Pentecost Sunday

 

Pentecost am I a spiritual person or not?

Pentecost , but the real issue is " Am I am spiritual person or not?" ACTS 2

   Today I want to ask some deeply spiritual questions because somehow in our day these questions are in the background.  What is the foreground?  It depends on who you ask of course.  Some struggle with age related issues and we can id with that.  Some have issues related to what kind of worship should we be having in our culture and others just are not engaged in a deep way perhaps in some of the questions I want to ask today.  Of course we always have the foreground issues of the look of the building (which is important), etc......and who is coming or not coming to hear the preaching of the Word and receive the Holy Communion.  These may be good things to think about today .  We should do that.

   As we look to the Scriptures today you will see in your bulletin where we are .  If Luke wrote Acts, and I believe he did , we should go back to the end of Luke for our first question today.After the Ascension of Jesus we read, " And they worshipped Him, and returned to Jersusalem with great joy: and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen." 24:52  Jesus had directed them to "tarry in the city of Jersusalem , until ye be endued with power from on high." 24:49  So that was where they were together.

    First I note that they were worshipping Him.  That too should be the focus of our Christian lives.  That is why we come to the church .  We should do this as a group.  Of course we do this too as individuals in our personal lives.  We may say, " Lord , help me."  That in some form is worship. We are attributing to God a character of worthiness which is what the word means.  Somehow churches can get this reversed. What?  Reverse what?  Reverse the order.  Church /fellowship/ etc.....can be more about me than about God.  Well it should be both. But it should start with God.  If it does not, then we have reversed the order.

     I would submit that our world has reversed it.  We can be joyful as were the disciples and early Christians in our worship.  It is not a rote exercise.  It is where Christ is . ( AM/ PM prayer and the Sacrament of Holy Communion)  He said this. Some think do it my way and my way or the highway.  Well that is not worship. That is meism. The Holy untrinity of me, myself and I.  We have come together to worship.  It is not about the building ( although a nice building is helpful), or the one leading the services ( pastors and elders), for they are but human instruments.  In a unique way we believe that God has ordained the church, the fellowship, the assembly for the purpose of gathering to worship Christ.

      One day everyone will bow the knee to Christ. " God has highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow." Philippians 2:10  page 37 of the 1928 BCP for the Church is helpful to us .  I was looking at another  Book of prayer,  and found this prayer in it :

" O ALMIGHTY God, who hast built thy Church upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief Corner-stone; Grant that by the operation of the Holy Ghost, all Christians may be so joined together in unity of Spirit, and in the bond of peace, that they may be an holy temple, acceptable unto thee. And especially to this Congregation present, give the abundance of thy grace; that with one heart they may desire the prosperity of thy holy Church, and with one mouth may profess the faith once delivered to the saints. Defend them from the sins of heresy and schism; let not the foot of pride come nigh to hurt them, not the hand of the ungodly to cast them down.  And grant that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by thy governance, that thy Church may joyfully serve thee in all godly quietness; That so they may walk in the ways of truth and peace, and at last be numbered with thy saints in glory everlasting; through thy merits, O blessed Jesus , thou gracious Bishop and Shepherd of our souls, who art , with the Father and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen."

Secondly the day of Pentecost is about unity in Christ.  " And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place."  Accord comes from a greek word with lit. means one mind.  Here we are talking about unity of course .  Again the letter to the Philippians talks about this too. After commending the Christians there for their " fellowship in the gospel", the Apostle rejoices that " Christ is preached" 1:18, and then he strongly encourages them in 2;1 " If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, fulfill ye my joy, that ye be like-minded having the same love, being of one accord , of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves."

  Many languages came together in Jerusalem on that day of Pentecost, 50 days after Easter , and despite the differences they heard each other clearly.  This was a miracle of course for the demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit. " For they had become fresh wine-skins, they had been renewed by the grace of holiness, so that when they were filled with the new wine, that is , with the Holy Spirit, they spoke with fervour in every tongue; and by this spectacular miracle they foreshadowed the spread of the Catholic Church through all nations speaking every tongue." A Reading from a sermon of an unknown African author of the 6th cen.  From the Fathers to the Churches- Daily Spiritual Readings,  ed by Brother Kenneth CGA

And lastly , what are we here for?  I like what my great-grandfather said on this , "  The only reason why those born again of the Spirit are left in the world is that they may be His witnesses." Dr Campbell Morgan.  Peter preached to the crowd on the day of Pentecost, " standing with the eleven" 2:14 " I will pour out of my Spirit....this Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we are all witnesses." 2:32  They heard the message then gladly, and " there were added unto them about three thousand souls." 2:41

How did they witness to Christ? 2:42 tells us " And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers....praising God, and having favor with all the people.  And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved."

These are spiritual people witnessing filled with the Holy Spirit as they believed the good news of being saved into the kingdom of God.  This is the same message we have. Back to basics as we said a few weeks ago.  Whatever we do here and with each other, worship, unity and witnessing must be there.  If we do other things that is fine of course but they must have the goal of worship, witnessing and unity in Christ .  Otherwise we are just in a building, saying hello, and doing whatever we want to.  My mind keeps going back to that hymn we sing  ,   1940 hymnal-780, " Christ is made the sure foundation, Christ the head and cornerstone, Chosen of the Lord and precious, Binding all the church in one: Holy Sion's help forever, and her confidence alone."

 

amen.