Reflection for Pentecost 20th May 2018 Bring it on!

DAY OF PENTECOST Year B May 20, 2018

Acts 2:1-21 or Ezekiel 37:1-14  •  Psalm 104:24-34, 35b  •  Romans 8:22-27 or Acts 2:1-21  •  John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15

I’m inspired by the readings of Pentecost.  Into the humdrum of life emerges an explosive event.

Romans 8:22-23 “We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.”

Ah… there it is right there… You see, life is HARD.  Here on planet Earth there is a struggle – and it is not just a struggle for some random person, but also for those who have the first fruits of the Spirit.  The struggle is real!  Things on this planet are not the way the creator intended, and all of creation groans as if in labour pains as we long for a life that we sub-consciously, deep in our souls, know is meant to be something different and better.

There may be some Christians who will tell you that life is a breeze since they become a Christian.  Well God bless them and their little cotton socks, but for most of us who live in the real world, even though we’ve been given a vision and promise, we still struggle because things really are not how they could and should be…. Why do we think that Jesus gave us the “Our Father” as our prayer which states, “your kingdom come on Earth, as it is in Heaven” ?  Obviously, because how things are meant to be, as yet, are not.

On this day of Pentecost that prayer was answered in part. 

The followers of Christ were a frightened but hopeful bunch, gathered together and united in prayer and purpose.  Surprisingly, their meeting took an interesting and dramatic turn.  Partly, Heaven did come on Earth. 

There was the sound of a rushing wind and what appeared as tongues of fire settled above them and they began speaking in other languages…. It must have been quite a commotion because the visitors to the area heard them proclaiming and praising God in their native languages. 

Now there have been many a person to explain this event with varied and disagreeing views, however it is clear that something totally miraculous happened.  A scared group of people became courageous and somehow, not only did the listeners hear these people in their own language, but about 3000 of them were converted and joined them, confirming their conversion by baptism.

Truly this is a fulfilment of the prophecy of Ezekiel 37:4 - 5 “Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.””

The followers of Christ must have been worn out.  They had hope in Christ, but they had seen what the authorities do to those sent from God….. they crucified them.  The hope of Heaven on Earth was a very dry hope…  but on that day those dry bones truly lived, and hope was not just renewed, it was realized.

Much more I could say about all this, but here, I think, is the most important one for me today – the Kingdom of Heaven came and God’s will was done on Earth!  NOW, that Kingdom is still here.  It was brought about on that day by the Holy Spirit which was given to the believers.

The Holy Spirit is still given to believers.  Therefore the Kingdom of God is with the believers.  It is our job to nourish and not quench that Kingdom.  We pray that His Kingdom come, but more often than not, and our own will be done….  We control and neaten everything up.  We decide who is able to be “in” and who is “out”.  We make judgements and we hurt each other.

The Holy Spirit came on that day of Pentecost and didn’t hold a course or have  interviews.  3000 people were converted and joined!  It must have been chaos, and we need to remember that the Holy Spirit/ God is in charge.  Can we step back from our need to get all our theology correct and the same as each other, and just rejoice in the differences and colourful people that God calls into His family?  Because that is what Pentecost is about.

Acts 2:17-18 “'In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.  Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.”

Let go and let God take over.