Jesus’s promise of the Spirit for Pentecost was a promise of empowerment for mission (Luke 24:48-49; Acts 1:8). Luke reveals how pivotal this empowerment is by underlining its necessity in both his Gospel’s conclusion and his sequel’s introduction. This is how the servant aspect of Jesus’s ministry becomes that of his followers. Luke’s primary emphasis regarding the Spirit involves mission, and most scholars acknowledge empowerment for mission as the Spirit’s most prominent activity in Acts.
God’s Spirit empowers God’s agents for their mission. If the Spirit empowers us especially for mission, it should not surprise us if a Spirit-led reading of Scripture should highlight the theme of mission.
In other words, the central thrust of the Pentecost narrative is empowerment for mission, so reading from this standpoint invites us to read Scripture missionally: sensitive to the work that God has for us to do, not just work that believers might want God to do for them. It invites us to humbly read Scripture with faith to hear God there, trusting the Holy Spirit to lead us.
This content is by Craig Keener, but edited and posted by Defenders Media.
For more on how to interpret Scripture in light of Pentecost, read Spirit Hermeneutics (2016).
