Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Pentecostal Power

Pastor Sherry’s Message for May 28, 2023

Scriptures: Acts 2:1-21; Ps 104:24-34; 1 Cor 12:3-14; Jn 7:37-44

Isn’t it interesting that sometimes what you thought you heard may not necessarily have been what was said? Or even if you heard what was said accurately, the words used conveyed something different to you depending on your background and experiences?

For example, there is…

“an old joke that used to be popular around the Pentagon that the different branches of the Armed Forces have trouble operating jointly because they don’t speak the same language.

For example, if you told Navy personnel to “secure a building,” they would turn off the lights and lock the doors.

Army personnel would occupy the building so no one could enter.

Marines would storm the building, capture it, and defend it with suppressive fire and close combat.

The Air Force, on the other hand, would take out a three-year lease with an option to buy. “ (Illustration borrowed from www.sermons.com, 5/25/23.)

This joke is such a good example of how the same word can mean something different to different groups of folks. The word Pentecostal is another such word. To most, the noun, Pentecost, refers to the day we celebrate today, the anniversary of the day the Holy Spirit was given to all believers in Jesus, and the day the Church (capital “C”—Christians of all denominations) was born. It also marks an ancient Jewish religious feast day. It commemorated the end of the barley harvest and the beginning of the wheat harvest—the Spring Harvest season. Thus it was one of the 3 times per year a Jewish man was expected to journey to Jerusalem (The other two times were for Passover and the Feast of Tabernacles).

But consensus breaks down when the adjective form, Pentecostal, is used. This could refer to a Christian denomination, for example Pentecostal Holiness. A good number of folks associate it with speaking in tongues—and some Pentecostal churches believe you must speak in tongues to demonstrate you have been baptized in the Holy Spirit—though nowhere in Scripture is it stated that all spirit-filled Christians must speak in tongues. It could also mean charismatic—a person who believes in and moves in the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Our readings today are all Pentecostal, or refer to some aspect of the Pentecostal power that manifested that Day.

A. In our Acts 2:1-21 lesson, we are reminded of the supernatural power the Holy Spirit can and does demonstrate when He shows up. (1) There was the sound of wind rushing. In this case, it was like the sound of a tornado, but without the wind damage. That sound is like 5-6 locomotive engines rushing by. The Holy Spirit came on with such a loud sound that folks rushed out of their homes to see what had produced it. Prior to moving off to seminary, I asked a group of my friends to pray for me to receive the Holy Spirit. We had gathered on the beach at night for that purpose. A very strong wind came up and blew in my face as they were praying. I felt I could hardly breathe. Afterwards, I asked them what they made of that wind. No one else in the group had experienced it! We knew then that the Spirit had indeed come over me.

(2) There was also the curious sight of a larger flame in the air separating into smaller flames. Stranger still, the smaller flames come to rest over the heads of the 120 disciples gathered in that place. Like the bush Moses saw aflame as he was shepherding sheep, these flames did not burn anyone or anything.

(3) There was also the sudden, unexplained ability of all to speak in tongues/languages they had never been taught. Apparently all 120 disciples present were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. This power enabled them to do things they had never learned nor expected to be able to do.

Wouldn’t it be marvelous to instantly speak another language without the tedium of memorizing sounds, vocabulary words, and grammar rules, let alone another alphabet like that of Greek or Hebrew? These were not just a nonsense languages, gibberish, but actual languages and dialects recognized by the many nonbelievers who were there. People said, “Hey! Aren’t these men and women from Galilee?” In other words, “How do these “backwoods” folk know our native tongues?”

(4) Additionally, Peter—who had been unwilling to admit his association with Jesus just some 53 days earlier—is emboldened to preach to Jews (vv.14-36) about Jesus and 3,000 were so convinced by his sermon that they agreed to be baptized that day (v.41).

Miraculous, wonderful things happen when the Holy Spirit demonstrates His Pentecostal Power!

