Pentecost: Receive the Promise of the Holy Spirit

May 23, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Wounds and Broiled Fish

The disciples huddled behind locked doors when Jesus stood among them. He showed them nail-scarred hands and feet, ate broiled fish to prove he wasn’t a ghost. Their disbelief melted into joy as they touched resurrection flesh. Jesus met their fear with tangible grace—not abstract theology, but a body that bore salvation’s cost. His scars still speak to our doubts. [05:56]

“Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” (Luke 24:39, NIV)

Reflection: What doubts keep you from recognizing Christ’s presence? His scars still invite us to touch grace.

Day 2: Opened Minds, Opened Scrolls

Jesus unfolded Scripture like a roadmap to redemption. Moses’ law, prophets’ visions, psalms’ poetry—all pointed to His suffering and resurrection. He cracked open their understanding, revealing how ancient words pulsed with His heartbeat. Truth became a person, not just ink on parchment. The same Spirit who illuminated Emmaus Road disciples longs to make Scripture flame within us. [07:34]

“He opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. ‘This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day.’” (Luke 24:45-46, NLT)

Reflection: Where do you need fresh revelation? Let Christ unlock Scripture’s living word for you.

Day 3: Tarrying for Promise

Forty days after resurrection, Jesus gave a strange command: wait. No crusades yet, no strategies—just sit in Jerusalem until fire fell. The disciples obeyed, though confusion lingered. Their waiting wasn’t passive; it was pregnant expectation. The Father’s promise would clothe them in power they couldn’t manufacture. Still, the Spirit comes to those who make room. [08:09]

“Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised…you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 1:4-5, NIV)

Reflection: What rhythms of waiting cultivate your readiness for the Spirit’s work?

Day 4: Wind, Fire, and New Tongues

Pentecost erupted with holy chaos—rushing wind, dancing flames, languages unlearned. Bystanders sneered, but fishermen preached with apostolic fire. The Spirit didn’t come to tidy their theology; He came to unleash witness. What began as a sound became a sermon. Heaven’s breath still fills ordinary people for extraordinary purpose. [18:24]

“They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire…All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” (Acts 2:3-4, NIV)

Reflection: How might the Spirit disrupt your comfort to amplify Christ’s fame?

Day 5: Power Beyond the Upper Room

The Upper Room became a launching pad. Jesus didn’t commission professionals; He empowered witnesses—fishermen, tax collectors, doubters turned bold. The Spirit’s dunamis (explosive power) propelled them beyond locked doors into streets, courts, and nations. Their assignment remains ours: carry resurrection truth in Spirit-empowered weakness. [30:58]

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8, NIV)

Reflection: What mission feels impossible without the Spirit’s power? Ask for fresh baptism in His dunamis today.

Sermon Summary

Luke 24 sets the scene as Jesus shifts the room from fear and doubt to peace and proof. Jesus shows hands and feet, eats fish in the silence, then “opens their minds” to the law, prophets, and psalms and names the mission as forgiveness of sins proclaimed in his name. Jesus then draws the line in the sand: tarry in the city until they are clothed with power from on high. Acts 1 picks up that thread and calls the Holy Spirit “the promise of the Father,” the gift Jesus spoke of, the baptism not of water but of the Spirit, given not for status but for power with purpose.

God’s desire drives the whole story. The covenant promise in Jeremiah 31 and Hebrews 8 says God will write his law on minds and hearts. Jesus secures a people through the cross and resurrection. The Holy Spirit comes to dwell with that people. In the Gospels it is Christ with them. In Acts and the Epistles it is the Spirit in them. John 14 to 16 spells out why Jesus had to go. His human body localized him to one place. The Spirit is omnipresent and brings Christ’s life into his people everywhere, so that there are “many Jesuses running throughout all the face of the earth.”

Pentecost in Acts 2 shows how it happened. Wind, fire, and speech signal the invisible Person made seen and heard. Tongues arise as a distinct sign that flows across Acts with the Samaritans, Saul, the Gentiles at Cornelius’ house, and the Ephesians. The one upper room “tarry” is unique; after that the Spirit is received through the laying on of hands or sovereignly while the word is preached. Acts 1:8 then answers the big why. Power comes to make witnesses. Authority rests on Christ’s finished work, but ability rides on the Spirit’s present work. True witness does not magnify self. As Jesus revealed the Father, the Spirit reveals Christ through his people, even through opposition and cost.

