Acts 2:12-21

¹² Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” ¹³ Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.” ¹⁴ Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. ¹⁵ These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! ¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ¹⁷ “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. ¹⁸ Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. ¹⁹ I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. ²⁰ The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. ²¹ And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

Palm Wine [“Tuba”]

A “Tuba” is wine made out of coconut or palm sap. In the Philippines, a Tuba gatherer collects the coconut sap every morning. “Tuba” wine is sweet and less strong in the morning. Many town folks, men and women in the “Tuba” making regions love to drink palm wine early in the morning. It is not a surprise that there are those who are drank as early as nine in the morning.

When the Holy Spirit filled the disciples, the people around them thought they were drunk. But Peter contested that the disciples were not drunk because it was only 9 in the morning. The disciples were actually prophesying about the wonders of God.

1. Prophesy

¹² Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” ¹³ Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.” ¹⁴ Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. ¹⁵ These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning!

When the Holy Spirit is actively at work in the believers’ life, there is external effect that other people will eventually notice. The disciples were mistaken to be drunk when they were speaking in tongues. The Holy Spirit gave Peter the courage to stand before many people. During the interrogation of Jesus before the Sanhedrin, Peter was so timid and scared of his life that he denied knowing Jesus 3-times. But when the Holy Spirit came upon them he was fearless to defend all the disciples.
Paul teaches in 2 Timothy 1:7…
⁷For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

The courage of testifying about the Lord Jesus is an internal mark of the Holy Spirit. Peter was also persuasive in sharing the word of God.
The Holy Spirit used that occasion for the disciples to preach the word of God. There is no record about Peter and the rest of the disciples reading the scriptures. We can only assume that Peter and the disciples were well acquainted with the word of God. He quoted the Scriptures in the book of the prophet Joel and said…
¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ¹⁷ “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. ¹⁸ Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

To prophesy is to preach about the design of God about what is to come or the future. To prophesy is not the same as fortune telling but preaching what God has planned to do. Prophesying is one of the gifts of the Spirit to the church for strengthening and edification.
1Corinthians 14:1, 3 Paul teaches…
“¹ … eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy…³…the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort…”
Paul explained to the Ephesians that prophets are leaders given to the church to help the body of Christ grow mature.
Ephesian 4:11-13 teaches…
¹¹ So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, ¹² to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ¹³ until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Therefore, when we chose leaders in the church, we should seek the Lord’s guidance to reveal to us those who were given the gift of leadership. Election in the church is not popularity contest but allowing God to reveal His will. We must earnestly seek God’s guidance for us to know whom He has chosen to lead. Pray that God allows His Spirit to be active in the life of His chosen leader.

Normally, anyone would nominate someone he knows but if God did not choose the person nominated to be a leader of TMEC, God would enable him to decline. The Lord Jesus gave a parable in the book of Luke 14:7-11
⁷ When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: ⁸ “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. ⁹ If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. ¹⁰ But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests.¹¹ For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Similarly, the prestige of being a member of the Board of Trustees is a temptation to many. If God did not call someone to be in the leadership yet that person tries to politicize his way to the leadership, God will make ways to teach that believers the hard way. God will reveal whatever motive that person has in desiring to be a leader.

Whereas, if God has called a believer to the leadership ministry, whatever, however, weaknesses that person has, God will be magnified in the life of that person who obeys. As church members, it is our responsibility to seek God’s leading for us to know whom we should nominate and elect as leaders of His church.

2. Pray

¹⁹ I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. ²⁰ The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. ²¹ And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
Calling on the name of the Lord is the Spirit’s work in the believer’s life. Have you had any experience of praying where you did not know what to pray for but when you started praying, awesome words came out of your mouth? Calling on God or praying to God is a command that the Lord required us to be blessed.
Jeremiah 33:3…
³ ‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’

God wants us to call Him because He is ready to answer us and to tells us wonderful things. Praying to God is a hard thing to do if you know very little about God. This is as hard as approaching someone you do not know unless you are in dire serious need.

Many so-called believers neglect praying because they are not comfortable before God. Just as many do not approach the pastor because they are not familiar with him.

God is always busy but He loves to hear and listen to billions of prayers simultaneously.
Jeremiah 29:12-13…
¹² Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Anyone who has disciple is a leader. The prayer life of a church leader is very indispensable, very essential to the church ministry. This church needs leaders who are prayerful rather than those who rely upon experience. Those who depend upon God through prayer experience more success in the ministry. Those who depend upon their experience will see the same result of their experience.

If we want to see the power of God to work in and through the church, we need to elect leaders who are prayerful. If we want to have similar results from the past, then electing leaders who are expert in the ministry will do.

Church ministry is a spiritual work and we need to rely upon the leading of the Spirit. There are experienced leaders but God will surely use the person who is prayerful. God does not look at appearance or expertise but uses him who trust in the Lord.

Before the fight of David and Goliath, we can read how the young David relied upon God. In 1 Samuel 17:32-37 King Saul warned David.
³² David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.” ³³ Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” ³⁴ But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, ³⁵ I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. ³⁶ Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

Goliath was huge and very experienced warrior from his youth. David was young who did not know how to use sword but sling shot. David had no shield to protect himself and had no sword like the Philistine soldier. The only thing he had was he trusted that the Lord who protected him from the lion and the bear, and David believed that God will also protect him from Goliath.

Ministry is similar to the battle between David and Goliath. King Saul did not believe in David. David’s siblings were actually, not amenable seeing him asking about the battle. At first look, anyone would think that Goliath will easily win the battle but it was the other way around, David killed Goliath in a split second.

The book of Psalms is a collection of King David’s prayers. King David has his own share of wickedness but he became great because God blessed him. We need leaders in this church who are more prayerful like King David. Pray that elected leaders will find their joy coming to Wednesday prayer meeting.

When there’s no vision from God, it is normal to rely upon others to decide for them. The leader chosen by God should rely more on God for result acceptable to the Lord. The Lord gives wisdom to the prayerful leader to discern which advice is useful to the ministry and which is not.

How do you approach your ministry, do you pray for God’s guidance or you just go to those whom you know who have been there before and let them decide for you?

Pray that God would raise prayerful leaders for this church who are dependent upon God.

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