B. The key verse for us in Psalm 104:24-34 is verse 30 When You send Your Spirit, they [meaning humankind and all animal life] are created, and You renew the face of the earth.In this tribute to the creative power of God the Father, the Holy Spirit manifests this divine creative power. God may have efficiently used similar designs—apes have physical characteristics similar to humans—but He formed them all out of nothing. The originals were adults of two genders, so they could reproduce.

Each living thing is a manifestation of Holy Spirit power—remember, at the creation of the world, the Holy Spirit was hovering over the waters (Genesis 1:2). In a sense, we could say Pentecostal power was present at Creation.

C. In our 1 Corinthians 12:3-14 passage, Paul lists 9 gifts of the Holy Spirit (He has two other gifts lists in Romans 12:6-8 and 1 Corinthians 12:28-31.) These are each supernatural abilities bestowed on certain believers—not for their own entertainment or to puff up their egos—but (v.7) for the common good. They are meant to build up the body of Christ, His Church. They include (vv.8-10) wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, prophesy, distinguishing spirits (evil ones from good; angels from demons), speaking in tongues, and interpretation of tongues. Each believer is given at least one spiritual gift; some are given more than one. For example, sometimes when I pray for healing for a person and lay hands on them, my hands grow hot. The person I am praying for also feels those “hot hands.” The heat means the Holy Spirit is at work, healing them. I do not generate the heat and I do not experience it each time I pray for healing. This has led me to believe the gifting can come and go. Sometimes I have it and sometimes I don’t. It’s up to the Spirit when to apply it. And, again, the purpose of the gifts is to edify the Church, not the person who has the gift.

Think about it: What is (are) your spiritual gift(s)? You have been given Pentecostal power with which to help others.

D. In John 7:37-44, Jesus makes one of His I am statements. Remember, to the Jews, Yahweh or Father God was and is the Great I am. By saying, I am, Jesus was admitting He is equal to God and that He is God. Just prior to this chapter in John 6, Jesus states that He is the manna from heaven; He is heavenly food. Some turn away from Him then, misconstruing is metaphor as a cal for them to consume Him as in cannibalism. In John 7, He says He is living water to drink. Jesus is in Jerusalem at the Feast of Tabernacles (Ingathering, Booths, the Fall Harvest Festival). Believing Jews were to sleep in tents, booths, or tent-like structures meant to remind them of God’s provision for them during their 40 years of Wilderness Wanderings. For the 7 days of this national holiday, they were to do no work. They would worship the Lord at the Temple, daily, to seek forgiveness for their sins and to thank God for their harvest. Otherwise, they were to celebrate, feast, and visit with family and friends. On the eighth and last day of the Feast, the priests would pour water on the altar of sacrifices, dousing the flames and asking God to provide rain for another year.

According to John (vv.37-38), on the final day of the Feast, perhaps just as the priest poured water on the altar Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. He was saying, “I, God, give you what you need to sustain life.” This is the same living water He promised the Samaritan woman at the well. This water is a metaphor for a relationship with Christ that is life-giving and life-changing. John goes on to explain it also refers to the life-giving Spirit (v.39) By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

Jesus gives us what we need—life giving, flowing-not-stagnant, living water—by gifting us with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit empowers us to live a life pleasing to God, and to love others, as Jesus commanded us. Just as in chapter 6, His words caused confusion about His true identity among those listening.

But we are not confused, are we? We have the gift of the Holy Spirit, one of whose jobs is to reveal all that is true to us. You know, if you watch the news on TV and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal what is true, you can begin to know who lies and who speaks truthfully. We know, through the supernatural gift of faith, that Jesus is indeed the Christ. We also know He has imparted to us the Pentecostal power of the Holy Spirit.

As we walk out this next week, let’s try to remember…

(1) We worship an all-powerful, creative God;

(2) His Son, Jesus, has given us the powerful, power-filled Holy Spirit to lead, guide, and direct us here on earth.

(3) The Holy Spirit also gift us—according to His will—with supernatural abilities meant to benefit others. Ponder what those are for you. Consider how you have used them in the past and might use this Pentecostal Power even more fully in the present and in the future. We want to be believers in and practitioners of God’s Pentecostal Power.

