In John 3:8 Jesus describes the working of the Spirit in the regeneration of the believer as “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” This verse and others have been used to make the Holy Spirit the chaotic or unpredictable member of the Trinity.  Other than this chaotic idea being a bad reading of John 3:8 (the verse doesn’t say “The wind blows in ways you wouldn’t guess”), it also doesn’t play out in scripture.  Today we will see that some of the most intense “The Spirit told me to” moments in early church play out precisely according to the plan and command of Christ.  The wind does blow where it wishes, but that doesn’t mean the Spirit gives license to do whatever your intuition tells you.  What we will see is the Spirit is moving the early church to fulfill and pursue the mission Christ gave them.

Acts 6:3 ”Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.”  The early church is growing beyond its temple court structure.  Essentially, the apostles taught, people gave, and the apostles distributed or closely oversaw the distribution.  The apostles’ response to the dispute wasn’t “Let us handle it” but “Let us delegate it.”  But notice, the delegation was not because delegation was some virtue they were seeking but because, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables” (v2).  They delegated because preaching of the word of God was to remain paramount.  And so, verse 3’s appeal to the Spirit is interesting.  The very logistical, non-doctrinal concerns of table-waiting results in an appeal to find “seven men… full of the Spirit.”  These seven are called the first deacons because of v2’s “to serve (diakonein) tables.”  [As an aside, this story’s account of the lowly and servant-natured creation of the diaconate makes the phrase “The deacons control that church” alarmingly un-biblical.]  The important thing to see is that the early church called upon the Spirit not just to supply their big doctrinal, or miracle-working, or missionary-ing needs, but also their practical “who will serve tables” needs.  And boy did the Spirit provide some winners. Also, all the deacons conveniently had Greek names so that probably helped ease the tension in the room.

Acts 6:5 “And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.” The seven are full of faith and full of the Holy Spirit.  The next two chapters will show what faithful Spirit filled deacons can do and what their contrast Simon the magician and Saul the accuser can’t do.

Acts 6:10 “But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.” The “synagogue of the Freedmen” and others enter a debate with Stephen in response to him doing wonders and signs among the people.  Notice the order, he is doing Jesus-work, faces adversity, then is empowered by the Spirit to face the adversity.  Stephen did not wake up saying, “Today the Spirit is calling me to debate those synagogue people.”  But, he finally got his chance to speak.

Acts 7:51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.” The word for “resist” is strong language.  They are anti-yielding/bowing down to the Holy Spirit.  Stephen knows where this speech is going and reminds them that his martyrdom will be just like how their ancestors murdered the prophets.

Acts 7:55 “But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.”  The Spirit equipped Stephen for his final mission of martyrdom. The first deacon was about to die, and the Spirit didn’t slay his foes or even change all their dispositions (John 3:8), but instead the Spirit gave Stephen a glimpse of Jesus.  The Spirit points to Christ.  The Spirit, who gives disciples power for the mission, points us again and again to Christ.

Acts 7:59 “And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Stephen’s words echo Jesus’, “Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit.” This first deacon gave his life for the mission of declaring to the world who Jesus is.

Acts 8:7  “For unclean spirits, crying out with a loud voice, came out of many who had them, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.” Saul’s persecution seeds the church throughout the region.  Philip, another deacon, heads to Samaria and “proclaimed to them Christ” (8:5).  The crowds love the message.  They also were amazed at the spiritual power Philip brought with him.  But notice, Philip’s story will serve as a foil for Simon the magician.  Philip’s spiritual power enhanced his message about Christ.

Acts 8:15  “Who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit… 17  Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.” This is the verse that makes many non-Pentecostals squirm.  After all, the story is about those who believe and are baptized in the name of Jesus but have not received the Spirit. However, this is part of the story of Simon the magician. The story shows that Simon has a wrong view of the Spirit and the spiritual world in general.  He offers money for this “power” v19, but the apostles rebuke him for trying to buy the “gift” v20.  This gift language is not different from Peter’s description of the Spirit’s work in 2:38 “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”  Somehow, these new believers in Samaria have not received or not been instructed/understood that they have the Spirit with them for the mission.  They are in the state of many a new Christian who walks an aisle out of fear of hell or marveling at Christ who then would ask “What next?” They are ignorant or negligent of the much bigger calling they are a part of.

Acts 8:18 “Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money.” The word for give could be as simple as “give a present” or more nuanced such as “supply, furnish, grant.” Simon’s interpretation of events will show that when it comes to the Spirit things aren’t very simple.

Acts 8:19 “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” You have the Spirit, give it to me.  And how many false teachers boldly or vaguely make claims “I have the Spirit, I can give it to you.”  If any man says, “I have something of God’s, and I give it where I want (or worse to the highest bidder)” then they strongly misunderstand John 3:8.  The apostles command Simon to repent.  Peter takes Simon back to square one of his messages from Acts 2:38. Simon desired the Spirit not, so he could obey Christ or die for the mission, but to serve himself.

Acts 8:29 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”  Philip had been on mission in Samaria.  The Spirit has given a new mission location.  All of this moves the early church toward fulfilling Jesus’ command in Acts 1:8. Philip is heading toward “ends of the earth” territory.

Acts 8:39 “And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing.” In God’s timing and by the Spirit’s prompting Philip was in the right spot to send the gospel down to Africa. Before planes and trains, the Holy Spirit sent the gospel there.  In 8:31 the eunuch even says, “How can I, unless someone guides me,” and then he invites Philip into his chariot. The Spirit gift wrapped this evangelism experience for Philip, this deacon.  Notice also that the eunuch’s desire for teaching and oversight also is a foil of Simon the magician.  The eunuch is subservient to Philip’s explanation through the prompting of the Spirit.  The Spirit guided Philip to someone desperately desiring to understand scripture and, we are left to assume, to obey it. The newly baptized believer rejoices all the way home.  The literal activity of the Spirit in this verse is it “carried Philip away.”