When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.  (2) And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.  (3) Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.  (4) And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.  (5) And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.  (6) And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.  (7) Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not all these who speak Galileans?  (8) And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? (9) Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, (10) Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, (11) Cretans and Arabs – we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.”

The Book of Acts was written by Luke who has told the reader that those who experienced the entirely new event had been prepared by Jesus who told them that they would be baptized with the Spirit and with fire.  The disciples were told to wait in Jerusalem until they received power from on high.

There were three mandatory feast days for devout Jews and here at this particular time were gathered Jews from all over the know world for Pentacost – the feast of first fruits when a pilgrimage to Jerusalem was expected – so the scene is set for Pentecost and the gift of the Spirit.  Luke describes the unique situation here as having a sound of violent wind and the sudden appearance of tongues of fire on those present – not literal wind and not literal fire but sounds like and looks like.  This came from heaven and was the baptism of the Church in the Spirit and with power and fire which symbolized God’s presence.

Tongues spoken here are languages spoken which were unknown to the speakers but were the native language of those who heard – remember that the audience who gathered at the sound of the wind was devout Jews from every nation.  The Spirit empowered the apostles – uneducated Galileans –  who spoke the native tongues of others flawlessly.  God is identifying Himself with the Church and specifically with the apostles.  With this gift of the Spirit God is now in us – only because sins have been dealt with in the cross of Christ Jesus.  We believers are forgiven sinners with the abiding of the Spirit.  This is an act of the sovereign God Who acts in His perfect time.

And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples (altogether the number of names was about a hundred and twenty), and said, (16) Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus: (17) for he was numbered with us   “Let his dwelling place be desolate, And let no one live it it;” and “Let another take his office”.  (21) “Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, (22) beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.”  And they proposed two:  Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.  (24) And they prayed and said, “You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen (25) to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.”  (26) And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias.  And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

The Acts of the Apostles was written by Luke as an historical narrative of the early Church.  Our verses today concern the election of an Apostle to take the place of Judas Iscariot.

Jesus Christ had risen from the dead and had reappeared to the Apostles and many of the Lord’s disciples.  He had spent 40 days on this earth after the resurrection and then ascended to heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father.  He had told his followers to wait in Jerusalem and He would send the Holy Spirit to them  So our verses describe an action that takes place in the ten days between the Ascension and the coming of the Spirit.  Jesus did not Himself call another to be the twelfth Apostle but relied on the 11 Apostles to do this.  Peter, who was a natural leader and clearly not a man for inaction, stepped up and quoted the Old Testament to show that the Scripture had to be fulfilled:  One (Judas) had to betray the Lord and God’s purpose will ever be fulfilled.  So the eleven apostles prayed for wisdom and after careful review they chose two worthy men for consideration.

Luke began this letter which would be known as Acts of the Apostles by saying that the resurrection of Christ Jesus had been proved – and he wrote of many convincing proofs.  Luke then inserts this story showing that the remaining Apostles were reliable and they were doing God’s will by this apostolic election.  There was no uncertainty, no objection and no hesitation to take this step.  They needed one who had witnessed all Christ had done and said  in this world – one who would testify to the resurrection of Christ Jesus.  Authority had clearly been bestowed upon them by the risen Christ and Christ left this to them to act.

The choice of Matthias as the twelfth apostle was not by chance – and we hear no more of Matthias after this.   But two qualified men had been put forward.  The eleven Apostles first used their best judgment and left the pick to God.  They cast lots for the final decision which was a method used all through the Old Testament.

This is the last mention of casting lots in all of Scripture. The Apostles have been prepared by Christ Jesus for His Church and await the Spirit Who will empower them.

As Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshipped him.  (26) But Peter lifted him up saying, “Stand up; I myself am also a man”

(34) Then Peter opened his mouth and said:  In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality.  (35) But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.”

(44)   While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word.  (45) And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also.  (46)For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.  Then Peter answered (47) “Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized in the name of the Lord. ”  Then they asked him to stay a few days.

The Acts of the Apostles was written by Luke as an historical narrative of the early Christian Church. The early Church consisted of Christian Jews but in chapter 10 of Acts we are told how God adds Gentiles to the elect.  The Jews and the Gentiles despised each other but God’s design was one people in Christ.

