Page 60 - LD215 History of the Church in Africa A4 final

A History of the Church in Africa

Kingdom Covenant and Harvest

The Feast of Pentecost was chosen to mark the birth of the church for
two reasons. First, it recalled God’s giving the Law to Moses on Mount
Sinai. Therefore, as Kealy and Shenk note:

For Christians it would recall the giving of the New Law or Covenant
of the Spirit. According to Philo of Alexandria (first century A.D.),
at the giving of the Law, God sent a mighty invisible sound (the
same word as that used in Acts 2:2) that turned to fire and gave
forth a voice proclaiming the Law. Secondly, Pentecost was a
harvest festival, and it was marked by the offering of fruits in
thanksgiving. (57–58)

The visitation of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost in the upper
room of a building in Jerusalem provided a transforming experience
for those who were baptized. The Holy Spirit took ordinary people and
moved them beyond their personal capacities. The list of those present
in the upper room included the same dull disciples who misunderstood
the meaning of the Kingdom (Acts 1:6–7) along with Mary, the mother
of Jesus, His brothers, and other women (Acts 1:13–14). It is important
to note “all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in
other tongues as the Spirit enabled them” (Acts 2:4, italics mine). They
immediately perceived the two things listed in the previous paragraph:
the new kingdom covenant of the Spirit and the harvest nature of the
church. This is Pentecost and missions.

Again, note the nations represented in Acts 2:8–12 and the response of
Peter to declare boldly that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
will be saved” (Acts 2:21). He concluded his sermon with an invitation:
“Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ
for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are
far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call” (Acts 2:38–39). Luke
gives us specifics about the results by adding: “Those who accepted his
message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their
number that day” (Acts 2:41). Since Africans were listed in Acts 2:10, it
would not be difficult to believe there were other Africans among the
three thousand. The Lord of the harvest wanted the good news to go to
all nations; thus, the river of God began to flow.

::: 50 :::