November 29, 2006
PLAINER WORDS … PENTECOST WAS NOT A SECRET
PART I
In order to understand what part Pentecost played in the purposes of God, it is essential that the student have an understanding of what it was.
Pentecost was a Jewish Feast Day. In the Old Testament, it was called the Feast of Weeks (Ex. 34:22, Deut. 16:10) because it was observed seven weeks after the offering of the barley-sheaf during the Passover season (Lev. 23:15).

Pentecost was observed on the fiftieth day, or seven weeks, following the Paschal (Passover) Feast. Therefore, it was the Feast of Weeks.

The Greek word for fiftieth is “pentekoste”. Thus, the word was not translated in our King James Authorized Version, but rather, the Greek word was Anglicized from “pentekoste” to Pentecost. It is said that the Greek speaking Jews referred to the last day of the Feast of Weeks as Pentecost because the last day ended fifty days after the Feast of First Fruits.

THE FEASTS OF THE LORD

Leviticus Chapter Twenty-three sets forth the giving of the seven great feasts of the Lord. These great feasts divided Israel’s year. In fact, looking carefully at these feasts, we can view God’s dealings with Israel during the entire period of their most eventful history.
Looking at the feasts, separately, we notice in Leviticus 23 the seven in number.

1. The Feast of Passover
2. The Feast of Unleavened Bread
3. The Feast of Firstfruits
4. The Feast of Weeks - Pentecost
5. The Feast of Trumpets
6. The Day of Atonement
7. The Feast of Tabernacles

It should be pointed out that the Sabbath occupies a very special, unique, and independent place. It is first presented in Leviticus 23:3. There, we read of its proper characteristics and its attendant circumstances fully set forth, then, we read; “These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons” (v. 4). So, the attentive reader then becomes aware of the fact that the first great feast was to be the Passover. Therefore, the Sabbath is not to be numbered with the other feasts. It was understood that there were seven feasts of the Lord which Israel was to observe.

These seven were divided into two sections of “four” and “three.” The first section of four included the Feast of Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of First Fruits, and the Feast of Weeks (with the fiftieth day being the Feast of Pentecost). Then, there was an interval of four months which was followed by the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles.

The Feast of Weeks began with the offering of the First Fruits Barley Harvest and ended with the ingathering of Wheat Harvest. The first day of the Feast of Weeks was the Feast of Firstfruits; the last of the Feast of Weeks was the Feast of Pentecost. Only the first and last days of the Feast of Weeks were celebrated.

Therefore, we notice that Pentecost was fifty days from the Feast of First Fruits. Pentecost is found in Leviticus 23:15-16; “And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete: Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord.” After numbering the fifty days from the Feast of First Fruits, the last day of the Feast of Weeks was celebrated which came to be called Pentecost by the Greek speaking Jews.

A brief word is needed concerning these feasts which marked off Israel from the other nations. These feasts were THE FEASTS OF THE LORD. Leviticus 23:4 emphatically states that they are the LORD’s Feasts. This was their true character. They were instituted by the LORD (Yahweh). The people of Israel had no voice in the matter. After these were given to Israel, they lapsed into a condition of apostasy, and it was said of them in Isaiah 1:4:

”Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.”

Because of their iniquity, the LORD further said; “Your new moons and your appointed feasts My soul hateth: they are a trouble unto Me; I am weary to bear them” (Isa. 1:14). They had ceased being the Feasts of the LORD and became the Jew’s feasts. Hence, when the Lord Jesus Christ was in their midst as Yahweh manifest in the flesh, He referred to them as the “feasts of the Jews” (John 2:13, 5:1, 6:4, 11:55). This was a sad commentary of the Jew’s heart attitude toward these God given Feasts.

The Nation’s first great feast was the Passover, and their seventh was the Feast of Tabernacles. The first referred to redemption; the last referred to Israel’s pre-millennial glory, the manifest Kingdom of God. The Paschal lamb typified the death of Christ (1 Cor. 5:7), and the Feast of Tabernacles typified “the times of refreshing” which shall come from the presence of the Lord (Acts 3:19). It typifies “the times of restitution (restoration) of all things, of which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began” (Acts 3:21). “All things” has the idea of everything being completely restored to its pre-flood condition.

