A ship strayed off course near San Diego some years back. It became stuck in a reef at low tide. Twelve tugboats were unsuccessful in their attempts to budge it.

Finally, the captain instructed the tugs to go back home. He sighed, "I'll just be patient and wait." He waited until high tide. All of a sudden the ocean began to rise. What human power could not do, the rising tide of the Pacific Ocean did. It lifted that ship and put it back into the channel. (1)

Something like that happened to the early church on the Day of Pentecost. They were all together in one placeconfused, unmotivated, fearfulwhen suddenly the tide of God rolled in.

There was a sound like the rush of a mighty wind. And above every head there appeared a tongue of fire. And these largely uneducated followers of the Gali…