I. Theme – The coming of the Holy Spirit
Window from St Aloysius’ church in Somers Town, London
The lectionary readings are here or individually:
First Reading – Acts 2:1-21
Psalm – Psalm 104:25-35, 37 Page 736, BCP
Epistle –1 Corinthians 12:3b-13
Gospel – John 20:19-23
Gospel 2 – John 7:37-39
Pentecost is a milestone in the story of salvation. It was on that day that the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the believers in an upper room in Jerusalem as they awaited the baptism Jesus told them they would receive. Jesus had promised this event just before He ascended into heaven.
"And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them utterance."
The symbol of fire is important for Pentecost.Fire has long represented God and the presence of his Holy Spirit. Fire consumes but is its own energy force.
That energy is around action and for the church, mission. Acts is about mission, about speaking, proclaiming, the good news to people everywhere, in languages (and language) they can understand. This is the day in which the mission of the church was given birth.
The Psalm is a hymn of praise, offered in the course of Temple worship, probably at the Autumnal harvest festival, given its theme of creation. It is a poem praising God and celebrating the order, the balance and majesty of creation reflecting upon God’s mighty power.
His creative agent is his “spirit.” Creation is continuous, continually renewed.
Paul spends chapters 12, 13 and 14 of Corinthians trying to get them to enjoy and express their gifts in ways that give strength to the community and glory to God.
Paul talks about gifts are shown through the Holy Spirit, not for personal edification but “for the common good” for building up the Church – wisdom, healing, knowledge.
There are two Gospel readings from John which take place before the Resurrection.
In John 20 Jesus breathed on his disciples and gave them the Holy Spirit as a foreshadowing of the Spirit they were to receive at Pentecost. Jesus message is that His followers need His Spirit to continue His work.There is no doubt that when John spoke about the breath of God in this way he was thinking back to the story of creation of humankind. When Jesus breathed on them and commanded them to receive the Holy Spirit he was reminding them of the creative life-force emanating from the being of God.
In John 7, there is a return to the metaphor of water. "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, `Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.’" Living water is flowing water. In contrast, there can be "dead" water. Water going nowhere — stuck in a stagnant pool.
In John, "thirst" has the double meaning of literal thirst for real water and physical life; and "spiritual" thirst for a real relationship with God and eternal life.
Thus, those who come to Jesus and trust him will have floods of life flowing out of them. When he is lifted up on the cross, Jesus declared his work is finished and passes on his spirit.
II. Summary
First Reading – Acts 2:1-21
The literal meaning of Pentecost is “50 days”; it is now fifty days since Easter.
In the Old Testament it was positioned on the Jewish calendar seven weeks after the Passover. It was the Jewish Feast of Harvest and was equivalent to our Harvest Thanksgiving Day. The high point of the celebration was the bringing of two loaves of bread, made from the newly harvested wheat, which symbolised the dedication of the harvest to God. In Acts we see the dedication of some 3000 people as a harvest of converted souls.
Pentecost is a milestone in the story of salvation. It was on that day that the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the believers in an upper room in Jerusalem as they awaited the baptism Jesus told them they would receive. Jesus had promised this event just before He ascended into heaven. He said, “Wait for the gift my Father promised. John baptised with water; but in a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 1:4-5) . The coming of the Holy Spirit is the gift inaugurating the final stage of the salvation story; this era leads up to the end of time. His arrival is in fulfilment of Christ’s promise, recorded in 1:8. The Holy Spirit comes: the sound is “like the rush of a violent wind” (v. 2), the images of tongues of fire. Commentators however would say the more remarkable things is that all those who were gathered heard the good news of Jesus in their own language.
They were already believers. For the forty days since his death Jesus had appeared to them many times until he told them of the coming of this gift. This 10-day of prayer and waiting must have witnessed the emptying of themselves so that they could receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit. The first Christian Pentecost was the fulfilment of prophetic promise. In Acts 2:16-18, 21, Peter left no doubt about it: “This is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall be in the last days,’ God says, ‘that I will pour forth my Spirit upon all flesh…’”
Acts is about mission, about speaking, proclaiming, the good news to people everywhere, in languages (and language) they can understand. This is the day in which the mission of the church was given birth. The New Testament church was called, commissioned, and empowered to go out into all the world with its universal message, calling everyone to a personal faith in the risen Lord.
