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Food For Thought
Last Sunday was Pentecost when Christians traditionally celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit. In the book of Acts we are told that as the disciples gathered together the Holy Spirit descended upon them in quite a dramatic fashion with the noise of rushing wind and the appearance of tongues of fire. And the Holy Spirit filled them, giving them the ability to speak languages. They went out into the streets and began to preach the Good News of God’s love. This is the Spirit that Jesus promised his followers: the Advocate, the Spirit of Truth, a helper to guide us and inspire us, the Divine Presence come along side us as a companion so we will not be alone.
When the crowds began to wonder what was going on, how Jesus’ disciples could be speaking all of these different languages, Peter reminded them of the prophet Joel who told the people of Israel that God promised, “I will pour out my Spirit on all human kind. Your daughters and sons will prophesy, your young people will see visions, and your elders will dream dreams. Even on the most insignificant of my people, both women and men, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.” God sent the Spirit – not only a guide and a helper, but a Spirit of visions and dreams. A Spirit of prophesy. A Spirit of bold action. A Spirit of change.
Prophets speak truth to power. Prophets stand up and name corruption and oppression. Are we speaking truth to power? The last couple of weeks, the horror of racism has once again been at the forefront of our thoughts. If we wish to be true to the Spirit, we cannot be silent. We must condemn racism. We must condemn police brutality. We must condemn vigilantism. We must condemn the use of violence against peaceful protestors. We must condemn President Trump’s violent and divisive rhetoric, including his insulting and blasphemous use of religious props. We must speak truth to power. Truth is a necessary ingredient for the healing of our world.
Alongside truth-telling, the Spirit also brings visions and dreams. What are the visions and dreams we have for the future of our world? If we envision a healed world and the end of racism, a world that reflects the peace and justice of the Kin-dom of God, then we must make clear our support for people of color and anti-racism protestors. We must hear their frustration and rage and stand with them. We must not only listen but act. We need to work to become anti-racism forces. We need to work for the reformation of the systems of our society that are built on institutionalized racism: the criminal justice system, health care system, educational system, and on and on.
While reading over the scriptures for this upcoming Sunday, I was struck by the opening verses of Genesis, which also talk about the Spirit: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. But the earth became chaos and emptiness, and darkness came over the face of the Deep – yet the Spirit of God was brooding over the surface of the waters.” God saw the chaos, brooded (brood: to think deeply about something that makes one unhappy), and then began to create! Maybe we need to spend some time brooding over the chaos, emptiness, and darkness of our world and ask ourselves: what is God asking us to help create out of this mess?
The Spirit has come. We are not to hide from the world, but we are being sent into the world as followers of Christ to engage the world and to heal the world. We are asked to be bold, to be vulnerable, to listen to the Holy Spirit. We are asked to be prophets and visionaries. What shall we say? What shall we do? May God make us bold in the Spirit, filling us with truth, with visions of justice, and a passion for peace and love.
Blessings,
Pastor Ken
P.S. This reflection is inspired by the sermon from May 31, 2020, “Bold in the Spirit,” which can be viewed at https://youtu.be/cyimDXS4b9o. A recording of this and most other sermons can also be found online at https://phoenixchurch.org/home/phx-sermons/.
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