In 1981 Janet and I purchased our first house together.  It needed much work, so my Granddad came down to help.  He lost his farm in the Depression and became a carpenter, working until he died a few years ago at the age of 99.  He built a tool shed, sheet-rocked the garage, redid the kitchen, and generally transformed the house for us.

I still remember his reaction his first day with us, when he looked at my tools.  I had a socket wrench, a hammer, and a few screwdrivers to my name.  So he immediately took me to Sears and bought me a drill.  He had to show me how to use it, to change the bits and so on.  I've used it ever since.  But one thing he didn't have to explain was the fact that the drill must be plugged in to a power source.  Unplugged, it's of little use.  There's nothing wrong with it--it just needs power.

So with Christians today.

In these days before Pentecost, we are walking through the Book of Acts together.  Yesterday we surveyed the blueprint for Jesus' church: God's people, working by his power, accomplish his purpose of witnessing to the world, beginning where they are.  Without his power, none of this is possible.

So Acts tells us the story of the Spirit's fall on the church.  It is a remarkable narrative.  The first Christians are meeting in an upstairs room of a house in Jerusalem; tradition says it was the same place where Jesus took his Last Supper with them.  They are spending this time exclusively in prayer and worship (Acts 1:13-14).

Now comes the day of Pentecost, one of the three great Jewish holidays.  Every male Jew living within twenty miles of Jerusalem was legally required to come, and Jews from across the world crowded the streets of the city for the party.

Suddenly, while the first Christians are in prayer in their upper room, the Holy Spirit moves in a way never before seen in human history.  Previously the Spirit would come "upon" people for a particular purpose and time (cf. Judges 14:19), then leave them until the next time his power was needed.  This is why David prayed, "Take not your Holy Spirit from me" (Psalm 51:10).  No one after Pentecost needs this prayer.  For now the Spirit moves "into" us, taking up residence forever.

What happened next?  What does this event matter today?  Let's continue in the morning.

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