PENTECOST

Genesis 1
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

1 Samuel 16:11 ...
Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”  So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”
So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David.

Psalm 51:10-12
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

John 1:1-3
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 7:37-39
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.

We all know the story of the first Pentecost.  If you need to refresh your memory you can read the 2nd chapter of Acts for the long version.  and yet, today -- Pentecost Sunday -- I've chosen another reading, the last one shown above from the 7th chapter of John's gospel.


This was another "discussion sermon" at FCC Ukiah - one where I set the stage and then everyone shares their thoughts on the reading.  I always throw out a few questions as "thought-provokers" - but this time our whole conversation ended up circling around one question:

The reading from John comes early in Jesus' public ministry, so this is a promise of things to come.  What do you think it means -- in the light of the traditional Acts readin for Pentecost -- when it says "For as yet there was no Spirit...?"

We then read some of the Old Testament readings that clearly speak of the Holy Spirit, here among humankind (see above).  We all then found ourselves sharing such questions as "When is the Spirit here and when is it not?  Why do we sometimes 'feel' that presence and other times not?   Do we really believe we are ever left alone -- and if we do, whose fault is that?  Can we consciously be more aware of the Spirit's action in our lives?"


Read the quoted scriptures above - has there been a time when the Spirit was not present in your life?