©️2023 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Birds on a Buffalo

Pastor Sherry’s message for June 5, 2022

Scriptures: Acts 2:1-21; Ps 104:24-35; Ro 8:14-17; Jn 14:8-17, 25-27

In 2003, I went on a mission trip with the youth of the church I was serving at the time (in Philadelphia) to the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota. The Standing Rock covers an extraordinary amount of real estate from the south-central North Dakota to the northern portion of South Dakota. I found the temperatures of 108-115 to be very uncomfortable and I really hated the biting and stinging black flies—who seemed to love getting ahold of me. I had to buy a fly swatter to beat them off my arms and legs. YIKES! Nevertheless, the native Americans were fascinating. While our youth worked with theirs, I focused on ministry to the women of the tribe, talking with them about their families, their health, their way of life, and their view of God.

If you know anything about the history of the Lakota Sioux, you know they were totally dependent upon the buffalo for their food, clothing, shelter, tools, and so on. They followed the buffalo herds wherever they went, taking only what they needed and using all parts of the animal—including appropriating its tail as a fly-swatter. Essentially, their fortunes rose and fell with the availability of the herds. The Sioux word for Buffalo is tatanka. If you have ever seen the movie, “Dances with Wolves,” you may remember the Kevin Kostner character, an army cavalry officer, was trying to communicate with a few Sioux warriors. He made horns with his fingers and stomped on the ground to convey “buffalo.” The Sioux warriors initially thought he was not quite right in the head, but eventually realized what he was trying to convey. They named the animal in their language—tatonka—which I loosely translate as large, powerful, necessary critter. Interestingly, their word for God the Holy Spirit is the Wakantonka, the greatest of all beings! They knew they were totally dependent upon Him, even for the buffalo. I loved that picture of the Holy Spirit! He is the power-arm of the Trinity. No one can control Him! We, His creatures, are totally dependent upon Him.

We noted while we were there that the herds are coming back. I was fascinated with the buffalo, and asked us to pull our van over whenever we encountered a new herd. As I observed them in the wild, I noticed that many carried a little bird on their shoulders. It occurred to me then that we are to the Holy Spirit as that bird is to the buffalo: We are along for the ride, but unable to influence the direction, timing, or speed at which we travel. All the power resides with the buffalo.

Our Scriptures today, this Pentecost Sunday, all revolve around the very important empowering and sustaining work of the Holy Spirit:

A. Our Acts 2:1-21 lesson describes how the Holy Spirit fell on the 120 disciples, empowering them for service. We are familiar with this story as it explains the birth of the Christian Church (Christ-followers of whatever denomination). The disciples are obediently waiting and praying. They are following Jesus’ orders. He had told them in Luke 24:49 that they were to …stay in the city [Jerusalem] until you have been clothed with power from on high [the Holy Spirit]. They had been waiting for 10 days from Christ’s Ascension. Now bear in mind that Pentecost had already been established by God as an annual feast day back in Leviticus 23 (It was part of the Law/Torah). First came Passover (Friday, the beginning of the Sabbath), but foreshadowing the death of Christ, the Lamb of God. Just as the blood of the Passover lamb had spared the Hebrew slaves in Egypt, the shed blood of Christ covers our sins and redeems us from spending eternity in hell. The second feast God inaugurated was called 1st Fruits (we know it as Easter Sunday), and it foreshadowed Jesus’ resurrection. The third feast, 50 days from Passover, was and is Pentecost (a harvest Festival, also called the Feast of Weeks).

On the original Pentecost, the Holy Spirit showed up early (9:00am), but not visibly. There was an auditory sign, (v.2) Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. People who have lived through tornadoes say they sound like a multitude of freight trains rushing by. That was the sound of the Holy Spirit’s presence, but without the wind. Nevertheless, it brought people out into the streets. There was also a visual sign of the Spirit’s presence (v.3) They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. They could see fire, but it did not burn; think of Moses and the burning bush that did not disintegrate as it burned. Isn’t it interesting that they resembled tongues like fire, since they were going to burst into languages (tongues) previously unknown to them. So the Holy Spirit announces His presence with loud surround-sound and some fancy pyrotechnics. They were then empowered to witness about Jesus to Jewish foreign-language speakers in their native tongues and dialects–people groups from all over the Mediterranean, even from as far as Rome. Peter is now emboldened to preach to the crowd.