Such was the opening and closing of the Jewish Nation’s year. Atonement was the foundation; between these two points, we have the resurrection of Christ (First Fruits) found in Leviticus 23:10-14 and the gathering of the remnant which is typified in Pentecost (vs. 15-17). The waking up of Israel to a sense of their long lost glory is viewed in the Feast of Trumpets (vs. 23-25). This takes place when the gathered remnant of Israel shall blow the trumpet for a memorial, calling to remembrance their long lost glory which is to be used to stir up Israel to seek the LORD.

Following close on the heels of the Feast of Trumpets is the Day of Atonement which is celebrated eight days after the blowing of the trumpets. This feast looks forward to the time when Israel will accept the atonement made at Calvary. The “fountain” of Zechariah 13:1 was opened at Calvary but rejected by Israel. After they are re-gathered, they will look upon Him whom they pierced (Zech. 12:10). We have already mentioned the Feast of Tabernacles, so, suffice it to say that it is the last of Israel’s feasts. It points toward the final harvest in which all of Israel is gathered in and established in the long awaited Kingdom.

With the brief explanation given concerning the Feasts of the LORD, let us look somewhat closer at the Feast of Pentecost. Pentecost was to typify God’s people who were to be gathered by the Holy Ghost. The Jew was to bring out of His dwelling, two “wave loaves” which were to be baked “with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD” (Lev. 23:17). These two loaves represent, not the Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head, but the Church of the Acts period of Promise.

The fact that the loaves were to be baked with leaven foreshadowed those who, though endued with power from on high, had evil dwelling in them. The assembly on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2 stood in the full value of the blood of Christ. They were adorned with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, but leaven was present. The enablement of the gifts of the Spirit did not change the old nature of the assembly on the Great Pentecostal day. Flesh remained flesh. The gifts of the Spirit did not change flesh into spirit. The evil which was Divinely recognized was Divinely provided for. “Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh” (Gal. 5:16). Indwelling sin was not eradicated, but the provision for it was made when the believers on the Great Day of Pentecost received “power from on high” (Luke 24:49).

AN OFTEN OVERLOOKED FACT ABOUT PENTECOST

In the ordinance of Pentecost, it is noticed that provision was made for “the poor and the stranger.”
“And when ye shall reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest; thou shalt leave them for the poor, and to the stranger: I am the LORD your God” (Lev. 23:22).

Provision was made for the stranger to glean Israel’s fields. The Gentile was to be brought in and to enjoy, as well as, participate in the overflowing goodness of God. When Israel’s storehouses and barns had been furnished, there were to be the precious corners with rich clusters for the Gentiles to gather.

In light of the blessing of the Church of the Mystery, there is no way in which the gleanings of Israel’s fields can be prefigured to speak of ALL spiritual blessings among heavenly rulers (Eph. 1:3). We are not to suppose, at all, that the spiritual blessings with which the Church is endowed with are set forth under the figure of a stranger gleaning in Israel’s fields. The blessings of the Church which is His Body are not typified in the Feast of Pentecost. The blessings of the Church of the Mystery are not the gleanings of Canaan, but rather, the highest of the glories of Christ which we will share with Him.
The Church which is His Body will not be sent out to gather up, as a stranger, the sheaves and clusters in the corners of Israel’s fields and from the branches of Israel’s vines. No, the One New Man, the Church, tastes of far higher blessings, richer joys, and nobler dignities than whatever Israel was ever to know. The Church of this present dispensation is not to glean as a stranger on earth but to enjoy its own riches in glory. It will, no doubt, be a privilege for a “stranger” to be permitted to glean after Israel’s harvest is reaped during the Kingdom of God. However, the Church’s portion is infinitely higher and grander than just mere gleanings after Israel’s storehouses are filled to the full. The Church which is His Body is to share the dignities and the glories of Christ among the heavens’ most exalted ones. Our blessings are laid up for us and stored in Christ as it were, not in the ungleaned corners of Israel’s fields.

