 Okay. Good morning, everyone. Now, welcome to this session on all the study of the Book of Acts. We will get started with a word of prayer and request Jeffino to please lead us. Dear Heavenly Father, we come here under the name of Jesus. We thank you for this day. Thank you for this class that we're about to have. Well, I just bless everyone in my class. We bless Pastor Nancy and all my dear classmates and friends. We pray that you can give us good advice and mention throughout the session so that we can look at where our life of fall and the act and the Book of Acts a little more deeper and we can learn from your Jesus. So let's with your whole spirit as we are listening, help us to open our mind and heart and listen to each and every single through who are by the Jesus. May your name be glorified in Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you, Jeffino. So in the last class, we had a brief introduction of the Book of Acts and we understood that Luke is the writer of this book and we saw how there is a progression as far as the growth of the church is concerned. The evolving of the church structure is concerned and the great commission of the Lord Jesus for all his disciples. We find that the believers of the Book of Acts are actually living that great commission and mighty signs and wonders are being accomplished through their lives. We also saw that it spread over the region, the various events of this book in Asia Minor. And though we may say that the apostles could not really go to the ends of the earth, we know that it was a beginning for this fulfilling of the great commission that God called him to do. And we saw how in Acts chapter one, the Lord resurrected Jesus is instructing the disciples, he's spending time with the disciples and then he ascends up into heaven in a very clear manner. Following that, he instructs them to tarry or wait for the baptism in the Holy Spirit which is a prerequisite for them to move in signs, wonders and miracles. And we will see so much more about how they begin to manifest the power of God through their lives later on. But now this is the instruction that Jesus gave them in Acts one night, he said that you shall receive power from on high, you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. So in Acts one day of waiting, they are waiting as a community, we saw how about 120 people are waiting in the upper room. And during that time, Peter feels that it is important to ensure that there are 12 apostles. So he calls for an election and we also noted how these people were dependent on God in everything. Now this was basically, you might say a leadership decision, isn't it for Peter as well as the people over there to select the 12% because Judas was earlier with them but he betrayed Jesus. And so there was a position vacant for another person. We saw how these disciples as well as the women who had gathered and others who were with them, they prayed before they made this decision. Yes, they cast the lots but they depended on God for the answer that came from him. And finally, Matthias was the one who was chosen as the 12th apostle and this is where we stopped in our last class. So today we will continue in Acts chapter 2 and in Acts chapter 2, what's happening is that we have all these 120 people, they are waiting for the promise of the Father or the promise that the Lord Jesus made about the coming of the Holy Spirit. So this is where we are at and let me just see if I can, okay, let's go forward with this. Maybe I'll show you a map a little later on. So again, somebody go ahead and read for us please. If you may read for us, it is a little long passage here but one person could read from Acts chapter 2 verses 1 through 13. I will explain it and then the next section can be read by another person. Please go ahead. Okay, so throughout this course you may need to read some passages so that we have better clarity and also ask questions, answer some of the questions that I may be asking. So please be prepared to speak out loud. Alright, could somebody read please. Acts chapter 2 verse 1 to verse 13. There came a sound from heaven as of a thrashing mighty wind and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then they appeared to them divided tongues as of fire and one sat upon each of them and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other languages. I mean other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. The crowd is response. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, the vote meant from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred the multitude came together and were confused because everyone had them speak in their own language. Then they were all amazed and marvel saying to one another, look. Are they not all these who speak Galileans or how is it that we hear each in our own language in which we were born? Pathians and Medes and Almites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Potos and Asia, Theligia and Theria, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining great. Visitors from Rome, both Jews and Procellates, Cretans and Arabs were here. We hear them speaking in our own tongues, the wonderful work of God. So they were all amazed and perplexed saying to one another, whatever could this mean? Others mocking, saying, Said they are full of new wine. Amen. Thank you. Thank you for reading that passage. So here we are understanding that the day of Pentecost had fully come. What is the meaning of that? I told us that when Jesus was tried and he died on the cross, it happened during the Passover. And there was a certain day mark for Pentecost while preparations for Pentecost were happening. 