Today we celebrate Pentecost. It is the birthday of the church-the day that the Christian church was born. It is the day that the Spirit descended upon those who were waiting for God. They were waiting for God to give them instructions, to empower them for ministry. They were ready to go out and tell about Jesus-His life, death and resurrection-and they were waiting as Jesus had instructed them. And, just as Jesus had told them, the Spirit came, and they were made ready to spread the word of the Gospel.
Pentecost is all about the work of the Spirit in our lives-in the lives of those first apostles, and in our lives. It is because of the Spirit that the church is empowered to share the Gospel and to do Christ's work. And so I ask you today-what, or who, is the Holy Spirit to you?
Some think of the Holy Spirit when they feel a gentle breeze and hear the sound of it blowing through the trees and the grass. Others think of the Spirit when a powerful wind is blowing full force. Still others are reminded of the Spirit when they experience the gifts of the Spirit in themselves and witness those gifts in others. Some think of the Holy Spirit as that gentle dove who descended upon Christ at His baptism. Many of us think of the Spirit as the one who inspires us, the one who encourages us, the one who helps us to know that God is here with us. I'm sure that each of you has your own concept or definition of the Holy Spirit. You may not be able to describe it, but you know it when you feel it.
From Creation, with the Spirit of God blowing over the waters to the Day of Pentecost when Christ's Church was born, to our lives today, the Spirit is with us, working in our lives, helping us to see God. In our readings for today, we are given some descriptors regarding the Holy Spirit-descriptors that help us to define what it is we are feeling when the Spirit of God is upon us.
In Acts, we find the Spirit making itself known with a loud sound that filled the house. The Spirit gave the gift of tongues, divided as flames of fire, resting on each that was there. The Spirit would help them to prophesy, see visions and dream dreams-showing portents and giving signs-preparing them for the Lord's Day.
Romans says that the Spirit helps us in our weakness and intercedes when our faith is not enough. When we need help, the Spirit is there-encouraging, supporting, opening our eyes. The Spirit helps us to call on the name of the Lord, and that is how we are saved.
And in John, the Spirit is called the Advocate-the one who looks out for our best interests. Jesus says that the Spirit is from the Father, and has come to testify on behalf of Christ, to prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgement. Jesus says that it is to our advantage that He goes away for a time, because the Spirit will only come when He is gone. Evidently, the Spirit is necessary for us, for our salvation.
All of these descriptors have helped me to get a handle on who the Spirit is and what the work of the Spirit looks like. And often, to me anyway, the work of the Spirit comes as a gut feeling. Earlier in my life, I didn't always trust my gut feelings, I would second guess myself or try to rationalize the feeling away. But time after time, I learned that my gut was telling me the truth. I learned to trust. And I began to think of those gut feelings as more than just intuition, I began to think of them as the work of the Spirit, telling me the truth.
I believe that the greatest work that the Spirit shares with us is just that-speaking the truth. In John, Jesus calls the Spirit of God, the Spirit of truth. And in Acts, the writer of Luke quotes the Prophet Joel saying that when the Spirit is poured out upon all flesh, it will share the gifts of prophecy, of visions and of dreams. These gifts enable humanity to see God more clearly, to dare to imagine that all they have heard of God's love and goodness is true, to encourage them to believe and to grow in faith.
There is another truth about the work of the Spirit that I find in today's passages, and that is that the first thing that the Spirit did. The Spirit of God came down upon those from all nations, drawing them together. There they all were- speaking different tongues-all experiencing the Spirit of God. Through the work of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost, God demonstrated that all flesh, all nations, all people, are to be drawn together. That we are one-one people of God. And with the first act of the Spirit humanity was able to see it.
It has been my experience that the Spirit is always in us, moving, working, getting our wheels turning, softening our hardened hearts, making us care about God and about each other. We might not always feel it, the cares of the world distract us so, but the Spirit is working nonetheless. Another truth of God shared by the Spirit.
One area where I have often felt the work of the Spirit most strongly is when I experience the arts. Music, dance, drama, art, they all get to me. When I witness a truly spectacular performance or work of art, I am always mindful that it is by the grace of God alone that such talent and skill and beauty exists.
The experience that is the most vivid in my mind and heart is an exhibition of paintings that I saw in Boston several years ago. I was there for the Boston Seminar on Congregational History and Polity and on Friday afternoon a few of us decided to take in the exhibit. We had seen posters on the T every day as we rode from the Walker center into the Congregational Library, and we could resist no more!
The artist was John Singer Sargent, a painter who lived in the time of the impressionists who was criticized heavily for his lack of ingenuity and creativity. You see, Sargent was a portrait painter. He did not explore the new techniques of the impressionists, he just painted people as others had done for generations before him.
The exhibit was huge-room after room of paintings. And as I walked from painting to painting, reading about each one, and listening to the audio tape I became overwhelmed. Portrait after portrait was more beautiful than I could imagine--the light, the color, the texture, the mood. And not only that, not only were these paintings stunning, they were lifelike as well. I felt like I was actually meeting the people in the paintings. Their eyes seemed to look right at me. I couldn't stop looking into them. And as I did, I felt as if I could see the truth about each person. In their eyes I could see what God had created. Sargent had let me see into their souls.
That afternoon, I felt the presence of God's Spirit so strongly that I cannot describe it. It was so strong that I felt overwhelmed. I had to sit down a few times and take it all in. I wondered if I could bear to enter the next room and meet more souls. So much beauty, so much truth, all from a man's vision and paintbrush. I was both exhausted and exhilarated by the experience. This was definitely the work of the Spirit. I felt such a connection, from the person in the painting, to the artist, to myself-one people of God-the work of the Spirit.
As we continue our Christian journey, I pray that our perception of the Spirit's presence with us will increase. I pray that we will feel the Spirit working in ourselves and observe and support its work in others. And, I pray that God's truth will come alive to us as the Spirit works in us and in others. Amen.
Peace,
Rev. Cynthia Bacon
Minister
You may email at:
cbacon@heritagemadison.org
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