Who Put the U in United?

Acts 2:1-21 May 20, 2018 Year B Pentecost Children’s Time…… "How is it ... that all of us hear the disciples speaking in our own native languages? (v. 8, TEV) Object: a globe. Boys and girls, today is the Day of Pentecost. This is one of the most exciting days in the year for us Christians. This is a day we remember how God did some amazing things. All of Jesus' faithful followers were in the big city Jerusalem, where Jesus had died and come back to life. They were all in one place, celebrating a day something like Thanksgiving (in their church in those days, they called it "the Day of Pentecost"). Suddenly all kinds of amazing things began to happen. First there was a loud and noisy sound like a tornado. It must have sounded like the roof was about to blow off. That must have sent shivers down everybody's back. The next thing they knew, something like fire was all over the room, right on top of everybody's head. If you could have seen it, you might have wondered if their hair was going to catch on fire. But it didn't! Nobody there knew how it happened, but they all knew that God was doing something really special. And then the third amazing thing happened. The followers of Jesus went outside where a big crowd of people were standing, because they had come to celebrate the thanksgiving festival. And these people spoke all kinds of different language. It would be something like having people from all of these countries (show them some of the countries on the globe) all coming together here in our city. They would not even understand each other, because their languages would all be different. The amazing thing that happened on that day in Jerusalem was that when all of these people, with all of these different languages, were standing together, they heard Jesus' followers start to talk to them. And the same words that came out of the mouth of the person who began to speak, could be understood by everybody there, each one understanding it in his or her own special language. Now how do you suppose that was possible? (Talk about it.) It was something like being at the United Nations, where everybody can understand the same speaker by listening to an interpreter over a little earphone. But at Pentecost in Jerusalem there weren't any interpreters. It just happened as a miracle. Actually, perhaps there really was an interpreter. The Interpreter was God's Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is invisible, but he is always with us, doing amazing things and reminding us of God's power. The Holy Spirit is still with us today, helping us to do amazing things. One of the things the Holy Spirit does is help us to take God's love to the people in all these countries you can see on the globe. That's why we send our missionaries all over the world. God wants us to tell them all about how much he loves them. CSS Publishing Co., Acts 2:1-21 Common English Bible (CEB) Pentecost 2 When Pentecost Day arrived, they were all together in one place.2 Suddenly a sound from heaven like the howling of a fierce wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be individual flames of fire alighting on each one of them. 4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit enabled them to speak. 5 There were pious Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd gathered. They were mystified because everyone heard them speaking in their native languages. 7 They were surprised and amazed, saying, “Look, aren’t all the people who are speaking Galileans, every one of them? 8 How then can each of us hear them speaking in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; as well as residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the regions of Libya bordering Cyrene; and visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism), 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the mighty works of God in our own languages!” 12 They were all surprised and bewildered. Some asked each other, “What does this mean?” 13 Others jeered at them, saying, “They’re full of new wine!” 14 Peter stood with the other eleven apostles. He raised his voice and declared, “Judeans and everyone living in Jerusalem! Know this! Listen carefully to my words! 15 These people aren’t drunk, as you suspect; after all, it’s only nine o’clock in the morning! 16 Rather, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: 17 In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young will see visions. Your elders will dream dreams. 18 Even upon my servants, men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19 I will cause wonders to occur in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and a cloud of smoke. 20 The sun will be changed into darkness, and the moon will be changed into blood, before the great and spectacular day of the Lord comes. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.[a] Footnotes: a. Acts 2:21 Joel 2:28-32 Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible A small boy was intent on going to church one particular morning. He loved the attention he received from his many adopted grandparents and the cookies after church were always tasty. His sister was not well that morning and his mother said they would not be going. He begged his mother to be able to go, “Please. Please. Please.” Finally she gave in and warned him that she would hear about if he was not. She said, “I am going to ask you what the sermon was about, so you had better be listening.” Off he went and at the appropriate time he returned. His mother was very curious but waited to quiz him until after his lunch. He ate his sandwich and drank his milk in silence. Finally she asked, “What was the topic of the sermon, honey? Were you listening?” “Yes, Mom. I was listening but the sermon made no sense.” “The sermon always makes sense. What did the minister say?” “Well Mom you are going to be just as confused as I was but the sermon was on quilts.” “Quilts?” questioned the astonished mother. “I’ve never heard a sermon on quilts!” “Yes, that’s what I said, quilts.” “And what did the minister say about quilts?” “Well, all I got from it was, ‘Don’t worry, you’ll get a quilt”. “You’re right dear. That doesn’t make any sense! We don’t need a quilt. Maybe they are collecting quilts for the Red Cross. They give out quilts to people who need them, you know.” “No, Mom! Everyone will get one.” Very puzzled the mother finally picked up the phone and called the minister. ”Oh, Hi Teresa, before you ask, your son sat in the front row, was as good as gold and he looked like he was really listening. You don’t have to worry about him coming alone. What can I do for you?” The mother explained what her son had told her about the sermon and the minister started to chuckle. “What’s so funny?” asked the mom. “You never know what people will hear and how they will tell others. Especially the children, but what he told you IS almost exactly what I said. I emphasize “almost”. The title of my sermon was, “Fear Not! Your Comforter Will Come.”“ Today is a special holiday for the church, but we don’t have to share this day with the world like our other days. No one knows what Pentecost is, I am sure that not all Christians even know what Pentecost is. And how much does a Penta Cost anyway. I got you – a Penta is a flower, and home depot likes to put them on sale at this time of year. But seriously, Pentecost is simply the birthday celebration of the church. The day the church was born. Jesus had promised that he would send his spirit to guide and comfort us. And on Pentecost, the spirit arrived. Pentecost is the festival of the wheat harvest. Jews from all over the world gathered in Jerusalem. But this Pentecost they came to understand one another, even though they spoke different languages. There was a spirit of unity and communication. In the old testament when they gathered to build Babel, God sent them a spirit of confusion, lest they get too arrogant. But on Pentecost, God reversed that spirit. Even today, we don’t speak the same language. And even in the church, we don’t always agree with one another. Pentecost is not about uniformity, but harmony. In the midst of our differences, we can still put Christ first in our lives. Our unity comes from the power of God amongst us. There is no one of us that possesses the power of God alone. Clergy need laity and laity need clergy. The musicians work with the sermon, and the pastor works with the choir. We have to understand that our unity is a gift from God, equally bestowed. The purpose of the church is to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ in order to save souls. It is the Pentecost experience that gives us the power to do that. It is the churches birthday, because it is the day when we receive some very important gifts. But the gifts are not for us- they are through us- to be given to the world. Acts 2 quotes verses from the old testament book of Joel, where God says the I will pour out my spirit on all people. For Jesus, all people meant that there were no restrictions, no qualifications. All people meant all people. Whether it was the durg addict or the church mother, the young child or the middle ages woman, the sick or the healthy, the rich or the poor. God has a heart for all people, and God is doing whatever he can to save all people. The gifts of Pentecost are there for those who say that they are followers of Christ to have the power to bring salvation to any life and to any situation. Russ Blowers is a minister who is active in his local Indianapolis Rotary club. At club meetings each week a member gives a brief statement about his job. When it was his turn, Russ said: "I'm with a global enterprise. We have branches in every country in the world. We have our representatives in nearly every parliament and boardroom on earth. We're into motivation and behavior alteration. We run hospitals, feeding stations, crisis pregnancy centers, universities, publishing houses, and nursing homes. We care for our clients from birth to death. We are into life insurance and fire insurance. We perform spiritual heart transplants. Our original Organizer owns all the real estate on earth plus an assortment of galaxies and constellations. He knows everything and lives everywhere. Our product is free for the asking. (There's not enough