The Day of Pentecost

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Question
What was the significance of Pentecost in the founding of the early church?
Answer
The significance of Pentecost in the founding of the early church is that it set the direction for the faith. And this is a continuity that Pentecost has with Old Testament passages which pointed to the fact that this gospel was going to be preached in the whole world and that it would include all of the world's peoples, even going back as far as Abraham. So, Pentecost is a way in which we find out where our faith is going to go, and it's going to go to the ends of the earth because people from all over the world come together and receive this gift of the Holy Spirit and then they go back to where they live and the gospel spreads all over the world among many different languages and people groups.

Answer by Dr. Todd Johnson

Dr. Todd M. Johnson is Associate Professor of Global Christianity and Director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.