Pentecost People

 This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday.  The passage typically read this day (Acts 2:1–11) describes a scene where the Holy Spirit made itself obvious to those Jews who had gathered for worship that day.  Gusts of wind, tongues of flame, people speaking and understanding languages in which they were not fluent.  Either they were full of the Spirit or as some suggested, they were drunk—Acts 2:12–13.  In his first recorded sermon, Peter, the former Jesus-denier, passionately lobbied for the former position—see Acts 2:14–36.

At his Ascension, Jesus had told his followers to wait in Jerusalem to receive power—Acts 1:1–11.  He explained that they would go forth and be his witnesses in all Judaea, Samaria, and to the ends of the Earth—Acts 1:8.  As Luke tells the story, Pentecost (Acts 2) was the beginning of the fulfillment of those words.  Like the dynamics of a thunderstorm, where updrafts push sinking air down and out, sometimes violently, the downburst of the Holy Spirit poured down and propelled the early followers of Jesus outward into the world.  

 

From that point, Luke describes how the disciples begin to experience persecution in Jerusalem, which necessitates them moving out—taking the message of Jesus with them as they relocate to various places around the Roman Empire.  Because this is the story we associate with the day of Pentecost, in church we often refer to it as the “birthday of the church” and frequently will welcome new members.

 

The Holy Spirit was loud and obvious on the day of Pentecost. But my experience is that in general, it is more subtle, more often speaking in a still small voice as opposed to loud ones and requiring attentiveness from us to hear and respond. 

 

When John the Baptist baptizes Jesus in the Jordan, the scripture tells us that as Jesus comes up out of the water, a voice speaks (God), a man is in the water (Jesus), and a dove descends (the Holy Spirit).  The three persons of the trinity are all present simultaneously. 

 

This is a mourning dove, which is the type of dove I typically hear and see when I run,
The dove that descended on Jesus is usually depicted as white.  

A dove is an interesting choice of birds to symbolize the Holy Spirit.   They are fairly common birds, but they are quite skittish and elusive by nature.  Sometimes, when I run through my neighborhood, I hear the flutter of their wings and may or may not see the bird itself.  Other times, I hear their distinctive mournful call in the trees nearby but I’m never quite sure where it originates.  Sometimes it seems close, other times further away.  If I want to find the source, I’d really have to search carefully.   Usually, I don’t take time to.

Similarly, the Holy Spirit is always near but elusive.  It flutters and dances about the periphery of our consciousness, making us aware of its presence, luring us toward it.  However, if we really want to follow it, at least at first, we’re going to have to concentrate on finding the Source.   With time, as with anything we practice, it becomes easier to connect and we can carry on our daily lives while simultaneously being in touch with the Spirit. 

 

The Eternal Promise book cover.

In his book, The Eternal Promise, in an essay called “Have You Ever Seen a Miracle,” quaker author Thomas Kelly describes this dual consciousness like this: 

“At one level of our mental life we can be talking with people, dealing with problems, carrying the burdens that our calling in time puts upon us.  But beneath all this occupation with time we can be in prayerful relation with the Eternal Goodness, quietly, serenely, joyfully surrendering ourselves and all that we are to [God].”

 

I must confess that when I read this, I think: “Sounds wonderful Tom,’’ quickly followed by, “Now try living mylife and doing it.”  But keep in mind Kelly wasn’t writing from a cloistered monastery.  He had been part of the Quaker movement in Germany, so he saw Nazism up close.  He first spoke these words in 1940, as the storm clouds of World War II were engulfing the world.  While he recognized the elusive quality of the Holy Spirit, he was equally adamant that it was possible for “ordinary people” to live their lives in “relationship with the Eternal Goodness.” In fact, given the state of the world, he felt it was all the more urgent that those who profess Christ as Lord be connected to the Eternal Goodness.  The prophetic voice behind these words resonates as we read them today when the future of our world seems as perilous and uncertain—if not more so—than it was in Kelly’s day.

