After Jesus ascended to heaven, the apostles and many
others others returned to Jerusalem, where they gathered in prayer. First
Church Jerusalem had 120 members at the time and in addition to their
fellowship and prayers, they conducted their first order of business… which was
to replace Judas Iscariot by casting lots.
It was the time of the Jewish festival of
Pentecost and Jews from Parthia, Mesopotamia, Cappadocia, Egypt, parts of
Libya, and many other places converged on the city to celebrate God’s giving
his law to Moses. The town was full of people and the members of First Church were
gathered in community… when suddenly they heard a sound from heaven that
sounded like a fierce wind… and they saw something like flames of fire
alighting on each person. They were overwhelmed by the presence of God and
filled with the Holy Spirit. They created quite a scene and a crowd soon
developed. The Christians were celebrating the Spirit and they were speaking in
languages that no one in Galilee could’ve known. They were praising God and
glorifying Christ in words that the visitors from other countries could
understand, and many people were amazed!
It was an exciting and energizing moment.
Some of those in the crowd figured that the Christians had gotten drunk on
their own wine, but Peter proclaimed that they were fulfilling God’s prophecy
that the day would come… when your sons
and daughters will prophecy, your young people will see visions, and your
elders will dream dreams’. There’s a fresh wind blowing, Peter seemed to
say. It’s the Holy Spirit, the breath of God, and its inspiring people to
witness to others and invite them in to the community and to tell the story of
Jesus in words that others can understand. The people aren’t drunk, Peter
noted, it’s the Holy Spirit- the same Spirit that hovered over creation, the
same Spirit that gave dry bones life- and now it’s transforming Christ’s people
so that they will have more faith, more courage, more love, more peace, more
hope, more vision… than they ever thought possible. The Holy Spirit, which in
days of old had visited Israel’s judges, kings, and prophets from time to time,
was freely poured out on all of God’s people! The Spirit, who had given
individuals an extra measure of insight and power in the past, had now been
given to the church… so that it could be the light and salt of the world and make
disciples of all nations! The times had changed forever and the church was
born. Happy Birthday, church, and many more!
But what do we do with the Holy Spirit,
which some Christians give top billing to and other Christians ignore, except
for saying the words, “Holy Spirit,” when they recite their creeds and vows.
For some Christians the Holy Spirit is best known as the giver of “glossolalia,”
which is the ability to speak in tongues, and for other Christians, the Holy
Spirit simply gives us the ability to be thoughtful and a bit more polite. For
some, the Holy Spirit is a lion, for some the Spirit is a lamb, and for some,
the Spirit is the odd member of the Trinity, who acts out and threatens the order
that proper worship and conduct demand! Presbyterians generally error on the side
of order. Our book of Order suggests that we have equal measures of order and
ardor and once in a while, we’ll share an unexpected moment, but
by and large, we’re too self-conscious to let go and you seldom see raised
hands or hear people cry out, “yes
Jesus,” in one of our churches. Yes, it’s true, sometimes we appear to
be God’s “chosen frozen,” and very few among us have the gift of tongues… but if
we’re to make a difference and grow as Christians, we need the Holy Spirit! We need to be born-again and today, I’d like to encourage us to
embrace the Holy Spirit. On this Pentecost Sunday, let
me make the following 3 observations:
1) We are already Spirit-filled! When we’re baptized we die to our old
nature and get born again in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. When we
join a church, we take vows of membership that include our willingness to lead
Spirit-filled lives and if we’re ordained to church leadership, there is a
laying on of hands and we're ordained in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit. Yes, it’s true. We may not have the gift of tongues, we may not be
embracing the spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit has given us, and we may not
be bearing the fruit that comes from the Spirit… but we have received the Holy
Spirit… and as our Brief Statement of Faith says, he is the one who sets us free to accept ourselves and others
and unites us with all believers. He is the one who claims us in baptism, feeds
us in communion, and calls us to ministry. And in a broken world, the Holy Spirit gives us courage to pray without
ceasing, unmask idolatries in church and culture, and work for justice,
freedom, and peace. Some of the people I love most… speak in tongues and I
don’t question the power of that spiritual gift… but we're also filled with
the Holy Spirit and each one of us has at least one spiritual gift. It wouldn’t
hurt us to be more lively when we worship, but there is a deep joy and a sacredness in the way that we do worship
and, if we’re attentive and obedient to the Holy Spirit, we will bear the
fruits of the Spirit, which include love, joy, peace, forbearance, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
2. We need to take
more risks for Jesus and it is the Spirit who leads us out of our comfort
zones. Pentecost was about empowerment, courage, and inclusion. The Holy Spirit
came like a rushing wind, but he filled the people with courage enough to speak
truth to power, share their resources with one another, and reach out to others
throughout the world. The early church was known for the love they had for one
another, but as they shared resources with poorer churches, endured persecution
and imprisonment, and told people throughout the world that Jesus Christ is
Lord, they showed that their vision was outward… on the unsaved and uninvited,
not inward on themselves. So it is the Spirit who gives us the faith to get out of ourselves and minister for Christ. Do you know the song, “The Summons?” It’s one of my favorites
and, in part it goes like this: If I but
call your name will you go where you don’t know and never be the same? Will you
risk the hostile stare should your life attract or scare? Will you kiss the
leper clean and do such as this unseen? If I but call your name, will you use
the faith you’ve found to restore the world around? We have work to do. God is calling, and we
will never hear his call or find the courage to respond unless we embrace the
Holy Spirit! We need the Holy
Spirit. Pray that, even if nobody ever speaks in tongues or raises their hands
in praise, that we will be a Spirit-filled church!
3. Thirdly, we will never be the church that God wants us to be
unless we embrace the Holy Spirit and use the gifts that he has given to us.
Without the Spirit, our elders will not dream dreams, our young people will not
see visions, our sons and daughters will not prophecy, our dry bones will not
breathe, and we will not fly. I read of a little church that was filled with
ducks. Every Sunday they waddled to church to listen as their duck preacher
encouraged them to fly. He told them that they could do it, that they had it in
them to fly, and that the Holy Spirit would lift them to great heights. Amen,
they'd say. Nice sermon, they'd say. Then they waddled back home! Friends,
the Holy Spirit is the giver of many great gifts and he, himself, is a gift
from Christ… who will open our eyes to Scripture and to God’s activity in our
lives. The Holy Spirit is our Counselor, our Comforter, our Guide, and our
Advocate. He is also the wind beneath our wings and he will take us to greater
heights of service and faithfulness as we grow as Christians.
On this Pentecost Sunday, let us thank
God for the Holy Spirit. Let us thank God for the blessings and gifts that he
has already given to us and may we turn to him for even greater things in the
future. Amen
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