For those that follow the church calendar, May 20 is Pentecost Sunday.
Pentecost is the day when Christians recall how the Holy Spirit first bounced into a locked room of frightened Jesus followers and rested on the disciples' heads "as tongues of fire." (Acts 2:3). The story continues with fiery disciples running out of the room with the ability to speak in different languages. No Rosetta Stone software was necessary.
I'm pretty sure if there were tongues of fire resting on my head, I, too, would run out of the room speaking in a different language. Pardon my French.
Every time I read this story I'm reminded of the church in which I grew up: First United Methodist in Kennett. The youth choir was singing one Sunday morning when a young lady's pig tail got a bit too close to the Advent candles. You could say that tongues of fire rested on her head that day.
The congregation quickly stood to their feet as if the Holy Spirit came upon them. The simultaneous gasp surely sounded like a "rush of violent wind from heaven" (Acts 2:2) had swept through the sanctuary.
After the choir director extinguished the right pig tail by whacking the unsuspecting girl over the head with his music folder, the girl continued to sing as though nothing happened. That's what I call focus!
Jesus's last words to his faithful followers in the Gospel of Matthew was "Go therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." (Matthew 28:19-20)
Because of the power of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, the Great Commission could be lived out. The disciples had the power and the tools to tell foreign travelers in Jerusalem about Christ's resurrection, baptism and the forgiveness of sins.
The whole event seemed a bit unwieldy, if you ask me.
The disciples' wild multilingual evangelism even made bystanders wonder if they spent a bit too much time with the bottle.
Peter quickly retorted, "We aren't drunk... It's only nine in the morning!" (Acts 2:15) He continues with a powerful sermon about how the Prophet Joel spoke of this day centuries before, "when God would pour out his Spirit on all flesh."
The story continues with thousands of people coming to faith and being baptized. All the new believers began living in community with one another, praising God together, sharing what they had, selling their possessions and giving the proceeds to the poor, and breaking bread together. (Acts 2:44-45)
In other words, they did church! That is why this day is also called the birthday of the Church.
I pray that the Holy Spirit gets a bit unwieldy in your life. I pray that the Holy Spirit gives you a fiery hairdo that brings people to their feet in praise of the resurrected God. I pray that the Holy Spirit causes you to dance in the streets, giving you the words to wildly proclaim that Jesus rose from the dead and offered you the forgiveness of sins.
I pray that others think you are strange and tipsy because of the joy that comes from the Holy Spirit.
And when the ecstasy of your encounter with the Holy Spirit fades, I pray that the Holy Spirit brings you into a supportive community that worships God, cares for the poor and breaks bread together. I pray that we can be the Church together.
Let the fire burn! Have a Joyous Pentecost.
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The Rev. Ron Beaton is the pastor at First United Methodist in Dexter. He has served the congregation for two years. He and his wife, Kasey, both attended the Divinity School at Duke University. Ron is originally from Kennett. They have two children, Isaac, 5, and Hannah, 2.
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