Gifts of the Spirit
Pentecost, May 28, 2023
Helen Weber-McReynolds, RWCP
Acts 2: 1-21; Ps. 104, Lord Send Out Your Spirit; 1 Cor 12: 4-13; John 20: 19-22
I recently learned a Gospel song, and the lyrics go like this: This joy that I have, the world didn’t give it to me. The other verses change to this strength that I have, this pride, this love, this peace. Then they all end in: The world didn’t give it, the world can’t take it away. This song helped me understand the gift Jesus’ disciples received the day of Pentecost, and the gifts we receive from the Holy Spirit as well. These gifts, of joy, strength, love, pride, and peace, for example, are not gifts we can earn by following the right rules, or going to the right church. There is nothing we can do to deserve these gifts, other than exist as beloved creatures of God. God gives these gifts from pure unmerited love. We have them because of God’s generosity; it is not transactional.
And it is the Holy Spirit who is with us in the world and communicates these gifts to us. Jesus promised Wisdom Sophia as an advocate before his death, and so now we know she is the Spirit of God alive and inspiring God’s love in us, and in every other creature. As we heard in our second reading today, everyone is gifted a little differently, and it takes all those diverse gifts to make up the Body of Christ. Alive with our many and varied blessings, we bring Christ’s love to the world. We are charged with helping to care for the sick, help the blind see, help the lame walk, and help the oppressed find justice.
The Spirit joins Jesus the Christ and the Creator in the flow of love that is God. We don’t know exactly what happened when the Spirit came to the disciples on the first Pentecost 2000 years ago. We heard two different descriptions in our first reading and Gospel today. But we know the Spirit must have inspired dramatic change. Our first reading today expressed this change as moving the disciples from fear, locked away together in the upper room, afraid they might be the next victims of execution, to moving out into Jerusalem to spread Jesus’ teachings, using whatever language it took to help their listeners understand. The writer of Acts used the symbolism of a driving wind and burning flames to emphasize the drama of the in-Spir-ation the disciples felt. Evidently reflecting together on all Jesus’ words to them, on Jesus’ death, and now the signs they had seen that he was still alive with them, moved them so strongly that they lost their fear and felt that all they wanted to do was to take the love of Christ, and the Spirit of God, out to the city to share it with everyone there.
As Jesus’ disciples in 2023 in Indianapolis, Rochester, Huntington, Chapel Hill, and all our homes, how are we called to share the love of Jesus? How can the Spirit of God in all things and all people in-Spire us to help bring health, strength, peace, pride, and justice? Not only to all people, but to our endangered planet? The Spirit flows to us through all other beings. She is present in God’s trees, rocks, animals, flowers, soil, water, and air. We are all members of our Creator’s family, brought together by wisdom Sophia. What am I called to do to keep our family thriving and loving? What are you called to do?
I learned another song recently, as well. Its lyrics are I breath for the trees, and they breathe for me, I breathe for the trees, and they breathe for me. The Spirit’s breath, that driving wind, is in us all. What are we called to do to keep it flowing?
Pentecost, May 28, 2023
Helen Weber-McReynolds, RWCP
Acts 2: 1-21; Ps. 104, Lord Send Out Your Spirit; 1 Cor 12: 4-13; John 20: 19-22
I recently learned a Gospel song, and the lyrics go like this: This joy that I have, the world didn’t give it to me. The other verses change to this strength that I have, this pride, this love, this peace. Then they all end in: The world didn’t give it, the world can’t take it away. This song helped me understand the gift Jesus’ disciples received the day of Pentecost, and the gifts we receive from the Holy Spirit as well. These gifts, of joy, strength, love, pride, and peace, for example, are not gifts we can earn by following the right rules, or going to the right church. There is nothing we can do to deserve these gifts, other than exist as beloved creatures of God. God gives these gifts from pure unmerited love. We have them because of God’s generosity; it is not transactional.
And it is the Holy Spirit who is with us in the world and communicates these gifts to us. Jesus promised Wisdom Sophia as an advocate before his death, and so now we know she is the Spirit of God alive and inspiring God’s love in us, and in every other creature. As we heard in our second reading today, everyone is gifted a little differently, and it takes all those diverse gifts to make up the Body of Christ. Alive with our many and varied blessings, we bring Christ’s love to the world. We are charged with helping to care for the sick, help the blind see, help the lame walk, and help the oppressed find justice.
The Spirit joins Jesus the Christ and the Creator in the flow of love that is God. We don’t know exactly what happened when the Spirit came to the disciples on the first Pentecost 2000 years ago. We heard two different descriptions in our first reading and Gospel today. But we know the Spirit must have inspired dramatic change. Our first reading today expressed this change as moving the disciples from fear, locked away together in the upper room, afraid they might be the next victims of execution, to moving out into Jerusalem to spread Jesus’ teachings, using whatever language it took to help their listeners understand. The writer of Acts used the symbolism of a driving wind and burning flames to emphasize the drama of the in-Spir-ation the disciples felt. Evidently reflecting together on all Jesus’ words to them, on Jesus’ death, and now the signs they had seen that he was still alive with them, moved them so strongly that they lost their fear and felt that all they wanted to do was to take the love of Christ, and the Spirit of God, out to the city to share it with everyone there.
As Jesus’ disciples in 2023 in Indianapolis, Rochester, Huntington, Chapel Hill, and all our homes, how are we called to share the love of Jesus? How can the Spirit of God in all things and all people in-Spire us to help bring health, strength, peace, pride, and justice? Not only to all people, but to our endangered planet? The Spirit flows to us through all other beings. She is present in God’s trees, rocks, animals, flowers, soil, water, and air. We are all members of our Creator’s family, brought together by wisdom Sophia. What am I called to do to keep our family thriving and loving? What are you called to do?
I learned another song recently, as well. Its lyrics are I breath for the trees, and they breathe for me, I breathe for the trees, and they breathe for me. The Spirit’s breath, that driving wind, is in us all. What are we called to do to keep it flowing?
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