I don’t know what those 120 people loved like before the upper room, or the 3,000 saved directly after, or the 2,000 that followed even after that. But I know that the story of Jesus and the presence of the Holy Spirit wrecked every plan they had for their life. For the worn out intellectual, they began learning from the disciples and teachers. For the hermit, they were called out of hiding and into rich community. For the greedy and close handed, their fingers were folded open and their viewpoint of possessions was completely flipped. The pessimist began to raise the corner of their lips for the first time in years, as life around them started looking brighter and brighter.
The place in which we read about in the Bible didn’t just host a cool event in a room, it was a catalyst for one of the most radical transformations in history. Pentecost put Peter and John in jail. But it also healed a lame man. It cause upheaval in the temple because the priests could no longer keep God behind a curtain. This move of the Holy Spirit interrupted people’s lives in the most inconvenient of ways. People began ignoring social classes and stereotypes, they began caring for each other, sharing possessions with one another, and pushing each other to look more like Jesus.
And in the moments that would make any normal person shy back, they prayed bold prayer for Jesus to increase their faith and embolden them to continue sharing the story of Jesus. Every time they prayed God gave, He never skimped in His generosity. He shared with His beloved His healing power, so much so that even Peters shadow was healing people. Jesus took normality and threw it out the window.
That is why Pentecost ruined everything. It’s ruined our daily lives. Its taken the side of us that is focused on ourselves and calls us to a deeper love for others. It emboldens us to walk away from a normal life and take on the greatest purpose this side of heaven: to love Jesus with all our hearts, and to tell as many people as we can that He came and saved the ones who despised Him. There is no other love like this in the world, and it’s worth turning away from everything for.
We abandon all for you, Jesus.
