Two Sermons on the Holy Spirit
May 27, Pentecost, on Acts 2:1-21
Alleluia. Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia
Today we use the Easter greeting for the last time, because
Pentecost is the fulfillment of the promise of Easter. Our Lord’s resurrection and ascension – and
the giving of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost together mark the beginning
of a new age – a new era in the history of salvation. The Spirit, once the exotic possession of
a prophetic few, is now offered to all.
At Pentecost, the power of God made manifest at the resurrection, is bestowed
upon the people of God.
Pentecost is the birthday of the church. On the fiftieth day after Easter, the Spirit
descended upon the gathered disciples, and they began to preach
about Jesus. After that sermon, many
were baptized and the first Christian congregation was organized.
The Holy Spirit initiates and shapes the first Christian congregation -
That’s the first point: the church is God’s idea.
No flat, prosaic account can do justice to the truth of how the
church came into being – and how the timid disciples found their tongues
to proclaim the truth of the gospel. Our
author, St. Luke, seems to be at a loss for words in describing something that
is strange and almost beyond the bounds of imagination.
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They were gathered in prayer when there was an eruption of
sounds from heaven – it sounded like a mighty wind – like the same wind
which on the first morning of creation – the wind of the Spirit brings
something new to life.
What was first heard is now seen.
Something like fiery tongues appear. Then we are told these strange events are
nothing less than the Holy Spirit coming in power, as John the Baptist had
prophesied “I baptize you with water, but the one who is more powerful – the
Christ, will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” These fiery tongues will empower the
disciples to speak in other tongues – in different languages.
The Spirit literally drives the disciples out into the crowd – the
crowd attracted by all the noise and commotion. Since this is a great festival, there are
pilgrims – devout Jews from everywhere.
See how all this is God’s plan, not theirs.
The disciples had simply been told to wait – but not told why they
were waiting. They were waiting for
God’s time – a time when pilgrims would be in
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This is part one in the story of the amazing growth of the Christian
community. The Roman historian Tacitus
simply couldn’t understand it. He
writes that there had been a small movement in far away
Acts explains that this rather surprising outcome is the work of the
Holy Spirit and the beginning the movement of the gospel to the ends of the
earth. The existence of little
churches in all the major cities of the empire within a generation of
Christ’s resurrection is the factual, historical evidence of work and power
of the Holy Spirit.
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Despite the miracle they have witnessed, the reaction of the crowd to
the preaching in many languages is mixed.
The crowd is amazed, but also perplexed.
“What does this mean?” The
miracle is wondrous, but threatening to some. So they must devise some other explanation –
some rationalization of the irrational. “They must have had too much wine.”
This passage is an introduction and summary of the Book of Acts. The message about Jesus often evokes
questions – and sometimes scorn. Yet
others are moved to listen – and earnestly inquire. It’s a pattern we’ll see again and again in
the Book of Acts as the disciples spread the message far and wide – and it’s
still true today.
If you talk to someone about faith or the church, some are
dismissive – maybe even mocking – while others may want to know more. Take the chance of being mocked in order to
have the opportunity to talk to the one who is really interested.
When the disciples received the Spirit on Pentecost, what was the first
thing they did?
They witnessed to Jesus -
talked about him - invited others to join the church - and it grew, which was the purpose of receiving
the gift of the Spirit.
As a congregation, we have not been very active in trying to evangelize
our community - we’ve generally been content to let people find our church
on their own.
Could the Holy Spirit be
speaking to us, “You heard what Jesus said:
He promised you the power of the Spirit, and he gave you an assignment:
You are to be His witnesses here.”
If we’re not witnessing, if
we’re not making disciples, if we
not building up the body of Christ, the church, then we’re not doing the
work of the church.
We may be doing church work,
but we’re failing to do the work of the church, the assignment God
has given us.
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There was a little wooden church in
Apparently he put too much wood in the stove, for during the sermon
smoke began to drift into the sanctuary.
Finally someone walked to the narthex, opened the door to the basement,
and yelled fire.
The church was evacuated; the volunteer fire department called, and
neighbors came to help. After the
fire was extinguished, the pastor individually thanked everyone.
When he got to a neighbor, he said, “You live so near the church -
why haven’t you come before?”
“The answer is obvious. Your
church has never been on fire before.”
Perhaps at Resurrection we
have neglected the work of the Spirit, and we need to be more open to
the power of the Spirit to set our church on fire..
The drawback is that the Spirit is not under our control - as we open
ourselves to the Spirit’s guidance and power, we give control to God - its
no longer our church - but His church - and the Lord might lead us in new
directions - away from our comfortable existence, and into the unknown.
