Happy Pentecost!

Pentecost is called "the birthday of the church". It is the day that the Holy Spirit came to be with us and in us. Jesus told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came upon them. Since Old Testament times, every male Jew was required to come to Jerusalem for Pentecost (Feast of Weeks, Shavuot - Leviticus 23). The Old Testament Pentecost celebrated God giving the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai. According to non-Biblical tradition, the soul of every Jew who would ever be born was present at Mount Sinai to hear God give the Law, each in his own language. On the New Testament Pentecost, every male Jew from the known world heard the Gospel in his own language. On the Old Testament Pentecost, 3000 who had worshipped the golden calf were put to death. On the New Testament Pentecost, 3000 who heard the Gospel received new life. Quoting Pastor Robert Morris: When the Law was given to Israel through Moses, no one could keep it. The Law gave the Israelites an understanding of what pleased God, but it couldn't give them the internal ability to live it. However, when the Holy Spirit fills a person's life, amazing things happen. A dead human spirit is regenerated by the Holy Spirit, who writes a new law on the heart of the believer. This law isn't the Ten Commandments; rather, it's the "Law of Love." We receive the empowerment to walk in love. In other words, we can't walk righteously without the power of the Holy Spirit. Before that day, the disciples were timid and afraid -- hiding in locked rooms and dreading the knock at the door. After Pentecost, the disciples were filled with boldness and confidence. They proclaimed Jesus in public squares and synagogues. The transformation brought by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost was astounding. I encourage you to read the story of Pentecost in Acts 2. It is traditional to wear red on Pentecost.