Luke tells us that the Holy Spirit is the driving force behind this work, e.g. in the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch, we read “the Spirit said to Philip …” (8:29). They spoke “in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability” (v. 4). Divided into nations in antiquity, now all humanity is one; now God is in our midst. The Spirit is the launching pad for this mission. The list in vv. 9-10 includes Jews from the whole of the known world. The mission to Gentiles will begin later. “God’s deeds of power” (v. 11), of which all spoke, are explained by Peter in vv. 14-36, based on a quotation from the book of Joel (vv. 17-18): as the end of the era in which we are living approaches, many people will prophesy, and many will “see” things beyond what we call concrete reality.
And this will happen because God pours out the Holy Spirit. Prophecy here is probably enthusiastically sharing the faith, “speaking about God’s deeds of power” (v. 11).
Psalm – Psalm 104:25-35, 37
This psalm has much in common with the first account of creation in Genesis 1: 2 – 4a with its “seven day,” structure. This is a Hymn of Praise, offered in the course of Temple worship, probably at the Autumnal harvest festival, given its theme of creation. It is a poem praising God and celebrating the order, the balance and majesty of creation reflecting upon God’s mighty power and loving care. . Earlier verses have praised him for creating the heavens and the earth, for overcoming chaos, for continuing to care for the earth and all who live in it.
The Jewish people sang this psalm on Yom Kippur (The Day of Atonement) as they began a new year in repentance for past sins. The Day of Atonement was a special Holy Day for the Jewish people because it was on that one day of the year the High Priest would make a sacrifice for the sins of ALL the people and he would enter into the Holy of Holies… into God’s presence… and place the blood of the sacrifice on the Mercy Seat and the sins of the people would be covered.
When the High Priest fulfilled this task… the sins of the people were forgiven.It was during this Holy Day that Israelites could sense the closeness of God. A God who was not only mighty but a God who cared for them.
God’s marvellous “works” (v. 24) are everywhere, all made in his wisdom. It is direct praise of the Lord. He is not a one time, creator who has long since left his creation to its own devices and designs. He is involved in everything and with his breathe new life is sustained.
The language used has echoes of mythical accounts of creation, speaking especially of the sea as a place of great mystery and danger where great creatures go. The emphasis is on Creation’s dependence on God, not only for food and sustenance but for our very life itself. To Israelites, “the sea” (v. 25) was almost chaotic, beyond controlling, but God is so great that even “Leviathan” (v. 26), the mythical sea monster, is his harmless, sportive creature.
All living things depend on God at all times, for their “food” (v. 27) and their very “breath” (v. 29, life); without it, they die. Lack of God’s presence causes terror. Verse 29 talks of the very breath of God, or spirit of God which has echoes of Gen 2: 7 where God breathed life-giving breath into man, giving life itself. In a similar way although the psalm is not speaking directly about the Holy Spirit as we might understand that in New Testament terms there is an obvious link. God’s act of sustaining life and giving new life is not disassociated from what we see as the work of the Spirit. The point is that all creation and its creatures are totally dependent on God’s presence and ‘breath’.
His creative agent is his “spirit” (v. 30). Creation is continuous, continually renewed. The “glory of the Lord” (v. 31) is the magnificence of the created world, his visible manifestation. His power is evident too in earthquakes and volcanoes (v. 32). The psalmist vows to praise God throughout his life. Praise be to God!
Epistle – 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13
Among the Christians living in the Greek seaport Corinth, there was a diverse manifestation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Prophets, preachers, healers, teachers, you name it, the Spirit bestowed the job on someone there. These folks often exercised their gifts in spectacular, ecstatic ways that drew a lot of attention, as they do today among people who attend revivals and the crusades of some faith-healers.
Paul spends chapters 12, 13 and 14 of this letter trying to get the Corinthians to enjoy and express their gifts in ways that give strength to the community and glory to God. For the natural tendency of some of the supernaturally endowed was to glorify themselves with their God-given power. To make this point, Paul identifies the members of the church with the members of Christ. That is, he goes further than we usually admit. He doesn’t just compare the church to a body, he says the members of the church are the members of Christ.
Early in this letter, Paul has noted that the Christians at Corinth “are not lacking in any spiritual gift” (1:7); even so, they appear to have written to him “concerning spiritual gifts” (v. 1): it seems that there are questions in the community. One gift is inspired speech. The tests for whether one speaks under the influence of the Holy Spirit are:
-that one accepts Christ’s authority and pledges obedience to him, “Jesus is Lord” (v. 3) and
-that one does not curse Jesus (even under duress).
Speech that fails these tests is influenced by other (pagan, v. 2) spirits.