We have our ideas - our plans - Sometimes we assume that our
good idea must be the Lord’s will. But
what if it’s not God’s plan for this church?
Is it possible that my thought are not His thoughts?
Are we carrying out the assignment the Lord has given us, to be His
witnesses here in this community?
In prayer, seek God’s will and not just your own - Pray that the
Spirit would open your eyes to understand and apply the scriptures to our
life, and your life.
While you may think I’m talking only about our church, I’m
really speaking to you an individual believer - for the church is simply the
gathering of its members.
As individuals we are called to take the Spirit of Christ into our
lives, listening for the Spirit’s voice.
To be a follower of Jesus is one thing, but allowing the Spirit of
the risen Christ to fully dwell in you is another. The former could be confined to knowing a
lot about Jesus, while the latter involves representing Jesus - acting
each day on His behalf, according to the model of His teaching.
At our baptism we became members of the body of Christ, and at
the altar we receive the body of Christ, so that we can be the body of
Christ in the world - that we may be Christ to others in our day-to-day
lives. By the power of the Spirit,
Christ lives and works through each one of us.
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Peter concluded his Pentecost sermon with this invitation:
“Be baptized everyone of you, in the name of Jesus
Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins.
And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise
is for you, and to your children, and to all who are far off. everyone whom
the Lord our God calls to Him. Acts 2:39
Today after the hymn, Erica will respond to his invitation by coming
forward to be baptized. As St. Peter
says, it is God’s Spirit who has called her, and led her to baptism. She now becomes a full member of the body
of Christ and sealed with the Holy Spirit.
We’ll pray that the gifts of the Spirit will be increased within
her. So in the hymn we pray Come,
Gracious Spirit..., asking the Lord to renew and increase in
Erica, and in each one of us, the Light of His truth that we
may always know and choose His way.
June 3 Sermon on John 16:12-15
A priest was summoned to give last rites to a man who had
collapsed. Following the ritual of the church, he asked: “Do
you believe in God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit?” The man roused a little, opened one eye, and
said:
“Here I am
dying, and you ask me a riddle?”
In the prayer of the day, we prayed “Almighty God, dwelling in
majesty and mystery...”
- mystery, a riddle.
The doctrine of the Trinity
may be beyond our complete
understanding, and yet it teaches us something about the nature of God and about what makes
us Christians - what Jesus taught
us about God.
Jesus taught us to address God
in prayer as “Our Father”. The All Powerful Maker of heaven and earth
may be beyond our comprehension, but Jesus said that was the way we should think about God’s love and
concern for us - like that of a perfect parent - “Our Father in heaven”.
Beyond that, as Christians we believe that Jesus is the Son of God -
that the Person of God was in a
human being named Jesus - and hence the words Jesus spoke are the
Word of God.
More than that, as Christians we believe that God is not just up
there, but that God’s Spirit is
with us today
- and that the Spirit is not external to us, but that God’s
Spirit is in every believer.
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The pastor began his children’s sermon; “Today is Trinity Sunday, when
we talk about the Father, and the Son, and...”
A boy finished his sentence “and the mother.”
The little boy was almost right. The Holy Spirit is the breath of God,
a person without a physical body, except the corporate body of Christ, the church.
Since the church is sometimes referred to as “mother church”, that little boy
had a point. For it is within the
church, a gathering of believers, that we can feel the Spirit move.
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When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into
all the truth... for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. … John
16:14, 15
Jesus words about the role of the Holy Spirit remind us of two critical
things.
First, Jesus continues to speak to us - and not just with things he
taught followers 2,000 years ago.
Through the Spirit, he speaks to us in new ways that help us navigate a
world that is quite different from that the original disciples knew.
The Bible is all that we need for salvation and to understand our
relationship with God. Period.
It is the basis for moral, ethical and spiritual decision making.
But God did not speaking when the Bible was complete. By the power of the Spirit he continues to
speak to us through the words of the bible.
Thus, we look to the Bible as God’s living word for our lives today. The Spirit takes the things that Jesus wants
us to know today, and communicates these to us - if we seek to listen
prayerfully. It can be new insights from
the scriptures we thought we already knew. Then that familiar passage has new
meaning, for it applies to our situation right now.
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How can we know if that new insight is really from the Spirit - and not
just our imagination?
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will not speak on
his own, but will speak whatever he hears… He will take what is mine and and
make it known to you. 13,15
The Spirit will not bring someone else’s teachings, but those of Jesus.