The book of Acts is not merely a record. It is a pattern of a Spirit-empowered church. Ephesians 5 refuses a one-and-done touch and calls for continual filling, so the church does not live powerless or propped up on human strength but Spirit filled, Spirit led, Spirit empowered. A little boy on a plastic chair by his dad found that sovereign filling and a new tongue in prayer. That same Holy Spirit still fills, refreshes dryness, releases tight tongues, and gives boldness to preach, to pray, and to love a world Christ died to save.

Key Takeaways

1. Pentecost fulfills God’s dwelling desire God’s covenant promise always aimed at a people with God in the midst. Jesus reconciles that people to the Father. The Holy Spirit completes the aim by writing the law within and making presence personal, not occasional. Pentecost is not a moment to admire but a pattern to enter. [70:11]
2. Power given for witness, not status Acts 1:8 names the purpose straight. Power is capacity to do what Christ commands, not a badge to wear. True witness points past self to Jesus and stands steady through opposition, because ability rests on the Spirit, not on personality. [90:35]
3. Christ with us becomes Spirit in us Jesus’ ascension is not absence but strategy. His human body stayed local. The Spirit now brings his life everywhere, turning gathered believers into living temples. “Christ in you, the hope of glory” is the engine of Christian life and mission. [83:32]
4. Tongues mark a Spirit-baptized people Acts consistently pairs Spirit baptism with speech given by the Spirit. The sign does not exhaust the gift, but it does signal that God has moved from rare visitations to widespread indwelling. Reception comes by laying on of hands or sovereignly while the word is heard. [86:50]
5. Be filled continually, not once Ephesians 5 refuses drift into dry effort. Ongoing filling keeps holiness warm, witness bold, and love durable. The church that kneels low receives fresh wind, and tired tongues loosen into praise that profits the soul and builds the body. [99:42]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[63:27] - Pentecost Sunday and the Promise
[64:59] - Luke 24: Peace and opened minds
[68:09] - Tarry in Jerusalem for power
[70:11] - New covenant to dwell within
[72:55] - Acts 1: Promise and baptism
[77:15] - Acts 2: Wind, fire, tongues
[81:35] - From Christ with to Spirit in
[84:11] - Tongues as sign across Acts
[88:49] - Why power: to be witnesses
[91:49] - The Spirit is God
[93:37] - Great Commission in Spirit power
[95:58] - Acts as the church’s pattern
[99:42] - Be filled, and keep being filled
[118:05] - Prayer and worship night invite

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Luke 24:36-49 (NKJV)
Acts 1:4-8 (NKJV)
Ephesians 5:18 (NKJV)

Observation questions

In Luke 24:39-43, what specific actions did Jesus take to prove He was not a ghost?
According to Acts 1:8, what is the stated purpose of receiving the Holy Spirit’s power?
What does Ephesians 5:18 command believers to do repeatedly, and how does this contrast with worldly influences?
The sermon emphasized that the Holy Spirit makes God’s presence “personal, not occasional.” What examples from Scripture or the sermon illustrate this shift? [01:10:11]

Interpretation questions

Why do you think Jesus chose to eat fish in front of His disciples (Luke 24:41-43) as part of proving His resurrection?
Acts 1:8 links power with being witnesses. How does the Holy Spirit’s power enable believers to testify about Jesus differently than human effort alone?
The sermon described tongues as a “distinct sign” of the Spirit’s indwelling. Why might God use speech as a marker of His presence in Acts 2 and beyond? [01:26:50]
Ephesians 5:18 says “be filled” continually. What might happen to a believer or church that treats the Holy Spirit as a one-time experience?

