The gift of the Holy Spirit
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series V, Cycle A
BRIEF COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Acts 2:1--21 (C); Acts 2:1--11 (RC, E)
The promised Spirit comes upon the church in the midst of the throngs of pilgrims that were making their way to the temple to celebrate the Jewish festival of Pentecost. The believers in Christ received the Spirit in dramatic and visible form, as tongues of flame and the ability to speak in other languages. This is not glossalalia because the pilgrims heard the church speak in their own language. The people are perplexed and amazed and so Peter interprets the event as a fulfillment of Joel 2:28--29, that God would bestow his Spirit on all flesh, not just a select few. He urges the assembly to repent and be saved.
Lesson 1: Joel 2:28--29 (L)
Joel foresees a time when God will pour out his Spirit on all people. Old and young alike will have dreams and visions. Even the most humble person will receive God's Spirit.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 12:3b--13 (C); 1 Corinthians 12:3--7, 12--13 (RC); 1 Corinthians 12:4--13 (E)
Paul lays out some of the gifts which the Spirit supplies to the church, such as faith, prophecy, miracles, healing and the like. He names nine gifts but this should not be taken to be an all--inclusive catalog. No one has all the gifts of the Spirit but we each have, at least, one of them.
Lesson 2: Acts 2:1--21 (L)
See above.
Gospel: John 7:37--39 (C)
Jesus goes up to the temple unbeknownst to his family and teaches the crowds, assembled for the Feast of Tabernacles. On the last day of the feast, the Lord issues an invitation not unlike the one he issued in Matthew 11:28--30. Those who had a thirst for God were invited to come to him in faith and from their hearts would flow streams of living water. Through Jesus would come the Holy Spirit after he was glorified. This invitation becomes vivid for those at the temple festivities because, every day during the feast, water would be drawn from the Pool of Siloam and taken to the temple. That practice was to portray God giving the children of Israel water from the rock, as they journeyed through the desert. Water remains the prime symbol of life and Jesus takes it unto himself.
195
Gospel: John 20:19--23 (RC, E, L)
This is John's Pentecost story. The setting is not out in public, as in Acts, but in the Upper Room, where the disciples were cloistered behind locked doors. Suddenly, the risen Christ stands in their midst, granting peace to their fearful hearts. Christ commissions them to go out and spread the gospel. He then empowers them with the Holy Spirit and the authority to pronounce God's forgiveness.
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 104:24--34 (C, E, L); Psalm 104 (RC) - ''When you send forth your Spirit, they are created ... and you renew the face of the ground'' (v. 30).
Prayer Of The Day
O Spirit of wind and fire, breathe into our souls your life giving and life sustaining Spirit. Fan the embers of our feeble faith into full flame, that we might boldly witness to your love and grace, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Acts 2:1--21
Tower of Babel reversed. People of many different nations flooded into Jerusalem to worship God at the temple. It is no coincidence that God selected this time to pour out his Spirit. He desired to counter the divisive effects of race and nation. Pentecost reverses the Tower of Babel story, where humankind became fragmented, as evidenced by the confusion of language. At Pentecost, the believers did not speak the same language but were given the ability to speak the gospel in foreign languages. The Spirit still gives us the ability to speak in such a way that those from different backgrounds can hear the gospel comprehensively.
Word processing the Spirit. Those who witnessed the Pentecost drama were amazed and perplexed. They saw some wonderful things but didn't know what it meant (vv. 7--12). They needed a word processor to make sense of that which had happened. Peter stepped in to interpret the activity of the Spirit in light of the Word of God and to call for a response.
Lesson 1: Joel 2:28--29
Liquid Spirit. Joel predicts that God will pour out his Spirit on all flesh. The image is that of pouring out some liquid, such as water. This ties in with Christian baptism, where the Spirit is given through water and the Word. If the Spirit is liquid, that means that it can take the shape of its container. God pours his Spirit into many different sizes and shapes of containers, namely us. We don't have to talk alike or look the same. We just have to admit that we are empty vessels who need to be filled.