money to buy it.) Our CEO was born in a hick town, worked as a carpenter, didn't own a home, was misunderstood by his family, hated by enemies, walked on water, was condemned to death without a trial, and arose from the dead--I talk with him everyday." The church is the most amazing organization in the world! Russ Blowers The gifts of Pentecost are unity, understanding, power, purpose and inspiration. But we have to remember that the source of each gift is God. There is a pertinent dialogue in the sixteenth chapter of Judges. Delilah says to Samson: “Please tell me wherein your great strength lies” (v. 6). After three unsuccessful attempts to discover the source of Samson’s strength, Delilah renews her efforts. Finally Samson succumbs and declares his power is in his hair. You remember the rest of the story. He not only lost his hair, but he lost his strength. When we consider Christian ministry of all believers, irrespective of station or training, we must inevitably ask, where does the strength come from? First and foremost, it comes from God! “God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7). And it up to each one of us to remember – that the power in our life to truly be effective in ministry comes from our relationship with God. I asked us to wear red, orange or pink, today –because I wanted each of us to realize that the flame of Christ is personal. It is about us, our life, our faith journey. Each of us is a unique flame for Christ. We should be on fire for Christ, each in our own way. We get power through the ways we life out our faith. The representations of the holy spirit is a flame, but it is also a breath. Each and every one of us has a unique breath inside of us. Recently, I ordered this device called a spire. It measures my breathing all day long. Then it sends messages to my phone to tell me whether I am calm or tense. When it senses that I am tense, it sends a message that perhaps I should calm down and take a deep breath. Spire means to breathe. To inspire is to take a deep breath in. To conspire is to work closely with, to aspire is to hope for something better, even spirit comes from the root word spire – which is the power within each of us to live and love with God. The breath is God’s mark upon us that God has a plan for us. Even scripture says to let everything that has breath praise God. Breath, wind is an important symbol of the holy Spirit and of Pentecost. And I want to encourage each of us to use this Pentecost to look at our relationship with God and to be inspired to new life, a new mission, a renewed spirit. This Pentecost, be inspired to conspire with God and aspire to a renewed sense of mission. Let the power of God’s spirit flow through you, and have a use your gifts in order to bring salvation to God’s people. More than any other holiday in the church calendar – Pentecost is about the here and now. It is not about remembering a time in the past, it is not about what happened 2000 years ago, it is about what is happening now. Each and every year, we have to rekindle the Pentecost spirit inside of us. We have to look at what is going on inside of us and what it going on In the world. What is God calling each of us to do about it. Every Pentecost is different. Pentecost is not about what God has done for us, it is about what God is doing through us. The spirit has to be born anew, we have to be inspired anew. God says to each of us – I have given you my gifts, now I want to see what you are going to do with them. I love the message of Pentecost. This is the third and final feast of the church. We spend six months reliving the life of Jesus, the lectionary takes us through the birth of Jesus, starting with Christmas, we go through baptism and call to ministry and his journey to Jerusalem. Then we come to the easter story and the death and resurrection of Jesus, the rising of the disciples, and the ascension of Jesus. As a church we have spent a lot of effort preparing for the festivals of the church. The choir has been practicing, we have worked at decorating. And now that we are ending the graduation season, and coming to the close of the school year, it is time to pack up and take a break for the summer. So that we can rest up for the next holiday season. Actually, that is not the message of Pentecost. In every ending there is a new beginning. As one chapter of our lives close, another begins. Pentecost is not the end of the church year, it is the beginning. The next six month is not about taking a break, it is about seeing God’s vision for the new year. The first six months is about the life of Christ, the last six months is about us as the church. It is our turn to be the hands and feet of Christ. It is our turn to shine, to work, to show the world that Christ is alive and well. As Christ ascends to heaven, he does not say I am leaving you alone, he is saying I am coming to you in a new way. Pentecost is the time where we receive our power and strength to go out in the world and to make a difference. We can pack up, and end choir and end Sunday school, not to go on vacation, but to redirect our energy and attention. We can congratulate our graduates, but also ask them to think about what is next for them. How is God opening up doors, How is God leading you in new directions? How is God calling you to new challenges? The world is not coming to an end, but a new beginning. The gift of Pentecost is overcoming our differences and working together in a new way, to develop new projects. It is realizing how easy it is to misunderstand one another even though we are right next to each other. It is realizing that even when we are tired and on our last leg, it is not our strength that will pull us through, it is the strength of the Holy Spirit within us. He Lives In Me Right Now! Norman Neaves some years ago told about a teacher asking the students in her fourth grade class to name the person they considered the greatest person alive in the world today. Their responses were varied and interesting. One little boy said, “I think it’s Joe Montana because he led the 49ers to all those Super Bowl wins.” A little girl said, George Bush… and still another named Oprah… and on and on it went with the students mentioning a wide variety or celebrities. But then it was little Donnie’s turn. Without hesitation Donnie said, “I think it’s Jesus Christ because He loves everybody and is always ready to help them.” Mrs. Thompson smiled and said, “Well, I certainly like your answer, Donnie, because I’m a Christian too… and I also admire Jesus very much. But there’s one slight problem. I said the greatest living person… and of course, Jesus lived and died almost two thousand years ago. Do you have another name in mind?” I love the simple, innocent, confident, wide-eyed response of little Donnie. He said, “Oh no, Mrs. Thompson, that’s not right at all. Jesus Christ is alive! He lives in me right now!” That’s the good news of our faith and the message of Pentecost… God is with us right now working from the inside out, giving us the Breath of Life, the Fire Power of Commitment… and the Peace That Passes All Understanding. James W. Moore, What Do You Do With Such A Gift? Amen. You Are in the Spirit It's like the story of the shark and the whale. Both were swimming in the sea when the shark swam up to the whale to engage in conversation. As they swam along, the shark said to the whale, "You are so much older than I, and wiser too. Could you tell me where the ocean is?" The whale responded, "The ocean is what you are in now." The shark would not believe it. "Come on, tell me where the ocean is so I may find it!" The whale repeated, "The ocean is here, now; you are in it." Unbelieving, the shark swam away searching for the ocean. The moral of the story, I believe, is this: don't spend too much time looking for God because the Spirit of God is here in the now of your life, dwelling within you, within me, within this community. And that truth is nurtured in prayer. Susan M. Fleenor, The Indwelling Spirit of Pentecost ________________________ Control A wealthy family from Massachusetts used to take a month's vacation every summer to the coast of Maine, taking their maid with them. The maid had an annual ritual at the beach. She wore an old-fashioned bathing suit, complete with a little white hat, and carried enough paraphernalia to stock Wal-Mart. She would settle herself on the beach, cover every inch of her exposed flesh and journey down to the water's edge. There she would hesitate while taking deep breaths and working up her courage to enter the icy-cold water. Finally, she would daintily extend one foot and lower it slowly into the water until she barely had her big toe submerged. Then she repeated the act with the other foot. Then, having satisfied her minimal urge for a swim, she would retreat to her chair and umbrella and spend the remainder of the vacation curled around a book. I'm afraid that may be a parable of our Christian commitment. Are we afraid to give in to the Pentecost experience, fearful that we might lose control? That's what it is really all about, isn't it? Control. We want to be in control. Well, if Pentecost is to do nothing else, it should remind us that we are not in control, not even - or perhaps I should say especially - of ourselves. Randy L. Hyde, Time to Deliver Passing the Peace There is a true story related about a church in the Pacific Northwest, who much like us, has a time during the service for passing the peace of Christ. This is a time when they greet one another, and their guests, with handshakes and hugs, and kind words of welcome. Nobody thought much about the weekly ritual until the pastor received a letter from a man who had recently joined the congregation. The new member was a promising young lawyer from a prestigious downtown law firm. He drafted a brief but pointed letter on his firm's letterhead. "I am writing to complain about the congregational ritual known as 'passing the peace,' " he wrote. "I disagree with it, both personally and professionally, and I am prepared to take legal action to cause this practice to cease." When the pastor phoned to talk with the lawyer about the letter, he asked why he was so disturbed about sharing the peace of Christ. The lawyer said, "The passing of the peace is an invasion of my