The Blaze of the Holy Spirit

On a fiercely windy day, my brother stood on our roof with a hose, drenching our shingles to try to protect them from sparks as a wildfire roared nearby. Praise be to God, firefighters contained that blaze.

But in more recent history, a few miles down the road from my hometown, Altadena and Malibu suffered immense loss as fires consumed thousands of acres.

Wildfires move fast.

A fast-moving wildfire is what we can imagine as we think about the day of Pentecost, recorded in Acts 2. A violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole place where believers gathered, and what appeared as tongues of fire rested on each of them.

The power of the Spirit filled them, and their words blazed through crowds of travelers in Jerusalem as the apostles spoke in languages they didn’t know, proclaiming the wonders of God (Acts 2:11). Parthians, Medes and Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia—all these and more heard the message in their home language.

It would be like going to the World Expo and seeing a group of Christians from Texas breaking out in clear speech in every known language in the world. Surprising. Mysterious. Miraculous!

In other words, the first fruit of the Holy Spirit was evangelism. The first gift of the Spirit was the gift to declare the gospel. The first outpouring of the Spirit immediately poured out the wonders of God to people from every nation under heaven (Acts 2:5).

Some folks were in awe. Others mocked. “They are drunk on new wine,” they said (2:13). And yet Peter—the disciple who went from downcast to destined—stood up, empowered by the Spirit, and became the first street preacher (Luke 22:54–62; Acts 2:14–40).

And the resounding response of some was, “What do I do?”

Peter said to them, “Repent, and each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38)

The population of a megachurch came to faith that day, and about 3,000 people received baptism. Many of them returned to their hometowns, and the gospel continued to spread like a spiritual wildfire—through the early church’s persecution. Through the Dark Ages and the creativity sparks of the Renaissance. Through the Industrial Revolution and the revolution of civil rights in the US. The flame continued all the way down to us.

Our faith is a continuation of the first tongues of fire. Spark upon spark. Blaze upon blaze.

If we remember back to my brother, standing on the roof protecting the house from the blaze, we see that sometimes it is a good thing to be fireproof. But not when it comes to evangelism. I wonder if we sometimes quench the Spirit as we extinguish our lives with safe church groups, safe service projects, and safe prayers.

Maybe we need to let go of comfort and safety and follow the spark of the Spirit instead. Maybe a movement of evangelism is just waiting for us to allow our hearts to be set ablaze for God’s kingdom.

Reflect:

• Do you have a burning passion to share the good news with others? If not, pray for the Spirit to ignite that in you.
• Who in your family or neighborhood needs the hope of the gospel and the empowerment of the Spirit? Pray for God to prepare their hearts and for them to come to faith—whether through your witness or the witness of others.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank you for the gift of your Spirit. Please consume my heart with your passion for the lost and a boldness to share the gospel. In Jesus’s name, amen.

This is the second in a series of devotional reflections on evangelism. For more on evangelism and sharing the gospel, see A Vision for Evangelism, The Best News Ever, and Reclaiming Our Identity and Purpose: 2 Corinthians 5:17-21.