TONGUES
Jason Robertson
May 17, 2020

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Sermon: TONGUES
Series: PENTECOST: Acts 2

ACTS 2:1 – When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested[a] on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.[b] 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:

17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams;
18 even on my male servants and female servants
in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20 the sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ —Acts 2:1-21 (ESV)

Why did God perform the miracle of speaking in every dialect?

  1. The Gospel is .
  2. God’s love is .
  3. Christianity is a GLOBAL faith. God’s gospel is for .
  4. God uses miracles for .
  5. Their message was a POWERFUL PROCLAMATION that Jesus is the one and of the world.

Christianity is not a

religion with a tribal .

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How many religions are in the world?

The largest religion in the world?

Because of the redeeming power of Christianity, the church has

unity and diversity!


What language will we speak in heaven?

God used the miracle of tongues as a

of our redeemed unity and diversity.

God used the miracle of tongues to give us a

.


Study Questions

There is an obvious difference between, say, a tourist attraction and a road sign directing you there. The sign merely points to what is ahead—it’s not the destination itself. In much the same way, the miraculous signs performed by Jesus and the apostles were never ends in themselves but pointed to the authority of what they proclaimed (Hebrews 2:1–4; Acts 2:22).

Throughout Christ’s and the apostles’ ministries, people often fixated on their miracles and missed their messages. In Matthew 16:4 Jesus said, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign.” His point is clear: Seeking after signs means missing—or worse—ignoring what those signs point to.

The signs and wonders performed by the Lord and His apostles were not intended to be the focus—they served to validate the teaching they accompanied. Even Peter—who heard the audible voice of the Father, saw the revealed glory of Christ, and performed countless miracles himself—did not put his confidence in those experiences but in the “more sure” Word of God (2 Peter 1:17–19).

God does not want you to be looking for “signs and wonders” but to be pursuing His will – through faith and obedience to His Word.

1) Take 60 seconds and write down as many things as you can that you do well. Come up with at least 10!

A sweet spot is defined as “an optimum point or combination of factors or qualities.” For example, the sweet spot on a bat is where it will most likely hit a homerun. Or you might say that the market may have reached its sweet spot when prices are high enough to encourage sellers but still low enough to promise a good return. What is your “sweet spot” in life?

2) Do you feel like your purpose changed as you started following Jesus? If yes, how so?

3) Take this online Spiritual test and share your answers with Pastor Jason. He can help you understand your spiritual gifts and your “sweet spot” –– your calling and ministry in Huntington Beach Church. https://gifts.churchgrowth.org/spiritual-gifts-survey/