Application questions

In what areas of your life do you feel pressured to rely on human strength instead of the Holy Spirit’s power? What practical step could you take this week to depend on Him in one of those areas?
The sermon mentioned a child who received the Spirit while kneeling beside his father. How could creating intentional moments of humility (like prayer postures) help you yield to the Spirit’s work? [01:38:16]
Have you ever experienced spiritual “dryness”? What habits or attitudes might open you to being “refreshed” by the Holy Spirit’s continual filling?
Acts 1:8 calls believers to be witnesses “to the ends of the earth.” Who in your daily life needs to encounter Christ’s love, and how could the Spirit’s boldness help you share with them?
The sermon warned against treating Pentecost as a “moment to admire.” What specific action could your small group take to live out the “pattern of a Spirit-empowered church” together? [01:35:58]

Sermon Clips

60s

#PowerToWitness

“The Holy Spirit is therefore omnipotent, all powerful, omnipresent, he's all knowing. He's omnipresent, he's present everywhere. Not restricted by I'm here means I'm not somewhere else. So there's a little bit more to the why. Power. Power for what? What does it say as you keep reading? To be a witness unto me. Purpose. Power for purpose. To be a witness unto me. And the true witness of the scriptures, we can read about what happens to some of the true witnesses through the book of Acts. There's opposition and persecution and tribulation, Stephen and James, and many others even to martyrdom for Christ.”

55s

#FilledWithTheSpirit

“And Paul's encouragement to the church is really simple. Really simple. A lot Paul wrote a lot, but he in the mind, he keeps all his writings fairly simple. He says in Ephesians five, he says, some may be drunk with wine, spirits, or this or that, but, hey, above all things, seek that you would be filled with the holy spirit, filled with the spirit. And this is not merely just a a once touch. It's not merely just once visited or once moved. No. It's continual filling of the holy spirit. Fill to live the Christian life. Fill to live the Christian life. Fill to walk in holiness. Filled to be a witness with boldness.”

34s

#PowerFromOnHigh

“So right there in that moment, we have Jesus has appeared to his disciples after his resurrection, reveals himself. There are many proofs of his of of the reality of his existence, and he spoke peace to them, showed them his wounds, ate with them, and opened their understanding for scriptures. And then he says, behold, I will send the promise of my father upon you. Tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endured with power from on high.”

62s

#ActsAsPattern

“And the book of acts stands as the awesome pattern for now the church age that we live in. It it now stands as the pattern for the church age. And I say this, I say that the book of acts is not merely an historical record. While it is, it's not merely an historical record. It's a pattern of a spirit empowered church. The same holy spirit that was poured out at Pentecost is still being poured out. That same holy spirit was poured out in my life when I was just a wee bit of a grasshopper. I don't know how old I was, but I was in a prayer meeting, praying beside my father, and I was being a disturbance.”

28s

#Acts2Arrival

“So, okay, well, how did it happen? And when did this happen? We can go to Acts chapter two, and we find out how it happened in its initial out the initial coming of the Holy Spirit. And Acts chapter two, the page, over the page, somewhere there where you already are. Let's read the four verses that capture how it happened. So where were they? They were tarrying. They were waiting. They were in Jerusalem.”

36s

#UpperRoomPentecost

“A good crowd was there in the upper room. Something like what we got here. Alright? A good crowd. And when the day of Pentecost had fully come, so when the day, appointed day had arrived, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly, there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And then there appeared to them divided tongues as like fire, doing their best to describe what was happening.”

40s

#SpiritAfterAscension

“All filled with the holy spirit. Jesus previously spoke of the necessity of his leaving so that spirit the holy spirit could come and dwell with them. In John 14, there's there's a passage of scripture there where Jesus actually gives some extensive teaching concerning the ministry work and power of the Holy Spirit. It's in John fourteen, fifteen, and 16. Three great chapters to read. Again, we're still moving those through ahead. As long as Jesus remained physically with them, what were some of the limitations of that?”

49s

#PowerIsPersonal

“Now I wanna get to the why. Why did Jesus is there a is there a why beyond God having a people and dwelling with them? Is there more to it? Is there more to that statement? What is the objective here? The God wants to what? He wants to have a people and to dwell with them. Alright? But is there more? Is there more to it than that? Is there more purpose? Is there a yes in the house? Well, you would be right. You would be right. The power of the holy spirit refers to the person of the holy spirit brings to this this word is introduced and aligned and accompanies the ministry of the person of the holy spirit, and the word is p o w e r. Spelt.”

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Pentecost: Receive the Promise of the Holy Spirit

Devotional

Day 1: Wounds and Broiled Fish

Day 2: Opened Minds, Opened Scrolls

Day 3: Tarrying for Promise

Day 4: Wind, Fire, and New Tongues

Day 5: Power Beyond the Upper Room

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Pentecost: Receive the Promise of the Holy Spirit

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