Being filled with the Holy Spirit
"When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together. And suddenly, a noise came from the sky, like a strong driving wind, filling the entire house where they were. Then, tongues appeared to them as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim." (Acts 2:1–4) This passage marks the dramatic fulfillment of Christ’s promise to send the Holy Spirit upon His disciples and inaugurates the birth of the Church. The feast of Pentecost, originally a Jewish harvest celebration and commemoration of the giving of the Law on Sinai, becomes the day of divine empowerment, transformation, and universal mission in the New Covenant. The setting—“they were all in one place together”—emphasizes physical unity and spiritual expectancy. The descent of the Holy Spirit, symbolized by wind and fire, reveals God's active, purifying,...