50 days from the Passover would be the Pentecost. So that 50 day timeline is completed and Pentecost is actually here. That is what we recognize over here. So we are being told that the day of Pentecost had fully come. Now Jesus had stayed with them something like 40 days. So how long would they have needed to wait after the Lord Jesus ascended? Somewhere about 10 days is what we look at and we say, okay, they must have been praying and waiting for the Lord for 10 days. And Jesus promised them in the earlier passage we saw that not very far from now or quite soon in some days something is going to happen. Something powerful is going to happen. So they knew that they were waiting but in a matter of days something was going to happen. Now when the day of Pentecost had fully come, what's happening? These people are continuing in one accord and with a prayerful attitude. One accord is oneness of heart, oneness of mind. It's not so much just people being together. Now we all understand that we could be together physically but our hearts may be far apart. But in this case the beauty of the early believers is that when they gathered in prayer you will find the mention of the term one accord which is very powerful. So they were gathered in one accord which means oneness of heart, oneness of mind, oneness of purpose and in one place. So physically also they were present together. What is it that they were looking forward to? Obviously they were looking forward to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon them. Now notice verse 2 says, and suddenly, was it really a suddenly? In the context we know that they were waiting for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. So it's not like they didn't know that this is going to happen. They knew something is going to happen but they just didn't know when. So even when we wait on the promises of God, we know that God is going to come through for us and we will see the manifestation of the word. We will see the manifestation of standing in faith. And what God really does is while we wait for him in this way, there are these sudden leaves. The sudden leaves come upon us and scriptures say and suddenly there came a sound from heaven. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven. When Luke is reporting, Luke we understood a little bit about his background that he's quite a systematic historian and also a physician. So he would not be writing fictitious accounts for us. So when he says that came a sound from heaven, that is a tangible experience that people had, people talked about. And even Luke is testifying to this. So there must have been a real sound which came from heaven. And what else? There are other expressions of as of a rushing mighty wind. So how is this sound? It's like a rushing mighty wind. In other terms, it is very powerful. We all know when there's a gentle breeze, it's very pleasant and comforting to our hearts. But when we hear a mighty wind of, let's say, a storm that is brewing up, stirring up, or if we have watched a tornado and we have seen the sound of that powerful wind that goes ahead, that moves very forcefully, something like that. Imagine, so there is a sound, a powerful sound. What kind of a sound of a rushing mighty wind? Now, mighty wind as Jews, people would associate in those times with the wind having to do with God because God created with his breath. So somewhere that concept of breath, wind associated with the work of God or the spirit of God would have been there in their minds. So even at this point, when they're experiencing this great sound of a rushing mighty wind, and we are told that it filled the whole house where they were sitting. But they must have had this sense of awe that, yes, God has come to visit us. Whatever Jesus talked about is beginning to manifest in our midst. And see how the account is so dramatic. The first time that the Holy Spirit came upon the believers was very powerful. And we don't necessarily see something similar happen. Every time we are now refilled with the Holy Spirit in our walk with the Lord. But on the day of Pentecost, the very first instance where the Holy Spirit was poured out, this was their experience. What happened? They were all in prayer. They were all in one accord because they were seeking the promise of God. Jesus said that power from on high would be bestowed on them. So that was their purpose. We need to receive this power from on high because he had instructed them, saying you need it and you don't go anywhere. First you receive this power and with that intention they were waiting upon the Lord. And then there was this tangible experience where they heard a sound as of a rushing mighty wind. And what else happened? It filled the whole house where they were sitting. So it was not just the experience of one person but it was the experience of everyone there who felt this and heard the sound coming upon them. Then what else is going on? And we are also told that there appeared to them divided tongues as of fire and one sat upon each of them. Now divided tongues of fire or flames of fire sitting upon each one of them could also be a tangible experience in the sense that they could have seen it with their natural eye or even their spirit senses could have been activated and they could have seen what exactly is going on around them. And like tongues of fire or flames of fire were sitting upon these 120 people. For the believers they would have known that this has got to do something with the Holy Spirit because the presence of God, you know how in the Old Testament we can see the way God manifested, the way he manifested the presence of God even manifested in the form of like fire, the burning bush. What was that? That was the presence of God. So somewhere they kind of had that idea and even when the Israelites were moving the fire by night, the cloud by day, so the fire that came upon them would have given them a sense that God is in our midst and God is doing something and it came and it sat upon each one it says. Now that is also special for God. He could have just had a big fire in the middle of the place where they were seated and the Holy Spirit could have been poured out upon each one. But when God does something in the scriptures, when we see that he's working in a certain way we can sense his heart. So fire coming upon each one, each one of the 120 people just shows us how God is, you know how he loves to bless every single believer with this power and with his glory. So that day as they waited upon the Lord they encountered the glory of God. So the place was filled with that sound and that sense of awe and verse 4 says and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. So here is the manifestation of the presence of the Holy Spirit. How? In the form of a gift of a Spirit which is speaking in tongues. So when the Holy Spirit filled them, they started to manifest a gift of the Spirit. Later on we read about this in 1 Corinthians chapter 12. We also read about tongues in 1 Corinthians chapter 14. But here in this first instance, the manifestation of a gift of the Spirit is taking place. Now how are they speaking in tongues? The Bible tells us here the Spirit gave them utterance. Meaning the sounds are not their own. In other words, they are not learned sounds because we know that when we learn