The perfect gift

 

When we celebrate Christmas, most people know that it’s something to do with the birth of Jesus. When we celebrate Easter, lots of people know that it’s about a cross and about Jesus rising from the dead – and of course, there’s lots of people that know it’s about Easter eggs too ! 

Today we celebrate Pentecost, one of the great days in the Church calendar, but one that is less well known. It is the day we remember the gift of the Holy Spirit being given to the early followers and to all who have followed since… 

In our reading from Acts (2:1-21) we’re told of the disciples gathered together and three things stick out – firstly, they were expectant. Jesus had promised a helper. They didn’t quite know what this would be exactly and this helper wouldn’t be a replacement for Jesus with them, but it would empower each follower to try and live like Jesus. 

And so these disciples who had watched Jesus die, but who had seen Jesus risen, now waited expectantly… 

And secondly they waited hopefully – they had seen what God could do as they witnessed the risen Jesus. They knew his love, they knew his power and they knew his desire to see others live secure in the knowledge of that love and power, and they were desperate to be a part of the growth of the church, so they waited expectantly and they waited hopefully. 

And thirdly they waited obediently – Jesus had promised the Holy Spirit, but he’d told them to wait and so they did. They might easily have thought they could make a start. After all, they were pretty excited about all they’d heard and seen, but they waited as they were told to do… 

And then this helper that we know as the Holy Spirit came and it rushed in, we’re told, like the rush of a violent wind and tongues of fire appeared and rested on them as all were filled with the Holy Spirit…. I think it could have been quite scary, but it didn’t have that effect… 

The response of the disciples was to go out and tell people about Jesus – excited and confident and filled with a new power they went out to share good news and Peter, who we remember, had denied even knowing Jesus prior to the crucifixion, was transformed as he went out and made a speech in the full hearing of some who would no doubt have expected this movement to be dead with Jesus…

Peter paid no regard at all to his personal safety because there was something more important to do and that was to share this piece of good news which was and is for everyone…. 

The Holy Spirit was a whole new beginning for the disciples – some have called it the birthday of the church – Jesus wouldn’t be there in person with the disciples, but he would be everywhere and they, filled with the Holy Spirit, were being empowered to begin the church and go everywhere and tell everyone that Jesus is alive…. 

And so the church was born, the living body of Jesus on earth, filled with and fired up with the Holy Spirit, and here we are 2000 years later, and the church continues to grow, in spite of all the bad news we hear about numbers and money, but we can’t ignore some of those problems either, because they are often the reality where we are in Wales… 

Today can and should be a new start for the church though, because God is good at giving us new starts when we get things wrong or we lose a bit of confidence or focus – reminded by this incredible power and gift of the Spirit on those early followers of Jesus, we’re called to think of our own response…. 

Those disciples waited for the gift to come expectantly, hopefully and obediently and when they received the gift of the Spirit and went out they were excited and confident and I wonder whether some of these qualities need to be recaptured a little bit today… 

We can be expectant because God has made promises to us and God keeps his promises. We can be hopeful because we worship God who has defeated death and who loves each one of us and we should be obedient. In other words, ready to listen to God, and we do that as we read and study his word in the Bible, as we pray and as we engage in fellowship with one another and learn from each other… 

We need that passion for engagement and that comes from being excited about what God has done for each one of us, so what is our story ? What has he done for us ? What has changed in our lives because we have decided to follow Jesus ? It’s worth reflecting on those questions because it’s easy to enjoy a very real faith which has just gone a little bit stale and when we’re stale we lose that excitement… 

Or perhaps the question for you today is ‘What are you missing in your life?’ ‘What are you hoping for?’ 

These are Pentecost questions ! 

Pentecost is a great celebration of God saying that he wants us to be part of his work, part of sharing his love, part of the joy that he brings to the world… 

He wants people everywhere to know that whoever they are, whatever they’ve done, wherever they’re from, he loves them and when Jesus empowered his early church, he empowered each one of us as well…. We are to be his hands, and his eyes and his ears and his body as the famous verse from Theresa of Avila tells us… 

Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

As we celebrate Pentecost I truly believe that God looks at each one of us expectantly and hopefully, believing that we can help to do his work, believing that we will be excited enough to do that work, because I also believe that as he looks at each one of us he is excited about what we can do and be if we really trust him… AMEN