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LISTEN TO THIS WEEK'S AUDIO SERMON Pentecost Sunday, May 31, 2009 John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15 "He will take what is mine and declare it to you." ”When the
Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the
Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify
on my
behalf. 27You also are to testify because you have been
with me from
the beginning. 4But I have
said these things to you so that when their hour
comes you may remember that I told you about them. “I did not say these
things
to you from the beginning, because I was with you. 5But now
I am
going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you
going?’ 6But
because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts.
Nevertheless
I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage
that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to
you; but
if I go, I will send him to you. 8And when he comes, he
will prove
the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9about
sin, because they do not believe in me; 10about
righteousness,
because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; 11about
judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned. 12“I
still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13When
the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he
will
not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will
declare to
you the things that are to come. 14He will glorify me,
because he
will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15All that
the Father
has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and
declare
it to you. This week marks a very special day on our
Christian calendar - and one of my very favorites - we call it
Pentecost. (Can you say that with me? Pentecost.)
When we think about special days in the church, they are often about important days in the life of Jesus. On Christmas we celebrate Jesus birth, on Good Friday we remember his death and on Easter his return - or resurrection - from the dead. Pentecost, on the other hand, is not a day that marks a particular event in Jesus' life on Earth - but has something very important to do with our own. Pentecost is the day that we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit. So what is the Holy Spirit? You might have heard those words but not been entirely sure. In fact, it's a tough question even for grownups. The good news is that in today's Gospel Jesus gives a wonderful explanation. He explains that when he returns to heaven that God will be sending us an amazing gift. He says that God will be taking all that belongs to Jesus and sharing it with us. The Holy Spirit is the spirit of Jesus that lives inside each one of us - and that's why I've always found Pentecost to be such a special day. It's a day for us to remember that Jesus' wisdom and patience and kindness and love are not just things that he had - they're things that the Holy Spirit has given to each us. It's a day to remember that we have the responsibility to be "Christ-like" (to follow Jesus' example in our own lives) - and the Holy Spirit's presence gives us all the tools we need to do it. Happy Pentecost. Can we pray? Dear God, On Pentecost we thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Help us to follow the example of your son Jesus. Amen. |