privacy." And, in the Pastor’s response to this man, we find the truth of the Christian life. He said, "Like it or not, when you joined the church you gave up some of your privacy, for we believe in a risen Lord who will never leave us alone." And, he said, "You never know when Jesus Christ will intrude on us with a word of peace." Jeremy Rebman, So Send I You The First Fruits of the Spirit Do we have the first fruits of the Spirit? Can someone coming into our door to visit for the first time recognize these traits in us? Love ¬ do we love each other, and do we love those who are different from us? Do we love and welcome visitors, no matter who they are? Do we try to make their acquaintance, so that we can love them? Do we put their comfort above our own? Goodness ¬ Peter tells us (2 Peter 1:5) to support our faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge. Our salvation is the result of God's goodness. Likewise, other persons should benefit as a result of our goodness. Our mission work should clearly show our faith in God's goodness. Peace ¬ Is there peace between us, and peace within us? Can someone tell by being with us, that we have a peaceful soul, based upon God as the source of all that we have.? Faithfulness ¬ Is our steadfastness to Christ's church based upon an enduring loyalty that is true to God, no matter how we feel about the pastor, the district, the conference, the women's group, the organist, or any other facet of our organization? Gentleness ¬ Do we exhibit care and protection for all of God's creation? Are we gentle with the environment, with each other, and with ourselves? Joy ¬ Do we look joyous to the outsider? Do we feel joy inside? True joy in being a child of God should be able to override all unhappiness and bitterness we feel, and should be reflected in our total involvement in our worship. Kindness ¬ This action word can be directed outwardly or inwardly. Do we show compassion and generosity to others and ourselves? Patience ¬ How many of us are willing to let others (and ourselves) come along at each one’s own pace? How many of us can forgive seven times seventy? Self-Control ¬ This is one of the hardest, and may include all of the others. This requires an inner discipline only manageable with the grace of God's Spirit to sustain us in our trials. Do we constantly pray for help in this area, and constantly call on God to help us? If not, we should. Jane Shepherd, Is The Spirit Here? All Together A while ago, there was a special on the PBS channel about three families who lived on the prairie. It was an experiment to see whether or not 21st century families could live the way people lived in the 19th century. Their mission was to plant crops, raise animals and prepare themselves for the upcoming winter. At that point they were evaluated and then returned to their normal lives. Following the experiment they were interviewed and everyone commented on how much time they spent together. Since there was no television, radio, telephone, cars and all the modern conveniences, everyone said that they were together constantly. That created a need for them to learn how to really live in their togetherness. It was a real challenge for them and for some it actually caused them stress, since being together was not something they were used to. In today’s world it is almost impossible for families to get together. We are extremely mobile, living great distances apart and our busy schedules give us little quality time when we gather together. The windows are small and frequently someone or something has to be sacrificed. People are in a hurry, going in a hundred different directions. They’re trying to make ends meet, often living in a state of chaos and confusion. Consequently people feel empty, lost or bored and for some, life has no purpose or joy. What happened at Pentecost was the result of the faithful being "together in one place." Keith Wagner, Let’s Get Together The End Is the Beginning The end of the gospel of John always sends us back to the beginning. Every ending always implies the beginning of something new. On December 31st, the last day of the year, we celebrate the beginning of the New Year. Pregnancy ends with the delivery of a baby, and a new life begins—for both the parents and the baby. When you finish High School, you enter a new world of college or work. Jesus’ death on the cross was an ending, but it was also a beginning. Pentecost is the last day of the Easter season, and it is also celebrated as the beginning of the church. Carla Gorrell, Looks Like a Conspiracy ___________________________ The One Who Builds the Kingdom "In our day too, the Spirit is the principal agent of the new evangelization. Hence it will be important to gain a renewed appreciation of the Spirit as the One who builds the Kingdom of God within the course of history and prepares its full manifestation in Jesus Christ, stirring people's hearts and quickening in our world the seeds of the full salvation which will come at the end of time." Pope John Paul II, "On the Coming of the Third Millennium" An Amazing Organization Russ Blowers is a minister who is active in his local Indianapolis Rotary club. At club meetings each week a member gives a brief statement about his job. When it was his turn, Russ said: "I'm with a global enterprise. We have branches in every country in the world. We have our representatives in nearly every parliament and boardroom on earth. We're into motivation and behavior alteration. We run hospitals, feeding stations, crisis pregnancy centers, universities, publishing houses, and nursing homes. We care for our clients from birth to death. We are into life insurance and fire insurance. We perform spiritual heart transplants. Our original Organizer owns all the real estate on earth plus an assortment of galaxies and constellations. He knows everything and lives everywhere. Our product is free for the asking. (There's not enough money to buy it.) Our CEO was born in a hick town, worked as a carpenter, didn't own a home, was misunderstood by his family, hated by enemies, walked on water, was condemned to death without a trial, and arose from the dead--I talk with him everyday." The church is the most amazing organization in the world! Russ Blowers Consecrate that Trumpet to God While preaching a revival in Florida, a man told me that, as a young man, he had played with Artie Shaw's band. His father had been a concert pianist, but neither of them knew the first thing about Christian music. One day the young man was invited by a friend to play his trumpet at a huge Billy Sunday evangelistic crusade. He did it, and then, at the close of the service, as he stood there watching Billy Sunday pray with those who had responded to the call, the great evangelist looked up, saw him, came over to him, and said, "Young man, have you consecrated that trumpet to God?" "I had no idea what he was talking about -- consecrate. So when I shook my head, Billy Sunday took me to an old wooden folding chair, laid my trumpet on it, put his hands -- one on the horn and the other on my shoulder -- and prayed and gave us both to God." Then the man continued, "And you know, Barbara, it made a difference. It made a difference the way I played that trumpet and it made a difference in me!" The Holy Spirit does make a difference. He makes a big difference! Let him fill you today. Drink deeply of this Divine New Wine. There is no telling what he will do for you, with you, and through you!" Grapes of Wrath Or Grace, Barbara Brokhoff, CSS Publishing Company he Ability to Hear Communication, an ability to hear, to know what other people "are getting at" and "where they're coming from," has got to be one of the chief characteristics of the effective pastor. I want to be a good communicator, a skillful preacher. Yet before that, I know that I must be a good listener. As someone has said, "A preacher must listen for six days a week -- listening to God and to the hopes, fears, and aspirations of the congregation -- for the right to speak one day a week." I agree. Yet our modern world has also shown us how difficult, how very, very difficult, it is to hear. A number of years ago, Deborah Tannen, wrote, Why I Can't Hear You. It was a book about the difficulty of communication between women and men. Men and women speak different languages, says Tannen. When men are trying to say, "I need you to help me," they say it in ways which women can't hear. Likewise, when women say, "Give me some space; I need to be more independent for awhile," men get the message all messed up and hear something else. Add to this gender-gap, the gaps in our communication due to differences in economics, education, race and class, what hope is there for us ever to understand one another? The story we have read today, the story of Pentecost, is a story about hearing. Remember the Genesis story of the Tower of Babel, that time when the original "one language and few words" of humanity was disrupted forever by the profusion of languages and speech? Some believe that this Pentecost story is meant to signify a gracious reversal of Babel. William Willimon, How Can I Hear You? “You never know what people will hear and how they will tell others. Especially the children, but what he told you IS almost exactly what I said. I emphasize “almost”. The title of my sermon was, “Fear Not! Your Comforter Will Come.”“ Pentecost is a story about the power of God to bring about transformation and new life. Pentecost is the story of a promise fulfilled. In preparing the followers for his departure, Jesus had promised that the people would receive an advocate, a comforter. Pentecost is a story wrapped in mystery. It is the story of a time when the presence of God was felt in wind and fire, which are common biblical metaphors for the presence and power of God. As common as they are in the biblical story, when they happen they always have an element of awe, mystery and fear. These occurrences are hard to nail down, hard to describe, hard to understand and impossible to control. Who has seen the wind? Neither you nor I: But when the trees bow down their heads, The wind is passing by. Translating that into the spiritual realm, we know that we cant see God, but if we know what to look for, we can see signs of God’s presence and God’s action.

