Dear Readers and Listeners, Friends in Jesus Christ,
Our watchword for this week, the week after Pentecost, is taken from the Book of the Prophet Sechariah, Chapter 4 verse 6, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit says the LORD Almighty,” (NRSVB). In Scripture we are introduced to the Spirit of God as early as the second verse in the first Book, Genesis. The Spirit of God was hovering, or moving above the waters, gently as a dove, or a soft wind, like a whisper. When Jesus was baptized, the Spirit descended and took the appearance of the dove, and anointed Jesus for his ministry to reconcile the world and her people to their Father, God. When Elijah was exhausted in his ministry, being a prophet in Israel, he earnestly called on the Lord to appear to him and strengthen him. The quiet wind, and not the storm and earthquake, presented the presence and the power of the Lord to Elijah. We are encouraged to look for the Holy Spirit in the gentle and peaceful times of quiet silence, and there, as we listen to our own breath, we will feel the breath of God breathing in and through us. He makes his power available to us through his gift of the Holy Spirit.
The name of this Sunday “Pentecost” is derived from the Greek word “pentekoste”meaning the fifty days after Easter Sunday. In other religious traditions this Sunday, the seventh Sunday after Easter, is also called Whitsunday. Traditionally, this Sunday is seen as the birthday of the Church. The pouring out of the Holy Spirit marks the beginning of the Christian Church in the world, starting in Jerusalem. Jesus promised his disciples that he would not leave them alone, but would send the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, to continually dwell alongside the believers.
We read in the Book of Acts in Chapter Two, verses 2 to 4, the account of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the disciples and the assembly, “Suddenly there came a sound from heaven like the rushing of a violent tempest blast, and it filled the whole house in which they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues resembling fire, which were separated and distributed and which settled on each one of them, and they were all filled, diffused throughout their souls, with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other, different and foreign languages or tongues, as the Spirit kept giving them clear and loud expression in each tongue in appropriate words,” (Amplified Bible).
We are reminded of the couple from Emmaus who spoke and said that their hearts were burning within them, as Jesus explained and opened the scripture to them so that they could understand. This is what the Spirit of God does, the Spirit opens the understanding and gives new abilities to people to understand each other, in the light and through the lens of the Love of Christ, on the Cross. Suddenly, the foreign languages, traditions and customs of people around the world, are not incomprehensible any longer, but become understandable and appreciated. The Spirit of God is the interpreter of Scripture and Life, his interpretation is more than a translation, it is an immersion in the love of Jesus, that allows us to see every person as a beloved child of God.
The Story of Pentecost is the Story of the Tower of Babel inside-out and up-side down. At Babel the people were trying to build a tower to reach God, and show how powerful and ingenious they were. God confused their languages and many new tongues must have been born that day. People were shocked and frustrated, for suddenly one could not understand one’s neighbour! People were going around trying to find those who spoke “their language”and ultimately the people speaking the same languages found each other and spread out to various cities and populated the world.
In Jerusalem, at Pentecost, the Spirit came down and warmed the hearts and minds of the disciples to be able to speak languages that they have never been taught, and tell those around them, in this cosmopolitan city, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was astonishing, for people were addressed in their mother tongues! God planned that each nation and each tongue in this world would be included in the great commission: Go then and make disciples of all nations. This is the joy of Pentecost, that every tongue shall confess and praise in their own language, with their own traditions, the Lord Jesus Christ, Lord of all. Jesus is the enculturized Christ, the Lord who loves and understands every tongue, culture, custom and tradition. He blesses those who come to him.
Our watchword for this Sunday is taken from the Book of the Prophet Daniel, Chapter 4 verse 34, “I praised and honoured the oned who lives forever, For his sovereignty is and everlasting sovereingty, and his kingdom endures from generation to generations,” (NRSVB). This verse is taken from the prayer of the King Nebuchadnezzar, who after seven years of having his mental capacities and his kingdom taken away from him, came suddenly to lift his eyes to heaven, and God restored his understanding and his kingdom. The king was overawed at God’s grace in giving him his faculties of discernment back, and professed that he was a mere mortal, with limited understanding. The duration of his reign was also limited according to God’s time. God is the God of all, and the kingdom of heaven is the kingdom that will reign forever and ever. Through the Spirit of God, those who are considered unwise or simple minded, are filled with knowlegde and wisdom, for the Spirit of Truth reveals the mysteries of faith and grace to those who come to seek wisdom. The wisdom of those who use their intellect and powers of understanding to commit wrongful deeds that harm the world and her people, will in due course be mere vapour and vanity.
Regarding the Spirit of God, the Apostle Paul writes in his pastoral letter to Titus, Chapter 3 verses 6 to 7, “This Spirit God poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life,” (NRSVB). The Spirit works in us and daily renews our faith as we grown in grace on our journey to eternal life, while we share our hope and joy of this salvation with our fellow pilgrims.
May you be filled with the warmth of the Spirit of God working within you today and always.
Father, we thank you that you have sent your Spirit to dwell within us as we walk along the way. Your Spirit fills us with peace and joy and comforts us in every need and fear. We are not alone, we have the One who walks along-side us and prays with and for us to You in unspeakable tongues, Amen.