a Homily for Pentecost, year B

Text: John 15:26-16:15, Acts 2:1-21

The Confused Followers

Our gospel pericope from John continues our theme from the last few weeks: Jesus is leaving His disciples, but don’t worry; they will have what they need:

‘When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning. (vv. 26-27)

We know it won’t be easy. However, our Lectionary skips the bad bits entirely. In 16:1-4a it says:

‘I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God. And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me. But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them.

There is danger for the disciples; that they will be hurt by the confused faithful.

Notice also in our reading from Acts what happens: the apostles begin speaking in different languages and the faithful come out into the streets and are confused because the world is represented there and all understand the words in their native languages.

They are confused, not just because it is weird. But because they aren’t supposed to understand the words of GOD. They are supposed to be a mystery, spoken in some magisterial other language, imposed upon them and subjugating them. They aren’t supposed to understand GOD!

The Inheritors of Confusion

These people are confused and conflicted. In our own post-Pentecost world we as the universal church are still conflicted: we, the confused faithful: wondering what it all means. There is no universal agreement on what the church is for and what we are doing.

I think this is because we aren’t comfortable with all that Jesus came to do and all that His work did to change the dominant paradigm of faith: that GOD is up there and He’s mad at us!

I have this image of Jesus walking into a conservative evangelical church and preaching about love and caring for the powerless and being interrupted “Yeah, but Scripture tells us…” or “Leviticus says that…” Interrupting Jesus! Because the thought of GOD truly being here, with us, in this very moment and waiting for us to get up and love the people around us, well…that just scares us! Our minds might be wandering or you might be wishing my preaching style were different or we’re afraid we’ve been caught gossiping in the back and here we are and here in our midst, unseen, is the Divine Presence, the Great Mystery. And we aren’t behaving ourselves.

We’re confused because the thought that GOD actually is in this stuff we do on Sunday is terrifying.

Something Better

Imagine these people, then. The disciples hearing about the Advocate or the Helper, the Holy Spirit, that is coming after Him. That they are better off without Jesus there because that means the Holy Spirit will be! That the Holy Spirit will come help us change house and transform the world.

Then Jesus says that the Holy Spirit “will guide you into all the truth”. Elsewhere Jesus tells his disciples to go out and not to worry about what they are to say because the words will come. Jesus promises revelation in a more powerful mode than He.

We see that expression in Acts, as the Holy Spirit comes to the people and bridges the gap so that the apostles are able to speak and that the people may hear. The Holy Spirit is the big news, not because of the fireworks show but in breaking barriers between the apostles and the faithful.

It is on the faithful to respond.

The Spirit is Already Here

We need to see ourselves in both of these groups today: in the apostles speaking miraculously about the good things GOD has done for us and in the faithful, hearing that GOD has new plans for us. We must embrace our role in bearing the Spirit out in our lives while recognize how difficult it can be to even believe that GOD is already here.

Because the Spirit is here. Right now. This gathering. This people. We are St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and we have audaciously gathered to worship GOD and the Spirit joined us.

Maintaining our distance from GOD makes it easier for us to think that nothing big happens here or that we aren’t really on duty now. That we aren’t responsible.

I’ve asked a lot of people over the last few weeks and I’ve asked everybody to do something none of us has done before, which is pretty audacious. If you’ve filled out a ministry narrative and you brought it with you, put it in the offering plate. I’m also hoping you have thought and prayed about the ministry team that is calling your heart. I have a clipboard with a sign-up sheet in the Fellowship Hall. I hope that you write your name under the ministry you are being called to join I also have a handout there that explains more about the teams and what they will be doing.

Today isn’t the day we celebrate the birth of an institution. It is the day we celebrate the transformation of our mission and our relationship with GOD. That is way more important than the institution. It is, in fact, what it means to be the church.

[Hat Tip to David Henson at Edges of Faith for his brilliant “Liberating Pentecost“]