God has promised a special gift to His church and to His people living in the last days. This promise is illustrated in a very familiar passage found in Joel 2:28, 29:
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your 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” (KJV).
This promise is for us today. For all people.
As we prepare for Pentecost 2025,* there is a need to reiterate this promise and to clarify that God is inviting young people, old people, men, and women to receive His Spirit, and to teach and preach as a witness for Him in these last days.
In the Seventh-day Adventist Church we believe in the priesthood of all believers—all have been called to proclaim the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ. To be clear, women are a part of this calling, and our youth are a part of this calling. We need everyone to finish the work that God has entrusted to us. The Seventh-day Adventist Church still believes that God has called women to play a significant role in the advancement and the finishing of His work. The church still calls women to serve in leadership roles in the local church as pastors, elders, departmental leaders, and as conference, union, division, and General Conference leaders.
I want to take this moment to celebrate and thank all the women who have served this church so faithfully over the years. I also want to acknowledge that this church would not be where it is today without women leading in various capacities and the pivotal role they have played in the advancement of our mission.
God calls us to make disciples in Matthew 28:18-20, and promises in Acts 1:8 that He will grant the power of the Holy Spirit upon us to be His witnesses. When the Christian church began, we see in its infancy a marvelous display of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Acts 11:15-17 says,
“And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them [Gentiles], as upon us at the beginning. . . . Forasmuch then as God gave them the gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God?” (KJV).
The disciples discerned that the same Holy Spirit that fell upon them had also fallen upon the Gentiles. God was fulfilling His promise. He was, and still is, pouring out His Spirit upon all flesh.
It is my prayer that we earnestly pray for the outpouring of God’s Spirit upon all of God’s people. May His gift be seen in each of us! As we prepare for Pentecost 2025, the shaking time, and for the final and rapid movements of God, may the words of the prophet Joel be lived out in God’s church:
“I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophecy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.”
Let us pray fervently for the outpouring of the latter rain, and let us use everyone that God is calling to preach the everlasting gospel as a witness to all nations so that the end will come and we can see our Lord and Savior face-to-face. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
*Pentecost 2025 is an evangelism initiative spanning the North American Division that encourages churches, schools, and members to pray for the Holy Spirit’s power in conducting at least 3,000 proclamation events.
G. Alexander Bryant is president of the North American Division. This article also appears in the October 2024 Adventist Journey.
