The Wide Open Spaces of God’s Grace
Romans 5:1-5
Have you ever felt like the world was closing in on you? Have you ever felt like there was too much pressure on you, and you wanted to run and hide? That can happen sometimes. We feel like we are trapped and have few, if any, options.
That was the way many of the people in the church in Rome felt when the Apostle Paul was writing this letter to them. They had to make sacrifices because of their faith. They were discouraged and felt like their problems were overwhelming. So Paul writes to them about the freedom and hope that come with God’s grace. He wrote to encourage the people in the church in Rome. His words can also encourage us.
One of the main themes of the whole Bible is that God is the one who acts first. Paul writes that God has thrown open the doors to us. God put His love on the line and offered His Son for us when there was nothing that we could do for God. Even before God sent Jesus to the world, God was acting and calling people to turn to Him. God chose people like Abraham, Moses, and David to try to get people’s attention. From the very beginning of time, and throughout all of human history, God has been the one who acted first.
Whatever we do is a reaction of faith or unfaith to the acts of God. Just as God has thrown open the doors to us and calls us to turn to Him, so our best response is to open the door to our lives so that God can be in us. Whenever God calls us, our best response is to say, “Here I am, Lord.” We always have an option, a choice: to ignore God’s actions, or to embrace them.
When we respond in faith to God, then we can have peace with God. There is a sense in which each of us has some unfinished business with God. From the beginning of our lives, we have an ebb and flow of faith. We might think of it as a tug of war with God. There are times that we are faithful and we draw near to God. There are other times that we an unfaithful and turn away from God. We like the benefits that God can give us, but we also like to do things our way. Faith means realizing that we are not in control of our own lives. Faith means opening ourselves to the possibilities that God has for us – some that we would choose for ourselves, and others that we would not. Unless we respond in faith to God, then we cannot experience all the good things that God has for us.
When we respond in faith to God, it gives us a new perspective on our situations. Faith can help us to see things from a different perspective. It can help us to see the wide open spaces of God’s grace. Paul wrote these words to the people in the church in Rome: “We gladly suffer, because we know that suffering produces patience, patience produces character, and character produces hope that does not disappoint us.” In other words, God calls us to see our problems through eyes of faith, so that our problems become opportunities for us to grow in character and faith. Faith allows us to focus on how we can grow through our problems, rather than just seeing our problems as situations that only cause us pain. Problems can have a positive effect upon us. They can lead to patience, character, and hope.
The good news in all of this is that God is always with us and keeps on giving. God’s Spirit is always near to give us more than we need. God’s well never runs dry and God never gives up on us. There is always more than enough of God’s grace. As we turn our hearts toward God, we can see and experience the wide open spaces of God’s grace.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Pentecost Sunday
What Does God’s Spirit Do?
Acts 2:1-21
Studies of modern culture tell us that there is an increased interest in spiritual things. People appear to be looking beyond what they experience with their five senses to see a reality that cannot be proven or measured, but can only be experienced.
In the Christian tradition we believe that God is Spirit and that God is active in our lives and in our world. This emphasis upon God’s Spirit is brought to the forefront on the day of Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter Sunday. The story of Pentecost is about the coming of God’s Spirit after the ascension of Jesus. The Spirit comes to the disciples as they wait in Jerusalem and they are empowered to continue the work that Jesus had begun.
Pentecost is also known as the birthday of the church because it marks the beginning of the work of those who had followed Jesus, including not only the eleven disciples (minus Judas), but a total of 120 people who were there on the first Day of Pentecost.
A good question to ask about God’s Spirit is:”How do we know that God’s Spirit is at work?”
Jesus said that God’s Spirit is like the wind. We cannot see the wind, but we can see the effects of the wind. Likewise with the Spirit, we cannot see God’s Spirit, but we can see the effects of the Spirit. So then, we might ask, ”What are the effects of the Spirit that we can see?” Or, another way to ask that question is ,”What does God’s Spirit do?” We can answer the question with a few answers from the story of the first Day of Pentecost.
The Spirit confirms or verifies that God is present and powerful. The unusual sights and sounds of the first Pentecost, rightly interpreted, declare that God is doing something unusual. Those who had gathered that day heard the sound of the rushing wind, saw the flaming tongues of fire, and hear the message of God in many different languages. It was a very dramatic scene, one that got everyone’s attention.
My experience is that the Spirit works today in more subtle, quiet ways. I have never heard or seen such dramatic sights and sounds. Rather than a rushing wind, the Spirit seems to move in a gentle breeze. Rather than flaming tongues of fire, the Spirit seems to work in a spark, or a flicker. And while the message of God is spoken regularly in different languages, it doesn’t happen all in one place.
God’s Spirit is at work among us in quiet and often unseen ways. The Spirit whispers to us in a still small voice. God is with us and God is powerful. If we will listen and watch closely, we will hear and see that God’s Spirit is among us and is pointing us toward God.
The Spirit equips or empowers people to witness to their faith. The change is the disciples after the day of Pentecost is amazing. God does a makeover. Before Pentecost, they were afraid, unsure of themselves, and secluded. After Pentecost, they are bold, confident, and outgoing. The only explanation is that God’s Spirit has made the difference.
The same Spirit that made this radical change in the disciples is at work among us. It is the Spirit that will equip us and empower us to live faithfully as followers of Jesus. While we may say, “No, I can’t.”, God’s Spirit says “Yes, you can.” It is the work of the Spirit to enable us to do what we think we cannot do. The Spirit empowers us to do what we cannot and will not do apart from the grace and power of God.
