Today in the life of the Church, we celebrate and remember Pentecost, the promised moment when the Spirit of God would indwell the followers of Christ. He is our hope and provision to live with faith and boldness during uncertain and troubled times. As we come to the last message in the “More than Able” series, we ask the question, “Now What?”
Cultural Christianity allows us to be comfortable. The Holy Spirit calls us into obedience that is inconvenient or challenging to the status quo. Are we as a church relying on our programs and our abilities, or are we hungry and thirsty for the Holy Spirit in our lives? Do we want the presence of the Holy Spirit more than anything else?
Reasons we should long for the presence of God:
1. We have an opportunity that we cannot walk away from. We do not need a pastor or a priest to be in the presence of God. From Pentecost on, the Spirit lives within every believer. He is always with you.
2. We have a job to do that cannot be done without Him.
3. We have a God we cannot fully comprehend. This life is only a small snapshot of what we have to come. We will never fully know God until we step out of this life and into eternity.
As we see in Acts 2:1-13, the Holy Spirit came not to fill a building, but to permanently indwell the people of God. Pentecost was the perfect moment to fulfill this promise. Consider the parallel between the Jewish feasts that God established during the Exodus and the ministry He would build 1500 years later.
– Jesus died during the time of the Passover feast (lambs sacrificed).
– Jesus rose from the dead on the day of the First Fruits feast.
– The Holy Spirit indwelled Christ’s followers on the day Jews celebrated the giving of the Law (Pentecost).
– When the Law was originally given, God revealed His glory through fire, wrote the Law on tablets, and 3000 men died due to disobedience. On the day of Pentecost, God revealed His glory through His Spirit with a fire, placed His Law in their hearts, and 3000 people trusted Christ for salvation.
Pentecost brought a new day to the earth. The presence of God became available to all of us, rather than a few. The focus changed from one nation to all nations. People no longer had to go somewhere to meet with God, as the Spirit moved from external to internal. His indwelling became permanent, as opposed to the temporary fillings that occurred in the Old Testament. The Holy Spirit gives us the ability to walk in obedience in a way we could never do before. We can now obey God because we want to, not because we have to.
Pentecost also brought a reversal of the punishment at the Tower of Babel, where people were separated by languages. By the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, we have the ability to love all people. The Holy Spirit empowers us to love and serve even people who are very different from us.
As we consider our disciple-making mission and the ABLE life we are called to live, we rejoice in the fact that the Holy Spirit guides us. He focuses our hearts and minds on what pleases God. Therefore, we are for the imago dei and take an active stand against racism. We are for life. We are for humans. Whatever you find in front of you to be a solution, step out in simple obedience and let the fire of the Holy Spirit work for you.
Father, as we remember today the power of your Holy Spirit that was poured out at Pentecost, we pray that you would remind us of your love for all people. Empower each of us to be a voice in the conversation that brings peace and healing to our nation. May the Gospel of Christ and the remembrance of Pentecost transform our lives by Your presence and grace. In Jesus’ name we pray.