Now the Holy Spirit falls on all believers, where previously (in the Old Testament) the Holy Spirit was given to individuals for specific purposes and often for limited time. Today, we encounter the Holy Spirit in (a.) Baptism in which we are reborn by water and the Spirit, as Christ-followers; in (b.) Confirmation🡪in which we are sealed by the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13-14 Having believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession…; and (c.) in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit (your own subjective experience) 1 Cor 12:13 For we were all baptized by one spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. This experience is not limited by race or culture or social distinctions. The Holy Spirit is available to all believers who ask for Him, in order for us to minister in the power of Christ, and manifest the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.

B. Our Psalm (104:24-35) is a symphony of praise to the God of Creation. The line most relevant to the work of the Holy Spirit is verse 30 When You send Your Spirit, they [meaning we and all creation] are created, and You renew the face of the earth. Peterson’s paraphrase of Scripture, the Message, states it this way: Send out Your Spirit and they [created things] spring to life—the whole countryside in bloom and blossom. In other words, God’s Holy Spirit is creative and transformative. The power of the Holy Spirit makes good things happen.

C. Among those good things is our adoption, thru Christ Jesus, as children of God and heirs with Christ. This is what Paul asserts in our Romans lesson today (8:14-17). We become sons and daughters of God when we allow ourselves to be led by the Holy Spirit (v.14 …those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons [and daughters] of God. Our obedience is Key. We are following Jesus’ example when we say, Yet not My will, but Yours be done (Luke 22:42).

In today’s Gospel (John 14:8-17, 25-27), Jesus calls the Holy Spirit “the Counselor,” “the Spirit of Truth.” One of His primary jobs is to teach us Jesus’ will and remind us of Jesus’ ways. To this end, the Holy Spirit dwells within us. He also counsels—guides, directs, encourages, helps—us. If we obey Jesus—there it is again—and pray not selfishly but in the character of Christ, God will grant us what we ask for. You may say, “Well, I prayed to get a Mercedes, in Jesus’ name, but didn’t get one.” The issue then becomes was your receiving a Mercedes consistent with God’s will for you? This is often the “sticking point” when the response to our prayers is “No” or “Not yet.”

Because of the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, we are not to fear anything, according to verse 27 Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. Please say that last part out loud: We are not to be afraid. Again: We are not to be afraid. We have the Holy Spirit, so we don’t need “safe spaces.” I heard recently that MIT, Evergreen University, and others, have eliminated grades for college courses. Someone has decided that bad grades may hurt a student’s self-esteem. I find this logic puzzling. Wouldn’t we do better to teach students to apply themselves to get good grades, or even to manage their disappointment in a healthy manner? Rather than doing away with grading, our culture would be better served to face the truth with the assistance of the Holy Spirit. We don’t even have to worry about what this world is coming to…we can just trust in God and give our concerns to Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit.

The story is told about a little boy who was flying a kite. It was a windy day, and the kite kept going higher and higher. Finally it got so high that it was out of sight. A man passed by and saw the little boy holding onto the string. The man could not see the kite, and he asked the boy, “How do you even know you have a kite up there?” The boy replied, “Because I can feel it.” Typically when we encounter the Holy Spirit today, we don’t hear a great wind or see tongues of flame—or even a dove. Even so, we should be able to discern His assistance in our lives by feeling (sensing) Him (a.) leading us to do the right thing; (b.) empowering us to serve Jesus in His Church; or (c.) helping us to become more like Jesus. As the Lakota Sioux say, He is the wakantonka.

Think about this: Just before Jesus ascended into heaven, His last words were for them to wait until they received the Holy Spirit. He didn’t ask them to write manuscripts or screen-plays. He didn’t expect them to run out and begin evangelizing. He didn’t want them to assemble a committee and come up with a plan or a program. He didn’t even ask them to compose worship songs. Instead, He told them to do nothing until…

(J.D. Grear, Jesus, Continued: Why the Spirit Inside You is Better than Jesus Beside You, Zondervan.)

