Acts 2:1,2 – When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven,
I love the sounds of Pentecost. I have been favored to hear that Pentecostal sound all over the world. I have heard the jubilant sound of Africans celebrating in the Holy Spirit, I have heard the fervency of 100,000 Korean voices calling out to the Lord, I have heard the joyful sounds of laughter in the Philippines as multitudes were being filled with the Spirit, and I have heard the rhythmic singing and dancing in Latin American nations. The sound of revival is unmistakeable, it is the sound of hearts filled with the power of God and responding vocally and physically to Him. One of my fondest memories was hearing the joyful singing of thousands of hippies rejoicing at a festival near Monterey in California. Changed lives can’t help but make a joyful noise. Here is how Aimee Semple Mcpherson describes the sound from heaven.
“Thank God, there is still a sound when men are really filled with the Spirit! The devil hates that sound. He would hush us and bid us scorn the noisy meeting, and the old fashioned pouring out of the heart to God.…Full well he knows that the joy of the Lord is our strength, and he acts accordingly. Many of us are so dead and corpse-like in our worship that one can well understand the mistake of the lad who, upon being questioned as to the preacher’s text, replied: “Many are cold and a few are frozen.” The sound which came from the Upper Room on the Day of Pentecost was not of earthborn origin or fleshly fanaticism. It was literally a “sound from heaven.” When the “sound” of praise is really from “heaven,” it is Spirit-attuned and easily recognizable. It is a sound of Christ-glorification, a sound of brotherly love, a sound of zeal for soul-winning, a sound inimitable and unmistakable.”
When someone is baptized in the Holy Spirit you can hear the sound in their voice. I am not talking about speaking in other tongues (though I speak in tongues more than you all), I am talking about the distinct sound in a Spirit baptized person’s voice. Their conversation is different and their worship carries a passion that can’t be missed. I love to hear the ‘sound from heaven’ when Christians gather for prayer and worship. I guess the thing that is so attractive is that it is a sound from heaven itself and resembles the atmosphere we will enjoy forever.
2 thoughts on “THERE WAS A SOUND FROM HEAVEN”
Awesome Pastor
We can see this in our lives, in our families, in our fellowship with believers, in our churches, in our communities. The key is “they were in one accord”. I have been praying to see this for 39 years, I’ve had a taste of it, and I never want to eat flat, dry bread again, but often settle for what is being served. Many times I question if the church wants to see God move, if they anticipate Him doing what Jesus paid with His life for us to have or just expect things to go the same way it has always been, so that they can manage it. However, “SUDDENLY.” The apostles didn’t expect it, they didn’t know how it was going to happen, what it would look like, they just knew Jesus told them to anticipate what He said He was going to do next. That is what I believe, that is what I anticipate we will see if we start acting “in one accord” and “SUDDENLY” we will be transformed into the vessel worthy of His presence.
I have tasted and seen God suddenly show up at Victory, and in churches and in communities around the world where “church leadership” have humbled themselves to come together for the purpose of the Gospel and whole cities and regions have been impacted and lives transformed.