The Spirit makes real and visible the unity of the God’s people. There were people from many different countries who spoke many different languages in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost. God’s Spirit acted in such a way that everyone was able to hear the works of God in their own language.
Notice that the Spirit did not give one language, but worked so that everyone could hear in their own language. The work of the Spirit is not to make us all alike, so that we look, act, and talk the same, but the Spirit meets us where we are and accents our own uniqueness. Unity does not mean that we are all the same, but it means that we have a common purpose, mission, and source of life and power. We shouldn’t expect everyone to follow a certain mold or pattern, but to be who they are by the grace of God.
The Spirit unites people in purpose and in power, while helping people to appreciate one another’s individual gifts and characteristics.
In short, this is what God’s Spirit does. It does not leave us in a vacuum, but affirms that God is with us. The Spirit does not make us weak and dependent, but makes us powerful and positive. The Spirit does not divide us, but unites us in purpose and in power. The Spirit gives us power to live lives that are signs of God’s presence and to be examples of the wholeness that God desires for all people.
When we pray, “Lord, make me a better person.”, we are praying for God to send His Spirit to us. Come, Holy Spirit, fill us with God’s power, that we might live as signs of God’s presence and salvation.
Acts 2:1-21
Studies of modern culture tell us that there is an increased interest in spiritual things. People appear to be looking beyond what they experience with their five senses to see a reality that cannot be proven or measured, but can only be experienced.
In the Christian tradition we believe that God is Spirit and that God is active in our lives and in our world. This emphasis upon God’s Spirit is brought to the forefront on the day of Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter Sunday. The story of Pentecost is about the coming of God’s Spirit after the ascension of Jesus. The Spirit comes to the disciples as they wait in Jerusalem and they are empowered to continue the work that Jesus had begun.
Pentecost is also known as the birthday of the church because it marks the beginning of the work of those who had followed Jesus, including not only the eleven disciples (minus Judas), but a total of 120 people who were there on the first Day of Pentecost.
A good question to ask about God’s Spirit is:”How do we know that God’s Spirit is at work?”
Jesus said that God’s Spirit is like the wind. We cannot see the wind, but we can see the effects of the wind. Likewise with the Spirit, we cannot see God’s Spirit, but we can see the effects of the Spirit. So then, we might ask, ”What are the effects of the Spirit that we can see?” Or, another way to ask that question is ,”What does God’s Spirit do?” We can answer the question with a few answers from the story of the first Day of Pentecost.
The Spirit confirms or verifies that God is present and powerful. The unusual sights and sounds of the first Pentecost, rightly interpreted, declare that God is doing something unusual. Those who had gathered that day heard the sound of the rushing wind, saw the flaming tongues of fire, and hear the message of God in many different languages. It was a very dramatic scene, one that got everyone’s attention.
My experience is that the Spirit works today in more subtle, quiet ways. I have never heard or seen such dramatic sights and sounds. Rather than a rushing wind, the Spirit seems to move in a gentle breeze. Rather than flaming tongues of fire, the Spirit seems to work in a spark, or a flicker. And while the message of God is spoken regularly in different languages, it doesn’t happen all in one place.
God’s Spirit is at work among us in quiet and often unseen ways. The Spirit whispers to us in a still small voice. God is with us and God is powerful. If we will listen and watch closely, we will hear and see that God’s Spirit is among us and is pointing us toward God.
The Spirit equips or empowers people to witness to their faith. The change is the disciples after the day of Pentecost is amazing. God does a makeover. Before Pentecost, they were afraid, unsure of themselves, and secluded. After Pentecost, they are bold, confident, and outgoing. The only explanation is that God’s Spirit has made the difference.
The same Spirit that made this radical change in the disciples is at work among us. It is the Spirit that will equip us and empower us to live faithfully as followers of Jesus. While we may say, “No, I can’t.”, God’s Spirit says “Yes, you can.” It is the work of the Spirit to enable us to do what we think we cannot do. The Spirit empowers us to do what we cannot and will not do apart from the grace and power of God.
The Spirit makes real and visible the unity of the God’s people. There were people from many different countries who spoke many different languages in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost. God’s Spirit acted in such a way that everyone was able to hear the works of God in their own language.
Notice that the Spirit did not give one language, but worked so that everyone could hear in their own language. The work of the Spirit is not to make us all alike, so that we look, act, and talk the same, but the Spirit meets us where we are and accents our own uniqueness. Unity does not mean that we are all the same, but it means that we have a common purpose, mission, and source of life and power. We shouldn’t expect everyone to follow a certain mold or pattern, but to be who they are by the grace of God.
The Spirit unites people in purpose and in power, while helping people to appreciate one another’s individual gifts and characteristics.
In short, this is what God’s Spirit does. It does not leave us in a vacuum, but affirms that God is with us. The Spirit does not make us weak and dependent, but makes us powerful and positive. The Spirit does not divide us, but unites us in purpose and in power. The Spirit gives us power to live lives that are signs of God’s presence and to be examples of the wholeness that God desires for all people.
When we pray, “Lord, make me a better person.”, we are praying for God to send His Spirit to us. Come, Holy Spirit, fill us with God’s power, that we might live as signs of God’s presence and salvation.
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