Acts 10:44-48; John 15:9-17
Amazing things happen
when the Holy Spirit gets involved. The reading from Acts is a small portion of
a larger story. It begins with Peter having a dream or vision of a tablecloth covered
with foods good Jews don't eat. Peter had this same dream three times, until he
finally got the message God was trying to give him. “What God has made clean, you
must not call profane.”
Before long, Peter realizes that God is
not really talking about food, but people. Now he is ready for his next
encounter, with Cornelius, a Roman centurion and his family. Peter introduces
himself, saying normally Jews and Gentiles don't associate with each other, but
he has been sent to Cornelius by a message from God. He then asks what
Cornelius needs from him, and Cornelius says, “I have been told by an angel
that you have a message for me.”
So Corny and Peter have both had Holy Spirit messages
putting them together. Peter tells Corny about Jesus, and Corny responds by
asking that his whole household is baptized.
It's similar to last week's story of the Ethiopian eunuch
asking to be baptized by saying, “Look, here is water!” and Peter says, “What
would prevent these people from being baptized?” And so we have another
instance of people outside the Jewish faith believing in Jesus and being
baptized into the community.
And it's another instance of baptism happening before
extensive training can happen. But then, Peter stays with Corny and the family
for several days to help them understand the whole story.
… In Otsego Michigan, a small city of 4,000 people, the paper mill employed a hundred local workers. It was the last paper mill in the region, because businesses found it was cheaper to buy and ship from China than to make paper in America.
When the news was confirmed that the plant would close,
several pastors put together a service of lament. It was attended by about 300
people from the area. The food pantries put out pleas for more food and for
donations to help with paying bills for unemployed workers. And city leaders
worked to find a new firm to take the place of the closed business. It was a
Holy Spirit moment to hold the service of lament, something the city needed,
providing a way to grieve and yet hope for a better future. Within a year, they
were successful, although the new firm was smaller, and needed fewer employees.
At least it was something, and the same church leaders held a welcome
celebration for the new business. ... However, when I checked this week, the paper mill has been torn down and is a toxic clean-up site.
… Holy Spirit moments give us the opportunity to hear and think new thoughts. When we are open to different viewpoints, we can say, “Hmm. I never thought of it that way before.” We don't have to agree with this different point of view, but the Holy Spirit helps us appreciate a variety of ways approaching life and questions, and even facts. Looking at facts differently can lead to the invention of a life-saving device or carry us to Mars.
Holy Spirit moments may be quite personal. Charlie was
criticizing his daughter for getting in trouble, because she had made some poor
choices that would alter her life forever. Before long, Charlie remembered some of his own choices, made as a young man,
that altered his career path forever. It was through the prompting of the
Spirit that Charlie repented of being so “judgy” and soon found ways to support
his daughter along her new path in life.
We also need to remember that we need God's help to love
all, because we are human and we tend to judge others. It's in our DNA to
determine if others are safe or may harm us, and we usually make that
distinction by checking if others are like us or different from us. In ancient
times, this meant shaking hands to prove we aren't holding a weapon, but today,
it comes to some other factor, like the color and texture of their hair, the
accent in their speech, or the political shirt or cap they are wearing.
If we trust the Holy Spirit to help us listen, we may learn
that we all want the same things, though we go about accomplishing them
differently. It's through the Spirit that we listen with open hearts and minds,
the way Cornelius and Peter did two thousand years ago, the way Charlie did
with his daughter.
This week, I hope you pay attention to the Holy Spirit in your lives. Watch how open or closed you are to new ideas, to welcoming other people, to seeing life through another's eyes. You don’t have to agree, but I suggest you try to understand and appreciate other opinions. When does the Holy Spirit prompt you to try something different, something new? How is God’s Holy Spirit guiding UELC through this transition?
Amen
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