http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ik-XOVZcwow
Year A Proper 9 3 July 2011
Genesis 24: 34-38, 42-49, 58-67 Psalm 45: 10-17 OR Song of Solomon 2: 8-13 Romans 7: 15-25a Matthew 11: 16-19, 25-30
I recall hearing a hymn that begins with the words, “Come ye weary, heavy laden....” I can’t remember it properly, but I remember the last line was – “If you tarry ‘til you’re ready, you will never come at all”. And that, I think is the message in our readings this week....
Our Gospel reading ends with the invitation: Matthew 11:28-30 ““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.””
It is an invitation that reminds me of the song that I plan to sing at this weekend’s country music festival. It is a song that I wrote, about how we strive to be holy, but we stumble and fall over and over. The good news in the song and the Good News of Jesus Christ is that we can rest in the knowledge that through faith we have attained a holiness that is not our own – yet is ours through our union with Christ.
In our first reading we have an amazing example of some people of God who said “yes” to God. We read the story and often miss the facts about how hard it may have been for the characters involved.
The servant of Abraham set out to find a wife for Isaac, the son of Abraham. He prayed, and it seemed that Rebekah was the answer to that prayer.
I often wonder if God is constantly giving us opportunities to partake in His fantastic plan, but we continuously say, “No”. Rebekah was a woman in a time of danger. If she didn’t have the protection of a loving husband or family she had no protection from abuse at all. To leave her family and go to marry a man that she had not met was a big step of faith. The servant explained that hand of God was in the situation told them about his prayer and how God had answered it through her, indicating that she was the one destined to marry Isaac. So then Rebekah’s family blessed her with the prophetic words about her offspring: Genesis 24:60 “ And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “Our sister, may you increase to thousands upon thousands; may your offspring possess the cities of their enemies.” This Rebekah is the mother of the Israelite and Edomite nations.
The story ends well for Rebekah, as we are told that Isaac loved Rebekah. Many unions are recorded in the Bible, and many were recorded as being the fulfilment of duty – love seemed to be an optional extra – yet these early and significant unions, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachel, are those where there was love. Rebekah had to do some hard things in leaving behind her whole life – her family and friends. Rebekah said “yes” to God’s plan and she was blessed with more than a profitable union – she was blessed with the love of her husband.
We have many examples through the lives of people recorded in the Bible, which show us the blessings of those who cooperate with God’s plan. But still we struggle to cooperate with God’s plan. We are called to cooperate with God’s plan – We’ve been commissioned to go and make disciples. How are we going with that?
There is a fantastic song by Keith Green – you may know of his other songs, such as “There is a Redeemer” – the song that I find appropriate for us, is called Asleep in the Light. I know I’ve said this a few times, but I’ll say it again.... We are all so tired from our own battles that it seems no one is really partaking in God’s plan and partaking in the great commission that he gave us to go and make disciples.... Myself included....
Here are just a few words from the song, Asleep in the Light: “.....The world is sleeping in the dark, That the church can't fight, cause it's asleep in the light, How can you be so dead, when you've been so well fed, Jesus rose from the grave, and you, you can't even get out of bed,...” I strongly encourage you to have a listen to the whole song on you tube, as the song brings the message to life in a way that mere words can’t: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ik-XOVZcwow
We all know that it is right to proclaim the Gospel and encourage people into a relationship with Christ, but we just don’t seem to be able to motivate ourselves into action. Do you recall the words of that part at church where we confess.... call to mind our failings.... it isn’t just the things we’ve done wrong, but also the good we’ve omitted to do.
Paul puts the dilemma of not doing what we know we should very well in his letter to the Romans:
Romans 7:15-20 “ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.”
The reading ends with the Good News... “24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
Most of us feel that we are not good enough to cooperate with God’s plan. We feel we are not worthy to be of any use to God. Surely it would make more sense for God to use the saintly and blameless people. We know that if someone was to scrutinize us we’d come apart at the seams, as we know our failings well. But.... if we tarry ‘til we are ready, we will never come at all. We will never measure up. If we are being honest with ourselves we will know that we can never be good enough, but thanks be to God, who delivers us through Jesus Christ our Lord!
You see, we truly are made holy right now through the sacrifice of Jesus. This is why Jesus can invite us to come to him and he will give us rest.... rest in the knowledge that we have been made acceptable to God through our union with Christ. We are spiritually “ready”... there is no need to tarry and there isn’t any need to feel not worthy enough to be of any use.
