In a church I was serving in Ohio, we had a problem with the heating in our chapel one winter. Evidently, the air handler for that room needed a new belt. So, I called a heating/cooling company, told them that I was the pastor of the church, and asked if someone would be able to come fix it before Sunday worship.
I said, “We need hot air for Sunday.” And without missing a beat, the receptionist said, “So I guess you don’t really need us then.”
Even HVAC people know that we preachers have a reputation.
When the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples on Pentecost Sunday, there was a lot of hot air that day. We’re told that divided tongues as of fire appeared on each of the disciples.
Fire. Wind. Heat. Spirit. That pretty much describes Pentecost Sunday.
You would think that after Jesus ascended to be with his Heavenly Father which happened ten days prior to Pentecost that things would have cooled down a bit for those early disciples. But it’s the exact opposite. After Jesus left them, things only got hotter and hotter and hotter.
Pentecost marks the beginning of this new act in the biblical drama. Bible scholar and theologian, Tom Wright talks about the Bible being a five-act drama to help us understand where we are in the biblical narrative.
Wright says that the five acts of this divine drama are 1) Creation 2) the Fall 3) Israel 4) Jesus. And the fifth Act is the Church. Pentecost Sunday is the beginning of this 5th and final act of the divine drama that continues to this day. In Act V, the church takes center stage.
In this last act, the church continues the signs and wonders that we saw Jesus do in the Gospels. The church becomes the visible expression of Christ in the world.
And here is the really awesome thing about this fifth and final act of the biblical divine drama. Even today, you and I are invited to continue to live out this closing act where we are the visible expression of Christ in the world. We are in the play and we each have a very important role.
Our denomination’s Book of Discipline describes the church’s role in the world. It tells us what it means to be the church. Here is what it says,
“Our Mission in the World—God’s self-revelation in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ summons the Church to ministry in the world through witness by word and deed in light of the Church’s mission. The visible church of Christ as a faithful community of persons affirms the worth of all humanity and the value of interrelationship in all of God’s creation.
In the midst of a sinful world, through the grace of God, we are brought to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. We become aware of the presence and life-giving power of God’s Holy Spirit. We live in confident expectation of the ultimate fulfillment of God’s purpose. We are called together for worship and fellowship and for the upbuilding of the Christian community. We advocate and work for the unity of the Christian church. We call all persons into discipleship under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. As servants of Christ we are sent into the world to engage in the struggle for justice and reconciliation. We seek to reveal the love of God for men, women, and children of all ethnic, racial, cultural, and national backgrounds and to demonstrate the healing power of the gospel with those who suffer.”
Last Sunday, I ended the sermon by saying something very similar about our role as the church. I said, “Maybe this is what Ascension Day was like for the disciples. Jesus reminded them of who they were and that they will receive power to continue Jesus’ mission here on earth. They will be his hands and feet to continue what Jesus has started. And they will go out and make disciples of Jesus Christ and bring transformation to the world.
We are called to do the same. As we come forward to receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion, we will receive all that we need to be the hands and feet of Christ in a broken and hurting world. Let’s go forth from this place and continue on what Jesus has started. Christ has no body on earth, but yours.”
That was last Sunday and today on this Pentecost Sunday, we are again invited to live out God’s divine drama in being part of the saving and redeeming work of Christ in the world. I would say that we have starring roles in this final act but that wouldn’t be true. The starring role goes to the Holy Spirit.
The official name of the Book of Acts is actually “The Acts of the Apostles.” Some have said that a more accurate title of this book should be “The Acts of the Holy Spirit” because without Pentecost and the sending of the Holy Spirit on those early disciples, they wouldn’t have been able to do what they were able to do in continuing Jesus’ redeeming work in the world.
We need the hot air of the Holy Spirit blowing through the church today. We need holy tongues of fire falling upon each church member. We need fiery sermons, passionate worship, and flaming hearts.
What a strange time of year for red hot Pentecost Sunday to fall on the church calendar. Just as summer arrives when we get TV commercials on how to stay cool.
Luke has a different message for us. Here is how you stay hot during these weeks. Allow the Holy Spirit to fill your heart, to ignite your soul, and to inflame your Spirit. Don’t try to get cool. Get hot. Get red hot.
Maybe you heard about the church revival service where the preacher got everybody fired up about receiving the Holy Spirit. It was a fiery and passionate sermon.
One man in particular was taken by what the preacher was saying. He interrupted the service by yelling out to God, “Fill me, Holy Spirit. Fill me!”
But then he said it again and this time louder. “Fill me, Holy Spirit. Fill me!”
He did it again and this time the people in the congregation were getting annoyed because he was disrupting the service too much and making it all about him.
After the eleventh or twelfth time of this man yelling out, “Fill me, Holy Spirit. Fill me,” somebody in the back of the sanctuary yelled out, “Don’t do it Lord. He leaks!”
And so, as we begin these lazy summer weeks, here are some thoughts about how we can stay filled with the Holy Spirit in how we live out our faith. Here is how we can keep the hot air of the Spirit at work in our lives.
The first thing I want to say is to enjoy your summer. Get outdoors if you can. Explore, and delight in God’s beautiful creation. The summer is a great time for spiritual renewal. Enjoying this time of year is one of the ways that we can live out our faith and not allow the Holy Spirit to leak from our lives.
That’s the first thing I want you to remember. Enjoy your summer. Turn to someone near you and say, “Enjoy your summer.”
The second thing to help us not leak is to keep practicing the spiritual disciplines like praying, reading the scriptures, meditating, offering our gifts, serving, sharing our faith, and worshipping on Sunday mornings. Even though our church will be at a slower pace during the summer, remember that the church is still open and the sermons will continue to be above average.
I think it’s also worth noting that the official name for this season on the church calendar which begins next Sunday and lasts throughout the summer months is called “Ordinary Time.” The color associated with ordinary time is green which reminds us of steady spiritual growth.
As you enjoy your summer, take advantage of the slower pace. It might not be intense like the build up to Christmas or the Season of Lent leading up to Easter, but it’s still a time that we can simply catch our breath and continue to follow Jesus.
And here’s a third thing to help us to continue to be Spirit filled people during these summer months and this third thing is a two-parter.
The first part is to be alert to those God moments where you are feeling nudged by the Holy Spirit to notice how God is present in your life.
It might be an answer to a prayer, or a sign of God’s presence just when you needed it the most, or a bible reading that sheds light on how to navigate through a challenging situation you may be facing, or it might be just noticing a breathtaking sunset that you happen to see at just the right time that sends you into a moment of gratitude, wonder, and praise.
And the 2nd part of this 3rd thing is this. When the Holy Spirit nudges you, and the Holy Spirit will nudge you, share your God moments with others because that just might be what someone needs to hear. Be alert to God moments this summer and share them with others.
So remember these three things as you begin your summer as we continue to be a church that lives out Act V of the biblical drama in being the Spirit-filled people that God has called us to be. 1) Enjoy your summer. 2) Continue to practice the spiritual disciplines. 3) Be alert to God moments that will undoubtedly happen to you this summer because God loves to do that and then bless and encourage others by sharing those moments.
On this Pentecost Sunday, I believe that these words from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from his famous letter that he wrote to several local clergy while he was a prisoner in the Birmingham jail back in 1963 are very timely for us today.
In referring to the Spirit-filled early church, Dr. King wrote, “In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was the thermostat that transformed the mores of society.”
Dr. King was right. The church is called to be the thermostat where the hot air of the Holy Spirit will continue to fill us even during these slower summer months.
The biblical drama is far from over. It’s Pentecost Sunday. So, take your places. Act V has already begun.