a language we are trained in phonetics. We know how to formulate words and communicate those words. But in this situation, it's not like they are speaking a language which they know or which they have learned. They are speaking a language as per the ability given by the Holy Spirit. So the Holy Spirit is giving them the utterance is what we are being told. So this language is not a familiar language to them. Now moving on to verse 5. We see and there they are dwelling in Jerusalem. Jews devout men from every nation under heaven. So we have to see the context of when all this is happening. So the day of Pentecost was a time when Jews from all the surrounding places not just the Judean region but far beyond the Judean region would come to Jerusalem because that was the central place where they would gather for their worship. And that is why in Acts chapter 2 we are told that dwelling in Jerusalem Jews devout men from every nation under heaven. That means that Jews from far away had gathered in Jerusalem when all this happened. And verse 6. And when the sound occurred the multitude came together. So again we can ask the question was this something that Luke imagined or something that was perceived in the spirit of the believers or was it a tangible manifestation? From what Luke is writing seems like a tangible manifestation because he says when this sound occurred what sound the sound of a rushing mighty wind occurred people around heard it. That is why the multitude came together and were confused. Now he is extending that. He is also talking about the fact that because they heard them speak in his own language. So there were two sounds which others could have experienced and those sounds were one of a rushing mighty wind. Second is people speaking in this language as as encouraged or as empowered by the Holy Spirit. So the utterances are all as given by the Holy Spirit. So you can imagine the scene with me here in the upper room. 120 people. Suddenly there's a sound and then all of these people are filled with the spirit. They begin to speak in tongues. People around are hearing these noises and they are rushing to the upper room and they are watching what's going on. So I also want to encourage us there is a movie called as the Acts of the Apostles which has been recorded as per the verses in the book of Acts. So it will go verse by verse whatever has been narrated here they try to capture it in the same way. So that's also something that you can watch just to get the idea of how these things could have looked. So imagine with me people all have come. They are shocked by the sounds and they are observing these people who are speaking in a different language. But Luke says here heart that speak in his own language. So for the believers they are speaking based on the utterance given by the spirit. For the unbelievers who have come to the spot they are hearing their own language is what Luke is saying. What else let's see. Then they were all amazed and marvels saying to one another look are not all these who speak Galileans and how is it that we hear each in our own language and in which we were born. So these onlookers are amazed at the fact that their own language is being spoken. I told us there are people from many regions here. So it's not just one or two places that people have come from and then share the list of which places they have come from. Let me quickly show you a map. Can you all see. So this is what it looks like. So in Acts chapter 2 was 5 to 12 where we are seeing that the believers are gathered in the upper room and people from all regions are there. Luke goes on to explain where these people are from. So when we read that passage he says something like from verse 9 partians and needs and illamites those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt parts of Libya are joining Cyrene visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes critons and Arabs. We hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God. So isn't that amazing that there are people from at least 15 different regions. At least you can begin to count the names of these places at least 15 different places and they might have had their own languages and dialects and they are saying it's amazing. How is it that we can hear these people speak in our language? So what this tongues is is when we study about speaking in tongues in our APC publications you can go and study regarding this gift of the Holy Spirit there are books like the wonderful benefits of speaking in tongues there's another book, Gifts of the Holy Spirit there we can see that tongues are also categorized so this tongues which is being spoken of in Acts chapter 2 is the tongues which is known as the sign to the unbeliever so how does the sign to the unbeliever manifest? People, the believer speaks in tongues but it is heard as a learned language to the listener so that's what is happening here in Acts chapter 2 when the believer is speaking in tongues the listener, unbeliever is hearing in his or her own language now another beauty of what is going on here is that they recognize the Jews and proselytes, who are proselytes? Proselytes are non-Jews who now follow the Jewish religion, the Jewish God the Jewish traditions these are the two categories, Jews and proselytes non-Jews who follow Judaism proselytes, so all these people are devout that is the reason they have now gathered in Jerusalem they also recognize that the speakers of these languages are but Galileans, now what is the significance of Galileans? it is said that Galileans were not considered among the learned people they were not considered among the scholarly people they were not considered among people who can speak fluently or clearly and apparently I've read that they had an accent from their own region, so they wouldn't be able to pronounce other words in other languages quite clearly, so these were all the challenges that Galileans had in those times and that is why they are specially pointing out and saying that aren't these people Galileans how is it that they are speaking in our languages and another important point that they are making is they are saying that what is it that they are hearing? something is being spoken in their language but the meaning of what is being spoken is that they are speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God so when we are speaking in tongues it's about speaking in the will of God so in this situation what's happening when people are speaking in tongues what is