Aspiring to Serve God

September 20, 2015 Proverbs 31:10-31 Mark 9: 30-37 Aspiring to serve God Year B I have to admit that I cringe whenever I hear this scripture from proverbs. I don’t know what to do with it, and I ask what does it mean? I have heard some really good sermons on proverbs, and I have heard some really bad ones. As I was preparing this week, I thought at best I could use this text for a women’s day sermon to talk about what it means to be a godly woman. When I choose a scripture to preach on, I always ask, is it empowering. Is it going to give people hope and inspiration to be a better person? On the surface I just don’t see anything empowering about telling women to get up at 3am to start fixing breakfast for their family. And from there spend the rest of your day working and keeping everybody else happy, and doing nothing for yourself. The role of women is changing, we are discovering that we cant do it all. This poem reminds me of the time the trustees did an inspection of my parsonage, and gave me a list of things that needed to be clean – like the grout between the tile in the bathroom. I had to explain to this male trustee, that I was a single woman, with an apathetic teenage son. Who would rather die than help me – which meant everything was on me. I to the trustee, you pay my salary – you can either pay me to stay at home to clean the house, or to leave the mess and come to work and be your pastor. It is your choice, personally I don’t have a preference in how I spend my time – but I cant do both at the same time. And yet on the other hand, if you read this scripture of a woman’s work – it perfectly describes the work of our mothers and grandmothers. They did all of these things everyday – got them done and never complained. I would never preach on this scripture, and yet God works in mysterious ways. God has a way of turning our assumptions on their head. As I started my sermon prep, I learned to have a real appreciation for this scripture. And to rethink its meaning and message. First, let me give you a little background on proverbs. This is a mother’s advice to her teenage or young adult son. Lemuel is a young prince, who will one day become king. His mother wants him to be a good king, so she gives him advice on women, friends, and choosing the right path, instead of getting caught up on what it going on in the streets. Most of the advice that she gives him is about women. In this text she is telling him how to choose the right wife. She wants him to choose a good godly woman, and tells him the qualities of a good woman. Proverbs is the one place in the bible, where wisdom is described as a woman who stands out on the crossroads of life crying out to those nearby. Not everyone listens to her message. Lady wisdom, Sophia has been with God since the beginning of time. She stood by God’s side when he bought creation into being, she was a playmate with Jesus. She knows what she is talking about, but not everyone listens. Proverbs is important to us because as we look at the book of James, the words of Paul, and the rest of the new testament, it is all based on the wisdom books of the Hebrew bible. Unfortunately, in the church we misinterpret the message of being good with the message of being wise. Everything for us comes down to being a good person or a bad person. People outside of the church don’t want their actions to be judged as good or bad, so they think that church and the bible are irrelevant. In reality, there are a lot of good people, who are not wise. Or should I say there are people who look good, who talk good, who dress good, even act good – but in their hearts they are no good. I WANT TO BE PRETTY "I want to be pretty." This is the title of a popular tv program that was airing when we lived in Poland. It was a reality tv show in which in every episode you follow the changes of two women who are the heroes of the program. Each of these women work with a team of specialists for six weeks. During that time they are cut off from contact with their friends and relatives as they undergo major changes in their physical appearance and also their self-image. Finally friends and family are invited to the studio where they meet them face to face with great drama. An example was Gosia who said: "I was good looking all my life but I'm not able to accept how I look now....It's not about being older. But it's simply that I look different. Now I feel like an old used-up slipper. I'm ashamed of myself in front of my husband. This has gone on for nearly a year. How long can he stand it?" Does our life and happiness depend on our appearance? I'm sure Gosia was happier after her transformation but is she a better person? Is she a better wife and mother? Does the change of appearance change our character and make us better people? Right here in this country, I used to love to watch extreme makeover, but always wondered how much those cosmetic changes made in a persons life, when there was no change of heart on the inside. In the Christian bibles – the first words of this scripture say –who can find a good wife? He that does so finds a good thing. Interestingly enough, that is not what the Hebrew bible says. In the jewish religion there is no concept of being good or bad. The jewish religion is about being close to god, not about being good. In the Hebrew bible, the first words of this text actually say who can find a woman of valor. An eschet chayil. Eschet means woman, chayil means valor. A woman of valor is a big deal for them and there are many celebrations for the woman of valor in the jewish calendar. But what does valor mean – valor is one of those living words, which means more than it says. Logos means word, but it is a word that is always put into action. Shalom means peace, but you cant have peace without justice, wholeness and wellbeing. Valor means worth but you cant have value without having honor, dedication, kindness, and self worth. As a matter of fact, the word valor means strong and mighty in battle. Chayil – valor is used 250 times in the Hebrew bible (the old testament), and each time that it is used, it means something different. Most famously it is used in the story of the soldier Gideon. An Angel comes to him and calls him a man of valor. A man who fights on behalf of God and not himself. The angel is telling Gideon to see himself as God sees him – and to live into that vision. The problem is that we see ourselves and others through the lense of man. We strive for perfection based on our thoughts and not God’s thoughts. God did not create us to be perfect and to always do the right things. A lot of Christian men use this text as a checklist for choosing a good wife. There are 26 different qualities that the woman has to have if you are counting. The problem with trying to fit a real woman into this passage is like using the Barbie doll as a measure of beauty. Barbie is not a real person. Her measurements are ideal in man’s eyes – not what God intended. This scripture is an ideal personified, not an ideal person. As a matter of fact, a man is supposed to read those poem to his wife during Shabbat meal and to thank her for whatever she has done for him. The bible messages for both mean and women. And this poem applies to us all. In one way we can think of this poem as the human soul. God is the groom, and the people of God are his bride. Jesus is the groom and the church is the bride. A woman of valor is anyone who strives to have a relationship with God. One who bases their actions on their relationship with God and loves God in all things. A woman of valor is a woman who loves God, not a good wife. This poem is not so much about who I am, it is about who I strive to be in all things. It is an ideal that moves me forward in my relationship with God. not about being good. There are some good people, who don’t have a relationship with God. When you read James, Galations, Ephesians, and the rest of the new testament. The message is not to be a good person. Good and bad are just two different sides of the same coin. The message that we have to give to our young people today that the bible is trying to tell us is that wisdom is its own reward. When you choose wisdom, you choose wealth, health, honor, long life and family. Solomon asked for wisdom and God gave him all those things to go with it. Proverbs is a mother asking her son to choose wisdom – so that he could have the riches of life. When you do the right thing – God will reward you. SLEEPING WHEN THE WIND BLOWS A young man applied for a job as a farmhand. When the farmer asked for his qualifications, he said, "I can sleep when the wind blows." This puzzled the farmer. But he liked the young man, and hired him. A few days later, the farmer and his wife were awakened in the night by a violent storm. They quickly began to check things out to see if all was secure. They found that the shutters of the farmhouse had been securely fastened. A good supply of logs had been set next to the fireplace. The young man slept soundly. The farmer and his wife then inspected their property. They found that the farm tools had been placed in the storage shed, safe from the elements. The tractor had been moved into the garage. The barn was properly locked. Even the animals were calm. All was well. The farmer then understood the meaning of the young man's words, "I can sleep when the wind blows." Because the farmhand did his work loyally and faithfully when the skies were clear, he was prepared for the storm. Seek to serve God in all things – that is true wisdom. Amen. TRUST IN GOD "Trust in yourself and you are doomed to disappointment Trust in money and you may have it taken from you; But trust in God, and you are never to be confounded in time or eternity." --D.L. Moody (From a sermon by Jeff Strite, Trusting in Ravens, 8/8/2011)

