They Were Sitting
By John Gavazzoni

Acts 2:2, from the KJV "And suddenly there came a sound as of a mighty rushing wind from heaven, and it filled all the house where they were sitting." The following is less a teaching and more a sharing of a very personal experience with the blessed Spirit of Truth years ago while reading The Acts of the Apostles (The Book of Acts). I had read that history of the early days of the church revolving around "the acts of the apostles," many, many times, but this time was to be different. I'd always been enthralled by the account in the second chapter of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that empowered those first disciples of Jesus Christ to carry out their Lord's commission.

When I got to, "and it filled all the house where they were sitting," the Spirit brought my reading to a halt, and instructed me to note that the inspired record is very specific: Those early disciples, at the moment of the outpouring of the Spirit, were sitting. I was caused to wonder what was the importance of noting their exact position. Why so specific? Why not simply "where they were assembled," or "gathered?" I thought to myself, why "SITTING?" Why not kneeling or prostrate, or standing with arms raised toward heaven? But no, they were sitting. Then it came to me what the Lord was insisting that I notice. Peter, explaining to the crowd that had gathered in amazement of what followed that outpouring, proclaimed, "therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He (Jesus) has poured forth this which you both see and hear" (Acts 2:33 NAS), and from Paul, in Ephesians, we know that God raised up Jesus and SEATED Him at His right hand.

A picture began to form in my mind of earth being aligned with heaven in that glorious moment. Always, when God acts from heaven to earth for earth's benefit, He first brings earth into alignment with heaven; He brings the earthly into alignment with the heavenly. We don't get ourselves into alignment, He aligns us. The work of the Father by His Son had been completed. On the cross He had proclaimed in a loud voice, "It is finished" (better, "it is accomplished"). Then He went and SAT down according to God seating Him. Those disciples then were brought into alignment with Jesus being seated. I am convinced that their sitting position was an outward expression of an inward position of restful confidence that the Lord would do what He had promised.

No need for further prayer. No need to be encouraging one another to remain confident in their Lord's promise. No searching the scripture for words of confirmation. They were MADE to sit outwardly, expressive of being MADE to sit inwardly, because, as Paul later wrote, God has raised us up together and MADE us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. I have only recently come to understand in this regard, that our natural experience of the process of dying is an alignment with the dying of the Lord Jesus. Consider 2 Cor. 4:10: "always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body." (NAS) Within the Spirit of Christ indwelling us...though Jesus died once for all...all the elements of His earthly life from incarnation to glorification are at work in us. This is implied by Paul desiring to "know... the fellowship of His suffering, being made conformable unto His death." It seems clear that while the Lord is living His life in us out from our spirit, it is also true that He is dying His death in us from out of our bodies. Both dynamics meet together in our souls to effect our being made conformable to God's Son.

Paul desired such a participation in Christ in the present. It is clear that though Jesus died two thousand years ago once for all, His dying is at work in us in the present, so if we are dying (and we all are), we are carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus. His suffering and dying is a present dynamic within His resurrection life presently in us. Until the victory of the resurrection of Christ completely swallows up death in me existentially, I shall continue dying with Jesus that the life of Jesus may be manifested in my body. "Though the outer man perish, the inner man is renewed day by day." The Lord's dying at work in us, is for the benefit of His life at work in us and through us, but likewise, His living in us is for the benefit of us sharing in His dying. It belongs to the principle of what's called, the law of circularity.

I am at the time of this writing several days into my 84th year, that is, I finished my 83rd several days ago. Just recently I noticed that I had become quite comfortable with my increasing realization that I am dying (not that I expect to complete the process all that soon). John Peterson's lyrics are coming closer to home for me: