Pentecost--Something Happened Here...

A little boy on vacation stood at the Grand Canyon just looking. He looked for a long time. Finally he said, "Something happened here”."This is the spirit of Pentecost. Jesus told his followers to go and stay in an Upper Room He told them that something was going to happen. And they went, reluctantly as always and half-heartedly they stayed. Scared. Frightened. Grieving. Not exactly sure what to do or why. Wondering if, in leaving it all behind to follow him, they had made some monstrous mistake.


And then Pentecost came. And frightened disciples were frightened no more. They left that room to form a church that has lasted for two thousand years. Even the gates of hell itself could not dismantle it--and God knows they have tried and try still. Old betraying Simon would stand and preach with such a power that three thousand would be saved. Like the little boy--we stand on Pentecost Sunday--the birthday of the church--and look out over the vistas and the history and the wonder of it all. And we say: "Something happened here."

As I read the story from Acts 2 week five words bubble out of the text. If we come to terms with these five words we will know something about this very special day.

Wind

Ezekiel had written about that valley of dry bones. They knew about sun-bleached bones and desert. It was just out there over the ridge. They lived on the edge of that desert. And the wind would sweep across the desert. And sweep, too, across the sun-bleached bones. The strangest thing happened. Hip bones got connected again to thigh bones. Life came out of death. Ezekiel told Israel that's what is going to happen to you. You thought it was over when the Exile came and gobbled you up. And left nothing but ruins. But God isn't through with you. You see, this wind comes and blows across the deadness and life comes back.


And so at Pentecost he wind stirred in the lives of lifeless disciples. And the Church began that day in the hearts of the most unlikely of people. And they went out of that room to do incredible things--those ordinary men and women--because the wind blew--the spirit of God blew across their efforts.And we come back today to remember it isn't tricks or gimmicks or sermons or programs, really. It isn't diet or exercise or cosmetology. It's that other thing at the heart of it all. The breath of God. Energizing us all.

Tongues

What happened here? It is not as scary as it seems. Tongues of fire came and rested on each one of them. In the sixth verse each heard in his or her own language. What happened on the Day of Pentecost. Communication happened in that tiny Upper Room.

Will Willimon says that the first gift that the spirit brought was the gift of speech. They all heard in their own language. Funny, in Genesis 11 we have this strange story about those that built this Tower. The Tower of Babel they called it. All the way to heaven, the advertisements said. Why when it is over we will be able to climb all the way up to the pearly gates. But God said No to their overconfidence. He confused their languages. Everybody spoke something different. He tore down the tower and barriers and confusion reigned everywhere. We know about Babel. Different nationalities. Different opinions. Different sections of the country. Liberals and Conservatives. Black and White. Women and Men. Gays and Straight. Illegals and real citizens. North and South. Afghanistan and the United States. Jews and Christians. Tea Party and Planned Parenthood. We know about Babel. It is everywhere even in the church--especially in the church. There is more Babel now than any anytime I have lived.

But at Pentecost nobody was excluded and made to feel stupid. They all heard in their own language. The Spirit came to all. "Parthinians, Medes, Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the part of Libya belonging to Cyrene and visitors from Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs."(Acts 2. 9-11a)

Pentecost brings us back to this incredible idea: God is on everybody's side. Not just the middle-class or the Christians or even the politically correct. Pentecost spans the globe. It never is just an American Church--though we are not left out either.

This second word is tongues. Language. This words means it doesn't matter who you are or what you've done. There's a place at the table. There is a name card there. It has your name on it. Come on in. Take your place. Just sit down. He speaks your language. It is the language of your heart.

Prophecy

Prophecy is fulfilled. Old Joel talked about destruction and punishment coming to God's people. And Simon took those words, knowing what had happened in his own life--taken back and loved and cared for. And he saw something else in Joel's words. Maybe something Joel, the old prophet had never seen. Simon started interpreting this old prophecy. And he talked about new life. Pentecost was prophecy fulfilled. And that meant new life was to come where there had only been deadness. And old betraying Simon--turned inside out was the bringer of good tidings. The unlikely happened. Peter openly proclaims life where only death had been. Prophecy is fulfilled in our hearing, that's what this third word means. It means that the Bible is not just a story--but it becomes our story.

Several years ago sitting in my makeshift study at home, I was without a job and a church. I had resigned and I was wounded and I was afraid. The Baptist Seminary had asked me to preach at a Conference and I sat there trying to figure out what to say. And sitting there, beating up on myself, wondering how in the world I ever got myself into that mess , I found my name called. In that story where they fished all night and caught nothing--after Easter. I heard my name called. The voice whispered, "This is your story." "My story?" I muttered. "This is the Holy Bible. How can it be my story." And sitting there, working on a sermon for a houseful of ministers, I heard my name called. I learned more about that fishing expedition in the dark than I ever intended. I learning something about myself--and it wasn't all good. I learned something about limits. That none of us can do it all. I learned something about judgment--to suspend judgment until I know more than I usually know. I learned that the outward props like success and size and growth are not as important as I assumed. But I learned more, there in that room as my name was called by the text. I learned something about failure. It is part of the journey. And I learned something about the demonic--some things I did not want to know. And I learned something about faith--even after fishing all night and catching nothing--God was there. And I was standing. And life would go on and things would be good again. Prophecy is fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost. We find out that our names are called and this Bible business may just be true after all.

Vision

Luke goes to great pains to say that this outpouring is anything but interior. Listen to the loud talk, buzzing confusion, public debate. Things just got out of hand. It was downright embarrassing. What was going on? New life. They reimaged the future. Pentecost says--don't forget about the visions and the dreams. Signs and wonders. When you have served as Pastor for forty years it will make a believer out of you. In every church I have ever served there have been crises in people’s lives and in every congregation. Sometimes I would sit in the counseling room and think: “There is no way they can make it. Their lives are too complicated—there are too many hard things.” But that was the short view of things. I had not learned then to look at the long view. Every battle we face really is not Armageddon. We don’t have to wring our hands and lose sleep night after night. Why? Pentecost says there are signs and wonders that God himself gives. I have left business meetings or committee meetings just shaking my head. But that was the short view. This is God’s church and he who began a good work in us will bring it to completion. I’ve seen it in church and business meetings and in my own life. I have seen some utterly devastated divorcee wonder how in the world life could go on. But we Christians are given this other word. Sometimes it is a dream. Sometimes it is a vision. Always if we listen it is a word of new life. Something is stirring that is whole and healthy and keeps us going.

Gladness

Funny how the Bible is. I have never seen this verse before. It's part of the prophecy. What is going to happen because you serve him and love him. It's found in the 28th verse of Act 2. "You have made known to me the ways of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence."


Let your finger slip on down to the 42nd verse of that same chapter. They were together, reading the Bible, praying, enjoying being together. And then skip on down to 46-47. And here we read they spent time together, "they broke bread, ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people." Do you see this other word. How could I have left it out? It's mentioned three times in one chapter. Healthy relationships. Fun. Laughter. Not taking themselves so seriously. Underneath it all they were the company of the glad. You could see it in their faces and hear it in their worship. It changed the way they looked at everything. And when they met, week after week, they would end the service in the same way, breaking the bread and passing a common cup. Do you know what they called that simply act? Eucharist. Thanksgiving. Thanks be to God. They were grateful and in their gratitude they rejoiced.


I wrote Ray Bradbury some years ago requesting permission to use something he had written. And when he wrote back he sent me a whole collection of his poems. And one of them I have never been able to forget. It's on gladness.

Joy is the grace we say to God
For His gifts given.
It is the leavening of time,
It splits our bones with lightning,
Fills our marrow
With a harrowing of light
And seeds our blood with sun,
And thus we
Put out the night
And then
Put out the night.


Tears make an end of things;
So weep, yes, weep.
But joy says, after that, not done...
No, not by any means. Not done!
Take breath and shout it out!
That laugh, that cry which says: Begin again,
So all's reborn, begun!
Now hear this, Eden's child,
Remember in thy green Earth heaven,
All beauty-shod:
Joy is the grace we say to God.


Something happened here. Let's the Pentecost words speak for themselves. Ponder their meaning. Wind...tongues...prophecy...visions and dreams...and joy and gladness. No wonder the church has been remembering Pentecost all these years. The old bones really do come back together again and life is a possibility once more.