The Spirit unbottled. In the Old Testament, God gave his Spirit to a person here and there. Otherwise it was bottled up. Joel envisions a time when God would take out the cork and pour forth his Spirit on many. Peter saw the events witnessed in Acts 2 as the uncorking of the Spirit.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 12:3--13
Varieties of religious experience. William James wrote a book on this topic to portray the various ways that humans experience God. No two people worship and serve God exactly the same way. Faith is as unique as each of us. This results not only from our unique genetic makeup but also from the fact that the Spirit has gifted us with a special configuration of spiritual gifts. Paul says that there is only one Spirit but various gifts that flow from the same Spirit. God is not in the business of turning out carbon copies, only first edition masterpieces.
196
Gospel: John 7:37--39
Well within. Living in a semiarid part of the world, the Hebrews were always concerned that they be near a source of water. Aridity for the spirit is every bit as deadly as for the land. Jesus promises that those who come to him in faith will not only have their spiritual thirst quenched but that he will provide an artesian well of the Spirit that will continue to bubble up from within the believer. That promise was fulfilled at Pentecost. With the well within, all would be well therein.
Gospel: John 20:19--23
Pervasive peace. The disciples were still paralyzed with fear, even though in the morning Mary Magdalene reported that she had seen the risen Christ, even after Peter and John witnessed the empty tomb. Their basic sense that the world was a good and trustworthy place had been violated by the brutal murder of their Lord. Then the resurrected Lord appeared in their midst. Twice in our text he confers his peace. The world was still a dangerous and threatening place, but their fear vanished with the realization that they were not alone. Christ was with them, conferring the peace of his presence.
Exorcize your fears by exercising your faith. The way to overcome your fears is not to hide from them but face them. Christ sent his little band of believers from behind closed doors out into the open, to face the very people who had filled them with fear (v. 21).
Breathe on us, breath of God. Luke's version of Pentecost describes the impartation of the Spirit as the sound of a mighty wind. This occurred in a public setting. John's version of Pentecost has Jesus breathing on his disciples to impart the life--giving power of the Holy Spirit. This happened in a private setting. Both breath and wind are related. Sometimes the Spirit comes to us as a gentle breath, filling our inward being with life and hope. Other times, we experience the Spirit as a mighty wind of change that shakes everything in its path.
PREACHING APPROACHES WITH ILLUSTRATIONS
Lesson 1: Acts 2:1--21
This lection can be combined with the Gospel from John to form a memorable sermon.
Sermon Title: The ''Ps'' Of Pentecost
Sermon Angle: The idea of God as Spirit is hard to get a handle on. We can relate to the idea of God the Creator and Jesus, the Son of God, our Savior, but the symbol of Holy Spirit is somewhat vague and mysterious, even dangerous. The other two persons of the Trinity lend themselves more readily to intellectual constructs but the Spirit has to be experienced to be known. Nevertheless, we can attempt to understand the function of the Spirit by associating it with certain words that begin with ''P.'' Based on the First Lesson and the Gospel, we will briefly discuss the ''Ps'' of Pentecost. Luke's Pentecost is different from John's but they both inform us concerning the manner in which Christians experience the Spirit.
From the account in Acts 2, we see how the Holy Spirit came down on the assembled believers in Power. The Hebrew word for spirit is wind. Most of us have witnessed the tremendous energy inherent in wind. A tornado can pulverize a house. A hurricane can bend a steel pole at a 90 degree angle. The Acts account describes the descent of the Spirit as a mighty wind. The demonstration of the power of the Spirit caught the attention of the witnesses. When the Church is filled with the power of the Spirit, old barriers come crashing down, lives are healed and transformed. The greatest power that the church possesses is the reconciling power of forgiveness. This power must not be used to manipulate believers through guilt and fear but to free people from the paralyzing grip of sin.
The second ''P'' of Pentecost is Presence. When Jesus appeared to the terrorized little band of believers in the Upper Room, as told by John, he lifted their spirits by his presence. They were no longer alone or forsaken. Jesus showed them his wounds that they might know it was
197
him. If we know that God is with us and that his love reaches even the deepest valley of our souls, we can face almost anything.
The third ''P'' of Pentecost is Peace. In John's account, Jesus repeats the greeting, ''Peace be with you.'' The peace of Christ is not an absence of conflict but a total sense of well--being.
