The Gift of the Holy Spirit

St. Mary’s Episcopal Church

Let us pray: Come Holy Spirit, dance in these words that we may know you better. In the name of our Mother/Father, our Brother Jesus, and the mystery of the Spirit who guides and encourages us. Amen.

Happy Pentecost! Pentekoste or 50th in Greek. Fifty days after Easter when we remember, celebrate, and renew the coming of the Holy Spirit on the first followers of Jesus. The spirit that empowered and emboldened them to share the good news of Jesus’ life, death, ascension, and resurrection. Today we wear our red or other “flamey” colors and we have our amazing streamers, bringing to life for us the Spirit’s flow. Fifty days ago we celebrated the ultimate triumph of love over evil. Jesus, God incarnate, came down to live as one of us and to give himself as an offering, the ultimate example of sacrificial love, showing us that love always has the last word, that love, ALWAYS wins. And that nothing, nothing, can separate us from the love of God demonstrated by the resurrections of Jesus. And so, our Easter acclamation from Easter Sunday and throughout this season including today is: Alleluia, Christ is risen! (The Lord is risen indeed, alleluia!).

And so, today, after the glorious resurrection, and the ascension, we now celebrate that coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. The description of this awesome event we heard about in the lesson from Acts today.

There was a sound like the rush of a violent wind and divided tongues, as of fire, appeared and rested on each of them. And all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages. And pretty soon a crowd gathered to see what was going on they were bewildered because each person heard the disciples speaking in their native language proclaiming the Good News.

What an amazing picture! These followers of Jesus, men and women, were filled with the Holy Spirit. They each got their own flame hat, and that’s not all, they could also speak whatever language the person they were talking to spoke! So they just went off sharing the good news of God’s love demonstrated in Jesus to every person gathered there from whatever place, ethnicity or language. SO COOL! The Holy Spirit gave them what they needed for that moment to share the message of God’s healing, inclusive love.

And today, the Holy Spirit continues that bewildering, inspiring work in our world and in our time in moments and contexts with specific people in our lives who need to hear how much God loves them. Who need to hear how they are forgiven, how they are valued, how they belong.

Did you know that you were baptized with the Holy Spirit just like these first disciples?

“Holy Baptism is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into Christ's Body the Church” (BCP. p. 298)

During the baptism service we pray: “Fill them with your holy and life-giving Spirit” (BCP, p. 305). And: “We thank you, Father, for the water of Baptism. In it we are buried with Christ in his death. By it we share in his resurrection. Through it we are reborn by the Holy Spirit.”

And: “Heavenly Father, we thank you that by water and the Holy

Spirit you have bestowed upon these your servants the

forgiveness of sin, and have raised them to the new life of

grace. Sustain them, O Lord, in your Holy Spirit” (BCP, p. 308)

And one of my favorite things is to mark the sign of the cross on peoples’ forehead with chrism and pronounce: “You are sealed by the Holy Spirit in baptism and marked as Christ’s own forever” (ibid).

In our baptism we receive this amazing power of the Holy Spirit to guide, strengthen, and comfort us on this earth. Just like these first followers of Jesus on that first Pentecost, God and has sent us the gift of the Holy Spirit.

This gift that Jesus calls the Advocate, the Spirit who speaks for us and who champions our cause. The Spirit watches over, protects and comforts us.

And the gift of the Spirit testifies to the truth of God’s goodness in Jesus, in creation from the beginning of time, and revealed in our lives whenever and wherever love shines forth. The catechism tells us that “we recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit when we…are brought into love and harmony with God, with ourselves, with our neighbors, and with all creation (BCP. p. 852).

This gift of the Spirit is our guide, helping us discern what is good and right and worthy of our time, energy, and care. And just like those first Spirit-filled disciples at the first Pentecost, the Holy Spirit is MOST definitely still at work here and now in our lives. May we, this Pentecost, recognize and receive the power of the Holy Spirit that flows within, around, and through each one of us, and so empowered, may we share the good news of a loving, liberating, life-giving God. Come Holy Spirit, come, fill our lives with an abiding sense of your presence and courage to share your love with our hurting world. Amen.