At this point, it should be said that the blessings of the Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head could in no way be likened to Israel's left-overs. Insistence that the Church began at Pentecost would result in the Gentile believer’s blessings being likened to that of Israel’s leftovers. Failure to rightly divide the Word is responsible for most of the mischievous found in “Christian Doctrine.”
PENTECOST IN ACTS TWO
Quoting from the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Volume IV, Page 2318; “The almost universal opinion among theologians and exegetes is this: that Pentecost marks the founding of the Christian Church as an institution.” Let us not be ashamed if we are not numbered with the universal brotherhood who believe the founding of the Church was on the Day of Pentecost. Being serious students of Scripture, we are convinced and fully persuaded that the Scripture cannot contradict itself. With this thought in mind, the reader’s attention is called to the following two verses.
“And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the Mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been HID IN GOD, Who created all things by Jesus Christ” (Eph. 3:9).
“Even the Mystery which hath been HID FROM AGES AND FROM GENERATIONS, but NOW is made manifest to His saints” (Col. 1:26).

Notice, the emphasis is upon the fact that the Mystery of the Church which is His Body is said to have been HID IN GOD, and HID FROM AGES AND GENERATIONS. In plainer words, the truth concerning the Mystery of the Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head was not hid in the Old Testament Scriptures, neither in type or shadow; rather, it was HID IN GOD. It was HID from the prophets (i.e. from ages and from generations), it was HID in the Heart of God and not made known unto the "sons of men" in other ages (Eph. 3:5). Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and David knew absolutely nothing about the Church of the Mystery. This revelation had been withheld from all of the prophets, from all of the sons of men in other ages until such time it was revealed to the Apostle Paul who was the prisoner of Jesus Christ for the Gentiles.

Further evidence of the fact that the Mystery was HID is the fact that it is referred to as the UNSEARCHABLE riches of Christ (Eph. 3:8); hence indicating that the Mystery could not be searched out in the Scriptures. It was UNSEARCHABLE! It is found only in those Scriptures which relate to it. Truth which relates to the Mystery is embodied in those epistles which are stamped—the Prison Epistles.

If Pentecost was the founding day of the Church, then we would expect it to mark the heralding of a new and fresh revelation from God; one which had previously been HID IN GOD and HID FROM AGES AND FROM GENERATIONS. However, an examination of the Pentecostal address, by Peter, yields the fact that no new revelation was made known, but rather, the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy took place on the Day of Pentecost.
Tom L. Ballinger

PLAINER WORDS … PENTECOST WAS NOT A SECRET
Part II
The Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head was the subject of a secret (i.e. the subject of a mystery). Pentecost was no secret. In Acts 2:16, Peter said:
“But THIS IS THAT which was spoken by the prophet Joel.”

After Peter said “THIS IS THAT,” he quoted Joel 2:28-32 which depicted some of the things that were taking place on the Day of Pentecost in Acts Two.
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out My spirit. And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered …”

This quotation of Joel 2 was made in Acts 2:17-21. This certainly tied Pentecost in with Old Testament prophecy. Therefore, Pentecost was the subject of prophecy, not a secret. If Acts 2 was the beginning of the Church of the Mystery, then Ephesians 3:9 is contradicted. Pentecost was no secret, but rather, it was a revelation given through Joel, the prophet. The Church cannot be imported into the prophecy of Joel. The Church was “hid in God” and “hid from ages and from generations and was not "made known to the sons of men.” Thus, Joel knew nothing, at all, about the Church which is His Body. He neither knew anything about it nor did he, in any way, write anything about it. Truth concerning the Church was “unsearchable.”

When Peter stood up and spoke on the day of Pentecost, he gave the Divine explanation of what was taking place.