The fourth ''P'' of Pentecost is Prophecy. According to Acts, those who witnessed the in--rush of the Spirit were perplexed. They didn't know what to make of this unusual event. They were even accused of being drunk. Peter stood up to explain what it all meant. He explained it as a fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel. Prophecy actually means ''to speak forth or declare.'' That's what Peter did, so that others could make sense of the signs and wonders. Such proclamation calls for a response: to repent and believe the Good News of Jesus Christ. Any so--called manifestation of the Spirit needs to be interpreted through the lens of the Word Incarnate and the written Word. Any manifestation at odds with the life and teachings of Jesus is to be rejected.
The last ''P'' of Pentecost is Purpose. The Spirit does not act erratically. Behind the mystery is purpose. Peter interprets that purpose as being prepared for the ''Day of the Lord'' (v. 20) through repentance and faith. For John, that purpose is to make known the forgiveness of sins, through the power of the Spirit (vv. 22--23).
We could add an additional ''P'' of Pentecost for Personal. The Holy Spirit is not an idea but a person. Our major task is not to understand the Spirit but to receive the Spirit into our person. The Spirit is given to all who know, trust and walk with Jesus.
Outline:
1. Pentecost Power
2. Pentecost Presence
3. Pentecost Peace
4. Pentecost Prophecy
5. Pentecost Purpose
Lesson 1: Joel 2:28--29
Sermon Title: How To Bring Down The Rain
Sermon Angle: In the Old Testament times, the Spirit of God was like an isolated shower, it descended on a person here and there. Joel predicts that the Spirit would shower down on all of God's people and it would be a real gully--washer. The Spirit would rain down on people without regard to power, merit or status. What was it that caused the Spirit of God to rain down on so many people at Pentecost? A shared trust in the risen Christ. We cannot make the Spirit rain down on us but we can insulate ourselves from its life--giving flow through unbelief.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 12:3--13
Sermon Title: One Spirit, Many Gifts
Sermon Angle: Throughout this passage, Paul emphasizes that there is only one Spirit, who bestows many gifts. Gifts can be divisive if we forget that they are gifts. We see this problem in the Corinthian Church where, for example, the gift of speaking in tongues was prized more highly than other gifts. Some took pride in their gifts but disparaged the gifts bestowed on their brothers and sisters. Paul's emphasis on the ''one'' Spirit was a way of pointing to the source of their unity. He reminds them that the gifts of the Spirit are granted so as to promote the common good (v. 7), not to make us stand--out as individuals.
Outline:
1. Society encourages us to assert our individuality - get noticed
2. The Spirit would have us realize our unity
3. By the One Spirit we are baptized into One Body, in which we drink One cup (vv. 12--13)
Gospel: John 7:37--39
Sermon Title: Water From The Rock
Sermon Angle: The invitation by Jesus to come to him and drink (v. 37) needs to be viewed against the backdrop of the Feast of Tabernacles. The feast commemorated a historical event
198
when God supplied water to his thirsty people from a rock (Numbers 20:2--13). This event was symbolically reenacted during the feast by taking water from the pool of Siloam to the temple. When Moses struck the rock and water gushed forth, it quenched the thirst of the body temporarily. What Jesus offered was an eternal source of water for the soul (the Spirit). Jesus remains the Rock of our salvation.
Outline:
1. The Feast celebrated God's provision for the natural thirst of the body
2. Satisfying physical needs does not suffice
3. Jesus is the Rock (Source) of the spring of eternal life (the Spirit)
4. Are you drinking from that Rock?
Gospel: John 20:19--23
Sermon Title: Expiration, Inspiration, A New Creation
Sermon Angle: In the creation account in Genesis, it tells that God breathed into the lifeless clay that he had fashioned and it became a living human being. In this account, Christ breathed on the moribund band of followers and they became a new creation. Through God's expiration of the breath of life and our inspiration of his life--giving Spirit, we are re--formed into a new creation. By God's grace, we have not only form but spirit.
Outline:
1. God breathed into our lifeless form and we became an incarnate spirit
2. Sin and death suck out the breath of life
3. If we belong to Christ, he re--animates us with his living Spirit
4. Breathe into others the breath of life. Life is sustained only through a reciprocal process of inspiration and expiration.