To know our need for a saviour is the only pre-requisite to becoming a child of God, and being a child of God means being a child of the King. In the same way that we became a child of God by recognising our need for a saviour, we carry out the commission of Christ to “make disciples” by continuing to realise our need for a saviour and relying on Christ and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which means that we rest in the knowledge of his provision and blessing, and just as Rebekah was blessed, God blesses and provides above and beyond our needs.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Reflection 19th June 2011 Trinity Sunday
Year A Trinity Sunday 19 June 2011
Genesis 1:1 - 2:4a Psalm 8 2 Corinthians 13: 11-13 Matthew 28: 16-20
Last week I mentioned that the feast of Pentecost occurred at the celebration which commemorated the giving of the Torah to the Israelite people in the desert. The tradition holds that this book was written by Moses, but given by God. Our first reading this week comes from the beginning of the Torah.
If you recall the story, you’ll remember the giving of the 10 commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai. He was actually given them twice, as he broke the first lot when he came down the Mountain to find the Israelites worshiping an idol of a golden calf.
Many people are familiar with the 10 commandments and though they don’t know what they are, most people will tell you that they keep the commandments. But many, many more commands were also given by Moses. According to some websites that I looked up there are actually 613 commands. According to one interpretation, one of those commands is that each person should write out the song of the law for themselves... this was written in Deuteronomy 31:19-21.
Moses was the man who spoke with God. God appeared to him first in the burning bush and then, when the Israelites were wondering in the desert, God appeared as a pillar of fire by night and a cloud at day. My point in all of this is to make us aware of the background of our first reading.
Those commands that God gave Moses, referred to by the Jewish people as the Torah, is found in our Christian Bible. The Torah consists of the books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. These are the first 5 Books in our Bible. The Torah, though called the book of the law, can be translated as teaching or instruction.
With this in mind we come to our first reading which comes from the very beginning of the Bible. Genesis 1:1-5 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.”
This week we our focus is the Trinity. The Trinity is the understanding the God is only one, yet has been expressed in three different ways. It is a theology that divides and confuses, but it is what God is.
Back at the very beginning we read in Genesis that God created the heavens and the earth. This is the very definition of God that St. Paul proclaimed in our readings a couple of weeks ago when he saw a monument to an unknown God. St. Paul preached to the people about this unknown God as being the one and only true God, the one who created the heavens and the earth. Many people these days don’t like to think that anyone created the heavens and the earth. You can never truly know God unless you can believe this fundamental aspect about him – he created the heavens and the earth.
Acknowledging that God created the heavens and the earth is acknowledging that He is above all and beyond all. We acknowledge that he has all power and all authority. Then in the next sentence we get to know a bit more about God when we read that the Spirit of God hovered above the waters. We read throughout the Old Testament about the Spirit of God being with his people, and coming with power to accomplish God’s plan of salvation.
The beginning of John’s Gospel gives us insight into where this third aspect of God comes in. He speaks about the “Word”....
John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”
And so we know that back in our Genesis reading, the part where we find Jesus is where God spoke. “...And God said, “Let there be light,” ......
There are places in the Old Testament where there are references to the “Word of God”. The word of God is the expression of God.... we read in the New Testament that Christ is the visible expression of God. In other words, “The Word became flesh”.
We also remember the reading that is read so often at funerals where Jesus comforts his disciples and tells them that in his father’s house are many rooms. He is asked that he might show them the father, but he responds with: John 14:9, 10 “Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me?”
We begin with the understanding that this awesome God made the heavens and the earth, and then we get to know him. Some prefer to call this initial understanding of God, the creator, as it is true He is. But over the years we’ve discovered the privilege of a closer relationship and so we call him father, and we understand also the care and love that He has for us. Personally I find the term “creator” somewhat restrictive and not fully encompassing all that God the father is.
Like wise, we know that Jesus is the son of God and some refer to him as the redeemer – that was something that he did for us – he redeemed us – but once again this is impersonal and restrictive as Jesus is also our Brother, our friend and our mediator. We are IN him and he IN us, this is such a bond that goes beyond that of an impersonal term.
The Holy Spirit is the how. How Jesus is in us is through the Holy Spirit, but the Holy Spirit is the sanctifier, that is, makes us holy by our union with God. But there is also more to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the teacher, the comforter, the advocate and the one who empowers – just to name a few.