Not everyone can be a teacher

September 13, 2015 James 3:1-12 Not Everyone Should be a Teacher Year B It seems that one day a kindergarten teacher was helping one of her students put on his cowboy boots? He asked for help and she could see why. Even with her pulling and him pushing, the little boots still didn’t want to go on. Finally, when the second boot was on, she had worked up a sweat. She almost cried when the little boy said, "Teacher, they’re on the wrong feet." She looked down and sure enough, they were. It wasn’t any easier pulling the boots off than it was putting them on. But she managed to keep her cool as together they worked to get the boots back on - this time on the right feet. And it was only then that he announced, "These aren’t my boots." She bit her tongue rather than scream, "Why didn’t you say so?" like she wanted to. And, once again she struggled to help him pull the ill-fitting boots off his little feet. No sooner had they got the boots off then he said, "They’re my brother’s boots. My Mom made me wear ’em today." Stifling a scream, she mustered up the grace and courage she had left to wrestle the ill-fitting boots on his feet again. Helping him into his coat, she asked, "Now, where are your mittens?" To which he replied, "I stuffed ’em in the toes of my boots." The article ends by saying - Her trial starts next month. My point for today is that not everyone can be a teacher. Trying to teach others is a big responsibility. That is why in the early church – teachers were held in high esteem. A congregation felt truly blessed to have a teacher. A Christian teacher was put on the level of a rabbi in Judaism. Rabbi means my great one. And by tradition if there is a fire, and you have a choice between saving your teacher or your parents, the teacher comes first. Your parents gave you life, but it is your teacher that opened the doors to your destiny. Being a teacher is a great priviledge, because it is a great responsibility. The book of matthew says that there is a special place in hell for teachers who mislead there students. As I was looking for the exact scripture last night, I saw that Jesus had a lot to say about the role of a teacher. He reminds us that we lead and teach others by what we do. And that if we are responsible for the understanding of others, then it is important to we walk the walk. If we tell others that they should be doing something that we should be doing it too. When I read the book of Matthew in college as a young person, I was literally scared straight. Because there are several times when Jesus goes off – and tells everybody off. There are several chapters in the book when Jesus is mad at the Pharisees for taking the honor of being a teacher, but for not being honest in their teachers. I would think that James had those words in mind, when he tells us that not everyone can be a teacher. And he reminds us that teachers will be held to a higher standard. For James, the major tool of teaching is our tongue. People learn by what you have to say. Which is why James explains the power of the tongue. The power of our words. Did you know that you tongue is the second strongest muscle in your body. The strongest muscle is the one that opens and closes your mouth. James and Jesus both tell us that what comes out of our mouth, is actually more important then what we put in it. ABOUT THE TONGUE There's an old story that the Jewish rabbis tell. As the story goes, one day a rabbi asked his servant to go and buy some good food for him in the market. When the servant returned home, he presented the rabbi with a tongue. The next day, the rabbi told the servant to go the market and buy some bad food. Again, the servant returned with a tongue. The rabbi then asked the servant why he returned with a tongue on both occasions. The servant answered and said, "Good comes from it and bad comes from it. When the tongue is good there is nothing better, and when it is bad there is nothing worse." (From a sermon by T. Scott Womble, Careless Speech Sins, 7/27/2010) What we teach others can be beneficial, and it can be hurtful. It all depends on how we use our words. 6380 Power Of Words A careless word may kindle strife. A cruel word may wreck a life, A bitter word may hate instill; A brutal word may smite and kill, A gracious word may smooth the way; A joyous word may light the day. A timely word may lessen stress; A loving word may heal and bless. —Author Unknown Our words come from an outflow of our heart. And we have to remember that your children and students can see the content of our heart, based on the words that we use. Life is a matter of building. Each of us has the opportunity to build something -- a secure family, a good reputation, a career, a relationship to God. But some of those things can disappear almost overnight due to financial losses, natural disasters and other unforeseen difficulties. What are we to do? Daniel Webster offered excellent advice, saying, "If we work on marble it will perish. If we work on brass, time will efface it. If we rear temples, they will crumble to dust. But if we work on men's immortal minds, if we imbue them with high principles, with just fear of God and love of their fellow-men, we engrave on those tablets something which time cannot efface, and which will brighten and brighten to all eternity. For all of you who are beginning a new year – this is for you…. Progress Magazine, December 23, 1992. An item in "The Report Card" told of a study done in Colorado in which 3000 high school seniors were asked about their best teachers. From their responses this composite was drawn. The ideal teacher (1) is genuinely concerned and interested in students as individuals; (2) requires students to work; (3) is impartial in dealing with students; and (4) is obviously enthusiastic about teaching. Today In The Word, Oct, 1989, p. 25. William A. Ward has said, "The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires. Morning Glory, July 3, 1993. I have not been reading all of our lectionary text for the summer. But the old testament lesson for the summer has been the book of proverbs, the theme of the lectionary is wisdom. The question is asked where does wisdom come from? True wisdom comes from God. In order for us to be good teachers, we have to be good students. And the master teacher is God. Jesus is the spirit of God, sent on earth to teach us the way. Sowing the Seed Source unknown An angel paused in his onward flightWith a seed of love and truth and right,And said, "Oh, where can this seed be sownThat it yield more fruit when fully grown?" "To whom can this precious seed be givenThat it bear more fruit for earth and heaven?"The Saviour heard and said as He smiled"Place it at once in the heart of a child." The angel whispered the blessed truthTo a weary teacher of precious youth;Her face grew bright with heavenly lightAs she led their thought in the way of right. When we plant to seeds of God’s plan in the heads and hearts of others, we have an awesome responsibility. And as our children begin to grow, what will receive an awesome reward. From a speech by William Graves, editor of National Geographic magazine, Speaker's Idea File Years ago, after a celebrated international career on the stage, the world-famous violinist Jascha Heifetz became a professor of music at UCLA. When someone asked him why he had left the glamour of performing to become a teacher, Heifetz answered, "Violin-playing is a perishable art. It must be passed on; otherwise it is lost." Then he went on to say, "I remember my old violin professor in Russia. He said that (if I worked hard enough) someday I would be good enough to teach." Not everyone can be a teacher. Only those who know the consequences of teaching, are willing to take the job anyway. Today we want to honor and pray for our teachers…… Children’s Sermon: Exegetical Aim: To show how God draws near when we draw near(4:8). Props: A pitcher of water, a large bowl, and a comb. Lesson: Would you like to see a neat trick? (yes!) Who believes that I can make pouring water move without even touching it? (response) This is something that's really neat. And it's so neat that you can even do it at home in your sink. Bring out your pitcher of water and the large bowl. What I'm going to do is pour a steady stream of water into the bowl, Begin to pour a small, steady stream and while the water is pouring I'll make the stream move to one side or the other. Stop pouring. There's only one more thing that I need. Do you know what it is? It's a really good friend of the water named static electricity. And whenever water knows that static electricity is near, it wants to get near it. So the nearer the static gets, the nearer the water gets. Would you like to see it now? The way I get static electricity is with this. Hold up the comb. Now I'll just comb my hair real good, and that will make static in the comb. Carefully begin to pour a small, steady stream into the bowl. Bring the comb close to the water, and the water’s stream will bend towards the comb. You will want to practice this a few times at home before doing it for the children. Wow! Look at that! I told you that water and static were friends. When one gets near, the other one gets near. Application: Did you know that the Bible says the same thing about God? It says "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you." That means that God wants us to love him just as much as he loves us. And whenever we are near him, he wants to be just as near to us. So always remember to say your prayers and to love God. Because the nearer you are to him, the nearer he comes to you. Let's pray: Dear God, it is a wonderful thing that when we draw near to you, you draw near to us. Help us to always want to be near you. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Inspiration

