A Supernatural View of Acts 2, Pentecost 2021

A Supernatural View of Acts 2: Pentecost Sunday, 2021 Today is such a special day. Pentecost. A word that means 50th. A Jewish feast, reminding the ancient Israelites of a couple of things. First, it is the feast of weeks: 7 weeks and 1 day after Passover, they were to bring an offering of wheat to the Lord in thanks for his goodness to provide for his people. Second, it was a reminder that God gave his people his Law, beginning with him thundering the 10 Commandments from Mt. Sinai. A most powerful moment in their history! This is all well and good if one happens to be Jewish! But I don't think any of us here are Jewish. So, what are we as New Testament, New Covenant, Gentile Christians doing remembering Pentecost? It was on this day, almost 2,000 years ago, Jesus began to build his church. His supernatural work. He sent the Holy Spirit in supernatural power to his people. Jews from all over the known world were in Jerusalem to celebrate this day-long feast. Jesus' disciples spoke in languages they never learned, proclaiming God's wonderful works to their fellow Jews. On that day, about 3,000 souls were supernaturally added to the brand new church of Jesus Christ, his assembly. His ekklesia. Literally, ones called out from the kingdom of sin and darkness and into his kingdom, filled with glory and light! Now, I mentioned supernatural several times in this message so far, and even included "Supernatural" in the title for a reason. Simply put, there is far more to Pentecost than tongues speaking and 3,000 people getting saved as amazing as that is. But our reality is that we celebrate the birthday of the church on Pentecost Sunday and then we sort of put it away away til next year, like we do with Christmas and Easter. But today, I want to do something in relation to Pentecost that takes us far beyond a birthday celebration, even though it is the birthday of the church. I want to take us on a supernatural journey--to cosmic levels surrounding the church of the Lord Jesus, beginning with Pentecost. To the highest echelons of spiritual warfare. Today we begin a 2 part Pentecost series. I had not planned on giving a 2 part message but the more I sought the Lord and how far reaching this truth is, I just have to spread this out over 2 weeks. As you heard in our bodylife time, next week we are going to have our 5th Sunday Fellowship and celebrate the Lord's Supper. It also is a time we offer believer's baptism. So if you have not been baptized after you have become a follower of Christ and want to obey the Lord by getting baptized, let me know and we can make that happen next week. And of course, we are going to dive into Pentecost, Part 2 after I set up a supernatural view surrounding Acts 2, today. The Lord Jesus told us that the Greatest Commandment is to love the Lord our God. How? With all our heart, soul, mind and strength. Today, I want us to love the Lord our God, primarily with our minds. And I ask a favor of you. I'm going to introduce you to some supernatural elements in relation to the first Pentecost, things that we in 21st Century America probably have missed as we read our Bibles. I ask you to think with me about these things; things that are indeed, incredible but foundational for a fuller understanding of holy Scripture. Together we are going to wade into territory that may be a bit out of the ordinary. Some of this truth will sound very odd to you, especially those of you who have been with us for only a short time, not knowing where I'm coming from. You might be tempted to say that I'm going off the deep end and trying to take you with me. But before you tune me out and write me off, I ask that you to give me the benefit of the doubt. To allow me to me explain myself first. Let's wrestle with this. What I'm about to share with you is absolutely grounded on God's inspired word. In some ways, what I'm about to say is nothing really new. But the way I'm going to say it, might be new to you. When you really see something, you can no longer unsee it. You must deal with it. So, I'm asking you to come with me to look at a supernatural view of Acts 2, this week and next week, from a 1st Century Jewish perspective. And really the supernatural view of the entire Bible. Because, again, in our 21st Century American mindset, we have missed so much of what those who first heard the truth of God, took for granted. As we wrestle with these things today, let me invite you to write down your thoughts and questions on the tab that we never use, tear it off of the bulletin and put the tab in the offering basket. I will deal with your thoughts and questions before we jump into the message next week. And if we need yet another week, we can do that as well. I'm in no hurry and I trust you are not either. As we know, part of our mission statement is that we learn the Bible. And I'm convinced that what is contained in the messages over the next 2 weeks will equip us in a much greater way to know and love the Lord, and understand and apply his truth to our lives. So you ready to think with me? Let's get going. Out of the box, let me tell you that several of the ideas I'm going to give to you are not original with me, but they serve as a nice dovetail to what I've been saying for years. Dr. Mike Heiser has made a career out of seeing things that many of us have missed. But even he will say that his thoughts and research are not original with him. His forte is to take what theological brainiacs do, those who believe the Bible is God's inspired word, and bring them down to our level. Let me begin by reminding us that when we read and study Scripture, context is everything. Without it, we can make the Bible say anything we want it to. For example, I can prove atheism from Scripture, because the Bible says these words, "There is no God." Twice. But what is the context? Psalm 14.1 and Psalm 53.1 both say, "The fool has said in his heart, 'there is no god.'" I can multiply the examples but you get the