A sermon by Senior Minister John B. McCall, May 23, 2010
Acts 2:1-13
The account of the day of Pentecost, in Acts 2, may be one of the most familiar stories in the New Testament. Fifty days after Easter the disciples were gathered together with about 120 others for the Jewish festival called “the feast of weeks.” It was a harvest festival that took place 50 days after Passover. The name “Pentecost” comes from the Greek word for fifty.
Suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind. Then there appeared to be tongues of fire dipping down and touching the disciples on their heads. And as they were filled with the Holy Spirit, they began to speak in strange languages.
Many of the devout pilgrims who had come to the Festival heard the rush of wind and ran to see what was happening. These pilgrims were from all over the Middle East, from dozens of regions, with dozens of different native languages. But, they could understand as the disciples proclaimed the mighty works of God.
So they asked each other “what does this mean?” A few dismissed the gibberish as drunk talk. But it was much more than that. Time would prove it was much more than that.
This Pentecost account is powerful and memorable and central to our understanding of what it means to be the church. It reminds us that Good Friday and the Cross Easter and the empty tomb aren’t the end of the story. Neither is the festival of the Ascension, 40 days later, when Christ was lifted up to heaven, leaving the bewildered disciples to fend for themselves.
Pentecost dramatically changed the game, by fulfilling Jesus’ promise that he would not leave his followers orphaned in the world, but would send a counselor to be with them in their ministry. Christ was leaving, but God, through the Holy Spirit would stand with believers in every age… even now.
So the Pentecost story lifts up the truth that a small movement of disciples and apostles was transformed by the spirit into a true Christian community. And from that time and place the movement could not be contained. It grew and spread and persevered. Across generations the community has faced wars and persecutions, factionalism and dissent. Tragically, the Church has also caused wars and persecution, factionalism and dissent.
Make no mistake: the dangers we see, the threats we face as Christians are not from the outside but from the inside. I want to lift up what I see… triple threats.
Now in the sports world, the term “triple threat” can mean lots of things: in basketball it’s the player who can pass, shoot, and dribble; in football it’s the player who can run, pass, and kick; on stage it’s the performer who can sing, dance, and act. In general, a “triple threat” is some one who can do many things really well, and who is therefore a dangerous opponent in any contest.
The Christian community faces three internal dangers – the “triple threat” of ignorance, apathy and selfishness. Remember the old line: “What’s the difference between ignorance and apathy? I don’t know and I don’t care.” There’s our challenge.
First, we need knowledge to address our ignorance. Too many of us don’t really know and remember our Christian story. We’re not familiar enough with our own scriptures and our claims of who God is, what God does, and what God wants us to be and do.
Then, we need to teach the scriptures to each other and to our children. We need to know and remember the great acts of courage and faithfulness that carried that first-century movement from a band of weary disciples to a great cloud of witnesses. We also need to know and remember our mistakes. “Those who can’t remember the past are doomed to repeat it,” said the philosopher George Santyana. We need knowledge to address our ignorance.
Second, we need passion to address our apathy. It seems everyone is too busy, spread too thin, pulled in too many directions; and, perhaps as a consequence, unable to pump up much energy about things that really matter. I will long remember the remark about a colleague who was having a tough time in the parish he was serving, when the Conference Minister said: “He majors in minors.”
We (collectively) waste a lot of energy on small things. The life of faith is profoundly important because through faith we discover what matters most. We engage the questions of life and meaning and ultimate reality and Truth. When we know whom we follow and what we believe, we’ll find passion to address our apathy.
Third, (and I believe most importantly) we need community to address our selfishness. I don’t have any problem with freedom, or independence, or autonomy. I love them all. But we face a great danger from the belief that I can prosper while you suffer – lifeboat ethics. It’s particularly true in tough economic times. Our human instinct is to pull in, hunker down, bolt the doors, let others fend for themselves.
But that’s contrary to the historic understanding of the Christian community. The spirit we encounter in this Pentecost story turns us outward and engages us in community building, recognizing that only in community can we reach our fullest potential. The first-generation Christian community lived their conviction that every believer was a sister and brother; and that every stranger was possibly an emissary of God. They practiced radical hospitality and welcome.
We’re called to do the same. As the church, the fellowship of Jesus Christ, the Spirit of God calls us together into Christian community, equips us to encourage and support every one, and challenges us to give our lives to God. And certainly God calls us to face this triple threat – the threats of ignorance, apathy and selfishness.