So by now you will have picked up that I’m not real keen on the restrictive words of creator, redeemer and sanctifier in referring to the Trinity. But in reality there are not enough words that can fully explain or contain God. Some object to the understanding of God being so male oriented. I don’t intend to dwell on this – Jesus was male and he called God father, as had been revealed throughout history. That is good enough for me and I’m very sorry if anyone has a problem with that, but God is what he is and not what we make Him.
Jesus was an historical figure. He claimed to be, and his followers called him the son of God. It is probably hardest for people to understand this part of the Trinity when they read about Jesus being on earth and praying to his father. We need to remember that God created the heavens and the earth and is therefore way beyond our understanding. We watch fantasy shows on television and have little problem accepting them, but when it comes to God being one but in three persons we have difficulties.
The theology or formal understanding of the trinity was developed because of the observations and understandings of God as revealed through experience and through the scriptures in particular our Gospel reading.
Matthew 28:18-20 “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Jesus commanded that people be made disciples by being baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Sometimes I think we need to be reminded of this. We belong to God the father, Son and Holy Spirit. We do not belong to a theological idea about some remote creator, redeemer and sanctifier, but instead to the God who created the heavens and earth – all that is- seen and unseen. We belong to Jesus who walked this earth, lived as one of us, died to redeem us and rose from the dead... a living real person with whom we can have a personal relationship. We belong to the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the father and the son – helps us pray, teaches, through whom the law is written on our hearts, he comforts and empowers.
Trinity – one God, but three persons. One God who is beyond our understanding, yet revealed to us as three persons, through whom, we are united in a relationship of love.
Genesis 1:1 - 2:4a Psalm 8 2 Corinthians 13: 11-13 Matthew 28: 16-20
Last week I mentioned that the feast of Pentecost occurred at the celebration which commemorated the giving of the Torah to the Israelite people in the desert. The tradition holds that this book was written by Moses, but given by God. Our first reading this week comes from the beginning of the Torah.
If you recall the story, you’ll remember the giving of the 10 commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai. He was actually given them twice, as he broke the first lot when he came down the Mountain to find the Israelites worshiping an idol of a golden calf.
Many people are familiar with the 10 commandments and though they don’t know what they are, most people will tell you that they keep the commandments. But many, many more commands were also given by Moses. According to some websites that I looked up there are actually 613 commands. According to one interpretation, one of those commands is that each person should write out the song of the law for themselves... this was written in Deuteronomy 31:19-21.
Moses was the man who spoke with God. God appeared to him first in the burning bush and then, when the Israelites were wondering in the desert, God appeared as a pillar of fire by night and a cloud at day. My point in all of this is to make us aware of the background of our first reading.
Those commands that God gave Moses, referred to by the Jewish people as the Torah, is found in our Christian Bible. The Torah consists of the books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. These are the first 5 Books in our Bible. The Torah, though called the book of the law, can be translated as teaching or instruction.
With this in mind we come to our first reading which comes from the very beginning of the Bible. Genesis 1:1-5 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.”
This week we our focus is the Trinity. The Trinity is the understanding the God is only one, yet has been expressed in three different ways. It is a theology that divides and confuses, but it is what God is.
Back at the very beginning we read in Genesis that God created the heavens and the earth. This is the very definition of God that St. Paul proclaimed in our readings a couple of weeks ago when he saw a monument to an unknown God. St. Paul preached to the people about this unknown God as being the one and only true God, the one who created the heavens and the earth. Many people these days don’t like to think that anyone created the heavens and the earth. You can never truly know God unless you can believe this fundamental aspect about him – he created the heavens and the earth.
Acknowledging that God created the heavens and the earth is acknowledging that He is above all and beyond all. We acknowledge that he has all power and all authority. Then in the next sentence we get to know a bit more about God when we read that the Spirit of God hovered above the waters. We read throughout the Old Testament about the Spirit of God being with his people, and coming with power to accomplish God’s plan of salvation.
The beginning of John’s Gospel gives us insight into where this third aspect of God comes in. He speaks about the “Word”....
John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”
And so we know that back in our Genesis reading, the part where we find Jesus is where God spoke. “...And God said, “Let there be light,” ......
There are places in the Old Testament where there are references to the “Word of God”. The word of God is the expression of God.... we read in the New Testament that Christ is the visible expression of God. In other words, “The Word became flesh”.