point. Reading the Scripture in context is everything. But what do we mean by context? Most of us think, and rightly so, that reading Scripture in context means that we read the verses before and after the passage we are trying to understand. This we must do. But this is where many of us stop. Allow me expand this a bit. When we read Scripture we also need to keep in mind the kind of writing it is. The word is genre. As with anything we read, we keep genre in mind. When we read fantasy novels, we don't understand them as news, unless it's fake news, then they're fantasy novels! In Scripture there are many kinds of genre. Also, there are some things we take literally and others figuratively. The death and resurrection of Jesus--is that literal or figurative? You know, some believe Christ literally died but only figuratively rose from the dead. If that idea is true, then we are all in trouble--none of us would be forgiven of our sins as Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15, if Christ did not rise bodily from the dead. Christ's death and resurrection are historical facts. Let me give another example. Scripture calls us sheep. But tell me, when was the last time you walked on all fours, ate grass and went over a cliff just because your fellow sheep did that? When was the last time you bleated? Let me give you another example. When was the last time you saw trees clapping their hands? In a word, we read Scripture, according to the kind of writing it is. We interpret figures of speech as figurative and facts as facts. That's pretty straight forward. Now let me introduce you to something Mike Heiser is very fond of saying: "We need to get the Israelite into our head." What does that mean? In a sense it's what I've been saying for a long time. As we know, a basic rule for Bible study is the Bible was written for us. It was not written to us. The truth of God is thousands of years old. Steeped in a Different culture than ours. Written in different languages than English. Addressing different contemporary problems than we do. How many of us have ever seen Scripture mention a smart phone? Or a truck? But Scripture does speak of a car. Acts 2.1 tells us that they were all with one accord. Now, of course that does not mean a literal car! It simply means they were all together. And this is where I did not go far enough in my thinking about Scripture. When Heiser says we need to get the Israelite into our head, what he means is that we need to take into account the world view of the scripture writers. And of those to whom they wrote. And to whom prophets spoke as well. Now this is huge. Because the world view of the Scripture writers includes their understanding of God, and of gods, and of truth that is often different from our own. To the Israelite and us who are true Christians, there is only one God. Let me say it again. To the Israelite, there is only one God. His name is YHVH. Please keep this in mind as we proceed. By the way when you see LORD in small caps that is the divine name. Part of the world view of the Israelite when Scripture was written is the first idea that I will introduce you to now: that of cosmic geography. Cosmic geography. What in the world is that? Let's break it down. When we think of geography, what comes to mind? Land mass. Territory. Places on the map. Borders. When we think of cosmic, what comes to mind? Big picture. The heavens. The spirit world. Life "out there." So, put them together. Territories in the heavens, specifically this heaven. Spirit beings that influence and even control nations. Paul understood cosmic geography. These are entities we as Christians wrestle against. He referred to them in Ephesians 6:12 as the rulers, the authorities, the cosmic powers over this present darkness, the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Unseen forces that have influence over us and our affairs. Think Daniel as a tangible example. In Daniel 10, he told his story of great conflict. He set himself to prayer and fasting. He had a vision and was greatly troubled by it. For 3 weeks he sought an answer to his terrifying experience, so much so, that Daniel seemed to describe himself going in and out of consciousness. There was no strength left in him. Daniel's profound experience included this experience in vv.10-11: "And behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. And he said to me, 'O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you.' And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling." We can assume that the one who touched Daniel with his hand was an angel in the form of a man. The angel informed Daniel that for 3 weeks, Michael--identified as Israel's prince, was in serious hand-to-hand combat with the evil prince of Persia. This strong prince made life difficult for Michael to deliver to Daniel the answer he sought from the Lord. Until this angel informed Daniel of the spiritual battle, he had no clue of the intense fight between Michael and the prince of Persia. The angel even told Daniel that a prince of Greece was to arrive on scene in the not too distant future. Such is the nature of cosmic geography. And it doesn't stop there. Cosmic geography extends to actual territories on earth as well. Let me give you one example. The true and living God, YHVH, has a nation, and he has piece of property, both named Israel. The very dirt of this patch of ground, about the size of New Jersey today, God owns. And God promised to give it to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: the land of Israel. The story of Naaman is fascinating. Naaman was a strong general from Syria. Strong yes, but he had a horrible case of leprosy. In one of the raids Syria made on Israel a young girl was taken captive, became a servant of Naaman's wife. The innocence of the young! She mentioned to her captors that there was a prophet in Israel who could heal Naaman. Well a glimmer of hope sprang in Naaman. He took a lot of stuff to Israel as payment for his services in hopes that he would