Acts 2:1-48
The book of Acts is the record of the ongoing life of Christ. The Son of God had died. He had been buried. But He had risen from the grave. He had appeared to His disciples—not once, not twice, but repeatedly. He had even taught them truths about His kingdom, although they wouldn’t understand some elements about it until later. They were somewhat bewildered by the turn of events, but they were absolutely sure about some things. Christ had conquered death and had reconciled them to God. And just before ascending to heaven, He had promised He would send the Holy Spirit to guide and empower them in their mission of leading people of all nations to the same life-saving knowledge of God that they had found in Him.
On the tenth day after Jesus’ public ascension, about 120 of His followers were together in a room near the temple. The day began as the Jewish harvest festival called Pentecost. Thousands of Jews had gathered to celebrate it. The followers of Jesus expected to participate in the festivities, but their plans changed. Suddenly it happened! The Holy Spirit came to form the church and used the apostles to preach the very first gospel sermon that resulted in the salvation of 3,000 people who were baptized into Christ.
