No sooner had the Spirit come upon them than they began to speak in tongues. They needed no time to study the languages they were given, nor practice to gain facility. Nor did their hearers need an interpreter. God was the master of speakers and hearers alike; it was his Spirit that inspired the apostles to give testimony and enabled the crowds to understand them. That day the wonderful works of God were proclaimed in every language of the world. The Spirit of Truth breathes where he will, and since the day of Pentecost each country's native tongue has become common property in the mouth of Christ's Church, as the gospel is preached throughout the world. The Spirit of God has swept over the chaos once more to renew the face of the earth, watering every barren place with a rain of charismatic gifts and blessings. The tongues of men declare God's mighty deeds and proclaim his word in the power of the Spirit, while the Lord works with them and confirms their message by accompanying signs (cf. Mark 16.20).
The perrenial message of the gospel is that the Lord has saved his people.
he has conquered sin and death, and given us new life as God's adopted
sons. And because we are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son
intou our hearts, crying "Abba, Father!" (Gal. 4:6). Now where the
Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (2 Cor. 3:17). We are no
longer slaves, but free men. It belongs to the dignity of free men
to play some part in their own salvation; our task is to elude the enemy's
clutches by constantly turning in repentance to our Redeemer and proclaiming
that Jesus is Lord of our whole lives.