The Outpouring

It was a day to be remembered.

It was about seven weeks after Jesus had died and risen.
A group of His followers had taken up residence in what appears to have been a commune of about 120, men and women. Among them were Jesus’ mother and eleven named disciples. The journalist who reported the event had already written an investigative biography of Jesus and was familiar with His life, teachings, and activities.
Here is how he described it:

“Suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

In those days Jerusalem was a growing cosmopolis being a regional center of Roman colonial power. Suddenly the band of Christ followers were telling everyone in their various languages about the greatness of God. Africans, Arabs, and Europeans in the city were astonished, everyone was being addressed in their own dialect by a Galilean group miraculously competent in simultaneous translation. People said “Was this intoxication”?

But the explanation by Jesus’ followers was that this was all part of the Plan.
The Plan God made known by at least two Jewish prophecies centuries before, that His Spirit would reside in ordinary people and do marvelous things.
Jesus had used the metaphor of living water and flowing rivers to predict the same thing.

In days following, thousands were converted and it was the beginning of what would become modern day Christianity. The primitive version was characterised by worship, community, generosity, and joy. They were respected by their neighbours. Miraculous healings were reported as were unprecedented boldness in proclaiming God’s love to all the world. The transformation that came with God’s Spirit was uniquely unifying and empowering.

Christianity has grown ever since and despite its diversity, at the core many experience a unity of the Spirit and operate with transcendent power. This past week, most of Christendom celebrated that eventful day on Pentecost Sunday. The day is meaningful to groups like EMAS Canada.

We believe that the Spirit of God is in us today and works through us as He did through that first group of believers. Although we are parachurch, we carry out many functions of church and to do so we depend on the Spirit. Therefore, we trust Him to cultivate a strong internal community across our teams through intentional sharing, and collaboration. We gather for fellowship, reflection, and mutual support. We encourage sharing of resources and a culture of prayer.

To visit an EMAS Canada team, event, or meeting contact peter@emascanada.org