The Spirit takes the word of Jesus and delivers it to you in a way that applies
to your life. So if that insight - that
application for your life - is in conflict with the teachings of Jesus, it’s
not the Holy Spirit speaking. It’s just
you, for the Spirit is never in conflict with the Son.
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The second valuable thing that Jesus’ words about the role of the
Spirit tell us is that no one understands all at once all that Christ has for
us.
"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 …” John 16:12
In the movie, A Few Good Men, there is a scene in which a young
attorney, Tom Cruise, is cross-examining a witness, and yells
“I want the truth.”
In anger the witness, Jack Nichalson, shouts back:
“You can’t handle the truth.”
That’s what Jesus says to the disciples: I have more to tell you,
but you can’t handle it now. Jesus seems to want to tell them what will
come – the challenges they’ll face – but sees that they cannot bear knowledge
of such things now.
Isn’t that like our walk with the Lord?
He doesn’t tell us in advance all the challenges we’ll face. And that’s good. If years ago he had told you some of the
things that would happen - some of those unexpected set backs and tragedies,
you probably would have said, No, I’ll never be able to handle that. But with His help, you did. So he simply assures us that we will not bear
the future alone. The Spirit will be
with us, and will continue to guide us.
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What a person knows at 50, that he did not know at 20, is for the most
part, hard to put into words. It’s the
sum of experiences - victories and failures - the sleepless nights and human
emotions.- those extra 30 years of living that makes the 50 year old different
from the 20 year old. So we hear the
Bible differently at the various stages in our life.
It is simply impossible to anticipate all that we need from Jesus as we
mature and encounter the twists and turns of life.
But the Holy Spirit declares to us what is Christ’s word for us, as we
need it - and when we’re capable of understanding it.
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The problem is that the promptings of the Holy Spirit are subtle. Christ promises you His Spirit, but you have
to listen – to discern the Spirit’s guidance.
And it’s easy to ignore the Spirit when you know what you want.
So Paul warns Do not stifle the Holy Spirit – Don’t quench the
Spirit’s flame. 1 Thessalonians 5:19.
If you don’t seek His guidance, but rather think, I know what’s best
for my life, you can extinguish the Spirit’s power in your life. He is still in your life, but you’re holding
back from listening to Him – and thus distancing yourself from the Lord.
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Why do people like Louise and I keep studying the Bible? Haven’t we learned its lessons after years of
study?
Yes, we’ve learned a lot, and one of the things we’ve learned is the
Spirit continues to speak to us through the living words of Scripture.
The challenges we face right now are different from those we’ve dealt
with before – and we’re different. So
the Lord has new words to speak to us – words for a new challenge – or a
message that we weren’t ready for before, but we can handle now.
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If you would like to listen for God speaking to you through His word,
you could join us this Tuesday: I’m beginning a five week study of Paul’s
letter to the Galatians. It’s the start
of the summer, when our schedules change, so maybe you could come on Tuesday
evening.
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Why study Galatians?
First, it describes a crucial moment in the development of
Christianity: Would it be a small Jewish sect, or become a more universal
faith?
Second, Martin Luther’s fondness for Galatians made it one of the
pillars of the Protestant reformation.
But there is a more important reason for re-reading Galatians. It deals with grace and faith, justification
and freedom. It talks about our new life
in Christ, the fruit of the spirit, and the new creation. As we study it, the Holy Spirit can uses its
word to speak to each one of us about these topics and how they affect our life
today. The Spirit of Christ has new
things to say to you.
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Open
your mind to God’s Spirit by prayerfully studying the Bible, and listening for Him speaking to you. Then you will not bear the future alone.
For Jesus has promised us His
Spirit to guide and
strengthen us, no matter what comes.
And as we work through difficult situations with the Spirit’s help, we
find that we can not only pass the
test of adversity, but be
transformed and strengthened by it. . .
And thus meeting the test
reinforces our hope,
“and hope does not disappoint us,
because
God’s love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit
that has been given us.”
Our hope is
not based on our strength, but on the Lord, for he has given us a share of His Spirit to guide and empower us. Amen.
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Gracious God, Blessed Trinity, we praise you and give you thanks for
your never ceasing love.
Father God, Creator of the universe and author of life, we thank all
your gifts which sustain life;
Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for your life among us, your sacrifice on
our behalf, and your eternal word of truth;
Counseling Spirit, continue to teach us to understand what God wants us
to know, guide us in the way of truth and open our mouths to speak the message
of Christ;
Dwell in us and lead us to the truth that comes from God the Father
through Christ our Lord, who lives and dwells with you.