That should be us: We are the birds on the buffalo. The Holy Spirit is the power source. We wait on Him. We follow His direction. He leads us and we are to go along for the adventure. Amen!

©️2022 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Come, Holy Spirit!

Pastor Sherry’s message for Pentecost Sunday—May 23, 2021

Scriptures: Acts 2:1-21; Ps 104:24-35; 1 Jn 3:1-7; Jn 1526; 16:5-15

In 1995, Mark Batterson and a small team planted the National Community Church in a movie theatre on the Metro line (subway) in Washington, DC. It has since grown, through prayer and sovereign moves of the Holy Spirit, to 7 locations in and around DC, and ministers to around 3,000 members. This week, I reread 2 books Batterson has written: In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day and Wild Goose Chase.

In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day is based on 2 Samuel 23:20-21 Benaiah son of Jehoida was a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, who performed great exploits. He struck down two of Moab’s best men. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. And he struck down a huge Egyptian. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear.

Benaiah, a mighty Hebrew warrior, chases a lion into a pit on a snowy day and kills it. Why would anyone do such a thing? Adult lions weigh about 500 pounds. Let’s guess that Benaiah weighed about 180. Clearly he was out-weighed by about 320 pounds. Add to that the fact that a lion’s paws, claws, and teeth were better suited to combat in a slippery environment than a man with no rifle or semi-automatic (but perhaps Benaiah had a spear or club). Whatever his weaponry, Benaiah slays the lion. Now I believe the Holy Spirit must have both led Benaiah to the pit, and empowered him with the courage and the skill to overcome the lion. This feat becomes the most prominent feature of his impressive resume. He is subsequently hired by King David to lead his body guard. Later, he rises to become the commander of the king’s armies.

Essentially, Batterson encourages us, in this book, to become “Lion Chasers,” pursuing the divine appointments, the God-given opportunities our Lord provides of us. He also points out how often “lion Chasers” are rewarded by the Lord.

In his book, Wild Goose Chase, Batterson distinguishes between a wild goose chase and chasing a wild goose. We tend to think of a wild goose chase as a fruitless endeavor, a waste of our time.

But the Celtic Christian name for the Holy Spirit is An Geadh-Glas, or the Wild Goose. Please understand that the Celts meant no disrespect. (The Lakota Sioux thought of the Holy Spirit as a buffalo, upon whom their plains existence depended entirely.) Like a wild goose (or a buffalo), the Holy Spirit is unpredictable, and out of our control—and sometimes even scary. But if we chase after Him, if we follow His nudges and urges, the Lord leads us into some amazing adventures.

Given this background, let’s look at our 1st reading, Acts 2:1-21: the empowerment of the HS at Pentecost. The context of this passage is that the 120 disciples, men and women, are praying in the Temple. Jesus had told them (Acts 1:4)àDo not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised…in a few days, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. So they are being obedientàthey waited, they prayed. On Pentecost, 10 days after Jesus’ ascension, the Holy Spirit shows up! This is a theophany! A God-sighting! And He arrives with significant supernatural fanfare, or signs and wonders.

(1) 1st sign (which was heard)àSuddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind. This was no gentle breeze! Like tornados, it probably sounded like dozens of freight trains. God had done this beforeàEzekiel 37:9àGod sends the wind to raise the dry bones of Israel to life. When I was baptized by the Holy Spirit, I was at the beach with a group of friends who were praying for me. A moaning wind came up in my face. It was so strong that I could hardly breathe. Afterward, my friends denied having heard or felt it!

(2) 2nd sign (which was seen)àThey saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. Imagine if you had been there! Fire over your head, fire over the heads of your friends, no one burning up! Wow! But God had done this before, tooàExodus 3:2-5àMoses and the burning bush. The bush was on fire, but it did not burn up. God used that bush to light a fire in Moses. In Isaiah 6àIsaiah’s callàIsaiah realizes he is a sinful man called to serve as the Lord’s prophet. An angel brings a burning coal and applies it to hislips and tongue. He is purified without being burned. He did, however, get fired up to serve the Lord!

