What does this mean?

Acts 2:1-21
The Coming of the Holy Spirit
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%202%3A1-21&version=NRSVUE
 
A little housekeeping before we get to the reflection: I will be taking a break from this weekly reflection for the summer. Summer has its own busyness with Annual Conference, camps, and a focus on youth ministry, but it’s always good to break from a usual weekly routine to rest and listen to the Holy Spirit. I will be back in September with a renewed vision as we launch into Fall.
 
We end this collection of reflections on Pentecost, which was actually the beginning for the disciples and their work as the church. Someone asked me once, “If we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, was the Holy Spirit not present before?” The Holy Spirit was always present, but their experience of the Holy Spirit in this particular gathering was significant in their lives and in the sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
 
The people in Jerusalem were gathered for the Festival of Weeks, seven weeks or fifty days after Passover, in which the people celebrated the wheat harvest and a covenant renewal. Often, Diaspora Jews would be present, which is indicated by the different locations across the region mentioned in the passage. These places don’t necessarily mean as much to us today, other than being hard to pronounce if you are the liturgist for Pentecost Sunday, but they are included to show that there were divisions among the people representing different nations. The Diaspora was a scattering of the Jewish people after the Babylonian captivity to countries outside of Israel. They started new lives in new places, yet, for this specific festival, they gathered back together, renewed their covenant with God, and the Holy Spirit showed up in a big way.
 
As they were “all together in one place,” (v.2) the Holy Spirit rushed in, sounding like a “violent wind,” and tongues of fire appeared above their heads, giving them the ability to speak in other languages, the languages of the Diaspora Jews. Storm imagery such as wind and fire was often understood to be from God. The force of the wind and the passion of the fire describes the power of the Holy Spirit. It was strong enough to move in and through people’s lives to make them to do what seemed like the impossible. Being able to speak their specific languages really blew their minds. They had no idea how they were able to do it. So, they all questioned, “What does this mean?” (v.12). They knew this supernatural experience had to have a deeper meaning.
 
The Holy Spirit causes us to question a deeper meaning of why or how something is happening. The Holy Spirit moves with great purpose. In this particular instance, because the different languages were the ones understood by the Diaspora Jews, scholars believe that this was God bringing the people back together as one. And, since those present would understand the good news of Jesus in their own dialects, they would take the message back with them to share with the local people in their regions. This was a new scattering, a scattering of the message of Jesus to be taken to all people.  
 
Peter answered their question by addressing the crowd and telling them that what was happening was fulfilling Joel’s prophecy in which God declares, “I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and they shall prophesy” (v.17-18). What does this mean? It means that God sent Christ for all people, not just one chosen group. It means that we’re all called to share the message of Christ in our own unique dialects, so others will understand. It means that the Holy Spirit will equip us even when the naysayers sneer and accuse us for being drunk. It means we become a part of the movement of the Holy Spirit.
 
The Holy Spirit is always coming to us, like a force of nature, so that others can experience God’s power. The Spirit moves for a purpose, and that purpose is for all people to receive its gift. The Spirit has the power to remove barriers such as language and geography. When we gather together, the Spirit is present in the gathering and ready to move through us. May the Holy Spirit rush in and fall upon all of us, again and again, as we continue scattering the message of Christ.    
 
Reflection Questions:
Have you experienced the Holy Spirit during the gathering of people that was a significant event in your life? Was it similar or different from this experience?
Has the Spirit caused you to question, “What does this mean?”
Is there an area in your life where you are still questioning its meaning?
How can the Spirit help you understand in your own language?
 
Pray: Come, Holy Spirit, and show us what it means. Make us speak the same language of love, so we understand one another despite our differences.
 
Act: Open yourself to the Holy Spirit and see what happens.
  
*New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America.