be cured and eventually wound up at the house of the prophet Elisha. But Elisha did not greet Naaman. He sent word through his servant to tell Naaman to dip himself in the Jordan River 7 times. Well, Naaman got really upset! He was offended that Elisha didn't even greet the great Naaman! He was ready to return to Syria but Naaman's servants convinced him to just try what Elisha told him. Sure enough Naaman's skin was as soft as a baby's behind after he did what Elisha commanded! Naaman was so excited! He and all his company went back to Elisha's house, he and all his company, and Elisha greeted him this time. And Naaman said, "Behold, I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel; so accept now a present from your servant." But Elisha said, "As the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will receive none." Naaman urged him to take it, but Elisha refused. So, what to do? "I know," thought Naaman. I'll take some dirt from Israel back with me to Syria." Why was that? The short answer is that the only God in all the earth, in Naaman's world view, lives on this patch of real estate, called Israel. Naaman wanted to literally take holy ground back to Syria. And so cosmic geography extends to the actual land masses the spiritual princes preside over and influence, even to this day. Think about how evil the world is, and how seemingly in lock-step the nations are. I don't think it's that it's only because heads of state got together. It seems to me that there are spiritual forces at work. So, is the Israelite in your head yet? Cosmic geography was something that sons and daughters of Israel and the people around them, understood. In their world view, unseen principalities and powers were, and are, influencing nations in the seen world. Let me give you another strange idea. A difficult one. But it is true, nonetheless. So, I will just dive in. First, let me emphasize again. The Israelites took it for granted, there is only 1 YHVH. The only creator, everlasting God is Trinity--this is clear in the Old Testament, and of course throughout the New Testament. 1 YHVH. That is his name. We understand something else about YHVH. He is Elohim. Elohim, in reference to YHVH is the creator of all things seen and unseen. "In the beginning, Elohim created the heavens and the earth." Later on in Genesis 1, Elohim said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness." Nothing new here. All is well. Now, let me once again, try to get the Israelite into your head. In the mind of the Israelite, there is more than 1 Elohim. Many more than 1. If they believe in only one God, how did they come up with this? The Bible says so. Let me demonstrate. And this is where Mike Heiser saw something he could not unsee. And that began his trek that he has been on now for many years. Elohim is a Hebrew word, translated as God. In the Hebrew Bible, there are several kinds of beings all labeled Elohim. Let me give you 2 examples. In Psalm 82.1 we find these words: God--that is Elohim--has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods--that is Elohim--he holds judgment. Elohim, the one and only YHVH, in the divine council, takes his place in the midst of other elohim. And as we know, "in the midst of" means more than 1. Some might think that the divine council is the other members of the Trinity. But that cannot be because in the rest of Psalm 82, we find YHVH, calling the members of the council on the carpet for siding with the wicked. What to do with that? Let me give you another elohim moment. King Saul, Israel's first king, was in trouble. YHVH was silent. He did not answer Saul's prayers and was desperate for guidance. His spiritual advisor, Samuel, died awhile back. Saul didn't know what to do. So he went to the town called Endor and sought out a medium. A witch. Someone who could call up the spirits of dead people. This of course was a no-no with YHVH, the true and living God of the universe. But Saul reasoned, "desperate times call for desperate measures." Well, Saul asked the witch to call up Samuel from the dead. Let's pick up the story in 1 Samuel 28:13-14, where Saul asks, "What do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, 'I see a god coming up out of the earth.' He said to her, 'What is his appearance?' And she said, 'An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped in a robe.' And Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and paid homage." The one she saw was obviously Samuel. But she called him elohim. What to do with this one? Heiser's description is very helpful here. He says, "Elohim is a member of the unseen spirit world, whether the Godhead Trinity, members of the divine council or even a spirit of a human who is dead." We can say it like this: Though YHVH is an Elohim, there is no elohim like YHVH. Their understanding was YHVH is the Creator of everything, seen and unseen, to include the other elohim. No elohim are on the same level as YHVH, because he alone is Creator; all other elohim are created spirit beings. They are creatures. Now I know this is weird. But again, if God's word is inerrant, and the Scripture writers label members of his divine council and even the spirit of a dead human, "elohim," that means we must change our understanding of what elohim is. And that is what Heiser has tried to help the church, including me, to understand. So, let's let this settle, as I review two points. First, in the world view of the Israelite, cosmic geography is a thing. There are spiritual principalities and powers that even we as Christians wrestle against. Second, there is only One Creator God, revealed in the Old Testament as Trinity, who is Elohim. But there are other elohim as well. One YHVH-One Godhead, but many elohim. So, why is this important? Glad you asked. These things help us to understand the frontal assault of the final battle. Pentecost is central. This is one of several divine campaigns in the spiritual war. One of them was at the cross of Jesus when he said, "Paid in