THIS IS THAT
We will ask the reader to read the book of Joel. It will take less than ten minutes to do so. Upon reading this book, you are aware of the fact that the prophecy deals with the Nation of Israel and the nations. Joel 2:25 mentioned, “I will restore.” This speaks of the restoration of Israel. The question the Apostles ask the Lord Jesus, in Acts 1:6, certainly echoed Joel's statement; for they asked, “Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the Kingdom to Israel?” The fact of restoration was very prominent in the Acts Period. Peter made an often overlooked statement of prophecy in Acts Three:
“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began” (Acts 3:19-21).
In Joel, we also note the GREAT AND TERRIBLE DAY OF THE LORD (2:31). This, of course, cannot have reference to the Church which is His Body. Since Peter quoted Joel 2 in Acts 2:17-21, he unhesitatingly linked Pentecost with the Day of the Lord.
In Peter's explanation of Pentecost, he said, THIS IS THAT. A look at his explanation showed that Joel's prophecy was divided into two parts. The first part was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost. The second part will be fulfilled during the Consummation of the Kingdom of God. What is it that fills the interval between the two parts of Joel’s prophecy? Peter does not explain it. Paul does. The present interval is what fills the gap between the two parts of Joel’s prophecy. This present interval is the Mystery; a dispensation made known by Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ. This parenthetic dispensation is not mentioned, at all, by Peter. We only know that the Mystery fills the gap because the Apostle Paul made known the new dispensation.

The outline shown below depicts the two parts of Joel's prophecy and the Mystery dividing them:
I. I will pour out of My Spirit
(a) Upon all flesh
(b) Sons and
(c) Daughters A Past Day - part of Joel's
(d) Old Men prophecy fulfilled during Acts
(e) Young Men
(f) Servants
(g) Handmaids

II. (The Present Interval) (The Mystery)

III. I will show wonders in
(a) Heavens
(b) Earth
(c) Blood A Future Day - the conclusion
(d) Fire of Joel's prophecy. Consummation
(e) Pillars of smoke of the Kingdom.
(f) Sun
(g) Moon

Therefore, we see that Joel 2:28-29 was fulfilled during the “Acts of the Apostles.” Verses 28 and 29, in Joel 2, spoke concerning the Pentecostal signs. These signs continued all through the entire Acts period. The signs did not phase out and, ultimately, vanish away, but they continued until Acts 28:28. Then, they suddenly were withdrawn. They stopped abruptly.

Joel 2:30-31, which mentioned the “wonders in the heavens and in the earth” and etc., awaits a future day for its fulfillment. These wonders will show up in the last days of the Kingdom of God, just prior to the Parousia, that is, the Second Coming of Christ which will usher in the 1000 year Personal Presence of Christ on the earth (the Millennial).
Peter, quoting Joel in Acts 2:20-21, said; “. . . before that great and notable day of the Lord come. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The wonders which are to be demonstrated are to be BEFORE THE NOTABLE DAY OF THE LORD (Joel said “terrible day”). This “notable day,” or “terrible day,” was a reference to the Great Tribulation. This part of Joel’s prophecy has, of course, not yet come to pass. These wonders in the heavens and in the earth are to take place BEFORE the Tribulation. Therefore, this part of the prophecy awaits fulfillment, but not in this present dispensation which is “sign-less.” During the last days of the Kingdom of God, these wonders will be shown in the heavens and in the earth. These will be the sign of Christ’s Coming (Parousia) (Matt. 24:3).

Therefore, it is noted that Peter's explanation of what was taking place on the Day of Pentecost was not, in any way, related to a Mystery “hid in God,” but rather, he explained that which was taking place was in harmony with God's prophetic program.

Pentecost was not the birth of the Church which is His Body. It has been pointed out that:
(1) Pentecost was no secret.
(2) Pentecost was linked with the Feasts of the LORD which were OT feasts.
(3) Peter quoted Joel and linked Pentecost with “The Day of the LORD.”
Each of the three points, if ignored, would contradict Ephesians 3:9 and Colossians 1:26. The solution is to rightly divide.

