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Pentecost

Whatever happened in that room in Jerusalem at Pentecost, it brought about a sudden and powerful transformation in the disciples. Until then, Jesus had been a memory. Now, for the first time, Jesus became the focus for something unprecedented. A new faith flickered into life; a faith that worshipped Jesus as the Son of God.

The early Christians turned Sunday, the day of the resurrection, into the holiest day of the week. They met to praise Jesus and to share meals of bread and wine in His name. A movement was born. A community which found a new sense of purpose in the life, death and the resurrection of Jesus.

Peter and the disciples became missionaries for this new faith. Within a year of Jesus' death there were Christians in Jerusalem, Galilee, and even as far afield as Damascus in Syria. But Christianity's transformation from a sect into the faith of an empire had barely begun. In fact, no sooner had it started than this new faith faced a major threat. As the Christians won more and more converts among the Jews,so the Jewish authorities grew more and more outraged. They complained that these Christians placed Jesus above devotion to the temple. The high priests decided to destroy the fledgling movement before it got any bigger. They appointed a strict and devout Jew, a Pharisee, to track them down and bring them to heal. His name was Saul of Tarsus, later to be known as Saint Paul. And his first destination was Damascus in Syria, 200 miles north of Jerusalem. This is the Damascus Gate, where Paul left the city on his journey.

Miracles of Jesus

Part 3   The Resurrection  10

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