DAY OF PENTECOST: 31st MAY 2020

Acts 2: 1- 21

1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 
3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. 
5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 
7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, ‘Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.’ 12 All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’ 13 But others sneered and said, ‘They are filled with new wine.’ 14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. 15 Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. 
16 No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: 17 “In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
     and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
     and your old men shall dream dreams. 
18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
     in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
     and they shall prophesy. 
19 And I will show portents in the heaven above
     and signs on the earth below,
     blood, and fire, and smoky mist. 
20 The sun shall be turned to darkness
     and the moon to blood,
     before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day. 
21 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

1 Corinthians 12: 1- 13

1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says ‘Let Jesus be cursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit. 4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses. 12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. 

John 20: 19- 23

19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’

Reflection: As I was pre- reading for a reflection for Pentecost, I came upon this reflection that really made me stop and think- And so I thought I’d offer it to you. I suggest that you read it through more than once! (Words added in brackets are mine) Peter Lockhart is a Uniting Church Minister from St Lucia Queensland. Even though this reflection was written in 2014- I felt it profoundly relevant also for 2020! Oh and does it matter that he’s not Anglican? I think not!

A reflection on Acts 2:1-21 by Peter Lockhart

When And Then

For each when there is a then...

The word 'when' seems so innocent and innocuous but it is the precursor to marvellous, magical, mischievous, malign, morose and mournful events.

In the passage:

 When the day of Pentecost had come...

When they heard the sound, they came on the run...

What 'when' is in my life and in yours? 

 When will I be more attentive to God?

When will I experience God inside the room not outside?

When will I love more deeply?

When will I die?

When will I rise again?

When will I arrive?

When will I be more disciplined with my time?

When will I respond to those who suffer in a personal and committed way?

But 'when' is not just about me and my 'when' but about all people - those inside the room, those who ran to the room, and even those who do not run and see - the ambivalent and absent ones.

When will others know God as a God of love, peace and mercy?

When will God's presence in other religions be revealed and understood?

When will Syria have peace?

When will asylum seekers be released? 

When will they be welcomed?

When will suffering end for those who are ill?

When will the pain stop for those who mourn?

When will the song of the birds and wonder of creation remind us of God's goodness?

When will communities learn to live openly as well as exclusively in their uniqueness with translucent, transparent, transforming walls which build other communities as well as value their diversity?

When will the hungry be fed?

When will the leaders of nations have greater wisdom?

Yet within the passage for each when there is a then...

 'Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through the ranks...'

'Then... they were thunderstruck...'

 The 'then' does not always 'solve' the 'when' but it gives us hope that 'then' something will be different, it encourages us that something else is coming. Or, maybe more accurately that someone else is coming.

God will act! Even though, as Jesus says, no one knows the time, the time is still coming.  This is our reassurance and hope that 'when' is not ignored and there will be a 'then', a time when the kingdom will come on earth as it is in heaven.

 When? Then!

http://revplockhart.blogspot.com/2014/06/when-and-then.html

As we take some time to reflect on the readings and events of this day that was the first Pentecost approx. 2000 years ago- what’s changed? Well we could add when will Corona Virus be gone and probably many other questions as well. And we could add then we will……

However, whatever questions we add, whatever circumstances in life we are presently facing, the Spirit of God is the same now as it was at the first Pentecost. Its power is still potent, its ability to transform, to guide, empower, inspire, and delight us has not diminished. So, what has changed from then to now? 

Perhaps it is the complexity of our lives now days. Perhaps that is the barrier to us hearing and fully receiving the fullness of God’s Spirit. Perhaps we make time for this and that, we make time for all the things we think we must do and sadly God is just given a little time slot-             not a complete slot?

I wonder if we (Collectively humankind) are just too busy even with the anxiety of each day to fully allow God his rightful place? Does self get in the way? I need, I want, I should, I can….

Think of what happens to a caterpillar when it enters the chrysalis to be transformed into a butterfly, or think of a parched land with an enormous thunderstorm brewing before the rain hits the thirsty ground. The longing and threshold of the journey begins often in darkness or time of deep need. This threshold has the power for transformation. It is in places of uncertainty and decision making that we are forced to slow down and take stock of what is happening, not only around us but within us.

Take some time to ponder your relationship with God. What does this relationship mean for you? What do you do to help yourself and others draw closer to God? Are there uncertainties or obstacles that keep you saying when… then…?

May you do be open to receive the transforming Spirit of God in all its fullness and power this day. And let us pray for a greater, deeper, life changing, experience of the Holy Spirit, for Christianity is a relationship and relationships are to be experienced not just observed.