PENTECOST 23rd May 2021
Acts 2:1–21
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.
And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.
Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.
Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem.
And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each.
Amazed and astonished, they asked, ‘Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,
Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.’
All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’
But others sneered and said, ‘They are filled with new wine.’
But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning.
No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: “In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
John 15:26–27; 16:4b–15
‘When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.
But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them. ‘I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, “Where are you going?” But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgement: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgement, because the ruler of this world has been condemned. ‘I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason, I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
Reflection:
I don’t know about you, but I always get a great sense of expectation and excitement when Pentecost Sunday is coming. The concept of the Holy Spirit, overcoming, overflowing and overpowering those present on that first Pentecost and also that promise for us today is hard to grasp to say the least. And yet the recognition of God at work within and around continues each and every day. If you’ve been following my contemplations recently, you may have picked up the ongoing theme of relationship with our Lord Most High. The little fish who discovered that it was Him in which he lived and moved and had his very being. Pentecost brings to life this concept of living, moving and being: in God, with God and God in us.
I’m sure that you know the details of the Pentecost well: the disciples are gathered together, waiting for the completion of Jesus’ promise of the Holy Spirit. Suddenly a massive wind blows, I imagine the earth may have even been shaking as tongues of fire descend. Everyone begins to speak in a different language and yet each can understand the other. They are empowered to preach the Gospel first in Jerusalem and eventually to the ends of the earth. This dramatic event transforms the disciples and takes them over, consumes them as it were.
Not surprisingly, often it is thought that this transformation will then mean all will be well from this time on, a sense of completion, purpose and success. Yet, given that all the disciples go on to face struggle and persecution and the majority eventually endure martyrdom, ‘all is well’’ is not exactly what eventuates. And as for solving their problems, it seems to me more that the Holy Spirit causes more problems than it solves. You see, had they not been commissioned and equipped to go share the good news, they could have savoured the truth of the resurrection for themselves, relishing the wonderful memory of Jesus’ resurrected presence for years to come. Instead, they are sent out into the crowds – many of whom had endorsed the crucifixion of Jesus. The disciples are to bear witness to a difficult truth, Jesus is who he said he is and Jesus is alive! And so, they preach and we know that thousands respond, but of course all this success is not without cost.
Realistically, I have to wonder why then we should expect the Holy Spirit to bring a perfect life? Life holds many challenges and opportunities that, while significant and beneficial, are nevertheless costly.
When Martin Luther spoke about the traditional “marks of the church” that he inherited, he noted to the proclamation of the Gospel and the sharing of the sacraments, etc., that mark the presence of the true church, Luther added: struggle. If you are about the work of the Gospel, he reasoned (and had experience to believe), expect the resistance of the devil. I’m not saying all the difficult things in life are caused by the devil but I do think Satan is always looking for ways to weaken our faith and lessen our work. I remember my Godmother giving me the verse: ‘Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.’ (1 Peter 5: 8). So we expect challenges as we go forward in faith.
The four marks of the Church are not characteristics that the Church creates or develops or learns. They are qualities that Jesus Christ shares with his Church through the Holy Spirit. The four marks of the Church are that it is one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.
Just as God is one in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, so also is the Church one. The founder of the Church is Jesus Christ, who brought us back to God and made us into the family of God. The Church is united and made one in the Holy Spirit, who dwells in those who believe.
The Church is holy because the Church lives in union with Jesus Christ, the source of holiness. Through still being refined and not yet perfect, by the Holy Spirit the Church leads others to holiness. The holiness of the Church is seen in the love that the members of the Church have toward one another and the many sacrifices they make for the sake of the world.
The word catholic means “universal.” Notice the word catholic is spelt here with a lower case ‘c’. The Church is universal in two ways. First, the Church is catholic because all baptized people are part of the Church and the Church possesses the means of salvation. Second, the mission of the Church is universal because the Church has been sent to proclaim Christ to all the human race without discrimination.
The Church is considered apostolic, it is sent. The Church preserves and continues the teaching of the apostles and its members are sent out in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Our faith encourages us to understand the work of the Holy Spirit differently. The Spirit doesn’t solve our problems, or keep us exempt from problems but invites us to see possibilities we would not have seen otherwise. Instead of taking away our fear, the Spirit strengthens us and gives us courage to move forward. Instead of promising safety, the Spirit promises God’s presence. Instead of removing us from a turbulent world, the Spirit enables us to keep our footing amid the tremors. Remember, that after the Holy Spirit is given to Jesus at his Baptism, it immediately drives him into the wilderness, to a time of testing. The same Spirit, doesn’t promise us smooth sailing, but does help us overcome in the rough times as well as the high times.
Author Bob Proctor once said ‘There is no problem outside of you that is superior to the power within you.’ Problems don’t go away, but perhaps we can hold onto the good news that the Holy Spirit continues to help us see possibilities where others see only problems and grants us the strength and energy to climb the mountains beyond with confidence and joy and to the benefit of those around us.
Pentecost is upon us, and I am hopeful that God is not done working in the church of Bellinger yet and that the Spirit is alive and well and at work among us. Perhaps we see problems for us as a faith community? Perhaps we see problems as we look toward the what ifs and what might be? I wonder if we might be careful however, not to be so focussed on these that we miss the glory and the works of our Lord and what he is doing in our midst.
The book of Acts reminds us:
But this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
“In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
May we dream big dreams, because we have a big God. May we see the visions that God is unfolding before us and may we be filled with the fullness of God as God pours out his Spirit upon us, this and every day. Amen.