May 24, 2015 Romans 8:22-27 Inspiration Pentecost Year B Today is a special holiday for the church, but we don’t have to share this day with the world like our other days. No one knows what Pentecost is, I am sure that not all Christians even know what Pentecost is. And how much does a Penta Cost anyway. I got you – a Penta is a flower, and home depot likes to put them on sale at this time of year. But seriously, Pentecost is simply the birthday celebration of the church. The day the church was born. Jesus had promised that he would send his spirit to guide and comfort us. And on Pentecost, the spirit arrived. Pentecost is the festival of the wheat harvest. Jews from all over the world gathered in Jerusalem. But this Pentecost they came to understand one another, even though they spoke different languages. There was a spirit of unity and communication. In the old testament when they gathered to build Babel, God sent them a spirit of confusion, lest they get too arrogant. But on Pentecost, God reversed that spirit. Even today, we don’t speak the same language. And even in the church, we don’t always agree with one another. Pentecost is not about uniformity, but harmony. In the midst of our differences, we can still put Christ first in our lives. Our unity comes from the power of God amongst us. There is no one of us that possesses the power of God alone. Clergy need laity and laity need clergy. The musicians work with the sermon, and the pastor works with the choir. We have to understand that our unity is a gift from God, equally bestowed. The purpose of the church is to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ in order to save souls. It is the Pentecost experience that gives us the power to do that. It is the churches birthday, because it is the day when we receive some very important gifts. But the gifts are not for us- they are through us- to be given to the world. Acts 2 quotes verses from the old testament book of Joel, where God says the I will pour out my spirit on all people. For Jesus, all people meant that there were no restrictions, no qualifications. All people meant all people. Whether it was the durg addict or the church mother, the young child or the middle ages woman, the sick or the healthy, the rich or the poor. God has a heart for all people, and God is doing whatever he can to save all people. The gifts of Pentecost are there for those who say that they are followers of Christ to have the power to bring salvation to any life and to any situation. Russ Blowers is a minister who is active in his local Indianapolis Rotary club. At club meetings each week a member gives a brief statement about his job. When it was his turn, Russ said: "I'm with a global enterprise. We have branches in every country in the world. We have our representatives in nearly every parliament and boardroom on earth. We're into motivation and behavior alteration. We run hospitals, feeding stations, crisis pregnancy centers, universities, publishing houses, and nursing homes. We care for our clients from birth to death. We are into life insurance and fire insurance. We perform spiritual heart transplants. Our original Organizer owns all the real estate on earth plus an assortment of galaxies and constellations. He knows everything and lives everywhere. Our product is free for the asking. (There's not enough money to buy it.) Our CEO was born in a hick town, worked as a carpenter, didn't own a home, was misunderstood by his family, hated by enemies, walked on water, was condemned to death without a trial, and arose from the dead--I talk with him everyday." The church is the most amazing organization in the world! Russ Blowers The gifts of Pentecost are unity, understanding, power, purpose and inspiration. But we have to remember that the source of each gift is God. There is a pertinent dialogue in the sixteenth chapter of Judges. Delilah says to Samson: “Please tell me wherein your great strength lies” (v. 6). After three unsuccessful attempts to discover the source of Samson’s strength, Delilah renews her efforts. Finally Samson succumbs and declares his power is in his hair. You remember the rest of the story. He not only lost his hair, but he lost his strength. When we consider Christian ministry of all believers, irrespective of station or training, we must inevitably ask, where does the strength come from? First and foremost, it comes from God! “God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7). And it up to each one of us to remember – that the power in our life to truly be effective in ministry comes from our relationship with God. I asked us to wear red, orange or pink, today –because I wanted each of us to realize that the flame of Christ is personal. It is about us, our life, our faith journey. Each of us is a unique flame for Christ. We should be on fire for Christ, each in our own way. We get power through the ways we life out our faith. The representations of the holy spirit is a flame, but it is also a breath. Each and every one of us has a unique breath inside of us. Recently, I ordered this device called a spire. It measures my breathing all day long. Then it sends messages to my phone to tell me whether I am calm or tense. When it senses that I am tense, it sends a message that perhaps I should calm down and take a deep breath. Spire means to breathe. To inspire is to take a deep breath in. To conspire is to work closely with, to aspire is to hope for something better, even spirit comes from the root word spire – which is the power within each of us to live and love with God. The breath is God’s mark upon us that God has a plan for us. Even scripture says to let everything that has breath praise God. Breath, wind is an important symbol of the holy Spirit and of Pentecost. And I want to encourage each of us to use this Pentecost to look at our relationship with God and to be inspired to new life, a new mission, a renewed spirit. This Pentecost, be inspired to conspire with God and aspire to a renewed sense of mission. Let the power of God’s spirit flow through you, and have a use your gifts in order to bring salvation to God’s people. More than any other holiday in the church calendar – Pentecost is about the here and now. It is not about remembering a time in the past, it is not about what happened 2000 years ago, it is about what is happening now. Each and every year, we have to rekindle the Pentecost spirit inside of us. We have to look at what is going on inside of us and what it going on In the world. What is God calling each of us to do about it. Every Pentecost is different. Pentecost is not about what God has done for us, it is about what God is doing through us. The spirit has to be born anew, we have to be inspired anew. God says to each of us – I have given you my gifts, now I want to see what you are going to do with them. A young artist, who was studying under a great master, came one day to the studio to beg for permission to use his master's brush. The request was granted, and with a singing heart the young man went away to his own painting, thinking that now his work would be much better. A short while later he returned with the brush, complaining that he could do no better with it than he could with his own brush. An assistant in the studio, hearing the young man's complaint, said to him: "Friend, it is not the master's brush you need, but the master's devotion, the master's spirit."