Bob Girard
Acts 2:1-21 John 16:4-15
Today is Pentecost Sunday, a day we should especially feel the Holy Spirit living within each of us. As we know, the Holy Spirit is a powerful force that pushes us to be the kind of people God wants us to be. This is the force that keeps us on God's path, doing God's work in the world today. As we have been learning through Dr. Bach's messages, we must be God's hands, feet, and voice to those around us. We, each of us are called to serve. The power of the Holy Spirit within us makes this possible.
As we heard in the reading from Acts, people were gathered together on the day of Pentecost, perhaps much like we are this morning, when they realized something was different. They heard a loud sound like a wind storm. They felt and saw flames of fire all around them, even touching them, but not burning them. They were being filled with the Holy Spirit. It cornered their attention and they all began to speak at once.
Have you felt the Spirit stir within you? Maybe you did not feel it in the same way as the people of Jesus' day, but I believe we have all experienced it. Knowing the presence of the Spirit within us makes us rich beyond our imagination. There is a story of a family in Oklahoma who were farmers. The son had moved into the city to take another kind of job. His parents who were getting on in years were looking for a farm to rent so they could continue the life they had known for so many years. They told their son they were having no luck. He told them to look for some land that was for sale and he would make the payments for them. This happened and after many years, he paid off the farm. His parents died but he still had the land. In the 1950's, it was discovered there was oil there. The son and his parents had been rich all this time and did not know it.
Each of us who know and trust Jesus are rich beyond our wildest dreams. As we move through our lives, we discover the resources that God has given and continues to give us. We have been given the power to do so much with our lives and the Holy Spirit gives us the energy to do it.
Sometimes we are afraid to accept, use and investigate this Spirit. This causes us to miss the deeper understanding of God's plan and purpose for us. We feel incomplete, therefore making our service to others unsuccessful, causing us to feel discouraged. We need to feel the Spirit stir within us, bringing us back on track.
Peter told those gathered on Pentecost and to us gathered this morning, that the Comforter, Teacher, Forgiver, Energizer has come. Just accept the Spirit and allow Him to be at work within us.
When we think about the Holy Spirit as a fire burning within us, it can be frightening. I suggest however we think about it in this way. Many of us enjoy a fireplace or fire pit, the flickering flames, the crackling of the wood, the warmth of the flames, because it can have a calming effect, a kind of therapy. We sit and stare, our mind wanders to remove us from the busyness of the day to anywhere else, thus rejuvenating us. When we think of fire in this way, it is a good thing. When we think about the Holy Spirit coming as fire, we must be aware that fire consumes. It destroys all the doubt and uncertainty the devil pushes at us. Fire purifies. When it consumes the evil, we are left pure, for the guidance of the Spirit. Fire prepares. We are no longer raw in our working because the Spirit prepares us.
As I have said, fire cheers us, gives us a peacefulness. The Spirit pushes us to victory doing God's work. Fire softens, making us pliable for the Spirit to reshape our lives, our actions. Fire unites. The Spirit brings us together that we have fellowship with one another. Fire empowers. It allows the Spirit to burn within us so that we become active and do those things God wants us to do.
Today is Pentecost. Are we willing to have the Holy Spirit move strongly within us again? We have had the Spirit within us all along. Sometimes we ignore the sound as loud as a windstorm. Sometimes we do not allow our voices to share the story of Jesus in our lives so that we sound like a convention of talkers all speaking at one time. Do you feel the fire? It is burning within us right now. Do you feel the fire? It is the Holy Spirit bringing new life to each of us, empowering us to share the story, share God's love. Do you feel the fire?