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Sabbath, July 9, 2005 Newark Seventh-Day Adventist Church
Acts 2:1-4 Pastor Tom Hughes

“PENTECOSTAL FIRECRACKERS”

Acts 2:1-4…

When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.
4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

I’m talking to you today about the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came down and tongues of fire appeared on the heads of the apostles. Paul was not there, but Peter was there, and James, and John and all the apostles. And the Bible says fire came down and hit them! Lighting from God! Lightning came down from God out of heaven and zap! They were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit! The Holy Spirit came down and filled them (!) and it tells you why.

Last Monday was the Forth of July, and we celebrate the birth of our country and our Veterans who are serving. I hope you are praying for our Veterans who are over in Iraq fighting the fight keeping you safe here in America while everywhere else they’re getting blown up with all sorts of horrible things. We have a country that so far has been spared and whatever happens in the future I am grateful for what God has done in protecting us even up to this point. And you know a lot of people like to argue with our policies and politics and all that but I just pray that God will continue to watch over people and keep us safe. And I think that some of the Muslim fanatics who kill innocent women and children in the name of God are satanic and you’d just better pray that Islamo-fascism is defeated by whatever means we need to defeat them.

Whether they’re called Nazis or Islamo-fascists they are out to murder and maim as many people as they can. And if someone came into your house with a knife to behead your family and you had a shotgun sitting by the door you wouldn’t invite them to come in for tea. I mean sometimes when you’re being threatened with your life God has to use means that we’re not used to using all the time. And that’s why I’m glad I can pray because God is in control. I don’t care how the world looks.

When I stood on the rim of the Grand Canyon on September 11th and watched the sun come up little did I know an hour and a half later I would be listening to the radio and hear about he twin towers coming down. And as I looked at the Grand Canyon and listened at the same time to what the Islamo-fascists had done in murdering 3,000 innocent women and even some children and men, even some Muslims, as I heard the shocking story the song hymn came to mind: “God is in control…”

Satan might think he is, but he’s not! God is in control. He can destroy, he can murder, he can maim, he can threaten our freedom (!), but God has always had people who are willing to stand up for what’s right!
I would like every Veteran in this church right now to stand. I’m a Veteran. We salute you! (Applause) Thank you for your service to your county! And we applaud the boys and the women in Iraq that are standing tall defending our freedoms. We love our military.

Well, what was your favorite Fourth of July?

I remember my Dad taking me to the New Castle Airport in Newark Delaware to watch the fire works every year. My three brothers and I were always fascinated. My little sister came along ten years after I did, and she was pretty scared the first few years, but then loved them just like the rest of us. My children grew up looking high on the forth of July watching the cavalcade of colors and darting splashes of brilliance, oohing and awing like everyone else.

I remember one Fourth of July when my son Michael was probably about six months old. We went to the Newark, Delaware Airport and we had fireworks! And we had looked forward to it for a long time. And as Michael screamed bloody murder, I sheepishly made my way through the crowd back to the car. I got in the car, locked the door, put my hands over his ears, (it) didn’t matter: if he heard it at all, he was going to cry. We actually had to start the car and leave because he was so terrified of the fireworks!

Well, there was another fireworks display. The Fourth of July at Havre de Grace, Maryland. We owned a home there and we had 22-foot yacht and a boat ramp, and we used to invite all our family members; they’d also have a little country fair there and they’d have the little carnival rides and everything. And on the boat docks people would come and they’d shoot the fireworks off out over the island so we could all see it and it was gorgeous. We had probably thirty family members from both sides of the family there and it was a wonderful, wonderful display of fireworks. And they shot off hundreds of fireworks!

I want lighting to fall on the Newark Church. I want the Pentecostal fire to fall on us! The Church needs a Pentecostal explosion just as much today as it did 2,000 years age when fire hovered above the disciples’ heads!

Revelation 3:18 tells us that what the church needs today is gold, white raiment and spiritual eye salve.

The gold represents faith. You need faith. To have faith you’ve got to read the Bible every day and pray and talk to God. If you call yourself a Christian and you never read the Bible and you never pray you are fooling only yourself. Trust me. Your family knows you’re not, your friends know you’re not, the people at work know you’re not, and especially God knows you’re not. You’re only fooling yourself.

Now are we good at fooling ourselves? We’re great at it! It’s called ‘rationalization.’ “Oh, I never spend any time in the word, but I’m a Christian.” Not! Hello!

“Now, pastor, I’m a new Christian. I didn’t know that I needed to spend time in the Word.”