We also remember the reading that is read so often at funerals where Jesus comforts his disciples and tells them that in his father’s house are many rooms. He is asked that he might show them the father, but he responds with: John 14:9, 10 “Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me?”
We begin with the understanding that this awesome God made the heavens and the earth, and then we get to know him. Some prefer to call this initial understanding of God, the creator, as it is true He is. But over the years we’ve discovered the privilege of a closer relationship and so we call him father, and we understand also the care and love that He has for us. Personally I find the term “creator” somewhat restrictive and not fully encompassing all that God the father is.
Like wise, we know that Jesus is the son of God and some refer to him as the redeemer – that was something that he did for us – he redeemed us – but once again this is impersonal and restrictive as Jesus is also our Brother, our friend and our mediator. We are IN him and he IN us, this is such a bond that goes beyond that of an impersonal term.
The Holy Spirit is the how. How Jesus is in us is through the Holy Spirit, but the Holy Spirit is the sanctifier, that is, makes us holy by our union with God. But there is also more to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the teacher, the comforter, the advocate and the one who empowers – just to name a few.
So by now you will have picked up that I’m not real keen on the restrictive words of creator, redeemer and sanctifier in referring to the Trinity. But in reality there are not enough words that can fully explain or contain God. Some object to the understanding of God being so male oriented. I don’t intend to dwell on this – Jesus was male and he called God father, as had been revealed throughout history. That is good enough for me and I’m very sorry if anyone has a problem with that, but God is what he is and not what we make Him.
Jesus was an historical figure. He claimed to be, and his followers called him the son of God. It is probably hardest for people to understand this part of the Trinity when they read about Jesus being on earth and praying to his father. We need to remember that God created the heavens and the earth and is therefore way beyond our understanding. We watch fantasy shows on television and have little problem accepting them, but when it comes to God being one but in three persons we have difficulties.
The theology or formal understanding of the trinity was developed because of the observations and understandings of God as revealed through experience and through the scriptures in particular our Gospel reading.
Matthew 28:18-20 “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Jesus commanded that people be made disciples by being baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Sometimes I think we need to be reminded of this. We belong to God the father, Son and Holy Spirit. We do not belong to a theological idea about some remote creator, redeemer and sanctifier, but instead to the God who created the heavens and earth – all that is- seen and unseen. We belong to Jesus who walked this earth, lived as one of us, died to redeem us and rose from the dead... a living real person with whom we can have a personal relationship. We belong to the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the father and the son – helps us pray, teaches, through whom the law is written on our hearts, he comforts and empowers.
Trinity – one God, but three persons. One God who is beyond our understanding, yet revealed to us as three persons, through whom, we are united in a relationship of love.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Reflection on readings for 12th June 2011 Pentecost
Year A The Day of Pentecost 12 June 2011
Acts 2: 1-21 Psalm 104: 24-34, 35b 1 Corinthians 12: 3b-13 John 20: 19-23
A weird thing happened in Jerusalem. There was the sound of rushing wind, what appeared to be tongues of fire and then the believers all speaking in strange languages. People thought that maybe the believers were drunk – even though it was only nine in the morning.
There were people from many surrounding districts, who spoke different languages, staying in Jerusalem for the feast. It was a Jewish feast which took place 49 days after Passover. Passover is the feast that coincided with the Death and resurrection of Jesus – Not coincidentally. The feast of Passover celebrated the time that Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt - before doing so, he had to convince Pharaoh to let the people go. Pharaoh would not listen to the many signs and wonders so God declared that he would send the angel of death to Passover the land. If a household had painted the door way of their house with the blood of a lamb, then the Angel would Passover that household and leave it in peace, but if not, the eldest born male would die. This was the final sign which signalled the exodus of the Israelite people from slavery and death into freedom and the promise of a land provided by God.
Passover is significant and no coincidence that Jesus was crucified on this feast. Jesus is the Lamb of God, whose blood covers us and protects us from death. His sacrifice enables us to Passover from death to eternal life.
Pentecost is 50 days after Easter. Our reading from Acts tells us that people were again gathered in Jerusalem – they were celebrating another feast. This feast is known to the Jewish people as Shavu’ot – otherwise known as the feast of weeks. The Jewish people were to count off 7 week’s (49 days) after the Passover and celebrate a sacred day signifying the day that God gave the Law (the Torah) from Mount Sinai.
