Acts 2:1-21; John 14:8-27
Today, we celebrate one of the great
festivals of the Church year, Pentecost. You probably know the history. The
first Pentecost occurred on the Jewish harvest festival of Shavuot, a day when
they also celebrated the giving of the law (the Torah) to Moses.
The Torah is seen as a gift for
Jewish people, describing the ongoing relationship between God and God’s
people. Now, with the coming of the Spirit, the gift of relationship is even
more powerful.
On Pentecost Sunday, many pastors focus
on the reading from Acts, with its amazing images – wind and fire, multiple
languages, Peter preaching. But I want to pause a few minutes and look at the
text from John, the Gospel reading for today.
In John 14, Jesus describes sending Spirit to the disciples. Spirit will be an ever-present power, guiding them, comforting them, teaching them, empowering them to do greater things than Jesus has done.
In John, Jesus doesn’t talk about
the kingdom/reign of God. He talks about eternal life, which means having a
relationship with God. This relationship happens through Jesus’ Spirit.
Holy Spirit as described in John
seems to me like the still, small voice Elijah heard. It’s the voice many of us
hear when we are called to follow Jesus somewhere. It’s the voice that lets us
know what to study in school, or what to do for a living. It’s the voice
pastors hear as they lead congregations, and as they open their hearts to accept
new calls.
When I think about Spirit in John, I
am reassured that no matter what is happening in my life or in the world around
me, God is present and active. For example, God’s Spirit was with the people in
the Buffalo grocery store, and with the children in a Texas classroom. I trust
that God was also with those shooters, whispering, shouting, trying to get them
to change their minds about needing to act out their hatred and pain.
On the other hand, when I think about Spirit in Acts, I think of something radical happening. This version of God’s Spirit is challenging, urging, pushing for something intense to happen. This version of Spirit wants to make stuff happen, beyond the ordinary, everyday stuff.
This voice of Spirit sends people to
the streets and to the courts and to the legislatures in protest of injustice. This
voice of Spirit leads congregations to start new ministry ventures. This voice
of Spirit makes change possible in congregations.
Here’s a true story about how Spirit
works, both in a quiet whisper and in a loud shout-out. About 40 years ago, the
pastors of a small-town Michigan community realized that some poor folks were
knocking on all their doors. Since ministry resources were limited, those who
knocked on more doors received more assistance than folks who knocked only on
one or two church doors. The pastors met and made some decisions.
They formed an organization called Christian Neighbors, and instead of giving their financial resources to individuals, they all contributed to the Christian Neighbors funds. A congregation offered a corner room in their church basement to house the ministry and store food donations.
Now, when people knocked on the
church door asking for help, they were told to see the people at Christian
Neighbors. They could get a bag of food or help with utility bills. Occasionally,
someone received help directly, but mostly everyone was told, “We give everything
we have to Christian Neighbors. You have to go there.”
Over the years, Christian Neighbors
grew. Each month, churches collected specific types of food: mac and cheese, or
vegetables, or rice. Because everyone loves soup, churches took turns providing
a monthly soup supper, with donations going to Christian Neighbors. They began
to offer classes on financial management and making nutritious meals on a small
budget.
Eventually, they outgrew their space
in the basement. A congregation with some extra land donated it to Christian
Neighbors and helped fund the new building. Now, Christian Neighbors has a
kitchen for teaching nutrition, small private meeting rooms for counselling,
and adequate storage space for food distribution.
How was Spirit involved? It started
with helping the pastors see that the way they were helping was unfair, and
guiding them to the simple solution of pooling their resources. And then at
each step along the way of their growth. As you can imagine, there were quiet
whispers and loud shouts of Spirit urging, pushing, challenging, and
celebrating.
I
admit I don’t know this congregation well, but I suspect Spirit is moving here.
New things will happen here, and not just because Pr Terrance is leaving. New
things will happen here because Spirit has been making her presence known, even
during a Covid shut-down, even though things are not yet back to normal. How do
I know this? Because Spirit is always moving and making her presence known.
In the bible texts for today, the word you is y’all. Jesus is speaking to all the disciples. He is speaking to all of us today as a community. Yet, it’s often one person who hears Spirit’s message more clearly, more loudly than others do. At those times, it’s important to share with others what you hear Spirit saying.
How do you know it’s Spirit? Is your
heart beating faster? Is God glorified in what you hear? When you share it, do
others agree it’s a great, Spirit-given idea? Then voice it, act on it, and let
Spirit lead the way!
Amen