—Sunshine Magazine It is God’s spirit, but it is our life that makes the difference. God is saying that the future is so much better than the past. But I am depending on you to usher in the hope of the future. I am depending on you to do greater things than what is now in existence. One of the most theologically sophisticated screenplay’s ever written is the one written by Steve Koren, Mark O’Keefe, and Steve Oedekerk for the 2003 film “Bruce Almighty.” When things happen in Bruce’s life, Bruce blames God and finally declares defiantly that if there is a God, God is a bad God. God is bad at being God. In fact, Bruce says he could do God better than God does God. So God surprises Bruce and says, “Okay, go ahead. You show me how I can do God better. So now it’s “Bruce Almighty.” Here’s the conversation: God: “You have all my powers. Use them any way you like. There are just two things you can’t do: you can’t tell anyone you’re God. Believe me, you don’t want that kind of attention.” Bruce: “And the other?” God: “You can’t mess with free will.” Bruce: “Can I ask why” God: “Yes you can! That’s the beauty of it.” The film ends with God saying to a frustrated and defeated Bruce: “The problem is that people keep looking up, when they should look inside . . . You want to see a miracle—-then be a miracle.” The gift of Pentecost enables each one of us to be a miracle . . . an ongoing incarnation of the presence of Jesus on Earth. You want to see Jesus? Then be Jesus. We have not had testimony time in a long time. I think next Sunday will be a good time for us to continue this conversation. I am telling you this week, so that people can think about what they will say. But I want us to testify about the presence of the holy Spirit in your life? How is God at work in your life, What is God calling you to do in the future, What are you up to in your life, that only the spirit can help you to succeed? I would encourage everyone to think about those answers this week, so that some will be able to share with us next week. That is the greatest gift of the presence of the holy Spirit, is the ability to witness to the presence of God in our lives. Finally, Waiting to Exhale A character in John Updike’s novel, A Month of Sundays, reflecting on his youthful experience of the church, says, "Churches bore for me the relation to God that billboards did to Coca-Cola; they promoted thirst but did nothing to quench it." The Holy Spirit empowers the church to be the agent of change in the world, a counter-cultural entity. The task of the church is to breathe in the Spirit and be inspired by the Spirit to act on behalf of God. But the church has been waiting to exhale far too long. As the Spirit of God flows into us, it also ought to flow from us in the way we treat one another, the way we speak to one another, in the way we treat others in our community, in the way we live out the new life we receive when we accept Jesus Christ as Lord. Staff, www.eSermons.com Let us pray this prayer Jesus, though you were of one age, you spoke to the ages. Jesus, though you lived long ago, you spoke words that continue to move, motivate, mature, and transfigured us. Jesus, though you were of Palestinian color and culture, you spoke to all cultures and colors. We thank you for your timeliness and timelessness. May the church that bears your name continue to reach out with love and compassion toward other members of the human family, no matter what age, culture, color, or context. –Leonard Sweet Children’s Sermon Human Rain Storm Activity This Activity is meant for Cub Scouts. Notes: This works great in a larger gathering. Instructions: The leader explains that a rain storm is coming but not to worry because it won't last long. If we listen, we can hear it come and go. Direct the scouts on the right side of the room to sit facing forward, but watch the scouts immediately to their left and do exactly what they do. Don't watch the leader or other scouts. Just watch that scout and listen to the sounds. Repeat the instructions across the room, having everyone watch the scouts immediately to their left, but keep sitting forward so the scouts on their right can see what they do. Then, the leader should stand at the left side of the room and tell those scouts on the far left to watch him. When the leader does an action, he should try to do it so scouts across the room can not see it. The leader does each of the following actions, and continues doing it until it has propagated across the room: • Rub hands together • Snap fingers • Clap hands • Slap thighs • Stomp feet • Slap thighs • Clap hands • Snap fingers • Rub hands • Hands on lap Extra illustrations…… A Harnessed Power Power can be used in at least two ways: it can be unleashed, or it can be harnessed. The energy in ten gallons of gasoline, for instance, can be released explosively by dropping a lighted match into the can. Or it can be channeled through the engine of a Honda in a controlled burn and used to transport a person 350 miles. Explosions are spectacular, but controlled burns have lasting effect, staying power. The Holy Spirit works both ways. At Pentecost, he exploded on the scene; His presence was like "tongues of fire" (Acts 2:3). Thousands were affected by one burst of God's power. But He also works through the church--the institution God began to tap the Holy Spirit's power for the long haul. Through worship, fellowship, and service, Christians are provided with staying power. Unknown The Cape of Good Hope Do you know that the southernmost point of Africa has for centuries experienced tremendous storms. For many years no one even knew what lay beyond that cape, for no ship attempting to round that point had ever returned to tell the tale. Among the ancients it was known as the "Cape of Storms," and for good reason. But then a Portuguese explorer in the sixteenth century, Vasco De Gama, successfully sailed around that very point and found beyond the wild raging storms, a great calm sea, and beyond that, the shores of India. The name of that cape was changed from the Cape of Storms to the Cape of Good Hope. Until Jesus Christ rose from the dead, death had been the cape of storms on which all hopes of life beyond had been wrecked. No one knew what lay beyond that point until, on Easter morning Christ showed us. His disciples trembled in fear, even after seeing evidence of His resurrection. Eventually, Christ turns their Cape of Storms into a Cape of Good Hope with His appearance and the peace He brings. Pastor Buchs, Peace and Forgiveness The poet William Blake wrote a poem about Pentecost. Part of the poem says: Unless the eye catch fire, God will not be seen. Unless the ear catch fire, God will not be heard. Unless the tongue catch fire, God will not be named. Unless the Heart catch fire, God will not be loved. Unless the mind catch fire, God will not be known. William Blake An Amazing Organization Acts 2:1-11, vs. 6: And at the sound the multitude came together and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Object: A hand bell. [Begin with the ringing of the bell.] Hear ye! Hear ye! Hear ye! How do you like that for starting a children's sermon? Did that get your attention? What does it mean to ring a bell like I just did? [Let them answer.] What do I want to happen when I ring the bell as I just did? [Let them answer.] That's right, I want all who are present to come together so that I can make an announcement, or tell everyone something that I think they should know. Do you think that would be a good way to do it? A long time ago people did it this way. A man might stand in the middle of the town, if it wasn't too big, and ring his bell, and when all of the people came together he would tell them something that he thought they should know. That isn't exactly what happened a long, long time ago, but it was pretty close. I want to tell you about something that happened in the world just after Jesus went back to live with his heavenly Father. I suppose you remember how disappointed the disciples were when Jesus left and returned to the Father. They were disappointed and afraid. Now, Jesus told them not to worry or be afraid, because very soon after he left, God was going to send someone called the Holy Spirit to them, and they would see more marvelous things happen than even the ones that Jesus did. Well, the disciples wanted to believe that, but they just couldn't. They were so afraid. Then one day, a large wind came to Jerusalem and it made an awful noise. The people were so afraid that they ran out of their houses and into the street. Even the disciples came out of their house where they were hiding and they stood outside with the people of Jerusalem and a lot of other people from a lot of strange countries that the disciples had never visited. This strange wind with the weird noise was kind of like my bell, because it brought the people together. But then even something stranger happened. People began to talk, and you can imagine what it must have sounded like. Everyone was speaking in their own language and they filled the streets with noise. Ordinarily, no one would have been able to understand anyone else, but on that day everyone understood what the others were saying. I told you that Jesus promised when the Holy Spirit came there would even be more marvelous things happen than had ever happened before. Well, this was just one of them. The Holy Spirit started the church that day, and he did it by letting everyone listen to Peter speak, and all of the people understood him. Three thousand people listened and joined the church on that first day, and the disciples believed that Jesus had kept his promise. God is still doing wonderful things like that, but the next time you hear anyone ring a bell, you think of the odd wind that brought people together on the birthday of the church.

