This Week's Story
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My words tell you what He did and said, but words are too small to describe Him.
This Week’s Story relives American history and the Bible through brief inspiring stories presented on mp3 audio recordings and text for reading.
The Tenth Day after He Left,
part two
People thought He was a dead body in a tomb for three days. Then He arose and left the tomb, even though soldiers had been assigned to see that His body was not removed. For forty days He visited many of His followers and us, His team of eleven.
He gave us directions. “Wait in Jerusalem for God’s promise. You will receive power and the Holy Spirit. You will be witnesses for me.” We did not understand, but we waited.
We were no superhumans. Jesus had chosen us to be with Him for three years. We ate and talked with Him, saw Him heal people, gather little children into His arms, heal sick people, and calm scared people. He rebuked hypocrites. We saw Him slip away to pray at night, sleep in a storm when we were terrified, and submit to the horror of crucifixion. I testify to you that I, John, His disciple, now called His apostle, saw His crucifixion.
My words tell you what He did and said, but words are too small to describe Him.
Words I memorized from the Holy Scriptures help me understand Him. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” Maybe the promise Jesus told us to wait for will help us to know Him.
We disciples waited ten days. Thousands of Jewish people from other countries were pouring into Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Weeks. The tenth day we were sitting in a home.
No storm was outside. With no warning, we heard a mighty wind swooshing through the home. We heard the sound, but we saw no sign of wind. Then what looked like split tongues made of fire appeared on the top of our heads. We began to speak in foreign languages.
Curious people began coming. Had they heard a mighty wind? News spread about the noise, tongues of fire, and speaking in foreign languages. Soon local people and foreigners from many countries crowded at the house.
People from other countries said that they heard words being spoken in their languages. They included Parthians, Medes, Elamites, Mesopotamians, and travelers from Asia, Egypt, and Rome.
Many exclaimed, “How come these people who are speaking in foreign languages are all Galileans?” Of course, we were. Aramaic was our everyday language and we spoke Hebrew when we discussed the Scriptures. We did not know these other languages people claimed to hear us speaking. They said we were speaking about God’s wonders.
I understand now why Jesus told us to wait. This is the day of promise. God’s Spirit has come to us. We have not been abandoned. I remember the dinner we had with Jesus before he was arrested. He told us, “I am going away to the one who sent me. I will send you the Comforter—the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will tell you all about me. And you must also tell others about me.”
This is Barbara Steiner with a day that is more than a calendar event.
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