Sermon Title: The Peace Process
Sermon Angle: We often hear the term ''peace process'' in reference to the efforts to reconcile peoples and nations that are in conflict with one another. This tells us that peace is not simple; it usually involves a multi--stepped process in which there is movement on both sides. God's peace is different. It is not negotiated but given freely. Christ granted his peace to his distraught disciples, reassuring them of his love and forgiveness. Christ loves us and forgives us, even when we fail him. An essential part of the peace process is accepting God's peace and then sharing it with others. That's why he sent them out with his message of forgiveness (v. 23).
Outline:
1. Such things as failure and conflict steal our peace
2. When we belong to Christ, he bestows his peace when we need it
3. He commissions us to share the peace and forgiveness of the Lord
Pentecostalism has often been weak in theology, while it has been strong on experience - the opposite of traditional Protestantism. An example is Benny Hinn, prominently featured on the Trinity Broadcasting Network. Hinn, who authored a best--selling religious book titled, Good Morning Holy Spirit, preached a television sermon in October of 1990, which elicited numerous charges of heresy. In that sermon, Hinn revealed that each person of the Trinity was a triune being: He boldly proclaimed: ''If I can shock you ... there are nine of them.'' Hinn has since repudiated this assertion. He has also recanted a claim that he has received revelations directly from God. (Information gleaned from Christianity Today.)
The modern day Pentecostal movement got off the ground in 1901, during a revival on Azusa Street, Los Angeles, under the ministry of a black evangelist by the name of William Seymour.
199
A reporter wrote disparagingly that ''that night was made hideous by howlings of the worshippers.'' From this modest beginning, Pentecostalism has swelled into a movement that contains well over 100 million devotees and is growing rapidly. The three largest congregations on the planet are Pentecostal. Dr. Paul Cho's Full Gospel Central Church in Seoul, Korea, boasts over 500,000 weekly participants. (Information gleaned from Christianity Today; ''America's Pentecostals: Who Are They?'' by Grant Wacker.)
200
Lesson 1: Acts 2:1--21 (C); Acts 2:1--11 (RC, E)
The promised Spirit comes upon the church in the midst of the throngs of pilgrims that were making their way to the temple to celebrate the Jewish festival of Pentecost. The believers in Christ received the Spirit in dramatic and visible form, as tongues of flame and the ability to speak in other languages. This is not glossalalia because the pilgrims heard the church speak in their own language. The people are perplexed and amazed and so Peter interprets the event as a fulfillment of Joel 2:28--29, that God would bestow his Spirit on all flesh, not just a select few. He urges the assembly to repent and be saved.
Lesson 1: Joel 2:28--29 (L)
Joel foresees a time when God will pour out his Spirit on all people. Old and young alike will have dreams and visions. Even the most humble person will receive God's Spirit.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 12:3b--13 (C); 1 Corinthians 12:3--7, 12--13 (RC); 1 Corinthians 12:4--13 (E)
Paul lays out some of the gifts which the Spirit supplies to the church, such as faith, prophecy, miracles, healing and the like. He names nine gifts but this should not be taken to be an all--inclusive catalog. No one has all the gifts of the Spirit but we each have, at least, one of them.
Lesson 2: Acts 2:1--21 (L)
See above.
Gospel: John 7:37--39 (C)
Jesus goes up to the temple unbeknownst to his family and teaches the crowds, assembled for the Feast of Tabernacles. On the last day of the feast, the Lord issues an invitation not unlike the one he issued in Matthew 11:28--30. Those who had a thirst for God were invited to come to him in faith and from their hearts would flow streams of living water. Through Jesus would come the Holy Spirit after he was glorified. This invitation becomes vivid for those at the temple festivities because, every day during the feast, water would be drawn from the Pool of Siloam and taken to the temple. That practice was to portray God giving the children of Israel water from the rock, as they journeyed through the desert. Water remains the prime symbol of life and Jesus takes it unto himself.
