Sign


Act 2:1  When the Feast of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 

Act 2:2  Without warning there was a sound like a strong wind, gale force--no one could tell 

	where it came from. It filled the whole building. 

Act 2:3  Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks, 

Act 2:4  and they started speaking in a number of different languages as the Spirit prompted 

them. 


	They were told something great was going to take place. They had a promise from the 

Master that if they would just wait together a Presence, a Comforter would come to be with 

them. Beyond this information, though, they really didn't know much. They didn't know 

what this Comforter would look or feel like. For each person arriving at that upper room, 

there must have been a unique perspective on what might take place. Some might have been 

expecting an actual form to appear before them, like possibly a ghost or an angel. Others 

might have been expecting a voice to speak out of a cloud. 	

	Wherever each one might have been in their imaginations and no matter how diverse 

that may have been, there was something that unified them in their purpose- they knew 

from Whom this promise had come and they each had a desire to receive whatever He had 

to give. There was a complete openness of heart to have this experience not just occur in that 

place, but in them. They didn't know that what they would experience would become a sign 

or an evidence of the presence of this Comforter that would represent Him from that point 

on. All they knew was that there was this irrepressible desire to know Him and all that He 

had to give. In Jesus they had found a passion and a love that inspired only an 

insatiable hunger for more. There was a purpose in this experience that would go way 

beyond what they might know personally. In being completely filled with  


might know personally. In being completely filled with this Presence they would acquire a 

boldness and incredible ability and power to be effective in representing Jesus' heart and 

purpose. While there would be a sign and there would be an acquiring of power with 

evidence of His greatness, the true motivation of each heart was just a pure desire for Him 

and whatever He had to give. 

	In our kingdom progress, from the point that we allow Him entrance to and 

possession of our hearts, there is a promise of abundant life. It will not be possible to 

experience this life without an accompanying sign or evidence of His presence. In fact, as we 

are completely filled with Him in a complete surrender of all our faculties, there will be 

evidence as there was in Acts. It is interesting, though, that the power and evidence coming 

from an experience in Him, while motivated by a unified desire for Him, can somehow 

produce a source of diversion or conflict. For many, the evidence and the power themselves 

become the focus and can be a source of obsession or rejection. Some may see them as 

unacceptable, unnecessary, and possibly even evil, while others may see them as the object 

of their desire and motivation. In either case, there is an incredible diversion from the true 

purpose intended, greater life and service in Him. While He will produce the evidence and 

the sign, pursuing the sign and evidence themselves will not produce Him. 

	I am so very grateful for the evidence of His presence in my life that flows from His 

very Spirit. As He is made to be the focus there is incredible power and ability obtained in it. 

I believe, though, that there is an attitude to be learned from those in the upper room of 

unifying pursuit of Jesus and complete acceptance of whatever He might have planned. 

Instead of entering into the upper room with a box into which He must fit, I can wait there 

in His presence with a sense of wonder at what He in His great power will yet impart. Why 

be held back or obsessed with the sign itself when there is so much more waiting to be 

discovered in Him? However it may be seen, let there be undeniable evidence of His 

presence in my life. 


3/4/04