 

Kelly used numerous metaphors for the Holy Spirit, but his favorite seems to be the Inner Light.  Much like the Dove in nature, this Inner Light within each of us is elusive and fleeting.  It is often hidden, nearly snuffed out entirely at times by the “worries of this life.”  Thus, we must intentionally work to rediscover and rekindle the Inner Light within us and then tend the flame regularly to keep it burning bright to guide our way in this world.  

 

UMC "Cross and Flame" Logo

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, also used a flame image when he spoke of the Holy Spirit—which is why the flame is part of the United Methodist Church’s logo along with the cross.  During a time of worship at Aldersgate, Wesley spoke of having “his heart strangely warmed.”  What began as “just another routine service” for Wesley turned into something more.  It wasn’t just a single moment in time anymore; it was an experience.  Wesley obviously believed in God and was being faithful to his call to ministry prior to going “rather reluctantly” to Aldersgate, but during that time of worship he seems to have experienced God in a way he hadn’t before.  The best evidence of this is what happens after he leaves Aldersgate.  From his preaching and writings, we see that Wesley went on to have a more “on fire”, Spirit-filled life from that point on.  Wesley would likely see it as an example of God’s threefold grace— prevenient, justifying, and sanctifying—all working together in his life.  Kelly would probably say Wesley truly experienced the Inner Light at Aldersgate, which propelled him forward to more effective ministry to others. Or, if you prefer our bird metaphor, he was changed by a firsthand encounter with the Dove.  Whatever metaphor you choose, the Holy Spirit was clearly at work in Wesley’s life. 

 

In a similar manner, the experience of the day of Pentecost clearly impacted the lives of the early followers of Jesus.  It made them more aware of the Spirit’s active presence than they had been before.  But if it had stopped there, would we be worshipping as communities of Christ followers more than two millennia later?  I doubt it.  

 

Whatever happened that day, from then on, the early followers of Christ seem to have expected it to happen again.  They were open to the possibility that the Spirit could—and would—show up wherever they were.  A quick read through Acts really makes this point clear.  Luke tells us that Peter, Paul (himself a post-Pentecost convert), and the other apostles did many great and miraculous things, but he is equally clear that the Source for all their achievements is God working through them via the Holy Spirit. 

 

Pentecost should be more than a day when we sing happy birthday to the church and wear red, rather, as it did for the early followers of Jesus, and for Wesley and Kelly, it should launch us out into a lifestyle of Holy-Spirit expectancy.  

 

We too should become more adept at noticing the movement of the Dove (or tending the Inner Light) in our midst.  We should expect God to show up not just “in church,” but each and every day in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in.  Living with such an awareness would make those rare occasions when the Spirit decides to make itself more obvious during corporate worship—as it did on the day of Pentecost—even more impactful.  

 

As a Quaker, Kelly regularly experienced silent worship. He stresses the importance of the disciplines of silence and solitude for creating an environment where we can quiet the cacophony of our day-to-day lives enough to hear the spirit—or if you will, tend to our Inner Light.  He also emphasized that the point of experiencing Inner Light is not simply to have a touchy, feely private spiritual experience during worship.  No, it’s meant to empower us as we are sent forth from worship to meet the pressing needs of a suffering world.  

 

The Inner Light and the Outer Life are two sides of the same coin.  On this, the Methodist Wesley, the Quaker Kelly, and the early Apostles would’ve agreed.  

 

Wesley emphasized acts of piety (personal growth) being practiced alongside acts of service (helping others).   Both Wesley and Kelly firmly believed that we should be what I will call Pentecost People, who expect to see God do great things in and through us.  While we cannot and should not try to manufacture it—and Kelly is clear in The Eternal Promise that “successful” worship is not contingent on having an extraordinary influx of the Spirit—we should be open to it happening anytime we gather as a community to worship.  

 

So, what about it, Church?  Is this who we are?  Or is it who we aspire to be?  Saying it is a good start, but doing it is the harder part.  In the case of the early church, John Wesley, and Thomas Kelly, the proof of the Holy Spirit’s work inside them was made evident in what they accomplished for God and for the common good of this world.  May it be the same for the people in our church communities today.  Let it be said of us, that we were Pentecost People.