PETER APPEALS TO ISRAEL

The Apostle Peter addresses the men of Israel on the Day of Pentecost. On that particular day, the city of Jerusalem was filled with Jews from all over the Roman Empire (see Acts 2:5, 9-11). It was required that adult males attend the feasts in Jerusalem. The devout ones of every nation under heaven were in the city observing the Feasts.

Therefore, Peter’s audience was Jewish. Gentiles were not addressed at all. These were the feasts of the Jews. Gentiles had no part in them.
“Ye men of Judaea …” (Acts 2:14)
“and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem …”(Acts 2:14)
“Ye men of Israel …” (Acts 2: 22)
“all the house of Israel…” (Acts 2: 36)

There is no intimation, at all, that Gentiles were addressed. In fact, had Gentiles been present and might have responded to Peter’s Pentecostal address, his attitude would have been one of profound surprise. Not until Acts 11:18-19, do we learn the Apostle's attitude toward Gentile converts; it is one of surprise, and they glorified God for granting “repentance unto life.” Gentiles are not given the opportunity to be admitted into the Kingdom calling until Acts 10 when Cornelius and his household have the Word preached to them.

Gentiles were not to observe the Feast of Pentecost. This is not even to be the case during the Kingdom. The Feast of Pentecost, which was observed in Acts 2, took place after Christ ascended from the Mount of Olives.

In view of Acts 21:26-36, it is foolish to think that Gentiles would have been present to hear Peter's Pentecostal address. Gentiles were not admitted into the Temple area.

The Church over which Christ Jesus is the Head was to be made up of Jew and Gentile who had both been “reconciled unto God in one body” (Eph. 2:16). In Acts 2, there was, certainly, no reconciling of Jew and Gentile unto God in “one body.” A middle wall still stood between Jew and Gentile ─ in fact, the “middle wall of partition” separated the Jew and Gentile until Acts 28:28 when the middle wall was “broken down” (Eph 2:14).

The Church which is His Body could not have begun at Acts 2; there were no Gentiles present. Failure to understand the origin and constitution of the Church leads to the error that the Church which is His Body began on the Day of Pentecost. Peter was preaching to the “men of Israel,” not to Gentiles.

CHRIST RAISED - TO SIT ON GOD'S THRONE

In Peter's proclamation in Acts 2, he stated that the Lord Jesus had been raised from the dead in order to SIT ON GOD’S THRONE IN HEAVEN.
“Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him (David), that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, He (God) would raise up Christ to sit on His (God’s) throne;” (Acts 2:30).
Thus, the rule of David's greater Son over the earth was still in view. Christ [i.e. the Messiah] ruling on the Throne of God was the great subject of the Old Testament prophet and king. Again, we are reminded that Ephesians 3:9 can have no connection with David's prophecies.

EXALTED TO GIVE REPENTANCE TO ISRAEL

Reading the remote context of Acts 2, we note in Acts 5:31 that it said, “Him hath God exalted with His right hand to be Prince and a Saviour FOR TO GIVE REPENTANCE TO ISRAEL, and forgiveness of sins.” Tradition inserts the Mystery into Acts 2 and, by so doing, robs this great fact of all of its importance to Israel. It is suggested that Acts 3:19-26 be read in connection with the Pentecostal address and compare Acts 5:31 with what was read. All that happened during the Acts period was in harmony with what the Old Testament had predicted would happen. There can, therefore, be no reference to the Mystery because, during this period, it was still “hid in God” and “hid from ages and from generations.”

ENDUED WITH POWER FROM ON HIGH

In Acts 2 on the Day of Pentecost, “there came a sound from heaven of a rushing mighty wind . . . And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire . . . And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:2-4). This event was the fulfillment of the promise which the Lord Jesus made to the Apostles in Luke 24:49; “And behold, I send THE PROMISE OF MY FATHER upon you; but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye BE ENDUED WITH POWER FROM ON HIGH.” In Acts 2, the enduement took the form of “tongues.” The gift of tongues was the God given ability to speak a language which was foreign to the speaker. In Acts 1:4, the Lord mentioned that the Apostles were to stay in Jerusalem, they should not depart, and that they “should wait for the promise of the Father.” This promise was to take the form of being “baptized with the Holy Ghost” which, in turn, was being endued with power from on high as Luke 24:49 said. Acts 1:8 further stated, “But ye shall RECEIVE POWER, AFTER THAT THE HOLY GHOST IS COME UPON YOU: and ye shall be witnesses unto me. . .”