Got’cha covered! The Lord winks at our ignorance. But once we learn that it’s important for us to read the Bible and pray, we need to do that.

Does the church need more faith?

Does the church need more love?

And then it says the church needs white raiment (the Righteousness of Christ). Now if Jesus is standing at the door of the church knocking at the door and we need white raiment, if we already had it would we need it? If He’s on the outside knocking, do we need to let Him in? Horror of horrors! Do you mean Jesus could be knocking on the door of a Christian church and the church could be having a worship service in honor of Jesus and Jesus could not be in there? And they could be just so busy being good little Christians that they don’t even have Christ in their heart? Is that possible? Well they need the white raiment: the Righteousness of Christ!

Does the church need to be converted?

Do we need His precious gift of eternal life?

Has our church been too self-righteous, too legalistic, too proud, and too pharisaical?

Do we need a greater understanding of how even the best Christians among us are miserable, poor, wretched, blind, and naked?

And that compared with the matchless charms of Christ even the greatest character among us is but a faint reflection of the character of God?

“The divine beauty of the character of Christ, of whom the noblest and most gentle among men are but a faint reflection; …was a living representation of the character of the law of God.” [Ellen G. White, In Heavenly Places, p. 63]

Do we need to repent of putting other things on the throne and constantly dwelling on our own experience, our own perfectionism, our own legalistic way of looking at things – when what the world needs is a revelation of the love of Jesus?

Doesn’t it say in John 13:35 “They shall know that they are Christians by…” what they wear?
By what they wear, they’ll know that they are my disciples?
You shall know they are Christians by what they wear?

Isn’t that what it says in John 13:35?

“They shall know that they are Christians by…” what they eat? Isn’t that what it says there?

“They shall know that they are Christians by…” what day they go to church? Isn’t that what it says there?

What does it say in John 13:35? I’ll read it to you. “By this all will know that you are My disciples if you have love for one another.”
If you are a loveable Christian, then they will know that you are my disciples.

It’s only those who are furthest away from Christ, who constantly dwells on their own perfection [Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ pp. 70-72].

Only Jesus is worthy!

The closer we come to God, the more we see our own faults and imperfections clearly, and the more we stand in awe of His towering character and majesty. Jesus is a name above every other name! He alone is worthy. Rev.15:4 reads: “You alone are Holy!”

In Revelation 5:2-5 is says Jesus opened the scrolls. No one else was worthy to open the scrolls.

2 Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?”
3 And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.
4 So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it.
5 But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.”

He alone, only His righteousness prevailed. Notice the Bible said no one on the earth was worthy, except the lion of the tribe of Judah! He alone has prevailed! He is the only man who ever has or ever will be worthy. Only his righteousness prevailed, no one else’s ever has or ever will! Do we need that free robe in the church today?
Now it says the eye salve is the Holy Spirit, that we may discern spiritual things. We need to see the world more clearly more accurately; more like God sees this world. We are so spiritually dead we apply the words we hear to our neighbor instead of to ourselves: to our brother or sister sitting in the pew instead of ourselves! I actually heard a Sabbath School teacher say one day, to my horror, “Boy, I really wish the people who needed to hear this were here.” Bless his heart! I was thinking Don’t worry, brother, your prayer has been answered!

Do we need a Pentecost in the church?

Have we gotten a little lazy as Seventh-Day Adventists and as Newark Seventh-Day Adventists?

Have we gotten a little complacent about our faith and about our religion?

Would we rather go to the picnic than hear the Word preached? Well, maybe I would, too. J

But the fire that burns in my heart I hope it’s the latter rain and I hope it’s the tongues of fire over my head and over yours are the fireworks of God! I hope we’re willing to realize that God wants us to be passionate and excited about being a Christian!

Where is our first love?

Where is the Holy Spirit?

Where is our excitement?

Where is our zeal?

Where is our commitment?

Do not do one more thing for God out of obligation! Please! Don’t do one more thing out of obligation. I’m so sick of hearing our poor, sad, pathetic experiences of how we “have to do this for God,” or “I’ve gotta go over there ‘cause I committed myself. I told ‘em I’d do it, so I guess I gotta go!”

If you don’t want to do it, don’t do it! God says, “You’re not obligated to me unless it’s out of a loving heart. If you don’t want to give money to my church to keep the lights on, and the heat, and the air-conditioning rolling, then keep your money in your self-centered little wallet and don’t put it in the offering plate! Don’t give!”

If you don’t want to come to Sabbath School then be a lazy bum, and curl up in the covers, and sleep through it! Go right ahead. And if my sermons are so boring that you fall asleep, knock yourself out! Bring a pillow and enjoy it. Don’t even feel guilty.