full," physically died, and rose again, victor over death. God predicted the spiritual war itself in the Garden of Eden, when he promised a redeemer. But the warfare began to show itself at the Tower of Babel. Genesis 10 and 11. Let me sum up the story. In Genesis 10, we have what is commonly called the Table of Nations. After the flood, God repeated the command to Noah and his family, "Be fruitful and multiply." God's mandate to people was for us to fill the earth and subdue it. To make the world like Eden. God wanted his image bearers to go to the ends of the earth and represent him well. Did that happen? Nope. Between Genesis 4 and 9, there was nothing but unfaithfulness on our part. Mankind was thoroughly wicked. And so God judged the world with a flood. After the water went away and the land dried out, God repeated to Noah the command he gave Adam and Eve. But did they go to the end of the earth as his faithful representatives? Nope. In Genesis 10 and 11, we see that the people of the world were divided up into 70 nations. But before the division, there was the Tower. They wanted to hang out together, and "make a name for ourselves, with a city and a tower reaching the heavens, to avoid obeying the Lord and going to the ends of the earth." Well, what did God do about that? Two things. First, he confused their languages so they could not understand one another. Then he divided them up. Seventy nations. But let's not forget, there's the cosmic geography at work here, because he divided them up according to the sons of God. When we get into our next series after 2 Corinthians, the Gospel according to Moses, we will talk about that. But for now, know that God scattered the nations and placed elohim-princes of nations-over them. Again, we saw that in Daniel's vision. Cosmic geography at work. Why did God do this? To fulfill his plan. How so? In a sense, by starting over. He promised to redeem us from our sin. Remember in Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve rebelled, the Lord basically told them, "I'm going to send a redeemer to clean up the mess you made." Eventually we discover 3 things about the redeemer. Heiser sums this up nicely in the book, "Reversing Hermon": The coming of Jesus as Yahweh incarnate meant 3 things: First, reversing the curse of death brought upon humanity by the sin of Adam. Second, it meant the undoing of our depravity--God is making his people into his holy people. And third, it meant that he was going to restore the divine order of heaven and earth. The prayer that we prayed this morning, that the Lord Jesus taught us will be fulfilled, "Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." But the Lord declared our utter sinfulness when he saw that our wickedness was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of our heart was only evil continually. This was his assessment of us before the flood. After the flood, he said this about us: "The intention of man's heart is evil from his youth." So what to do? Enter Genesis 12 and following. God was going to create a nation through which he would produce the Messiah, undoing all the damage that Adam and Eve did through their rebellion. We know the story. He called Abram and Sarai out of the Ur the Chaldees, ancient Babylon. They had no children. Sarai was past childbearing years. But God created in Sarai the ability to have a child and when she was 90 years old, Isaac was born. Then through Isaac came Jacob. And through Jacob came Judah. And through Judah, came Jesus, the one to sit on David's throne. Messiah. YHVH incarnate. At the right time, Jesus was born. Perfect man. God in the flesh. Proclaiming the kingdom of God. As we will see next week, Jesus declared himself to be Messiah by what he said. By what he did. And even by what evil spirits said about him, and to him. Jesus cast out demons, and at one time sent out a group of 70 disciples with authority to cast out demons as well-mark the number. Jesus led his 12 apostles to a place called Caesarea Philippi where he asked them, "Who do you say I am?" He led 3 of his apostles to a high mountain and was transfigured before them. He died, rose again, and sent the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. What were these things all about? Declarations of war in the unseen realm. And every one of us who follow Christ as Lord and Savior has an extremely vital part to play in the cosmic war, far greater than we imagine. One day the war will be over. And Jesus will reign as King of kings and Lord of lords. Next week, we will see the launch of his church to fulfill the words he said at Caesarea Philippi, "I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail." Until that time, the battle rages. So today, Pentecost Sunday, we celebrate the birthday of the Church of Jesus Christ. He sent his Spirit to advance his mission. To have his people engaged in 3 things, and 3 things only: Evangelize the lost. Disciple the saved. Live together in love and unity. This is the work of the kingdom of God. All of us who know Christ as our Lord and Savior are to be involved in kingdom work. My question for all of us is simply: Are you? As followers of Jesus, the captain of our salvation, we have no choice. And by the way we live we are either advancing the victory of the king or retreating. There is no middle ground. Musical prophet Steve Camp wrote these words; see if you can resonate. "Some people want to live in the sound of chapel bells. But I want to run a mission a yard from the gates of hell. And with every one you meet, take them the gospel and share well. As you look around and you hesitate, another soul just fell. Let's run to the battle." May the Lord find us running to, not away from, the battle. Our primary weapon is prayer. Steve Camp sings: "as his army, we are marching on our knees." Amen. To conclude the message, let's review our mission statement, together. Say it with me: On the foundation of prayer, we exist to love God, learn the Bible, and care for people: the lost and the found.