actually being said is praises to God, glory to God what's of God being spoken now let's focus on the last verse over here or last two verses where we read so they were all amazed and perplexed saying to one another whatever could this mean others mocking me, mocking said they are full of new wine now what is going on here is what goes on even today there is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit and we see that the Holy Spirit is filling the believers and they are moving in the gifts of the Holy Spirit now people who are watching this exercise what is their reaction? one reaction that we have already noticed is they are saying hey how is this happening they are so amazed people are speaking the wonderful works of God and how could this happen so it's a very positive reaction where it's making them inquisitive it's making them question wanting to know more about God so it's a very positive kind of question that is being asked but at the same time for the same experience that is going on there is another reaction this reaction is a negative reaction where people are saying and they are mocking Luke says they mocked and said they are full of new wine so there are others who are looking at this phenomenon and they are not happy with it and they are definitely not attributing it to God in fact they are critical about it critical about the people who are manifesting the gifts of the spirit and they are saying hey something is wrong these guys look like they are drunk so I don't think the reactions of people has changed whether it was 2000 years ago or even today we get a similar set of reactions we get one set of reactions where people are willing to understand if this is God then what else can I know about God it draws them towards God but then there could also be people who see the work of the spirit in and through our lives and they might say something is wrong with this person this is definitely not God so this has been going on this is nothing new and when we especially talk about revivals we study about the many revivals in history time and again this is what we will see people were accepting of it but then there was a whole set of people who questioned the very work of God not that you can't question we all question it's a reasonable thing to do but not being able to accept the Holy Spirit is moving in a different way and notice whatever manifestation happened on that day was unique things like this had never happened before and isn't that true even in our experience of the presence of God and times with the Lord the way he ministers can be so different from the way we experienced it in the past so let me just pause for a moment to just get some of your comments and your reactions yes Jefina please go ahead yeah so I have few questions so in the first verse we read the day of Pentecost had fully come so why it was written like it fully came is there any reason behind it that's one of my first questions and the other question that I have is in verse 5 we read there were dwelling in Jerusalem so we saw the map like how people came from where they came so the people physically came from all those areas or they were actually in Jerusalem all those people were in Jerusalem and they just gathered these are my questions thank you Jefina so good questions the first one where you asked the day of Pentecost fully came it was just a way of saying that it was finally the 50th day because there would have been celebrations you know Pentecost is is the festival of the first fruits so there would have been celebrations and rituals leading up to that final day so that is why they are saying it had fully come it means that it was finally the 50th day and you know the proper time of celebrating okay so I hope that clarifies and your second question could you come again please the people who had come from around it was dwelling in Jerusalem they were already in Jerusalem yeah so what would happen at the time of Pentecost is that people would come and they would live in Jerusalem which means they would have rented out places and they would have it's not like today like you fly in the morning to a city and then you fly out in the evening they would not have the kind of transportation that we have so maybe because of that they would plan prior join the early festivities stay on a little longer and that is why it says dwelling in Jerusalem so they would stay a substantial amount of time even later you know we are going to see this that later when the Holy Spirit you know is poured out and Peter makes his sermon there will be people who will choose to stay back in Jerusalem to be part of the church okay so how the church will actually provide for their needs because they don't have anything in Jerusalem their homes are far away but they make a decision not to go back they make a decision to just stay back in Jerusalem so that is why the whole concept of dwelling visitors are living for a prolonged period of time that's how we'll understand yeah thank you yeah any other comments or any other thoughts so far I just want you to elaborate on the term that says divided tongues we know what is tongues what does it actually mean by divided tongues like why it's... so when we say divided tongues I mean I have not read anything about it so I'm not speaking from that knowledge but my understanding is those tongues of fire separate because if you take a fire by itself then you have the flame and you know the way birds we know but then just sort of pieces of that of that main fire is sitting upon each of the believers so that way it is saying divided it's not like you're seeing one huge fire but it's divided and it is also said that in the temple that God like the temple worship that God instituted the way things used to happen is that the acceptance of a sacrifice was made by fire whenever the sacrifice is accepted fire would sort of consume it so it was one way of God expressing his pleasure on all his people so instead of showing one big fire maybe God wanted to depict that accepting fire on each person so divided tongues sat upon which I feel like that is what it is if anyone else has a different take on the divided tongues you can please pitch it Rosalind is asking are the 120 disciples from Galilee yeah so the profile of the 120 disciples mostly they would be from Galilee is what we understand most of it at this point we could just stop we'll come back for the next session so let's just go in for our break class and we will start at 10pm thank you