Pentecost is the day the Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples in Jerusalem, fifty days after Jesus’ resurrection.
It marks the birth of the church and the beginning of the Spirit’s new-covenant ministry in power.
The name comes from the Greek word for “fiftieth,” referring to the Jewish Feast of Weeks that occurred fifty days after Passover.
On that day the risen Christ fulfilled His promise to send the Spirit, and the gospel began to go out to the nations with boldness and power.
Pentecost stands as one of the great turning points in redemptive history. Before He ascended, Jesus told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the promise of the Father — the baptism with the Holy Spirit that would give them power to be His witnesses. On the day of Pentecost the Spirit came with the sound of a mighty rushing wind, tongues as of fire, and the miraculous ability to speak in other languages. Peter preached the crucified and risen Christ, and about three thousand people were added to the church. What began that day continues throughout the present age: the Spirit indwells every believer, empowers witness, builds the church, and applies the finished work of Christ to the hearts of God’s people. Pentecost is both a unique historical event and the inauguration of the Spirit’s ongoing work.
- Pentecost fulfilled Jesus’ promise that the disciples would be baptized with the Holy Spirit and receive power for witness.
- It occurred on the Jewish Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), a harvest festival, picturing the firstfruits of the gospel harvest.
- The Spirit’s coming was accompanied by unmistakable signs: wind, fire, and languages that declared the mighty works of God.
- Peter’s sermon interpreted the event as the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy and called the people to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
- About three thousand people were added that day, and the new community devoted itself to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayers.
- Pentecost marks the transition from the Spirit’s selective work in the Old Testament to His permanent indwelling of all believers.
- The same Spirit who came at Pentecost continues to empower the church for mission until Christ returns.
- Historical Event – The once-for-all outpouring of the Spirit on the gathered disciples in Jerusalem.
- Fulfillment of Promise – The realization of Jesus’ words and of Old Testament prophecies concerning the Spirit.
- Power for Witness – The disciples were transformed from fearfulness to bold proclamation of the risen Christ.
- Birth of the Church – The beginning of the multi-national body of Christ in which Jew and Gentile are one.
- Signs and Wonders – Wind, tongues of fire, and speaking in other languages authenticated the new work of God.
- Gospel Advance – The message of salvation went out immediately, and thousands were converted.
- Ongoing Reality – Every believer now receives the Spirit at conversion; the church continues in the power first displayed at Pentecost.
- Acts 2:1-4 – “When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind… 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.”
- Acts 1:4-5, 8 – “He ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father… ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now… But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses…’”
- Acts 2:16-21 – Peter quotes Joel: “And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh…”
- Acts 2:32-33, 38-39 – “This Jesus God raised up… Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing… 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.”
- Acts 2:41-42 – “So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.”
- Joel 2:28-32 – The prophecy of the Spirit poured out on all flesh, fulfilled at Pentecost.
- John 14:16-17, 26 – Jesus promises another Helper, the Spirit of truth, who will be with them and in them forever.
- John 16:7 – “It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you.”
- Luke 24:49 – “And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
- 1 Corinthians 12:13 – “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”
- Titus 3:5-6 – God “saved us… by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.”
Pentecost is the day the risen Christ poured out the promised Holy Spirit and launched the church into its worldwide mission. What the disciples received that day — the presence, power, and fullness of the Spirit — is now the birthright of every believer in Jesus. The wind and fire were unique signs of a new era, but the same Spirit still fills, empowers, and sends the people of God. Pentecost reminds us that the church advances not by human strength but by the power of the Spirit, and that the gospel that began in Jerusalem continues to the ends of the earth. The Spirit who came at Pentecost still convicts, converts, indwells, and empowers — until the day the Lord returns.
Entry compiled for the JESUSaves.com Bible Glossary. Optimized for wiki.js Visual Editor.