House of Hope Online

May 24, 2026

Here is a link to the podcast audio:

Or, if you prefer to listen on Spotify, click here:

For the last two weeks, we have been discussing “Seeing in the Spirit” and how the Lord takes us to a special place in the Spirit and discloses to us secret things that even the rulers of this age cannot receive and understand.  It is truly a blessing that Jesus promised and delivered on immediately.

Today, we commemorate the Day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit appeared to the early Christian Church, as recounted by Luke in Acts 2.  Shortly after Jesus was resurrected and ascended into Heaven, the Holy Spirit appeared and began speaking to His people, just as Jesus promised.

Acts 2:

 1 ¶ And when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent, rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.

 5 ¶ Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men, from every nation under heaven.

 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because they were each one hearing them speak in his own language.

 7 And they were amazed and marveled, saying, “Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans?

 8 “And how is it that we each hear [them] in our own language to which we were born?

Jesus had instructed His disciples to remain in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came to give them instructions for moving forward.  The Holy Spirit manifested in a powerful way:

• The sound of a violent, rushing wind filled the house.
• Tongues of fire distributed themselves upon the people and no one was burned.
• They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Holy Spirit gave them utterance.
• The people were able to understand in their own languages.

The miracle in Acts 2, of course, is that the men speaking were Galileans, but the people heard in their own language.  This represented the spiritual gifts of tongues and their interpretation.   1^st Corinthians 12:11 says “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.”

Feast of Weeks

So, why were the disciples all in Jerusalem on the day the Holy Spirit appeared to them?  The Day of Pentecost, also known as the Feast of Weeks, is one of three days the children of Israel were required to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.  Deuteronomy 16:16-17 required they not appear before the Lord empty handed, but instead they were to bring an offering as everyone was able.

Deuteronomy 16:

 16 “Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths, and they shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.

 17 “Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you.

The Greek word for Pentecost means “50” and Pentecost is therefore observed 50 days after Passover.  It is called the Feast of Weeks because they were to count seven weeks plus one day after Passover.

Leviticus 23:

 15 ¶ ‘You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete sabbaths.

 16 ‘You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the LORD.

Deuteronomy 16:

 9 “You shall count seven weeks for yourself; you shall begin to count seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain.

 10 “Then you shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your God with a tribute of a freewill offering of your hand, which you shall give just as the LORD your God blesses you;

 11 and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite who is in your town, and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your midst, in the place where the LORD your God chooses to establish His name.

Symbolism of Jewish Pentecost

It is significant that the purpose of the Jewish celebration of Pentecost, or Shavuot, is to commemorate the day that the Lord visited Moses and the people at Mount Sinai and delivered the Ten Commandments and the Law that formed the Torah, or the first five books of the Bible:  Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.  Shavuot acknowledged the guidance of the Lord from the Torah, and in the New Testament, Pentecost is the day the guidance of the Holy Spirit arrived.

Jewish Shavuot and Christian Pentecost are the same holiday.  In both cases, God communicated to His people and directed them on how to escape the oppression they were facing. 

Here are some other parallels of Shavuot and Pentecost.

Manifestation of the Lord

In both cases, there was a physical manifestation of the Lord.  At Sinai, there was fire, thunder, lightning, smoke, the sound of a trumpet, and a shaking.

Exodus 19:

 16 ¶ So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who [were] in the camp trembled.

 17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.

 18 Now Mount Sinai [was] all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently.

 19 When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder.

When the Holy Spirit appeared in Acts 2, there was fire, wind, and the voice of God spoken in tongues.

Acts 2:

 1 ¶ And when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent, rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.

The Three Thousand

At Mt. Sinai, three thousand lost their lives because they worshipped the molten golden calf.  In Acts 2, three thousand were added to the Church that day!

Exodus 32:

 25 Now when Moses saw that the people were out of control–for Aaron had let them get out of control to be a derision among their enemies–

 26 then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Whoever is for the LORD, [come] to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered together to him.

 27 And he said to them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Every man [of you] put his sword upon his thigh, and go back and forth from gate to gate in the camp, and kill every man his brother, and every man his friend, and every man his neighbor.’”

 28 So the sons of Levi did as Moses instructed, and about three thousand men of the people fell that day.

Acts 2:

41 So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

Touching God

Perhaps the most significant difference between Mt Sinai and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is that, in the Old Testament appearance of the Lord, the people were not permitted to touch God lest they die.  In fact, they were not even allowed to touch the mountain.

Exodus 19:

 10 The LORD also said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments;

 11 and let them be ready for the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.

 12 “And you shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Beware that you do not go up on the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death.

On the other hand, at Jerusalem, we know the Holy Spirit indwelled the hearts of the people, and His fire rested upon them but did not consume them.  And so, because of Jesus, we can touch the heart of God.  In fact, Jesus prayed to the Father in John 17 that we might be able to touch Him.

John 17:

 20 ¶ “I do not ask in behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

 21 that they may all be one; even as Thou, Father, [art] in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me.

Celebrating Pentecost

Pentecost has always been one of the Church days that we acknowledged, or observed, as a significant day.  But I never celebrated it with a gathering of family or friends, like we might do for Christmas or Easter.

Our Jewish brethren, on the other hand, really celebrate the holiday.  They started Thursday evening, May 21, by staying up late and reading Bible verses, and they continue through Saturday evening, May 23.  They celebrate by decorating their homes and synagogues with greenery and flowers.  They have a two-day feast of dairy foods including cheesy pasta dishes, cheesecake, ice cream, and buttery pasties.  The dairy sweets symbolize the milk and honey of the Promised Land.

Deuteronomy 16:

 10 “Then you shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your God with a tribute of a freewill offering of your hand, which you shall give just as the LORD your God blesses you;

 11 and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite who is in your town, and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your midst, in the place where the LORD your God chooses to establish His name.

I encourage you today to celebrate the Day of Pentecost because it is a significant day in our walk with God.  It is the day He fulfilled Jesus’ promise to indwell us and to disclose to us things we could not otherwise know.  Therefore, we can go to that special place where we can see in the Spirit and know things that the world cannot appraise.  It is a place where we can combine spiritual thoughts with spiritual words, a place where no man can appraise us, a place for us to learn the secret things of God.

On Friday night, Nancy and I celebrated Pentecost by going out to a dinner of Lasagna and Chicken Parmigiana, preceded by Fried Provolone, and followed by Cheesecake.  Next week is a diet week, no doubt.

I encourage you to celebrate this year as well. Deuteronomy 16:10-11 tells us to rejoice before the Lord, and to make a freewill offering.

Let us pray.

Father God, thank You for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that was initiated on the Day of Pentecost.  Thank You for loving us so much that you want to be in us, and You want us in You.  Thank You Jesus!  We worship Your presence, and we covet Your words in our spirits.  You are a lamp unto our feet, and we glorify Your name forever!  Amen.

If anyone has not yet received the Lord Jesus Christ in their heart, and desires to do so, please repeat this prayer after me:

Father God, I repent of my sin and ask for forgiveness today.  I confess and declare with my mouth that Jesus is Lord, and I believe with all my heart that You raised Him from the dead for the forgiveness of sins.  Jesus, please come into my heart and change me.  Send the Holy Spirit to guide and direct me in wisdom and to enable me to overcome temptation from this day forth.  Thank You for my salvation.  I look forward to the day of the Rapture when I can be with You forever.  Amen.