Acts; The New Law

June 20

Read: Acts 2:1-13, Jer. 31:33,34, Ezekiel 11:19,20, 36:26,27

Acts;

The New Law

“…I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jer. 31:33,34)

Nothing that God does is by chance. This includes the timing he chose for sending his Holy Spirit…

Pentecost was a holiday for the people of Israel where each year they celebrated God’s giving the law to Moses on Mt. Sinai. In short, it was a celebration of The Law. That same season (from Passover to Pentecost)  was also a celebration of the first-fruits from the harvest; a time when Israel would bring winter-wheat offerings to the temple. (The Hebrew name for this holiday is Shavuot.) It is not happenstance or random that God chose this day as the day that he would fulfill his prophecy given through Joel, inaugurate the “last days”, and pour out his Spirit on all of his people. The themes of “Shavuot” / Jewish Pentecost are tied to how we as God people now function with the Holy Spirit! They are directed related to one another:

The Holy Spirit and the “New Law”

In Christ, we are no longer under the “Old Law” that was given to Moses. This has actually ALWAYS been God’s plan - that his people would be marked by a new heart, be made “new creations”, and look to his work within them to guide their steps. We see this in his prophecy form Jeremiah (see above) as well as his words from the prophet Ezekiel:

“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.” (Ezek. 36:26,27)

“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them.” (Ezek 11:19,20)

The coming of the Holy Spirit marks being given the new spirit God was talking about… our new heart in Christ… and the very Spirit go God within us! This is our “New Law” that we celebrate on Pentecost. We no longer look to an outside set of rules to guide us… we no longer answer to a system given to Moses on Sinai… now we “walk in The Spirit” and are led by the indwelling presence of the Father, Son, and Spirit. (cf. Rom. 8:4, Gal. 5:16) The Holy Spirit communicates with us, leads us into truth, reminds of Jesus’ teaching, and tells us what the Father and Son are saying about us. (cf. John 16:12-15, 1 Cor. 2:10-16) It is so fitting that the day that once celebrated the giving of the law to Moses is now the day that marks the giving of The Spirit to ALL of God’s people… the very indwelling Spirit that is crucial for us to “walk in” our “new law” (the new covenant) and live out our life in Christ.

The Holy Spirit and “First Fruits” of the Harvest

Another layer to the Pentecost celebration is the recognition and celebration of God providing for his people what they need… their very food for nourishment and sustenance. The harvest represented God giving the people what they would need to survive and be strengthened… it was recognizing God as the source of it all. How much greater is that truth when it comes to the Hoy Spirit! God is providing for us what we need for our spiritual growth…our spiritual strength… he is providing for us what is crucial for our spiritual selves through His Spirit! In the same way that “Shavuot” marked the beginning of the harvest, the Holy Spirit marks the beginning of a different type of harvest… the one that Jesus spoke of in his ministry:

“Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together.” (John 4:34,36)

“Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Matt 9:37,38)

The coming of the Holy Spirit aligns with the celebration of the harvest! The Lord is working in and through his people. He has provided all that we need through His Son and His Spirit! (cf. 2 Peter 1:4) The Holy Spirit guides us and “fuels us” in the ministry that lyes before us.

This is Pentecost for us as the people of God… as followers of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit marking as a seal the new covenant and new law within us through Christ. No longer looking to a law given at Sinai, but rather trusting the transformative work of Christ in us… our new God-given spirit and heart… guided into truth through relationship with The Spirit! Nothing is done by chance. What an amazing picture of life in Christ… life with The Spirit! Love you guys. - JDP