The Mosaic Law said that many foods were unclean and forbidden to Jews.  Jesus effectively changed the food prohibitions when He rebuked the Pharisees telling them that nothing that goes into man will defile man but what comes out – Jesus was saying that uncleanliness is from the heart, not from that which was ceremoniously unclean.   He was essentially declaring all foods to be clean.  Christ on the cross accomplished full and final cleansing for the sins of the faithful – not for the Jews only but all who believe in Christ as Messiah.

Our verses today concern the conversion of the Gentile, Cornelius.  Cornelius was a Gentile Roman soldier – a leader of 100 men of the Italian unit which was of the elite Roman army. He represented the Roman occupation of Israel.   God came to Peter in a vision and declared all foods – and also all men – were not to be considered unclean.  Essentially Peter was told not to keep from association with Gentiles and that he was to offer the Gospel to them.  So when men sent by Cornelius – who had been visited by Gods angel to tell him to send for Peter – Peter goes to the house of Cornelius realizing he would preach the gospel to the household of Cornelius. These Gentiles were not Jewish – they were uncircumcised  men and had before this been shunned by Jews.  Peter arrived, reminded Cornelius he was a messenger from God and just a man.  (I love the humility of this sentence.)

What Peter preached to Cornelius of the gospel had exactly the same results as described at Pentecost but now the participants were Gentile.   Peter was interrupted by God – before he even finished the Holy Spirit came upon Cornelius and his household and they believed.

Chapter 10 of Acts tells us that God includes the world in the Gospel.  Salvation is available to all but salvation is in Christ and is by faith.  It is absolutely clear in Scripture that the Spirit indwells the believer instantly  and the Spirit gives us the power to obey God.

And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple.  (27) But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles.  And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to Him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus.  (28) So he was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out.  (29) And he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the Hellenists, but they attempted to kill him.  (30) When the brethren found out, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him out to Tarsus.  (31) Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified.  And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.

The Book of Acts was written by Luke and is an historical narrative of the spread of the Gospel of Christ Jesus from Jerusalem to Rome in a time period of 35 years.  This Book is written from testimony of early Christians who had seen Christ with their own eyes.  It is also an eyewitness account of much of the Apostle Paul’s missionary life, with the recurring and underlying theme of the power of the Holy Spirit.

In our verses today we read about Saul – who had seen the resurrected Lord on the road to Damascus and had believed – who came to Jerusalem to join the disciples of Jesus.  Saul – who is now known as Paul – had been a Jewish leader and zealot when it came to the defense of the Jewish Law.  His reputation for unrelenting persecution of the early Christians  had survived the passing years since the conversion of Paul when he began preaching the gospel.  Paul’s history was well known to the Christian leaders in Jerusalem and they feared him still.  Barnabas took up his cause and Paul was accepted by Peter and James, half brother of Jesus, and Paul joined them in Jerusalem preaching the gospel.  It didnt take long for Paul’s method of using the Old Testament to prove that all of the Old Testament pointed to Jesus as the Messiah; to arouse the Jewish community to the point of wanting to kill Paul – only 15 days.  Aware of this the Christians brought Paul to the port of Caesarea so he could return to Tarsus.            

Our last verse today tells us that there was peace in the area after the turbulence of Paul’s visit.  Actually the rage of the Jews at that point turned from fighting Christians to fighting Rome.  The Emperor Caligula was setting up idols in Jerusalem and fighting this was priority for the Jews.  So, the Church growth in this period of rest and quiet from persecution, in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, was miraculous – extraordinary.

These verses today were written after and because of the transformation of Saul to Paul the Apostle.  Paul was transformed in a minute by faith in Christ Jesus as our/his savior – this moment changed his nature, his destiny and his standing with God.  Paul became the new man who was God’s chosen instrument to write most of the New Testament, to bring God’s word to most of the known world.  Paul is our most perfect model for a transformed life ever.   Our rebirth is in an instant and then the life changes begin – a process of sanctification.  The Spirit  lives within transformed lives.

What a story.  These verses are just a snapshot of what went on in that ancient world.  What a story of the sovereignty of God.