The Presence of the Future: Part 4

THE PRESENCE OF THE NATIONS

We see that God’s presence not only marks His people but the Holy Spirit is the one who stirs His followers to go to every nation with the good news of the kingdom. This is no small task as we see the diversity of nations and cultures today. Every major city on the planet has multiple cultures within its boundaries. The last time we see the nations with one language is Genesis 10. In Genesis 11, the Tower of Babel brings divided tongues, which in turn divides and scatters mankind. This encounter reveals that man attempting to save himself results in racial and social hostility and destruction of human community.

In Acts 2, God came to create a new people, to empower them and to show them His goodness. First, barriers between the races come down. When Jesus was crucified, God tore the dividing curtain in two and we now have access through Jesus. Now as He fills the Church with the Spirit, the sin division which kept nations separated is torn as well. The first sermon was preached in all these different languages to demonstrate that God has come and reversed the curse of Babel and reconnected earth’s community.

The power of the Spirit demotes our nationality and race so that we see ourselves as God’s one family, reconnecting those who were separate. A person in Christ from another culture now has more in common with you than someone who does not know Jesus in your own culture. When God’s Spirit is working in the Church, you get along with people you normally would not. Your attitude is changed toward your money. Your identity, your possessions, and your culture are all transformed.

As Christ followers, we must continue to embrace the living presence of God in our own lives, our churches, our communities and ultimately the nations. The Spirit of God brings us into the presence of the nations, the presence of the future and the presence of the Lord Himself. Have you been filled with the Spirit since you believed? Are you now walking in the fullness of the Spirit? The Spirit has created a strong, new community. This community is overwhelmed with a revelation of God’s goodness that motivates us to pursue those who are yet outside of Jesus.