God Loves Everyone

Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation                                  Acts 2:5 – 13

God Loves Everyone

by Robert T. Cooper

Some people find themselves deeply moved by patriotic songs such as “God Bless America” and “God Bless the U.S.A.” Some people realize that God loves the little children of the world, and so don’t want to single out the United States when asking for God’s blessings. There are even bumper stickers that say, “God Bless Everyone, No Exceptions.” Yet many in the first group are uncomfortable asking God to bless nations that publicly declare their desire to eradicate the United States and all Americans. What do we learn from the Bible?

1.      God doesn’t take sides.

When Joshua was getting ready to conquer the Promised Land, he experienced a theophany, a human manifestation of the pre-incarnate Christ. Joshua asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” The Lord answered, “Neither.”

God has His own agenda and is working out His own purposes. It is normal for Him to use believers to carry out His plans, but He is not limited to believers. He sometimes uses unbelievers.

2.      Jesus died for everyone.

God so loved the world. The Gospel was to be taken to the uttermost part of the earth. We might argue about predestination and free will, but we need to take the message of the Savior to every individual on the planet. All need the opportunity to hear and accept the Plan of Salvation. Jonah prophesied to Israelites and to Ninevites (the sworn enemies of the Israelites) alike. We need to tell everyone about Jesus.

3.      Heaven will include some from every people group.

Eternity will consist of those from every tribe and tongue (language) and people and nation. There will be saved people of every ethnicity and dialect. No exceptions. We will join in a chorus of praise before the throne of our God.

Acts 2 talks about Jews being at Pentecost from every nation. There were 15 foreign language groups of Jews who heard the 120 sharing Christ, each person in his own heart language. Yet we know from elsewhere in Scripture that this was simply a foreshadowing of how God was going to win at least some folks from everywhere you can imagine.

So we don’t just take the Gospel to friendly countries or to those who love us in return. God loves everybody. We take the Good News to friend and foe alike.

Some pray for a different continent each day, praying for the people in every country, people of every language group, and people of every ethnicity. They pray for people to place their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. They include closed countries and hostile regimes. What do you think of praying like that?

Closer to home, to whom do you think God would have you to witness next?

A Burning Dove

Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation                                          Acts 2:3

A Burning Dove

by Robert T. Cooper

So there was this wind sound that filled the whole house. Now, there were 120 adult men there, not counting the women and under 13’s. So don’t go thinking house. Not even the wealthiest residents of Jerusalem had a personal abode like that. Think meeting hall. But the point of the sound filling the entire structure is to indicate that no person present failed to hear the sound.

So when we get to verse 3, we find that all saw this phenomenon. It seemed to be flickers of flame like one would see burning on the wick of a candle. So we have this additional metaphor going: a sound and a flame.

So everyone hears the sound and everyone sees the flickers which divide in such a way that there is a separate flicker that comes to rest on each one present. The traditional way of visualizing this is to imagine flames like each person was a candle with a wick coming out of the top of each person’s head.

Interestingly, we are not told how long this phenomenon lasted. Surely the image was gone by the time anyone outside the room heard what happened next. (We’ll get to that another time.)

Now, compare this with the descent of the Holy Spirit on Jesus at the Savior’s baptism. In that case, the Spirit descended in a form that gave one an impression of something similar to a dove. The text does not say that an actual bird flew down and sat on Jesus. It says that the Spirit descended like a dove.

If this is the exact same Holy Spirit, why was the image like a dove in one case and like tongues of fire in the other case? One possible answer is that the Holy Spirit was marking Jesus to be Isaiah’s prophecies Prince of Peace, while He was marking the 120+ as being on fire for God.

Remember that Jesus said the Apostles (and others present at that time) would have power when the Holy Spirit came on them. So when the Holy Spirit came to rest on each one, it was in order to fuel the witness of each believer as the Gospel began to be carried to the uttermost part of the world.

Today the Holy Spirit comes to indwell each person who places his or her faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. He is the source of our peace that passes understanding. He is the source of our power to witness to our community and beyond. He is like a burning dove. Let’s make sure we don’t quench the Spirit.

What are some other metaphors for the Holy Spirit? Also, please share with us some times the Holy Spirit gave you peace or empowered your witness.

A Sound Like the Blowing of a Violent Wind

Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation                                    Acts 2:1 – 4

A Sound Like the Blowing of a Violent Wind

by Robert T. Cooper

I am not particularly a fan of what I call “nasty 20^th and 21^st century music.” One of the strains of that genre has been music enhanced by recorded electronic effects. The first time I heard a church anthem with such effects was when I was in seminary. It was an anthem based on Acts 2:1 – 4. The recorded electronic effects were for the portion of anthem in which there was “a sound like the blowing of a violent wind.” At least I understood what was happening in that music.

It is not uncommon for preachers to emphasize that the word is one and the same for spirit, for breath, and for wind. Therefore, if we want to understand some things about the Holy Spirit, it would be good for us to think some about the characteristics of wind.

For one thing, wind is simply the moving of bodies of air. It can be gentle. It can be blustery. It can be steady. It can be destructive. It can be forceful. These can all be metaphors for the way God’s Holy Spirit moves within our own lives.

For another thing, wind doesn’t really make any sound of its own. What makes the sound is the vibrations the moving air sets up as it passes by various objects, including our own ears. Similarly, the Holy Spirit doesn’t really call attention to Himself. Rather, He causes resonance within people and events as He moves upon them.

For us, the most violent winds usually take the force of tornados, hurricanes, and hurricane-force winds. Some people say tornados sound like a train. The coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost made “a sound like the blowing of a violent wind.” Therefore, we have to believe that the significance of Pentecost was the forcefulness of what God was doing.

"Wind of the Spirit" by Jennifer Jones

www.gloryglimpses.com/2011/08/pentecost-wind-of-spirit.html

We usually think of violent winds as being destructive. What could the Holy Spirit have been doing when He came upon the 120 (that just counted the grown men, so we can be certain there were more) praying believers in the upper room? What could the Spirit have been doing that was so destructive? Perhaps we will have to wait until all things are revealed to understand it fully. However, I believe it may have had to do with the passing of the era when the Holy Spirit merely came upon certain individuals for a time; that era was replaced with a new era in which the Holy Spirit would come to indwell everyone who places his or her faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

We still have to stop and listen to the Holy Spirit. How have you heard the Spirit in recent days? I look forward to your comments.