​(3) 3rd sign (which was again heard)àAll of them were filled with the HS and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.  They were all supernaturally empowered to do something they had never done before, speak ​in a foreign language.  Parthians, Medes, and folks from other nationalities visiting Jerusalem heard them praising God in their native tongues—and according to scholars, with the correct accents!  These foreign visitors realized something extraordinary was happening as they recognized the 120 as simple folk from Judea.  Now God had done this before as wellàIsaiah 50:4àThe Sovereign Lord gave me [Jesus and the prophet Isaiah] an instructed ​tongue; i.e., inspired speech.   I have heard of a number of incidents, especially from missionaries serving abroad, when they suddenly either spoke or understood a language they had never been taught.  Peter quotes the prophet Joel,(Acts 2:28)à[The Lord, speaking thru the prophet Joel, promises],…I will pour out my Spirit on all people.  Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.  Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.

The Holy Spirit did show up, big time, on the Day of Pentecost! But why would God go to all this trouble? (wind, fire, inspired speech?)

(1) Pentecost marks the birth of the Christian Church (Big C, all Christians despite denominational differences) and inaugurates “the Church Age” (which begins with Pentecost and will continue until the Rapture).

(2) The Holy Spirit empowers us to tell others about Jesus. The disciples were waiting, praying, in the Temple, when the Wild Goose manifested in these very surprising ways. Jesus had given them the Great Commission, Matt 28:18àGo and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them…and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Now, filled with the HS, the disciples began telling anyone who would listen about Jesus. Like Benaiah jumping into the pit, they rushed out, with great urgency, to share with others what God had done for them. Like Benaiah jumping into the pit, we need supernatural help to share our faith with others. We need God-given opportunites, divine appointments so we know with whom we are to share the Good News. We need instructed tongues, so we know what to say when we do share.

(3) Empowerment to do the kinds of things Jesus did for the building up of God’s Kingdom. Through our prayers and faith, God can use us to heal others. My friend and seminary buddy, Hazel, had a healing ministry in Charleston, SC. Through her prayers and those whom she trained, one person grew back a kidney; another had their gall bladder healed. A third was healed of Bi-polar Disorder; a 4th had a brain tumor shrink to nothing.

Similarly, Agnes Sanford, the wife of a clergyman, also had the gift of healing. Her parents were missionaries to China in the 1930’s and 40’s. Agnes laid hands on a crippled Chinese man when she was 3YO and he was healed. Her parents did not understand her gift (their theology taught that all the gifts of healing ended with the Apostles), and told her not to do it again. Later, as an adult during WW2, she suffered from depression until a pastor friend released her to work in her gifting. She laid hands on injured GI’s, prayed for them, and they were healed of either their physical or emotional problems.

Graham Cooke, a present-day British Christian healer has a gift of “prophetic healing.” In other words, in the healing conferences he leads, God tells him what is wrong with a person as they are coming forward to him for prayer. He relates the story of a man who came forward suffering from a long-standing porn addiction. As the man approached him, the Holy Spirit told Graham that God intended to heal him of his addiction. Indeed,Graham prayed and the guy was set free.

Through our faith and our obedience, we can be equipped by God to do things we would never have thought possible. The 120 were waiting in anticipation, but I bet when they awoke on Pentecost, they never thought they would be evangelizing in foreign languages later that morning. I doubt Benaiah anticipated slaying a lion with only a spear or a club that day. I grew up wanting to be a mother and a teacher, then later—when my high school students kept coming to me with their problems–a psychologist. God has given me gifts of teaching and wisdom to impart to those I counseled. Yet, here I am now serving Him and you as your pastor. The Holy Spirit also gifts us for specific ministries at different times of our lives.

Moving at the nudge/inspiration of the HS is like chasing a Wild Goose (the Celtic An Geadh-Glas). It is an adventure! We wore red in honor of Pentecost today. Red reminds us of the tongues of fire. Red reminds us of one of the ways God chooses to show up. This week, be sure to be aware of how God might show up in your life. Savor your divine appointments. Write them down so you remember them. Share them with others, as God directs you.