195
Gospel: John 20:19--23 (RC, E, L)
This is John's Pentecost story. The setting is not out in public, as in Acts, but in the Upper Room, where the disciples were cloistered behind locked doors. Suddenly, the risen Christ stands in their midst, granting peace to their fearful hearts. Christ commissions them to go out and spread the gospel. He then empowers them with the Holy Spirit and the authority to pronounce God's forgiveness.
Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 104:24--34 (C, E, L); Psalm 104 (RC) - ''When you send forth your Spirit, they are created ... and you renew the face of the ground'' (v. 30).
Prayer Of The Day
O Spirit of wind and fire, breathe into our souls your life giving and life sustaining Spirit. Fan the embers of our feeble faith into full flame, that we might boldly witness to your love and grace, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Acts 2:1--21
Tower of Babel reversed. People of many different nations flooded into Jerusalem to worship God at the temple. It is no coincidence that God selected this time to pour out his Spirit. He desired to counter the divisive effects of race and nation. Pentecost reverses the Tower of Babel story, where humankind became fragmented, as evidenced by the confusion of language. At Pentecost, the believers did not speak the same language but were given the ability to speak the gospel in foreign languages. The Spirit still gives us the ability to speak in such a way that those from different backgrounds can hear the gospel comprehensively.
Word processing the Spirit. Those who witnessed the Pentecost drama were amazed and perplexed. They saw some wonderful things but didn't know what it meant (vv. 7--12). They needed a word processor to make sense of that which had happened. Peter stepped in to interpret the activity of the Spirit in light of the Word of God and to call for a response.
Lesson 1: Joel 2:28--29
Liquid Spirit. Joel predicts that God will pour out his Spirit on all flesh. The image is that of pouring out some liquid, such as water. This ties in with Christian baptism, where the Spirit is given through water and the Word. If the Spirit is liquid, that means that it can take the shape of its container. God pours his Spirit into many different sizes and shapes of containers, namely us. We don't have to talk alike or look the same. We just have to admit that we are empty vessels who need to be filled.
The Spirit unbottled. In the Old Testament, God gave his Spirit to a person here and there. Otherwise it was bottled up. Joel envisions a time when God would take out the cork and pour forth his Spirit on many. Peter saw the events witnessed in Acts 2 as the uncorking of the Spirit.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 12:3--13
Varieties of religious experience. William James wrote a book on this topic to portray the various ways that humans experience God. No two people worship and serve God exactly the same way. Faith is as unique as each of us. This results not only from our unique genetic makeup but also from the fact that the Spirit has gifted us with a special configuration of spiritual gifts. Paul says that there is only one Spirit but various gifts that flow from the same Spirit. God is not in the business of turning out carbon copies, only first edition masterpieces.
196
Gospel: John 7:37--39
Well within. Living in a semiarid part of the world, the Hebrews were always concerned that they be near a source of water. Aridity for the spirit is every bit as deadly as for the land. Jesus promises that those who come to him in faith will not only have their spiritual thirst quenched but that he will provide an artesian well of the Spirit that will continue to bubble up from within the believer. That promise was fulfilled at Pentecost. With the well within, all would be well therein.
Gospel: John 20:19--23
Pervasive peace. The disciples were still paralyzed with fear, even though in the morning Mary Magdalene reported that she had seen the risen Christ, even after Peter and John witnessed the empty tomb. Their basic sense that the world was a good and trustworthy place had been violated by the brutal murder of their Lord. Then the resurrected Lord appeared in their midst. Twice in our text he confers his peace. The world was still a dangerous and threatening place, but their fear vanished with the realization that they were not alone. Christ was with them, conferring the peace of his presence.
Exorcize your fears by exercising your faith. The way to overcome your fears is not to hide from them but face them. Christ sent his little band of believers from behind closed doors out into the open, to face the very people who had filled them with fear (v. 21).
Breathe on us, breath of God. Luke's version of Pentecost describes the impartation of the Spirit as the sound of a mighty wind. This occurred in a public setting. John's version of Pentecost has Jesus breathing on his disciples to impart the life--giving power of the Holy Spirit. This happened in a private setting. Both breath and wind are related. Sometimes the Spirit comes to us as a gentle breath, filling our inward being with life and hope. Other times, we experience the Spirit as a mighty wind of change that shakes everything in its path.