Please! Don’t do anything anymore ever again out of a sense of obligation!

Do it because you love Jesus!

Do it because you’re excited about God!

Do it because you’ve got Pentecostal fire!

Do it because God struck you with lightning and lit you up and turned you on and then turned you loose on a world that needs Christ!

“They shall know you are Christians…” by their unity, “…by their love for one another. Come, Holy Spirit, we need you so desperately in our hearts today!

The unity of the Church is what allowed God to pour out His Spirit. Notice the Bible says in Acts 2:1 “They were all in one accord and in one place.”

One accord, one place. They were united together in faith, love, and joy! They had put away their petty bickering over who was the greatest that had consumed their time while Jesus was with them, and they learned to be humble and to be loving and kind. They accepted each other, and were at peace with one another –
even though some were young; some were old,
some liked rap music; some liked classical music,
some liked Contemporary Christian; some liked traditional hymns,
some wore some things; others wore other things,
some ate one thing, some ate another –

but it did not matter to them because they loved that person even though that person was different,
even though that person disagreed with them,
even though that person wasn’t like them – it didn’t matter. They loved them because they were: their brother, they were their sister, they had love!

Does the church need unity today?

Do we need to be united in faith, love, acceptance, kindness, and peace?

The Bible says the fruit of the Spirit will be evident in the true Christian. Here is a list of the worldling and the Spirit led person. Note it says fruit, not fruits—if you have one, you have them all!

And that’s the way we are going to be here in the Newark Seventh-Day Adventist Church. We love one another! And we don’t care what you wear as long as you’re there! Come on, kids! Come on, young people! You want to wear your jeans and a tee shirt? Come on in, I’m happy to see you! You know me, I think ties are nooses anyway.

Galatians 5:19-24…
19Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness,
20idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,
21envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
24And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

Let us be careful to allow God to fill us with his Spirit today, So that Pentecostal firecrackers can begin going off all over Ohio! Let none of us hinder the Spirit, by harboring any ill will toward anyone, either in our church or without. Let’s let the love, kindness, gentleness, and all the other evidences of the Holy Spirit flow through us to others. Let’s just let God have his way with us to the point where we are prayed up, filled with his word and exploding with Pentecostal Dynamite! Let’s get real, let’s get relational, let’s get radical, let’s get relevant, and let’s get reliant. Stop playing church, and start changing our lives and the lives of all those around us. Love is the Power, and the Spirit of God is the source of that power. God is love!

“…You shall know that they are Christians by their love…” God will pour His Holy Spirit out only on people who love one another.

The mighty wind of the spirit filled all the house, fire came down on each and every one of them, and they all were filled with the Holy Ghost. Every single one of them in the house was totally committed, totally open to the presence of God, and totally filled with the Holy Ghost. What a beautiful picture of God’s church! Open, repentant, unified, filled with humility and love, kindness and acceptance; looking up to heaven with urgency!

They had a passion for God. They wanted to do something fantastic for God and His church, and God did not let them down! They surrendered their hearts and He filled them with power, and all the world shook at the power and strength of the love that they went forth with! Will he let us down today, if we come to him with the same spirit of humility and surrender? Is he any less capable of pouring out His spirit now than he was then? The only thing holding us back today is our lack of commitment, our lack of prayer and our Laodicean condition that causes us to be so clueless as to what we are missing!

We have it all in our church today!

We have peace!

We have love!

We have joy!

We have acceptance!

We have victory!

We have holiness!

It’s all here in the full surrender of our will to a loving Father who is lovingly waiting to fill us with His Holy Spirit! But, clueless, we refuse to drink deeply of His Spirit and His love and He is waiting right now to pour out the latter rain! Love is raining down from heaven even as I speak to you! Do you have you cup raised up to have it filled?

Jesus wants to change your life! He doesn’t want us to have church as usual and just come here and just go home and be bored and tired. Jesus knows that you need Him and He knows that:

when you’re down and out,

when you’re having a hard time,

when you’re “homeless in Cleveland,”

or when you’ve been bombed and terrorism has struck,

He is your bridge over this awful world into the next world! Jesus is the only One who can satisfy your soul!

Are you ready to receive the Spirit of God without measure?

Let the fireworks Begin!

Closing Song and PowerPoint Presentation: “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” sung and arranged by Pastor Tom Hughes, using guitar accompaniment.

All Scriptural References: New King James Version

Ellen G. White References: www.whiteestate.org

Transcription: Wendy J. Riebel

This sermon is also available on cassette tape.

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