Let’s remember this week—and always—that our God empowers us through His Holy Spirit to both tell others about Jesus and to operate in the gifts He has given us. Even if it seems as scary as jumping in a pit with a lion on a snowy day, let’s look for God-given opportunities and divine appointments. And let’s ask Him for the courage of a Benaiah—and of a Mark Batterson–the courage to do what the Lord has given us to do.

©️2021 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

 

Thanks to the Geiger family for Pentecost altar flowers.

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

COME, HOLY SPIRIT

Pastor Sherry’s Message for May 31, 2020

Scriptures: Acts 2:1-21; Ps 104:24-35b; 1 Cor:12:3b-13; John 7:37-39

In 2016, this true story of Charlotte Heffelmire of Vienna, Virginia took place:  Charlotte was home from the Air Force Academy visiting her family for Thanksgiving break.  Her dad, Eric, was working on his GMC truck in the family’s garage.  He later recalled, “I was on my back, face up, and I was trying to get at some corroded brake lines when apparently the jack slipped and the truck fell down on me.  The minute the jack slipped, there was an almost instantaneous, real strong smell of gasoline, and then I heard, Whoosh!”  Afterward, he would say he was sure someone would be pulling a dead body out from under the vehicle.  Instead, his 19YO daughter heard the noise and came flying into the garage, barefoot.  She was about 5’4” and weighed 120#.  She says she cannot explain what happened next, but…She lifted that truck off her dad and got him out; then she jumped into the vehicle—which was on fire—threw it into 4 wheel drive, backed it out of the garage on three wheels and closed the garage door to contain the fire.

Then she ran into the house to get the family out, starting with her sister’s baby.

The news reported her saying, “I just did what I had to do. So I don’t feel like a big hero or anything.”  She was later recognized with a Citizen Lifesaving Award by the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue, and given a check for $10,000 on a TV talk show.

         Every once in a while we hear of some similar feat of superhuman strength after which folks say they had no idea how they accomplished it.  You and I know that no smallish young woman would have the upper body strength to lift a truck off her dad.  That kind of empowerment had to have come from the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is our power source for those times when God wants to do something impossible thru us.

 

We have looked the last few Sundays at the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives:  We have noted that Jesus promised the HS would…

1.) Remind us of everything Jesus said;

2.) Help us to rightly discern people, spirits, & situations;

3.) Empower us for service to Jesus and His Church;

4.) He also convicts us—like our conscience–of our sins.

This story of Charlotte Heffelmire is an example of HS empowerment.   It is

Superhuman and miraculous.

 

Today we celebrate Pentecost, the birth of the Christian Church (of all denominations) & the impartation of the HS to each of us believers.  Our Scriptures include the narrative from Acts 2, in which the Holy Spirit dramatically materializes.  The context is that the 120 disciples, men & women, are praying in the Temple.  Jesus had told them (Acts 1:4) Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised…in a few days, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.  So they are being obedient, waiting, praying.

 

Finally, on the day of Pentecost, the HS shows up!  This is a theophany, an appearance or manifestation (signs & wonders) of God!

1st sign Suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind [Ruach—wind, breath, spirit].  This was no gentle breeze!  It came with the sound of a freight train, like a tornado.  Now, God had done this beforeàEze 37:9 God sends the wind to raise the dry bones of Israel to life.

 2nd sign They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.  Imagine if you had been there!  Fire over your head, fire over the heads of your friends, but no one burning up!  Wow!  God had done this before tooàEx 3:2-5àMoses & the

burning bush.  The bush was on fire, but Moses saw that it did not burn up; instead, God used the bush to light a fire in Moses.  Also, in Isaiah 6àIsaiah’s call to be a prophet, àGod had an angel bring a burning coal to cleanse the prophet’s tongue.  Isaiah did not get burned; but he did get fired up to serve the Lord! 

