The Paradox of Pentecostal Progression

Let me begin this third sermon of vision-casting in my State of the Church address by defining what a Paradox is.

Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary defines a paradox as…

1 : a tenet contrary to received opinion

2 a : a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true

Or in other words a Paradox is something that goes against popular belief.

Today I am going to present to you a Paradox.

I do not come to you on a whim, but much prayer and much time have been put into studying what I am going to present to you on this day.

I come to you with a Word from the Lord!

We all have our opinions of what Pentecost is all about.

If you were to ask 10 different Pentecostal Pastors to explain what Pentecost is, you would most likely receive 10 different opinions or explanations.

But there is one thing that is agreed upon by just about every theologian in the world.

That the Church was born of the day of Pentecost.

They all will agree that something happened on that day that would change the course of the world as we know it…

That was they day that the Spirit of God was poured out upon those who had locked themselves in an upper room in Jerusalem.

And as a rushing mighty wind began to sweep through that room that day, it did not stop there, but it blew throughout all of Jerusalem, and Judea, and to all the uttermost parts of the World.

And that wind has not died out even 2000 years later!…

But it continues to blow, and stir up the lives of everyone that it comes in contact with!

That is what was document as the Day of Pentecost.

But long before that day, God was working his plan.

How many know that God has a plan?

Long before the Day of Pentecost took place, even way back in the Old Testament, God was lining things up for an explosion of His Spirit!

If you will remember back to our Communion and Commitment service, I spoke about the feast of the Passover which was instituted just before the Israelites walked out of the bondage of Egypt.

I also spoke of how the Feast of the Passover was developed into the events of the Last Supper, better known as Communion.

Jesus said, in Matthew 5:17 (KJV)

¹⁷ Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

Jesus was saying here, I have not come to do away with the Laws of the Old Testament, but I have come that I might develop it more perfectly.

So Jesus took something out of the Old Testament and developed it to its full potential so that His perfect will would be accomplished.

That is what Jesus’ has done with our lives…

The Law of the Old Testament that was proclaimed by Jehovah God commanded that another feast be observed.

Exodus 23:14-16 (KJV)

¹⁴ Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.

¹⁵ Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)

¹⁶ And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: …

The Law of the Old Testament given by Jehovah God, called for the first feast, which was the feast of the Passover.

That feast was perfected and then renamed the Lord’s Supper or Communion.

Then the law called for the second feast, which is the feast of the Harvest.

This feast was to take place 7 weeks, or 50 days, after the feast of the Passover.

But look at this…

Josephus, one of the most famous and trusted Biblical scholars of all time, calculated the date of Pentecost as the fiftieth day after the first day of Passover.

In other words, Fifty days after Jesus perfected the Passover by instituting Communion, was supposed to be the feast of Harvest and it happened to be the same day as the Day of Pentecost!

God said I am going to take the feast of the Harvest and perfect it into the day of Pentecost.

In essence God was saying, “This is what I want Pentecost to be all about.”

HARVEST!

Jesus told His disciples, Acts 1:8 (KJV)

⁸ But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The reason He was giving them the Power of the Holy Ghost was not for the sake of giving power, it was power to be witnesses…

Pentecostals are known the world over for their exuberant worship, but in God’s eyes it’s about more than that.

Speaking in tongues, the Gifts of the Spirit, Healings and Miracles…

But it’s about more than all of that!  All of that is just a means to an end.

God has given us those things, for one reason, to bring in the Harvest!

It’s about the Harvest!

It’s about being witnesses to the whole world!

In the ears of God, when you talk about Pentecost you are talking about harvesting souls.

And when you talk about a Revival that will bring in the lost, you are talking about Pentecost.

Those terms are one in the same to God.

In other words, if you are Pentecostal, you will be harvesting.

And if you’re not Harvesting, you are not Pentecostal.

Because it is Pentecost that will bring Revival to our world in this last generation!…

In light of this, I now realize why God led me to name this church Harvest Church…

It’s because we are going to bring Pentecost to Raleigh!  And with Pentecost comes a mighty Harvest of Souls!

Harvest Church, we are Pentecostal, we are not ashamed, and we now know our purpose, it is to Harvest the lost souls of our city!

There is a Harvest of Souls that is coming to us.

I love what David said in, Psalm 126:5-6 (KJV)

⁵ They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. ⁶ He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

David said it’s doubtless.  Without a shadow of a doubt!

Here is a Truth, Pentecost was meant to Progress.

We were born to grow.

Jesus said I’m giving you power to witness; in other words I’m giving you power to progress, and grow my Kingdom.

Pentecost was born to Progress!

But herein lies the Paradox.

When Pentecost was born the Apostles went about things the right way.  They did exactly as God commanded them.  GO into the world, and preach!

That’s why Pentecost turned the world upside down!

But somewhere along the line we have been misguided into another method of progressing Pentecost.

We now have the mentality “Pentecost will make the lost come to us!”

Just because we’re Pentecostal the world will flock to us like they did the Apostles.

Here is the Paradox.  Contrary to Pentecostals modern day beliefs, the world didn’t come to the Church; the Church went to the world!

The Paradox is, we’re sitting in our power-packed worship services waiting for the sinner to come and join us, when God is waiting on us to take what we have to where the sinner is!

I’ve said this before, but at Youth Convention this past year, I was praying a normal everyday, modern Pentecostals prayer, “God let me win some souls.”

And it was right then and there that God began to reveal to me the Paradox of Pentecostal Progression.

We’ve been going about things in the wrong manner.

God convicted me, and spoke to my Spirit; I’ve already sent you to win souls.  Don’t pray for me to use you until you first make the effort to be used.”

God was telling me there is no need to pray about souls, if you’re not going to take action to win them.

The Paradox of Pentecostal Progression is simply this, we have been praying for God to instigate a certain situation, or “open a door” for us to win souls, and then we will make a move, while God is saying to the Church, I want you to instigate the situation, and then I will move.

This will bring about the progression/harvest that we have been praying for!

This is what is going to bring about Revival in Raleigh!

When we knock on someone’s door, and by doing that, we are instigating the situation then God will move.

I want you to come and pray with me right now that we would loose our preconceived ideas of what we thought Pentecost was all about, and let God put inside of us the vision that He has concerning Pentecost.