Monday, May 12, 2008

An amusing and awesome Pentecost

Today is Pentecost Sunday, so I did some more re-reading of Acts Chapter 2.

While reading further, I can't help but be amused by a certain passage.
It is actually quite funny when you think about it. The Holy Spirit has just descended
upon the disciples and they "began to speak in different tounges". Most of the crowd was astounded because they hear the disciples speaking in each of their own native languages. How come the disciples suddenly knew how to speak in so many languages? Thus the crowd were all "astounded and bewildered". Now here comes the funny part. Apparently, "contravidas" also abounded among the crowd as these skeptical others said, scoffingly: "They have had too much wine". Clearly, these guys are making fun of the disciples, and were probably jealous of all the attention they were getting. Peter then retorts: "These people are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o'clock in the morning".

Ha-ha. Of course who but the most rabid alcoholics would be drunk at 9 in the morning? And at the Pentecost Festival? Silly. Apparently, those crazy hecklers in the crowd hadn't given much thought to a good enough way to ridicule the disciples.

Immediately, Peter then launches into that famous Pentecost speech. Peter began to explain what the events the Jews had witnessed really meant. His speech takes up much of the remainder of the chapter. He makes a powerful and courageous witness to Christ as the promised Messiah. Now here comes the awesome part. At the end of his speech, "about three thousand persons were added that day". Wow. Imagine converting three thousand persons just by delivering a speech. With his knack for words, its a blessing to Christianity that Peter didn't opt to become a salesman instead. Of course we know it was the power of the Holy Spirit working in him. Two thousand years later and going, we still feel the power of that speech. Awesome.

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