Imagine your best friend said, “I’m moving out of state, but don’t worry, it’s good for you that I’m leaving.” What would you think? You’d probably think they were crazy. But before Jesus left his disciples, he told them that it was better for them that he was going away (John 16:7). How could this be? What Jesus said only made sense after he ascended into heaven and sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in them and fill them with power.

The story of the sending and filling of the Spirit took place fifty days after Easter. It was the day of Pentecost, a special feast day. Jerusalem was packed with thousands of celebrating Jews from around the world. The apostles and some of Jesus’s other closest friends were gathered to celebrate, when suddenly that “mighty rushing wind” from heaven “filled the entire house” (Acts 2:2). Then, what looked like flames, which were shaped like a tongue sticking upward that just happened to be on fire, sat over each person’s head. These tongues of fire were symbols that “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” And, because of that, they were able “to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance” (2:4). Basically, the Spirit gave them the ability to speak about the mighty works of God in the languages of all the different people from all the different places.

Next, Peter stood up and explained all these things to those who were watching them happen. He said, “What you see—men and women, both young and old, speaking in many tongues about the wonderful things of God—is just what the prophet Joel said would happen when God poured out his Spirit.” And he told them, “More than that, it is a sign that Jesus, who was crucified, is alive and crowned Lord and Christ.” The people listening “were cut to the heart” (2:37), which means they felt deeply sorry for not believing in Jesus. They asked what they should do. Peter said to call on the Lord Jesus to be saved and to “repent and be baptized . . . for the forgiveness of sins” (see 2:21, 38). They did just that. Three thousand people (!) received Peter’s message, were baptized, and then received the Holy Spirit too.