PREACHING APPROACHES WITH ILLUSTRATIONS
Lesson 1: Acts 2:1--21
This lection can be combined with the Gospel from John to form a memorable sermon.
Sermon Title: The ''Ps'' Of Pentecost
Sermon Angle: The idea of God as Spirit is hard to get a handle on. We can relate to the idea of God the Creator and Jesus, the Son of God, our Savior, but the symbol of Holy Spirit is somewhat vague and mysterious, even dangerous. The other two persons of the Trinity lend themselves more readily to intellectual constructs but the Spirit has to be experienced to be known. Nevertheless, we can attempt to understand the function of the Spirit by associating it with certain words that begin with ''P.'' Based on the First Lesson and the Gospel, we will briefly discuss the ''Ps'' of Pentecost. Luke's Pentecost is different from John's but they both inform us concerning the manner in which Christians experience the Spirit.
From the account in Acts 2, we see how the Holy Spirit came down on the assembled believers in Power. The Hebrew word for spirit is wind. Most of us have witnessed the tremendous energy inherent in wind. A tornado can pulverize a house. A hurricane can bend a steel pole at a 90 degree angle. The Acts account describes the descent of the Spirit as a mighty wind. The demonstration of the power of the Spirit caught the attention of the witnesses. When the Church is filled with the power of the Spirit, old barriers come crashing down, lives are healed and transformed. The greatest power that the church possesses is the reconciling power of forgiveness. This power must not be used to manipulate believers through guilt and fear but to free people from the paralyzing grip of sin.
The second ''P'' of Pentecost is Presence. When Jesus appeared to the terrorized little band of believers in the Upper Room, as told by John, he lifted their spirits by his presence. They were no longer alone or forsaken. Jesus showed them his wounds that they might know it was
197
him. If we know that God is with us and that his love reaches even the deepest valley of our souls, we can face almost anything.
The third ''P'' of Pentecost is Peace. In John's account, Jesus repeats the greeting, ''Peace be with you.'' The peace of Christ is not an absence of conflict but a total sense of well--being.
The fourth ''P'' of Pentecost is Prophecy. According to Acts, those who witnessed the in--rush of the Spirit were perplexed. They didn't know what to make of this unusual event. They were even accused of being drunk. Peter stood up to explain what it all meant. He explained it as a fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel. Prophecy actually means ''to speak forth or declare.'' That's what Peter did, so that others could make sense of the signs and wonders. Such proclamation calls for a response: to repent and believe the Good News of Jesus Christ. Any so--called manifestation of the Spirit needs to be interpreted through the lens of the Word Incarnate and the written Word. Any manifestation at odds with the life and teachings of Jesus is to be rejected.
The last ''P'' of Pentecost is Purpose. The Spirit does not act erratically. Behind the mystery is purpose. Peter interprets that purpose as being prepared for the ''Day of the Lord'' (v. 20) through repentance and faith. For John, that purpose is to make known the forgiveness of sins, through the power of the Spirit (vv. 22--23).
We could add an additional ''P'' of Pentecost for Personal. The Holy Spirit is not an idea but a person. Our major task is not to understand the Spirit but to receive the Spirit into our person. The Spirit is given to all who know, trust and walk with Jesus.
Outline:
1. Pentecost Power
2. Pentecost Presence
3. Pentecost Peace
4. Pentecost Prophecy
5. Pentecost Purpose
Lesson 1: Joel 2:28--29
Sermon Title: How To Bring Down The Rain
Sermon Angle: In the Old Testament times, the Spirit of God was like an isolated shower, it descended on a person here and there. Joel predicts that the Spirit would shower down on all of God's people and it would be a real gully--washer. The Spirit would rain down on people without regard to power, merit or status. What was it that caused the Spirit of God to rain down on so many people at Pentecost? A shared trust in the risen Christ. We cannot make the Spirit rain down on us but we can insulate ourselves from its life--giving flow through unbelief.
