Imagine what it would have been like to have been there on that Pentecost day when the promised Holy Spirit filled those believers as recorded in Acts 2. What would it have been like for them, and for those in the crowd - who had never seen or experienced anything like it before?
But of course part of the celebration of Pentecost is the fact that we can experience something of that 'first' Pentecost, as we experience God pouring His Spirit on us, as He has promised to do on all believers. [Note that Pentecost was a Jewish festival long before it became a Christian celebration (Leviticus 23:15-22). So whilst Christians celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, strictly speaking this was not the first Pentecost.]
What is the purpose of the Jewish festival of Pentecost (Shavot)? [Add your comments].
But what are the true signs of the presence of the Spirit in the life of a Christain? Speaking in tongues (4), signs and wonders (43), evangelistic success (41), prophecy (17-21), sharing your possessions with the poor (45), devotion to prayer (42), eating together (46)........ ?
When you think of someone as 'filled with the Spirit' where do you look for the evidence of this? What leads you to the conclusion that they are Spirit filled? Is it gifts (e.g. 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Ephesians 4) or fruit (Galatians 5:22-23), or a bit of both or something else? Why not add your thoughts and comments below?