"Gifts” (v. 4) is widely defined, and includes “services” (v. 5, ministries) and “activities” (v. 6, operations). Note the suggestion of the Trinity: “same Spirit … same Lord … same God” (vv. 4-6), and note also:
-the Spirit himself is a gift of the Father;
-Christ was sent to serve or minister; and
-the Father is the source of all being and “activities”.
With a common origin, all gifts are shown through the Holy Spirit, not for personal edification but “for the common good” (v. 7), for building up the Church. While the gifts in vv. 8-10 can be grouped, the precise meanings are uncertain:
-“wisdom … knowledge … faith”;
-“healing … working of miracles … prophecy”;
-“discernment … tongues … interpretation”.
“Wisdom” and “knowledge” seem to be the ability to instruct; “faith” seems to be exceptionally deep faith – that God can do anything. “Discernment” is the ability to tell whether gifts genuinely come from God. “Tongues” may be unintelligible speech which needs “interpretation”. Each of us receives a gift (perhaps not one listed); God chooses, not us. Finally, likening the Church to a “body” (v. 12), Christ’s body, Paul says that:
-our God-given gifts contribute to the Church as a whole;
-baptism is through the “Spirit” (v. 13); and
-regardless of ethnic origin or social status, we are all empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Gospel – John 20:19-23
Early on Easter Day, Mary Magdalene has discovered that Jesus’ body is missing from the tomb. There is a man standing nearby, whom she assumes is the gardener. When he speaks to her, she recognizes him as Jesus. She has told the disciples: “I have seen the Lord” (v. 18).
Jesus now appears to his disciples in his resurrection body: he bears the marks of his crucifixion, yet can pass through doors; he is truly alive. Earlier, he has said “[my] peace I leave with you” (14:27). As he has been sent into the world with the Father’s authority, so he now sends out the disciples (and the Church) to continue his work (v. 21).
Jesus breathed on his disciples and gave them the Holy Spirit as a foreshadowing of the Spirit they were to receive at Pentecost. Jesus message is that His followers need His Spirit to continue His work.
There is no doubt that when John spoke about the breath of God in this way he was thinking back to the story of creation of humankind. This was the same picture as Ezekiel saw in the valley of the dead dry bones when he heard God say to the wind ‘Come from every direction to breathe into these dead bodies and to bring them back to life’ ( Ezekiel 37:9). The coming of the Holy Spirit is like the wakening of life from the dead and it is the same as it was for Ezekiel.
When Jesus breathed on them and commanded them to receive the Holy Spirit he was reminding them of the creative life-force emanating from the being of God. So insistent was Jesus that His disciples receive the Holy Spirit He told them not to begin the mission until they had been filled with this power. ‘I myself will send you what my Father has promised; but you must stay in the city until the power from above comes down upon you.’
Gospel – John 7:37-39
In verse 37. "The feast" here refers to the last of the three Jewish pilgrimages festivals / feasts, Sukkoth, or festival of Booths / Tabernacles. This text is being read on our Christian Day of Pentecost – which is the second of the pilgrimage festivals, Shavuot, or feast of Weeks
This takes place "on the last day of the festival." The festival was "Tabernacles" or "Booths" (see 7:2, 10, 14). There was a water ritual related to this festival.
"Living water" is a phrase used for flowing or fresh water, e.g., "running water" in English. Flowing water is usually drinkable water — something very important in desert climates. In contrast, there can be "dead" water. Water going nowhere — stuck in a stagnant pool. Water that is standing still is usually undrinkable.
The reference to "anyone who is thirsty" and "living water" have an interesting precursor in John 3, the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well. And subsequently, in John 19:28 where Jesus on the cross says, "I am thirsty."
In John, "thirst" has the double meaning of literal thirst for real water and physical life; and "spiritual" thirst for a real relationship with God and eternal life.
It is this second sense that Jesus is constantly pointing to, and the emphasis on "living" (or "life giving") water. Water that imparts lasting vigor and vitality.
Thus, those who come to Jesus and trust him will have floods of life flowing out of them.
Verse 39 provides an explanatory aside about the Spirit who is yet to come. "Jesus was not yet glorified." When is Jesus glorified? When he is lifted up. Lifted up on the cross. And after declaring that his work is finished, Jesus passes on his spirit.
III. Articles for this week in WorkingPreacher:
First Reading – Acts 2:1-21
Psalm – Psalm 104:25-35, 37 Page 736, BCP
Epistle – 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13
Gospel – John 20:19-23
Gospel – John 7:37-39