Lesson 2: 1 Corinthians 12:3--13
Sermon Title: One Spirit, Many Gifts
Sermon Angle: Throughout this passage, Paul emphasizes that there is only one Spirit, who bestows many gifts. Gifts can be divisive if we forget that they are gifts. We see this problem in the Corinthian Church where, for example, the gift of speaking in tongues was prized more highly than other gifts. Some took pride in their gifts but disparaged the gifts bestowed on their brothers and sisters. Paul's emphasis on the ''one'' Spirit was a way of pointing to the source of their unity. He reminds them that the gifts of the Spirit are granted so as to promote the common good (v. 7), not to make us stand--out as individuals.
Outline:
1. Society encourages us to assert our individuality - get noticed
2. The Spirit would have us realize our unity
3. By the One Spirit we are baptized into One Body, in which we drink One cup (vv. 12--13)
Gospel: John 7:37--39
Sermon Title: Water From The Rock
Sermon Angle: The invitation by Jesus to come to him and drink (v. 37) needs to be viewed against the backdrop of the Feast of Tabernacles. The feast commemorated a historical event
198
when God supplied water to his thirsty people from a rock (Numbers 20:2--13). This event was symbolically reenacted during the feast by taking water from the pool of Siloam to the temple. When Moses struck the rock and water gushed forth, it quenched the thirst of the body temporarily. What Jesus offered was an eternal source of water for the soul (the Spirit). Jesus remains the Rock of our salvation.
Outline:
1. The Feast celebrated God's provision for the natural thirst of the body
2. Satisfying physical needs does not suffice
3. Jesus is the Rock (Source) of the spring of eternal life (the Spirit)
4. Are you drinking from that Rock?
Gospel: John 20:19--23
Sermon Title: Expiration, Inspiration, A New Creation
Sermon Angle: In the creation account in Genesis, it tells that God breathed into the lifeless clay that he had fashioned and it became a living human being. In this account, Christ breathed on the moribund band of followers and they became a new creation. Through God's expiration of the breath of life and our inspiration of his life--giving Spirit, we are re--formed into a new creation. By God's grace, we have not only form but spirit.
Outline:
1. God breathed into our lifeless form and we became an incarnate spirit
2. Sin and death suck out the breath of life
3. If we belong to Christ, he re--animates us with his living Spirit
4. Breathe into others the breath of life. Life is sustained only through a reciprocal process of inspiration and expiration.
Sermon Title: The Peace Process
Sermon Angle: We often hear the term ''peace process'' in reference to the efforts to reconcile peoples and nations that are in conflict with one another. This tells us that peace is not simple; it usually involves a multi--stepped process in which there is movement on both sides. God's peace is different. It is not negotiated but given freely. Christ granted his peace to his distraught disciples, reassuring them of his love and forgiveness. Christ loves us and forgives us, even when we fail him. An essential part of the peace process is accepting God's peace and then sharing it with others. That's why he sent them out with his message of forgiveness (v. 23).
Outline:
1. Such things as failure and conflict steal our peace
2. When we belong to Christ, he bestows his peace when we need it
3. He commissions us to share the peace and forgiveness of the Lord
Pentecostalism has often been weak in theology, while it has been strong on experience - the opposite of traditional Protestantism. An example is Benny Hinn, prominently featured on the Trinity Broadcasting Network. Hinn, who authored a best--selling religious book titled, Good Morning Holy Spirit, preached a television sermon in October of 1990, which elicited numerous charges of heresy. In that sermon, Hinn revealed that each person of the Trinity was a triune being: He boldly proclaimed: ''If I can shock you ... there are nine of them.'' Hinn has since repudiated this assertion. He has also recanted a claim that he has received revelations directly from God. (Information gleaned from Christianity Today.)
The modern day Pentecostal movement got off the ground in 1901, during a revival on Azusa Street, Los Angeles, under the ministry of a black evangelist by the name of William Seymour.
199
A reporter wrote disparagingly that ''that night was made hideous by howlings of the worshippers.'' From this modest beginning, Pentecostalism has swelled into a movement that contains well over 100 million devotees and is growing rapidly. The three largest congregations on the planet are Pentecostal. Dr. Paul Cho's Full Gospel Central Church in Seoul, Korea, boasts over 500,000 weekly participants. (Information gleaned from Christianity Today; ''America's Pentecostals: Who Are They?'' by Grant Wacker.)
200