In the words from a Jewish website (http://www.jewfaq.org/holidayc.htm) “The counting reminds us of the important connection between Passover and Shavu'ot: Passover freed us physically from bondage, but the giving of the Torah on Shavu'ot redeemed us spiritually from our bondage to idolatry and immorality. Shavu'ot is also known as Pentecost, because it falls on the 50th day.”
From that same site I discovered that the people would gather on the eve of the feast and stay up the entire night and study the Torah (book of the Law) and then pray as early as possible. I assume that this is why the early believers were all gathered in one place and in prayer when the Holy Spirit came.
Acts 2:1-4 “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
God had said through His prophets that He would write His law on His people’s hearts and in their minds so that no one would need to be taught.... It seems to me that it is significant that the day of the giving of the Holy Spirit is the day when the giving of the law/ word of God/ Torah was celebrated, as the Holy Spirit himself becomes our teacher. The Holy Spirit is God with us and in us.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus commissions his followers by urging that they receive the Holy Spirit. John 20:22, “And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” I found it interesting that the Jewish feast of Shavu’ot is the celebration of God giving the Torah as opposed to the receiving of the Torah, as I think the explanation that is given holds true for the giving of the Holy Spirit also.
From http://www.jewfaq.org/holidayc.htm : “It is noteworthy that the holiday is called the time of the giving of the Torah, rather than the time of the receiving of the Torah. The sages point out that we are constantly in the process of receiving the Torah, that we receive it every day, but it was first given at this time. Thus it is the giving, not the receiving, that makes this holiday significant.”
The same is true for us with the Holy Spirit, we receive it every day, but the celebration is to commemorate that the Holy Spirit has been given.
But what does it mean for us personally?
The celebration of Pentecost is also a celebration of the birth of the Church. When Peter stood up and addressed the crowd, although there were some who were critical, about three thousand become believers. The commissioning of Jesus to his followers when he urged them to receive the Holy Spirit relies on the Holy Spirit being given at Pentecost to accomplish the commission.
The necessary component, or the power, to carry out that commissioning is the Holy Spirit.
Today we are still commissioned. God has given the Holy Spirit. Today we are still urged to “receive the Holy Spirit”. The Holy Spirit has been given, but to receive it is something that only we can do.... it is our part of the deal. I remember when I was being prepared for my confirmation at the age of 11 or 12, being told that the Holy Spirit comes when you ask him. The implication is that the Holy Spirit has already been given, Pentecost has happened already and we don’t need a repeat, but we do need to respond as the receiving is up to us.
Way back in the first chapter of Genesis we read about the Spirit hovering as the earth was created. The spirit is often synonymous with breath and with life. So Jesus breathing on the followers and saying, “receive the Holy Spirit” is a meaningful action that spoke more than mere words to those who understood. With this breath of God new life was created – eternal life. This is the pinnacle of the Holy Spirit power – to impart eternal life.
Acts 2:17-21, “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
The Holy Spirit comes with many gifts, some are subtle, like the gift of faith, and others are dramatic, like the gift of healing. One thing for certain, each gift is given for the benefit of the whole community. And the most important role in all the gifts from the Holy Spirit is to enable Christ to be known so that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord is saved. People won’t call on the name of the Lord unless they know him, and they won’t know him without us fulfilling our commissioning. We need to take a good hard look at ourselves and ask ourselves whether or not we are accomplishing this..... Is it possible that we ceased to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit?
The celebration of Pentecost is a time to repent of our self efforts and once again really and fully receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has been given – The Holy Spirit is with us and in us..... Receive the Holy Spirit!
Acts 2: 1-21 Psalm 104: 24-34, 35b 1 Corinthians 12: 3b-13 John 20: 19-23
A weird thing happened in Jerusalem. There was the sound of rushing wind, what appeared to be tongues of fire and then the believers all speaking in strange languages. People thought that maybe the believers were drunk – even though it was only nine in the morning.
There were people from many surrounding districts, who spoke different languages, staying in Jerusalem for the feast. It was a Jewish feast which took place 49 days after Passover. Passover is the feast that coincided with the Death and resurrection of Jesus – Not coincidentally. The feast of Passover celebrated the time that Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt - before doing so, he had to convince Pharaoh to let the people go. Pharaoh would not listen to the many signs and wonders so God declared that he would send the angel of death to Passover the land. If a household had painted the door way of their house with the blood of a lamb, then the Angel would Passover that household and leave it in peace, but if not, the eldest born male would die. This was the final sign which signalled the exodus of the Israelite people from slavery and death into freedom and the promise of a land provided by God.
