1 Sunday, June 12, 2011 Day of Pentecost Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Denver, Colorado Pastor Dena Williams

Acts 2:121 (Birthday of the Church) (PeterListen!) Psalm 104:24-35 (Gods Spirit brings Creation) I Corinthians 12:3b-13 (Birthday Gifts of the Holy Spirit for the Church) John 7:37-39 (Out of the believers heart . . .) And I Corinthians 2:9 The Holy Gospel according to the Community of St. John in the 7th Chapter Glory to you, O Lord On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, 'Out of the believer's heart shall flow rivers of living water.'" Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified. The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you, O Christ Today we, and Christians everywhere welcome the Holy Spirit. Pentecost, a strange story. From Acts we read how the people came together in one place, people of all nations. They received the Holy Spirit as rushing wind, as tongues of fire,

2 resting on each one. They were filled with the Holy Spirit, speaking in one anothers languages, everyone understanding one another perfectly. A gathered crowd is bewildered, amazed, and astonished. Their explanation is that the people are drunk. One of the disciples, Peter, stands and explains that the people are not drunk, but are filled with the Holy Spirit. Peter quotes from the prophet Joel, who wrote of the coming of the day when sons and daughters will prophesy, when young men will see visions and old men will dream dreams. Peter, the disciple who never minces words, announces in a loud voice, Listen! The day of Pentecost is here! He proclaims: The Spirit is the one who comes with power from on high, the one who comes with energy and strength, the one who comes as flames of fire and violent wind, with visions of blood and smoky mist. This is the Spirit who blows through our lives as a rushing wind, a brewing storm, the flash of lightning, the roar of a tornado, with power and courage from on high. The compelling Spirit who accompanies us on the dangerous and scary parts of our journey. The Spirit given to risk-takers, to prophets, to pilgrims the Spirit given to those who live forward into the future God has planned for us.

The Spirit who takes our breath away with a vision of all God promises to those who believe, those willing to live into Gods amazing future. So the Holy Spirit comes among us! Our journey to this day of Pentecost began on Ash Wednesday, several months ago. On that day, we receive a cross of ashes, the remains of fire on our foreheads. We repent. We walk through the season of Lent. We reflect. In Holy Week, we go to the garden and the cross with our Lord Christ. We regret. On Easter Sunday and the seven Sundays of Easter, we rejoice. Our journey, begun in ashes, brings us to this day of living fire. And on this day, we resolve. Pentecost calls us to resolution. Pentecost calls us to go boldly, perhaps, to boldly go where no one has gone before! For some, that may indeed be outer space. For most of us, probably not! Where then shall we go? Weve repented, reflected, lived with regret, weve rejoiced, and now, on this Day of Pentecost, what shall we resolve? We might resolve on this day to be good. We remind our children to be good, to behave.

4 Its important, we say, to behave. One of mine said to me once, I am being have! Is that what we resolve on this day, to behave? We might resolve on this day to be nice. Thats something else we tell our children, and, yes, its important: Be nice! Pretty is as pretty does. Mind your manners. Is that what we resolve on this day, to be nice? We might resolve on this day to share. Its one of those sandbox rules. Share your toys. Take turns. Is that what we resolve on this day, to share? Those are all good resolutions to behave, to be nice, to share. Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, I believe, calls us this day to do more than obey the sandbox rules. Of course, its important to behave, to be nice, to share . . . On this day of Pentecost, I believe, the Holy Spirit calls us to get out of the sandbox! But we like it here, Holy Spirit! The sand is warm and soft. We have our buckets and shovels to build sand castles. Were all playing by the rules. Its very pleasant and fun right here in the sandbox! The Holy Spirit calls us beyond the sandbox.

5 The Spirit calls us to use our gifts, to make a difference, out there, in the world. The Spirit calls us to prophesy, to see visions, to dream dreams. On this day, the birthday of the church, the Holy Spirit comes to the party, comes and brings us presents. Its time to get out of the sandbox and go to the birthday party and open the presents! There are special ones for each of us wisdom for one, knowledge for another. faith for this one, actually, a package of faith for every guest at the party! The gift of healing of body, mind, or Spirit all wrapped up for that child of God over there. Theres one with a huge shiny silver bow, for that woman, its the gift to bring about miracles. For that man, a big blue box filled with the ability to prophesy, the ability to shape a better future for our world. And for that young person, the gift of discernment, the card on this package has a picture of the scales of justice. Oh! And heres a special one its the gift of languages, the ability to communicate across cultural and ethnic barriers. Ooo! I want that one! The Spirit calls us from the sandbox, Come to the birthday party! Open your presents!

6 Resolve this day to use your gifts to take a risk, to go where youve never gone before, to begin a journey, a sacred pilgrimage to new life! And we are terrified! We say were too young or too old, too infirm or too busy! The Spirit calls us beyond our fear, Leave the sandbox, claim your gift, go boldly into the future God has in store for you! The Spirit calls us to Fire up! Do you know what happens when something burns? First, the substance has to reach a high enough temperature to ignite. It has to fire up. Then volatile gasses are released. When the gasses get hot enough, the molecules of the substance break apart and heat is released. The atoms from the broken molecules recombine to form new substances: carbon dioxide, other substances depending on the kind of fuel that is burning, and, always, some of the atoms recombine to form . . . water! Hear the words of Jesus, once again: "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, 'Out of the believer's heart shall flow rivers of living water.'" We are called by the Holy Spirit,

7 On this Pentecost Day, to fire up! To get out of the sandbox, come to the birthday party, open our presents, take our gifts into the world for Out of the believers heart shall flow rivers of living water. Living water! Remember Jesus words for the Samaritan woman at the well? A story we heard in the season of Lent: "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life." Living water! So Jesus reminds us of the greatest gift of all time. It is the gift of Gods never ending love for us and for all people, of Gods deep and eternal love for the world. The Holy Spirit calls us this Pentecost day to come to the party, to open this gift of no-matter-what love, to find the presents with our name on the tag, our own, personal gifts of the Spirit, given to us by our loving God, to go into the world, to share Gods love in all we say and do. Amen