Power to Witness

Pentecost: Ma= y 31, 2009

Rev Ken Wratten at St Stephen’s, S= an Jose

Acts 2:1-21

Psalm 104:25-35, 37

Romans 9:22-27

John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15

Maybe you grew up in your faith life something like I grew up in mine. I grew up learning the stories about ancient people who experienced God in their live= s, in pretty miraculous ways. Eventually I reached the point of making my own decision to believe in God, and to believe in Jesus as the Son of God… And then I waited, and I prayed, and I studied, always hoping for God to gi= ve me a sure, unmistakable, impossible to miss, flashing-lights kind of a sign that He is here, He is listening, and He cares. That’s all I need, I would pray; in order to have a really rock-solid faith, so it can be there,= during those silent times when I don’t feel God near me. <= /p>

The Pentecost Day experience gave the first faith community irrefutable proof t= hat God was there with them, was listening, and cared about them. At that fi= rst Pentecost Day the disciples were empowered to share their knowledge and experience of God’s work in a powerful, effective, and spectacular wa= y. At this Pentecost today, yo= u and I celebrate the gifts we have been given; even if some of those gifts are y= et to be discovered by us.

We have received the Holy Spirit at our baptism. But have we claimed all of our gifts?

Listen to what Paul wrote to the Ephesians in chapter 3.

“I pray that, according to the riches of (the Father’s) glory, he may gr= ant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power though his Spirit…”

Too many of us fail to use this power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, in our r= elationships, and in our ministries. Too many of us miss out on feeling ‘strengthen= ed in our inner being’. So= today I want us to examine some Scripture references about the Holy Spirit, to se= e descriptions of this Pentecost Day gift every one of us has already received.

1. The Holy Spirit prov= es the world wrong. (John 16:7,8) Jesus said, "If I do not go away, the Advoca= te^* will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸And when he comes, he will prov= e the world wrong about^* sin and righteousness and judgment.= " = What the world offers is NOT enough= . When you have an ethical decision to make, how do you make it? What moral compas= s do you use to decide what is ‘right’ and what is ‘wrong̵= 7; in that situation? You can rely on ‘what feels good’, or what y= ou think your friends will approve of, or you can ask the Holy Spirit to guide= you in your decision. Jesus says that this is one of the purposes of the Holy Spirit living in you: to help you distingui= sh and follow God’s way.

2. The Holy Spirit g= uides you into truth. (John 16:13) Jesus said, "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his o= wn, but will speak whatever he hears." Our faith has as a core tenet, the sanctity of relationships. Being in healthy relationship is so sacrosanct t= hat God even expects us to be in that kind of relationship with people we don’t agree with; with people we don’t like; even with people we don’t know. This life style is not an easy one. We need all the wisdom and understanding we can muster. And Jesus declares that the Holy Spirit can provide you and me with that wisdom of what is real truth, direct from God.=

Maybe you have felt called to confront somebody about a way they have hurt you; o= r a way they are hurting themselves. And maybe when you confronted that person = you found yourself able to communicate the truth in a way that connected with t= hat person deeply. The Holy Spirit guides us into truth.

3. The Holy Spirit is ready to empower you to bring glory to God. (John 16:14) Jesus said, "(T= he Spirit) will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you." By you giving auth= ority to the Holy Spirit in your life, you bring glory to God, just as Christ has= brought glory to God. Last week my gr= andson Coleman made the winning home run in a baseball game. His dad was there to = see it. Can you imagine the pride Ron showed for his son? Coleman’s good = work brought glory to his dad. Imagine the glory that is brought to God when you= and I give authority to the Holy Spirit to work in us, to fulfill God’s purpose through us, to build relationships like the one that is shared by G= od the Father and his Son. The Holy Spirit empowers us to bring glory to God. =

4. The Holy Spirit p= leads our concerns to God. (Rom. 8:26) Paul wrote, "The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not = know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with gr= oans that words cannot express." We might feel at a loss for words, not kno= wing how to ask God for what we need, or to ask for understanding of what is happening. The Spirit living in you knows what you feel, knows exactly how = to make that known to God, and will give you the right words at the right time. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide your prayer.

5. The Holy Spirit r= efreshes you with hope and love. (Rom. 5:5) Paul wrote, "Hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the H= oly Spirit, whom he has given us." Take a daily inventory of the places yo= u have hope and love is in your life. Hope and Love are gifts that come from God, = and the awareness of them comes from the Holy Spirit.

6. The Holy Spirit clea= nses, sanctifies and justifies you. (I Cor. 6:11) Paul wrote, "You we= re washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jes= us Christ and by the Spirit of our God." It was because of what Jesus did fo= r us that we are made right with God, and we are even made holy. It is by the Ho= ly Spirit that we understand this to be true, and accept it in faith, and are = able to reflect that truth in the way we live our lives; lives turned over to Go= d.

7. Finally, the Holy Spirit regenerates you. (John 3:3-5) Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, no one can see th= e kingdom of God unless he is born again.” How can a man be born when he is old? Surel= y he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born? Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit."

And this is why we celebrate Pentecost with balloons, song, bells, prayers and = red drinks at coffee hour. Through the Holy Spirit we receive power for our lif= e:

We receive a standard for living that sometimes opposes the values of the worl= d; but it comes from God.

We receive wisdom and understanding to speak truth in love.<= /p>

We receive the ability to bring glory to God through the decisions we make in = our lives.

We receive a deeper level of prayer; a prayer beyond words.<= /p>

We receive understanding that the hope and love in our lives are from God.

We know that we are made clean, sacred and justified before God.

And we are born of the Spirit; we are made into something new, raised to a leve= l of being that is beyond our physical life.

I pray that these ways of the Holy Spirit will all be recognized by you, so t= hat your faith can be rock-solid; and so that your love for our Lord Jesus Chri= st will overflow. Amen.