break me, melt me, mold me, fill me. Spirit of the living God, fall fresh on me.” My husband and I spent a month in the Holy Land in 1978. While there, we visited the upper room believed to be where the Holy Spirit fell upon the disciples. I was amazed when I had our pictures developed and two of those I took in that room had a reflection of light that looked like tongues of fire. It was sobering and humbling to have stood in the reputed place where the Spirit descended on the day of Pentecost. As each individual is willing, the Spirit enters and fills the waiting heart. May our prayer be: “Breathe on me breath of God, Till I am wholly Thine, Till all this earthly part of me Glows with Thy fire divine.” (Edwin Hatch (1835-1889).
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