The Coming of the Holy Spirit and the Urgency of Spreading the Gospel
In Acts Chapter 1, we see Jesus ascending into the heavens to be with The Father, and he was and now still is seated at the right hand of the Father and acts as our mediator, praying for us without ceasing.
Before He ascended into the heavens, He gave this promise to his disciples: He would not leave us without sending another for us! That is why the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles.
"When the Day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.
And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested upon each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues (human languages) as the Spirit gave them utterance."
-Acts 2:1-4
So, what was the Holy Spirit's purpose in giving the apostles new languages in which to speak?
Refer to Matthew 24:14, also known as the Olivet Discourse: "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."
We were given a commission by Jesus to spread the gospel to every corner, nook, and cranny of the world so that all peoples, nations, and tribes can come to know the truth about God, and to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
How can people make the decision to follow Jesus if they do not hear the gospel? And how can they hear the gospel if they cannot be communicated with due to not understanding one another?
In Genesis 11 God confused the language of the peoples so that they could not finish building their "great city", the Tower of Babel. After Jesus Christ died on the cross, was resurrected, and ascended back to heaven, humans were given the gift of tongues to once more be able to communicate with one another for the sake of spreading the gospel.
The Crowd's Response
"And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, 'Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born?' So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, 'Whatever could this mean?' Others mocking said, 'They are all full of new wine.'
-Acts 2:5-8,12-13
In Paul's second letter to Timothy, he admonishes Timothy and his congregation to "Preach the word" and to "be ready in season". (2 Tim. 4:1-2a)
Why is there a sense of urgency in preaching the gospel to the whole world? Why must we go and support missionary work, go to all four corners of the earth and preach the gospel with fervency? Because Jesus' return for the church, the rapture, is imminent! There are no prophetic signs necessary before the coming of the Lord for his church! And once the church is removed from the earth, all hell will literally break loose upon the earth and for many it will have been too late to hear the gospel.
Here is my challenge to you this week and every day you have left on earth: go, share the gospel with urgency. As you share, you are giving someone an opportunity to respond to the gospel, and therefore changing their eternity.
