We move from celebrating the Ascension of Jesus last week, to the celebration of the gift of the Spirit at Pentecost this Sunday. The account of Pentecost is in the second chapter of Acts and features some Holy Spirit pyrotechnics along with a killer sermon from Peter, ending in the greatest altar call of all-time, and a wild charity drive (or was a charioty drive back then?).
We often think of Pentecost as the birth of the church, but sometimes we forget that the church had parents. What I mean to say is that Pentecost is not merely a Christian holiday. Pentecost was a Jewish holiday, also called the Feast of Weeks, on which the people would gather together to praise God for his gifts of bounty at the end of the harvest season. It was called “Pentecost” because it was the fiftieth day after the first sheaf had been offered to God. It was for this festival that the crowds had all packed back into Jerusalem, which provided the apostles with such an evangelistic opportunity.
It is not merely a bit of trivia that Pentecost overlaps with this harvest festival. Jesus had once told his disciples that the harvest was plentiful, but the workers were few. Then, at just the right moment, he sends the Spirit to aid the disciples in reaping the very first harvest of our faith. The feast of Pentecost remains a feast of harvest and gratitude. As Christians, we celebrate that the firstfruits of the harvest have been offered up in the self-sacrifice of Jesus at Easter, and that our whole lives are a part of this harvesting endeavor.
The exciting gift of the Spirit has never been merely for Christians to enjoy the presence of God. The gift of the Spirit is the power and authority to carry on with the Kingdom mission for which we are all commissioned - to be workers of the harvest. As we approach Pentecost, think of the works that the Lord has done in your life and ask Him where he might be sending you to reap.
Michael+
Ascension Day
On Thursday we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension! Out of the high feasts that celebrate key movements in Jesus’ life and ministry, this one seems the easiest to misplace. Christmas is Christmas, so it’s hard to miss. Easter is Easter, and it’s always on a Sunday. Pentecost is culturally invisible, but at least it’s always on a Sunday too. The Feast of the Ascension is just as culturally invisible, and it’s buried on a Thursday. If we don’t set aside time to celebrate, it’s easy to miss.
That’s a problem, though, because without the Ascension the rest of the story doesn’t work. Here are a few reasons:
1) Without the Ascension, there is no Pentecost. Jesus told his disciples “if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7). Without the Holy Spirit we are, at best, Jesus’ biggest fans. That’s not enough. I’m also Steph Curry’s biggest fan, but being his fan doesn’t let me shoot a basketball like him or spend his money. We need the Holy Spirit to unite us to Jesus so that we can be clothed in his righteousness, share in his sonship, and live in his resurrection life.
2) Without the Ascension, there is no Eucharist. During his earthly life, Jesus wasn’t everywhere. He was always somewhere. But seated in God’s throne room, the ascended Jesus can make himself present to all of us. That is especially true in the bread and wine (the body and blood) that we eat together.
3) Without the Ascension, there is no Church. My body sets me apart from you lot. It always belongs to me, and it is always separate from you. Jesus’ ascended body doesn’t work that way. The body of Christ on earth is the Church. In baptism the Holy Spirit joins us to Christ and makes us a new family. Together, we become Jesus’ presence to each other, and to our world. It boggles the mind, but Jesus left so that we could be nearer to him.
4) Without the Ascension, there is no High Priest. Hebrews 4:15 says “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” Jesus lived a full human life. He suffered as a human. He endured temptation, humiliation, and death itself. He knows the frailty of human nature, so he constantly lays our needs at his Father’s feet. Remember that when you are facing despair or darkness—Jesus himself is praying for you (Heb. 7:25).
5) Without the Ascension, there is no hope. Don’t let that get you down. The inheritance God has laid up for us is a share of what Jesus has now—life in God’s presence. Jesus’ ascension was a pioneer mission, not a solo expedition. It paved the way for us to follow when Christ returns. As the hymn we’ll sing Sunday says, “mighty Lord in thine ascension, we by faith behold our own.”
We hope to see you Thursday evening as we celebrate what Jesus won for us.
Justin+
Scripture Reflections
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one. (John 10:27-30)
Theologians have wrestled a great deal with how best to explain Jesus’ statement, “I and the Father are one.” In the words of the Nicene Creed (the Church’s most important summary), we confess that these two are one being (or substance) together with the Holy Spirit. We confess what we scarcely understand—that there is one God, and yet this one God exists eternally in three persons. Perfect unity of being, yet eternally three persons.
Part of the struggle to understand this is the word “person” itself. Our reference point for a person is a human, and we cannot imagine three human persons who are one being. The closest we can imagine is a perfect marriage or family, where the unity is so tight that it is as if there is only one being. Close, but still a long way off!
One implication of the Trinity—the perfect unity of being in the Three-Personed God—is unity of activity. Because there is only one God, what each member does is done by all, in a sense. Thus we can say that the Father is the Creator, creation was through the Son, and the Spirit is the Giver of life. Creation is an act of the Trinity, in perfect unity.
In the passage from John 10 we heard on Sunday, Jesus points to one of the activities done by God in perfect unity. The action in question? Holding each sheep securely. Notice the shift: At first, Jesus says, “no one will snatch them out of my hand.” Then, just a breath later, he says, “no one is able to snatch the out of the Father’s hand.” In the matter of a couple seconds, he moves seamlessly from his hand to the Father’s hand. (Although he doesn’t mention the Holy Spirit here, other passages like Eph. 1:13 make it clear that our security is the work of all three members of the Trinity.)
The point for us?
Your security matters so much to God that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are participating together in it. Jesus makes it clear that he and the Father are gripping you together. We may not always perceive this—our path may be tumultuous, full of our own mistakes—but God (the Three-Personed God!) has a hold of you. Together, all three members of the Trinity, in perfect unity of being and action, are hanging on. Nothing can shake their grip.
Steven+