EMPOWERED TO BE WITNESS (ACTS 2:5 - 13)

5 Now There Were Staying In Jerusalem God-Fearing Jews From Every Nation Under Heaven. 6 When They Heard This Sound, A Crowd Came Together In Bewilderment, Because Each One Heard Their Own Language Being Spoken. 7 Utterly Amazed, They Asked: “Aren’t All These Who Are Speaking Galileans? 8 Then How Is It That Each Of Us Hears Them In Our Native Language? 9 Parthians, Medes And Elamites; Residents Of Mesopotamia, Judea And Cappadocia, Pontus And Asia, 10 Phrygia And Pamphylia, Egypt And The Parts Of Libya Near Cyrene; Visitors From Rome 11 (Both Jews And Converts To Judaism); Cretans And Arabs—We Hear Them Declaring The Wonders Of God In Our Own Tongues!” 12 Amazed And Perplexed, They Asked One Another, “What Does This Mean?”13 Some, However, Made Fun Of Them And Said, “They Have Had Too Much Wine.”

The promise that the disciples would receive the power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them (Acts 1:8) and that they would be empowered with power from on high (Luke 24:49) it is a promise given to sustain the completion of Great Commission in other words to evangelize the world. "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses to the end of the earth." The task of fulfilling the Great commission is not yet complete the work has been passed over to church now.

To understand our today’s reading Let's us read from verse 1 of Acts 2 with the word "Pentecost": "When the day of Pentecost had come “Why did Jesus choose Pentecost to pour out the Spirit on the disciples?

The word Pentecost is a Greek word referring to the Festival of Weeks, which was one of the main holy festivals of the Jewish people (Leviticus 23:15; Deuteronomy 16:9). The Festival of Weeks (or Feast of Weeks) was celebrated at the end of the grain harvest (Exodus 34:22), which occurred fifty days after the wave offering of Passover. It was on this day—the day of Pentecost—that the Holy Spirit descended upon the believers in Jerusalem (Acts 2). Jews from every nation were all gathered together in the city and on this day the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in extraordinary power was meant for witness. if we continue to read in next chapter, we see a great harvest. we see 3,000 people were harvested for God on the day of Pentecost, the feast of harvest.

The same Holy spirit is poured upon church and comes with a huge responsibility to be a witness around us. My Huge question for this morning is are you a witnessing for God? Are you able to fulfill great commission in your life?

Receive Holy Spirit in your Life and be empowered and be a witness

Amen.