Receiving the Holy Spirit
Studies in Acts

Read Time: 5 Minutes

We have learned that the gift of holy spirit, power from on high, was given on the day of Pentecost, to the twelve apostles in the temple. There are many more truths in this important section to realize.

Acts 2
:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come,
    they [the 12 apostles] were all with one accord in one place [the temple].

The phrase, "was fully come" is the Greek word sumpleroo meaning to be completely fulfilled, that the time had arrived, all had been accomplished so this promise could be fulfilled. Jesus Christ said, in his instructions to the apostles before he ascended in  Luke 24:44 "These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled. . ." Fulfilled is pleroo full, lacking nothing. "The day of Pentecost was fully come." Since the fall of Adam God has been waiting for this day. This is the day when, with all scripture being completely fulfilled, God can have His holy spirit back into His people and call them His children by seed.

The 12 apostles were assembled together in the temple praising and blessing God.

:2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind,
    and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
:3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire,
    and it sat upon each of them.
:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost,
    and began to speak with other tongues,
        as the Spirit gave them utterance.

God is giving us a detailed description of this very notable event. The word "suddenly" here is an Aramaic idiom giving the impression that wind came out of quietness, and the sound filled [pleroo] the temple completely.

The apostles were also sitting, in the posture they would normally be in during the hour of prayer.  They were not acting wildly, they were decent and in order in the house of prayer. We receive into manifestation the holy spirit because we believe God's Word. It is not because we are sitting or breathing heavily. It has nothing to do with our posture or actions. The promises of God are received by believing. In all other instances in Acts, of people speaking in tongues, they are not told to sit or breathe heavily. Our posture, our actions are not the determining factor, only our hearts; do you believe?

The cloven tongues like as of fire that descended upon them is phenomena. Phenomena is where God goes beyond His promises, what He guarantees in His Word that He is able and willing to perform. All that God has promised in His Word and is available is not phenomena.  But God Almighty can go beyond His Word with people. Another example of phenomena is in Daniel 5:1-29 when God wrote upon the wall at a feast that Belshazzar put on. He was a wicked king and God told him because of his wickedness his kingdom would come to an end. These instances are particular to the situation and no guarantee. When you spoke in tongues the first time cloven tongues like as of fire did not appear unto you. It was God's prerogative to have them appear for the apostles. After all, they are doing something that had never been done before. Also note, that the cloven tongues like as of fire appeared unto them. No one else saw cloven tongues; they are not mentioned by any that were nearby. And they were like fire, they were not actually fire.

These cloven tongues as of fire sat upon the apostles. The word sat is significant as well. The words that God uses in His Word are chosen with precision. Other occurrences of "sat" in the Word not attributed to man's actions are in Mark 16:19, Hebrews 1:3, and 10:12. They all reference that Jesus sat at the right hand of God. All was accomplished: our sins were purged by his sacrifice our redemption was complete. What Jesus came to do was accomplished, it was finished, and he sat down. The cloven tongues that sat on the apostles was God's message to the apostles, the outpouring was complete, the time had fully come.

That the cloven tongues like fire is also quite significant. Fire is used in a variety of ways throughout the Word: for sacrificial purposes; for baking, cooking, and warmth; for punishment of death; in war; and figuratively as a symbol of Jehovah's presence. Fire as used for the presence of God is seen in Exodus 3:2, as God talked to Moses at the burning bush. God used a pillar of fire at night to separate the Egyptian army from the Children of Israel when they fled Egypt,  Exodus 13:21ff. The cloven tongues like as of fire signified the presence of God as He baptized them with holy spirit, giving them His gift, which is power from on high.

All of this happened simultaneously. God did not say there was a rushing mighty wind, then cloven tongues like as of fire appeared and then they spoke in tongues. When tongues like as of fire appeared unto them they knew it was time and they followed Jesus' instructions, they breathed in and received. The time had fully come, they received the gift of holy spirit for the first time in this new administration. They received power from on high and spoke in tongues. They manifested the power of God.

When Jesus Christ was with the apostles he always did the Father's will. He always consulted God for knowledge, wisdom, and direction. God had placed holy spirit in Jesus Christ at his baptism so that he could accomplish all that needed done for God's people and expose and defeat the god of this world. Now Jesus Christ sits at the right hand of God and we are filled with the gift of holy spirit from God. We now have the spiritual connection to walk with God in knowledge, wisdom, and with power. What Jesus Christ did, we can do also, and greater things. God waited a long time for this. He has seen our lives and knows what we need so that we can walk victoriously and glorify Him.

Acts 2
:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come,
    they[the twelve apostles] were all with one accord in one place.
:2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind,
    and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
:3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire,
    and it sat upon each of them.
:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost,
    and began to speak with other tongues,
        as the Spirit gave them utterance.