3rd sign All of them were filled with the HS and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.  They were all supernaturally empowered—like Charlotte– to do something they had never done before, in this case, speak in languages they had never been taught.  Parthians, Medes, and other folks visiting Jerusalem heard them praising God in their native tongues.  These foreign visitors realized something extraordinary was happening as these were simple folk from Galilee, or we might say from some small town in Florida.

 Now God had done this before tooàIsa 50:4 The Sovereign Lord gave me an instructed tongue;  this means inspired speech.  Similarly, the Lord, (2:28), speaking thru the prophet Joel, promises, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.  Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.  I can truthfully testify of times when I have preached and known the words I spoke were not my own—I had prepared something else–but God had other ideas about what He wanted me to say to His people.  What came out of my mouth was truly Holy Spirit inspired speech.

So, back to our passage.  The Holy Spirit showed up, big time!  But why would God go to this trouble?  (using wind, fire, inspired speech?)  I think He did for two reasons:

  1. Empowerment to tell others about Jesus.

Some denominations call this witnessing ( a word makes some of us uncomfortable).  Witnessing, or sharing your testimony—your experience with Jesus—is actually how we go about living out the Great Commission, Matt 28:18àGo and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them…and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  The disciples flowed out from where they had been teaching and praying in the Temple and began praising God and telling anyone who would listen about Jesus.  Witnessing means sharing with others what God has done in our lives and in the lives of our friends.  We do not do this in our own strength, but—like the disciples–thru the power of the Holy Spirit.  We don’t have to stand on street corners and wave our Bibles at people.  On the contrary.  Ask God to show you both who to share with and what to sayàask for an instructed tongue.

  1. Empowerment to do miraculous things for the building up of

God’s Kingdom:  a.) Praying for healing (and watching it happen); b.) Supernatural strength like Charlotte had; c.) Abilities to teach or preach, paint, make music, write, grow orchids, or to help those in need.  Paul describes 9 gifts of the Holy Spirit in our New Testament lesson today, 1 Cor12:3-13à

1.) Wisdom;

2.) Words of knowledge;

3.) Faith;

4.) Healing;

5.) Miraculous powers (Charlotte);

6.) Prophesy;

7.) Discernment of spirits;

8.) Tongues;

9.) Interpretation of tongues.

As our Gospel (John 7:37-39) describes it, the Holy Spirit is the source of the streams of living water Jesus promises to believers.

I want to share with you this humorous story of a miraculous dog (please know, in advance, that I mean no disrespect to either Baptists or Pentecostals).   A Baptist preacher and his wife decided they wanted a dog.  Given the scrutiny/oversight from their congregation, they knew it needed to be a well-behaved Baptist dog.  So they went to an exclusive kennel and expressed their needs and reservations to the owner.  He assured them he had just the right dog for them.  When the dog was produced, the kennel owner began giving it commands:  Fetch the Bible.  The dog bounced over to the bookshelves, looked them over, located the Bible, and obediently brought it to the man.  Then he said, Find the 23rd Psalm.  The dog, demonstrating amazing dexterity with his paws, leafed thru the Bible, found the correct passage, and pointed to it with his nose.

The preacher and his wife were so impressed that they immediately purchased the dog.  Later, they began to show off to members of their congregation what the dog could do, having him locate several Bible verses.  Folks were amazed, but one skeptic asked, Can he do any normal dog tricks?  “Let’s see,” said the preacher and commanded him to “heel!”

The dog immediately jumped up on a chair, laid his paw on a parishioner’s head and began to howl!  The preacher was shocked and turned to his wife and complained, “Honey, we’ve been swindled!  The kennel owner sold us a Pentecostal dog!”

This Pentecostal dog had the Holy Spirit gift of healing!

 

As we were reminded last week, just before Jesus ascended to Heaven, He gave us all a job:  Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we are to go and do.  We are to go witness to those God places before us…

Tell people who are interested the difference knowing God has made in your life; tell them of the wonderful ways that God has blessed you and might bless them.  Then use the gifts with which the Holy Spirit has entrusted you to build up God’s Kingdom here on earth.  Come, Holy Spirit!  Empower us to witness and to serve, we pray in Jesus’ name!

        

©2020 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams