Loving God, you continue to be at work in our world through the Holy Spirit.  Fill us today with that same Spirit of Jesus, and make us witnesses of your love, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

            Pentecost, for those who might want to know, is a Jewish festival that was celebrated on the 50th day after the Passover.  It was a harvest festival – sometimes called the Feast of Weeks, sometimes, the Feast of Harvest, and sometimes the Day of First-Fruits.  This is, in fact, what the disciples were celebrating when they were gathered together in Jerusalem that day (Acts 2:1).  However, as we have heard today, the Holy Spirit showed up in wind and flame, and ever since, Christians have celebrated Pentecost as the birthday of the church and the coming of the Holy Spirit.

         We also heard today about the gifts of the Spirit, which have shown up over the past few weeks in our readings from 1 Corinthians.  Last week we focused on faith, and the week before on love.  Today, additional spiritual gifts are mentioned that are all given for the common good (1 Cor. 12:7).

         They were also given the gifts that were most needed at the time.  Speaking in tongues enabled them to communicate the good news about Jesus to people who spoke many different languages.  Gifts like wisdom and knowledge were important when sharing Jesus with those who were steeped in Greek philosophy.  Gifts of healing and miracles were important in convincing people that the life-giving power of the name of Jesus is for real.  And the gift of faith, of course, is always needed.

         Perhaps we could say the same about the gift of discernment.  Discernment of spirits is the ability to discern what comes from God and what does not.  Throughout the New Testament we are warned about false prophets, false messiahs, and false teachers who will lead people away from Jesus.  Some of these even sound like they are Christian, when really, they are not.

         There are three basic questions that are suggested by today’s reading that can tell us whether something is from the Holy Spirit or some other kind of spirit (workingpreacher.org).  The first question asks, Is Jesus being proclaimed as Lord? – the same Jesus who was made known in the cross, the supper, and the resurrection?  The second question asks, Is the common good being served?  For, if a gift cannot be shared for the good of others, it is not from the Holy Spirit.  And finally, we can ask, Is loving and valuing others being promoted and activated?  If not, it is not from the Holy Spirit.

         While at least some of you have claimed in the past that you don’t have any spiritual gifts, the Spirit has given all of you at least something that you can share for the common good.  It doesn’t have to be a fancy or a flashy gift.  It doesn’t have to be obvious like speaking in tongues or prophecy.  It simply needs to be something that can be shared for the good of others and that benefits the body of Christ.

         Now, seeing as Pentecost is like the birthday of the church, one pastor was so bold as to ask what gifts for the common good are on your birthday wish list this year (RevGalBlogPals.org)?  One of the things that I would definitely have on my list is a way for people to be together without putting others at risk.

         Currently, even though regulations in Manitoba have been loosened somewhat, there is no safe way for people to gather together for worship.  In fact, the safest way to worship continues to be exactly what we are doing today – worshipping online with most people singing and receiving the Lord’s Supper at home.  As other congregations around the world have discovered, all it takes is one person who is carrying the virus and doesn’t have any symptoms who is present for a worship service, and everybody else who is present that day is now at risk of contracting Covid-19.  This is true even when congregations have followed every regulation given by the health authorities, including wearing masks and sanitizing everything.

         While meeting with others online is far from ideal, there is at least a type of community that is formed.  People are able to greet one another, share prayer requests and respond to the worship service while watching online, which is, indeed, a blessing.  Some people have also come up with backyard inventions using plastic sheeting, which allow people to give and receive hugs while protected by the plastic.  Again, it is not ideal.  But it is better than nothing!

         Another item on my birthday wish list is the gift of healing, which has already been named as a gift of the Spirit.  There seem to be so many, right now, who could use this gift – not only those who are suffering from various illnesses, but also those who are suffering from loneliness, and anxiety, and hunger, and grief.  While there are certainly people who suffer right here, I also think of places like South Sudan, where many are now dying from Covid-19.  For them, staying home is not an option, for if they stay home they will have nothing to eat.  Lord, have mercy.

         The final gift for the common good that is on my wish list also comes from the Holy Spirit.  We mentioned earlier loving and valuing others, which is part of the commandment to love your neighbour as yourself.  It is the Holy Spirit who gives us both the inclination and the ability to be able to do this, and your neighbour is never limited to the people who live next door. Once when Jesus was asked “Who is my neighbour?”, he responded by telling the parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10).  As we learn in that parable, our neighbour is anybody who is in need.

         In the midst of violence and hunger and grief and selfishness, love for one another has never been needed more.  May we be part of the solution rather than the problem, and may we be the answer to the prayers of others.  For the Holy Spirit continues to be at work in the world, in and through the members of the body of Christ.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

Pentecost Sunday (NL 2)               Acts 2:1-4; 1 Corinthians 12:1-13

May 31, 2020

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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