The expressions such as:

THE PROMISE OF THE FATHER
ENDUED WITH POWER FROM ON HIGH
BAPTIZED WITH THE HOLY GHOST, and
YE SHALL RECEIVE POWER
All of these refer to the imparting of the spiritual gift of tongues on the Day of Pentecost. The enduement was the equipping of the Apostles in order for them to conduct the ministry given them in Mark 16:15-20. The immediate use of "tongues" was for the Apostles to speak the languages of all of those who were in Jerusalem on the Feast day. The people, in observing the Feast of Pentecost, were all amazed and marveled, saying; “Behold, are not all these Galileans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?” (Acts 2:7-8). They were witnesses of Christ's resurrection, and the imparting of the “gift of tongues” Divinely enabled them to preach the fact that “This same Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God EXALTED” (Acts 2:32-33).

The “gift of tongues” was a sign which confirmed that the Lord was working with them (Mark 16:20). The evidential signs were part of the Kingdom program. The signs which were the gifts of the Spirit were in operation as long as Israel stood before God as a nation. Evidential signs, such as Pentecostal “tongues,” were withdrawn when the Kingdom purpose was placed in abeyance.

Since “signs,” such as “tongues,” do not accompany those who believe, today, it is apparent, then, that the Church which is His Body did not begin on Pentecost.

REPENTANCE REQUIRED and DEMANDED

After Peter declared that “God had made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified both Lord and Christ,” the men of Israel answered and said; “What shall we do?” (Acts 2:37).

Peter's reply was ─ REPENT, AND BE BAPTIZED EVERY ONE OF YOU IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST FOR THE REMISSION OF SINS (Acts 2:38). Thus, it is noted that Peter's command to his awakened hearers was a continuation of the ministry of John the Baptist (Matthew 3:11) and of the Lord (Matthew 4:17). Here again, if the Church began on Pentecost, it would have its roots in the Gospels and, then of necessity, in the Old Testament which would contradict Ephesians 3:9.

The Pentecostal gospel demanded repentance, and it was associated with baptism. Truth related to the Mystery is not associated with repentance and baptism. “For by grace are ye saved through faith” (Ephesians 2:8) is truth for today.

The people who believed on the Day of Pentecost were anticipating the “restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began” (Acts 3:21). A church began on that day. “THE Church” did not. “A church” was the Church of God in a dispensation of promise. “THE Church” is the Church of the dispensation of the Mystery which is His Body (Ephesians 1:22-23). It began after Israel was set aside. The Church of God, during Acts, was no secret. Christ Himself spoke about it in Matthew 16:18; “and upon this rock I will build My Church.” His church was later called the Church of God which existed during the Book of Acts. This church was in existence until Acts 28:28. THE Church was kept hid during the “Acts of the Apostles.” Acts was anticipatory to “times of refreshing coming from the presence of the Lord,” and “the restitution (restoration) of all things” (Acts 3:19, 21). These two events will inaugurate the establishment of the Kingdom of God. This was the “hope of Israel.” This hope was set-aside at the conclusion of the Book of Acts. There can, therefore, be no reference to the Mystery while Israel was still being dealt with.

Pentecost belonged to Israel. Israel observed it. A Jewish Feast day, in no way, shape, form, or fashion, could intelligently be considered the birthday of the Church. It is prayerfully suggested that a re-examination of the traditional idea of the Church’s beginning be made by those who are serious students and teachers of the Word.
The Church of the calling of the Mystery was never hid in the Old Testament writings; it was never alluded to, and it was never typified. The Church which is His Body is the special calling that fills in the unprophesied gap as the Dispensation of the Grace of God.
Tom L. Ballinger