I know that we’re not supposed to have favorites, but I think the Holy Spirit might be my favorite person of the Trinity. And, I think Pentecost is an under-appreciated holiday in the life of the church! We always lift up Christmas and Easter as the holiest days in the church year, but I think that Pentecost is an equally important holiday because it celebrates the expansion of God’s relationship with humanity. Just as Jesus’ birth and death change the way that God interacts with the world, so too does the sending of the Holy Spirit impact the way that we relate to God and understand our faith! If anything, Pentecost is the day when we truly recognize the deep and abiding nature of this relationship between God and humanity. When Jesus is no longer walking on the Earth, but God still wants to be close to us!
Last week, I talked about how we are invited into the life of the Trinity, and that continues in John’s Gospel again this week (John 14: 8-17). The sending of the Spirit at Pentecost is the perfect example of that. This isn’t to say that the Holy Spirit wasn’t present in our world before, as the Spirit was involved in creation and we hear stories of the Spirit dwelling with the prophets, but the work of the Spirit felt more restricted to certain people. The Spirit was up to some incredible things throughout history! But, the sending of the Spirit at Pentecost indicates a shift from God choosing a select few to receive the Spirit, to the Spirit abiding in all believers. I love this abide language that Jesus uses in verse 17 because it signifies that this isn’t a temporary relationship, but an enduring one. The experience of the Spirit like tongues of fire, as depicted in our Acts reading (Acts 2: 3-4) might be passing, but our relationship with God through the Holy Spirit will remain.
But, this Pentecost story doesn’t just expand the relationship with God and humanity, it changes how we relate to other humans too. It bridges what we are called to as humans: to love God and love our neighbors. This Acts reading is honestly one of my favorites to study because every time I read it, I notice details that broaden my understanding of what God is up in this story and in our world. When we pay attention to these details, we hear that the people gathered heard what was being said in their own language (Acts 2:8), which is remarkable to think about given the wide variety of their backgrounds and languages present that day. It’s so unbelievable that there is an accusation that the people are drunk, which of course they couldn’t be because it was only 9 in the morning (Acts 2: 13-15)!
Our story doesn’t tell us who these others were that claimed the people were drunk, nor do we know what they were seeing and hearing, because I imagine it would be quite interesting to witness if you were not privy to the experience. For all we know, it could be people who felt that the Gospel should only be shared in one common language. Instead, this Acts reading illustrates the ways that the diversity of language and culture is a gift in God’s creation. It matters that the people all hear what is being said in their own language, because it shows that God works through more than just one language and one mode of worship style. It means there is no “one right way” about how God and humans interact, which creates more space for curiosity and awe, rather than rigidity.
Additionally, the Acts reading goes on to detail the words of the prophet Joel, and in doing so, expands the understanding around the work of ministry and who is allowed to participate in the work of God in the world. It goes on to include the youth, the elders, and those who are enslaved; people who would never have been considered worthy for this kind of work. It is a powerfully prophetic message about how the work of God is in fact the work of all believers; we may have different gifts and skills, but we are all important in the kindom of God. The Spirit, and the ministry of God is not reserved for just a select group of wealthy men. This is a radical message still today!
Despite the prophetic and profound message that we hear today in this Pentecost reading, there are still many times when we are not always inclusive of all peoples and voices in the work of ministry, and I’m not even talking about just church work. In our society, our young ones are often still taught that their responsibility is to stay silent and not rock the boat because they are too young to understand, while those who are older are considered unable to participate too because there are stereotypes about what they can and can’t do anymore. People often need to have reached a certain wealth and social status for their voice to be heard, and even then, society wants to set up unspoken parameters around what they are allowed to say and do.
Meanwhile, when we think about church leadership in particular, there are so many barriers that keep incredible candidates out of our congregations. Despite the fact that there are increasing numbers of scholarships, the financial burden of going to school for an additional 2-4+ years to end up in jobs that make it difficult to pay off any debt that was accrued in the process is a challenge for many people. Plus, many of our Seminaries operate primarily in English, with a set mindset about what congregational ministry looks like, and that is not always the case in the age of the changing church. And, while we have made a lot of progress, there is still often an overarching narrative of a pastor being a middle-aged man. I am incredibly grateful to you all for issuing this call to me, and I think about how I was genuinely preparing myself to not have a call for at least 6 months after Seminary graduation because of the challenge of finding a congregation that would consider calling someone like me. Based on the timeframe in which I was called to this congregation, since I think I only had a week off to move offices, I truly believe that the Holy Spirit was active in the process!
I say all of this not to bring us down on this day of Pentecost, but because I want us to continue listening for where the Spirit is calling us, in ways that are both expected and unexpected. I know that the changes the Pentecost story bring can be scary, uncomfortable, or unbelievable, but how beautiful is it that we have a God who wants to relate to all humanity in this diverse way. That all of us get to be included in the body of Christ, and we do not have to put parts of our identities on the back burner in order to belong in God’s kindom! That we are invited into this relationship to learn, grow, and continue to think about what it means for us to live according to God’s vision. God didn’t have to send the Spirit to abide with us, but the fact that God chose to is a remarkable thing that shows the depth of God’s love for us.
So, despite the fact that we might want to sit back and let God do all the work, we get to rejoice that God chose to send the Spirit to abide with us and invite us into the life and work of God in the world! Just as the Spirit’s arrival was a bit surprising to those gathered in Acts, may we pay attention to the ways that the Spirit is still stirring among us today, calling us back to the promises of God and guiding our next steps as we seek to embody God’s love for the world, all of it.
Previous
Sunday June 1st, 2025 Worship