The Gifts of the Spirit

Pentecost May 27, 2012 Year B Acts 2:1-21 John 15:26-27; 16:4-15 “The Gift of the Spirit” Are you Pentecostal? The well known author and preacher Fred Craddock tells a rather funny story about a lecture he was giving: A few years ago, when he was on the west coast speaking at a seminary, just before the first lecture, one of the students stood up and said, "Before you speak, I need to know if you are Pentecostal." Thoom grew silent. Craddock said he looked around for the Dean of the seminary! He was nowhere to be found. The student continued with his quiz right in front of everybody. Craddock was taken aback, and so he said, "Do you mean do I belong to the Pentecostal Church?" He said, "No, I mean are you Pentecostal?" Craddock said, "Are you asking me if I am charismatic?" the student said, "I am asking you if you are Pentecostal." Craddock said, "Do you want to know if I speak in tongues?" He said, "I want to know if you are Pentecostal." Craddock said, "I don't know what your question is." The student said, "Obviously, you are not Pentecostal." He left. What are we talking about this morning? Is the church supposed to use the word Pentecost only as a noun or can it be used as an adjective? And so I ask you: Are you Pentecostal?... What does it mean to be a Pentecostal? Depends on who you ask. But today is a big day for the church, no matter what denomination. Pentecost The world celebrates Christmas with us, and even celebrate easter, but Pentecost is only for those who are true Christians. And jewish. Last week one of our children asked what does Pentecost mean anyway. Pentecost means 50 – 50 days for us after easter, but for the jews its 50 days after Passover. They are celebrating the first harvest of the season. For the jews the celebrations is from the 26-28th. This is the celebration that the apostles witnessed in the bible. Jews from all over the world were gathered in Jerusalem. And of course, they bought their customs and their languages with them. But as they came together , speaking in their own languages. it seemed that everyone could understand one another. It is important for us to remember, that different people read and interpret and find importance on different parts of the bible. For some the holy spirit was present in the fact that they were speaking in different languages. For others it was that they were understood. Difference in theology I remember my aunt used to always tell me to make sure that when I was baptized- that I was baptized in Jesus name as it stated in acts. But was baptized in Baptist church which uses the gospels, which says be baptized in the name of the father, son, and holy spirit. But today want to talk about the presence of the holy spirit in our ability to understand, in spite of our differences. Our ability to be one body – with different opinions as proof that the holy spirit is here. Church on fire Pentecost is the day that the church was on fire. I remember growing up in Peoria, on sixth street. One of the biggest events of the day – the day the Baptist church down the street caught on fire. The whole neighborhood came to watch. When had to go back in the house, people stopped by to give reports. Two persons were talking together before a large church which was being destroyed by fire. The first man spoke in a voice which could be heard above the voice of the firemen: "This is the first time I ever saw you at church." To this the second responded: "This is the first time I ever saw the church on fire." There are many prophets of doom saying that the age of the Christian Church is over - that it has lost its zeal! We're taking a beating right now in this country and around the world. Our theology is being questioned. Everyone is writing a critical book against the organized church. We have had to take some unpopular r stands on social issues. Magazines are attacking the ministry, and it isn't the thing to do anymore to join the church. John Kelman said, however, "God pity the nation or city whose factory smokestacks rise higher than her church spires." The church can be on fire in may different ways. Way we sing, way the pastor preaches, what we do, in how we hope. We can be Pentecostal in who we are – but also in how we do it. In how we wait in God, but also depend on God. We handle our differences. Five promises of the spirit – comforter, teacher, bear witness to Jesus to the world, prove that sin was wrong, and guide the church. Promise of acts 2 – hold us together. Remember in Genesis 11 – all of the people got together and decided that they were going to build a giant tower to heaven. If they got together there is nothing they can accomplish. Sort of like the NATO summit. Remind them that the emphasis was on we and not on God. Planned everything to the detail and forgot to pray and leave room for God. The punishment was that they would all speak in different languages and head in different directions. We can all speak English and still not understand. Recently, a judicial friend was presiding over a case in a small, rural county. The defendant was charged with drunk driving and trying to assault the police officer who arrested him. To convict the defendant on the assault on an officer charge, the District Attorney had to proved that the defendant knew the person he was assaulting was a police officer. And the easiest way to do that is to show that the officer was wearing a police uniform, and therefore the defendant knew that this was a police officer. So the District Attorney asked the officer on the witness stand "And how were you attired when you pulled the defendant over?" The witness looked at him blankly. It was clear he didn't know what the District Attorney meant by "attired". Everyone saw this but the District Attorney. "Would you repeat the question, please?" In a slightly irritated voice the District Attorney said, "And how were you attired when you pulled the defendant over?" The witness still was puzzled. "Say that again", he pleaded. "How were you attired when you pulled the defendant over?" barked the District Attorney. My friend said you could suddenly see the light bulb come on in the officer's head, and he proudly proclaimed "I was traveling on standard issue radial tires!" This officer needed an interpreter even within the English language! That's what I'm getting at: We all need our own personal interpreter, full time, 24/7. So much of what we hear, even within the English language, we don't understand. And nowhere is that truth more evident than with people who are new to the church. The problem is not just in language, the problem is in our understanding. We can be in same family, same church, working on the same plan and still disagree. We are prone to misunderstanding. The good news is – that we don’t have to think alike, we have to think together. Know the holy spirit is with us. Understanding comes from god and not us. “How did you get saved.” He was asked. He replied, “God did his part and I did my part.” The man asked, “What was God’s part and what was your part.” The young man replied, “God’s part was saving and my part was sinning. I ran from Him as fast as I could, but He took after me till He ran me down.” When you see people coming to Christ, then you know that God is at work for only God can save souls. We have to let God do his part and we do are part. Our part is to be confused, and to learn to trust in God for understanding and agreement. Acts is a wonderful book to read, last day we read it in worship for awhile. Shows what it means to be Pentecostal. No matter what your denomination. Wait and witness on the holy spirit. Results may not be like to first formation of the church. We can convince people, but only the holy spirit can convict them to be followers of Jesus. You Are in the Spirit It’s like the story of the shark and the whale. Both were swimming in the sea when the shark swam up to the whale to engage in conversation. As they swam along, the shark said to the whale, “You are so much older than I, and wiser too. Could you tell me where the ocean is?” The whale responded, “The ocean is what you are in now.” The shark would not believe it. “Come on, tell me where the ocean is so I may find it!” The whale repeated, “The ocean is here, now; you are in it.” Unbelieving, the shark swam away searching for the ocean. The moral of the story, I believe, is this: don’t spend too much time looking for God because the Spirit of God is here in the now of your life, dwelling within you, within me, within this community. And that truth is nurtured in prayer. Pentecostal is a noun – who you are, verb – what you do, but is is also a adjective – how you do it. Witness and wait in the presence of the spirit. Amen.

Wind, Fire and Words

May 31, 2009
Wind, Fire and Words
Acts 2
Romans 8
Year B
Pentecost


what images do they think of when an insight suddenly strikes You? Some will say a light bulb coming on. Or an electric shock.
Perhaps a billboard, a text message, a whack on the head...
But none of us would think of tongues of fire, or gusts of wind.
These are the images for the story of Pentecost.
The Pentecost story is clearly metaphorical an image. The biblical text
itself says, _like_ a mighty wind; tongues _as of_ fire...
Metaphor is like the sacraments – defined by Augustine of Hippo as
"a visible sign of an invisible reality." Tragically, our society has lost its
sense of the metaphoric. We distrust metaphors and analogies. We expect facts.
Yet we still speak of getting fired up. Burning with passion.
Suffering burnout. We refer to spirited horses, team spirit, blowing out the
cobwebs, feeling a fresh wind, a storm of change...
Those are all metaphors – a way of expressing something that would
otherwise be inexpressible. Because the Holy Spirit was not a thing, to be
measured and dissected. It was a feeling, an attitude.

For the early church, it was a realization that what they had been waiting for all along had finally come to them.

Research says that in the year of the Pentecost, this was the first year that many of the jews who had been in exile were first able to come to Jerusalem for the celebration of the gift of the word of God. They came from Meds, Pamphlyia, Cappodicia – places all over the middle east. They came speaking their own languages, and abiding by their own customs. But some how they all got along, they all understood one another, they all witness the same heavenly event, the presence of the holy spirit.
That is the gift of the holy spirit – unity where there is no unity. It was the beginning of the work of the church.
Like all gifts of the church, this story means different things to different people and traditions. For instance, for some the gift was speaking in tongues, for others it was the gift of speaking in different languages and being able to be heard. But the main point was that they knew that God was with them in a very special way. They did not have the words to describe it, but they had the hearts to feel it.
As a matter of fact, sometimes I think it is our words that get us in trouble. We can speak the same language, and sometimes not be understood. Because even though we use the same words- they don’t mean the same thing.
Sometimes it is words that makes thing worse. One Christian remembers the time she was looking for a parking space, she waited patiently for this couple to leave, and it seemed that a van pulled up in front of her out of nowhere, and took the space. She had a few words for the driver of the van and none of them nice. The van driver was so sorry that he pulled out and gave her the space. At first proud, she had to go home to pray to God. Her words totally betrayed whom she was as a Christian.
That is the point of the babel story – that a group got together for a common cause. They went into the project speaking the same language. They finished speaking different languages and accomplishing nothing.
Imagine how much chaos is present in the world because people misunderstand one another. Sometimes the best way to create an argument is to use words. The more you talk , the more you realize that there is disagreement.
Karl Barth says always preach the gospel sometimes even use words – but more importantly use who are you in Christ.
Romans states that the whole world is in birth pains. I feel that there seems to be chaos on every level of life. Everyone is hurting, and everyone is lashing out. And no one seems to understand what is really going on. Yet we are to hope – hope for things that we cannot see. And not worry if we have the right words to say- to just make sure that we trust in the spirit – who will interpret everything we say. The bible has been interpreted in ever language in the world. In one African village, they were looking for a word for the holy spirit – until the noticed that whenever a group had to carry a heavy load – there was always one man who went with them, but carried nothing himself. They explained that when someone gave out from exhaustion, this was the man who always took his place, so that the journey could continue.
They had their word for the holy spirit - the one who carries our burdens to God for us, when we are too weak to travel. The one who prays on our behalf.

In our obsession with the concrete, we’ve even made the Holy Spirit
a noun. We capitalize it, like a proper name. But in truth, it was more like a
verb – just as “faith” in Hebrew, mn, was a verb, best translated as “to

trust.”
Likewise, God does not describe godself as a noun, as a static thing, but as a verb, to moses God said not I am who I am, But I will be, who I will be. The spirit of God is always on the move in the world, making a difference.
Our greatest witness to the presence of God is to move in a static world. To be who we are and not to get caught up in definitions of who we were just yesterday.
The greatest image of the holy spirit for the world today in chaos in pain, are the be the people who trust in God. No words needed, just our hearts.