Passover is significant and no coincidence that Jesus was crucified on this feast. Jesus is the Lamb of God, whose blood covers us and protects us from death. His sacrifice enables us to Passover from death to eternal life.
Pentecost is 50 days after Easter. Our reading from Acts tells us that people were again gathered in Jerusalem – they were celebrating another feast. This feast is known to the Jewish people as Shavu’ot – otherwise known as the feast of weeks. The Jewish people were to count off 7 week’s (49 days) after the Passover and celebrate a sacred day signifying the day that God gave the Law (the Torah) from Mount Sinai.
In the words from a Jewish website (http://www.jewfaq.org/holidayc.htm) “The counting reminds us of the important connection between Passover and Shavu'ot: Passover freed us physically from bondage, but the giving of the Torah on Shavu'ot redeemed us spiritually from our bondage to idolatry and immorality. Shavu'ot is also known as Pentecost, because it falls on the 50th day.”
From that same site I discovered that the people would gather on the eve of the feast and stay up the entire night and study the Torah (book of the Law) and then pray as early as possible. I assume that this is why the early believers were all gathered in one place and in prayer when the Holy Spirit came.
Acts 2:1-4 “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
God had said through His prophets that He would write His law on His people’s hearts and in their minds so that no one would need to be taught.... It seems to me that it is significant that the day of the giving of the Holy Spirit is the day when the giving of the law/ word of God/ Torah was celebrated, as the Holy Spirit himself becomes our teacher. The Holy Spirit is God with us and in us.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus commissions his followers by urging that they receive the Holy Spirit. John 20:22, “And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” I found it interesting that the Jewish feast of Shavu’ot is the celebration of God giving the Torah as opposed to the receiving of the Torah, as I think the explanation that is given holds true for the giving of the Holy Spirit also.
From http://www.jewfaq.org/holidayc.htm : “It is noteworthy that the holiday is called the time of the giving of the Torah, rather than the time of the receiving of the Torah. The sages point out that we are constantly in the process of receiving the Torah, that we receive it every day, but it was first given at this time. Thus it is the giving, not the receiving, that makes this holiday significant.”
The same is true for us with the Holy Spirit, we receive it every day, but the celebration is to commemorate that the Holy Spirit has been given.
But what does it mean for us personally?
The celebration of Pentecost is also a celebration of the birth of the Church. When Peter stood up and addressed the crowd, although there were some who were critical, about three thousand become believers. The commissioning of Jesus to his followers when he urged them to receive the Holy Spirit relies on the Holy Spirit being given at Pentecost to accomplish the commission.
The necessary component, or the power, to carry out that commissioning is the Holy Spirit.
Today we are still commissioned. God has given the Holy Spirit. Today we are still urged to “receive the Holy Spirit”. The Holy Spirit has been given, but to receive it is something that only we can do.... it is our part of the deal. I remember when I was being prepared for my confirmation at the age of 11 or 12, being told that the Holy Spirit comes when you ask him. The implication is that the Holy Spirit has already been given, Pentecost has happened already and we don’t need a repeat, but we do need to respond as the receiving is up to us.
Way back in the first chapter of Genesis we read about the Spirit hovering as the earth was created. The spirit is often synonymous with breath and with life. So Jesus breathing on the followers and saying, “receive the Holy Spirit” is a meaningful action that spoke more than mere words to those who understood. With this breath of God new life was created – eternal life. This is the pinnacle of the Holy Spirit power – to impart eternal life.
Acts 2:17-21, “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
The Holy Spirit comes with many gifts, some are subtle, like the gift of faith, and others are dramatic, like the gift of healing. One thing for certain, each gift is given for the benefit of the whole community. And the most important role in all the gifts from the Holy Spirit is to enable Christ to be known so that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord is saved. People won’t call on the name of the Lord unless they know him, and they won’t know him without us fulfilling our commissioning. We need to take a good hard look at ourselves and ask ourselves whether or not we are accomplishing this..... Is it possible that we ceased to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit?
The celebration of Pentecost is a time to repent of our self efforts and once again really and fully receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has been given – The Holy Spirit is with us and in us..... Receive the Holy Spirit!
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