On this day of Pentecost, Garry spoke from Acts 1:1-11, talking about how Jesus wanted to teach the disciples about the promise, power and purpose of the Holy Spirit, even though the disciples wanted to talk about the coming of the kingdom!

The Promise

The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost was different to receiving the Holy Spirit at salvation (see John 20:19-22). The Holy Spirit was present in the Old Testament (see Num 11:24-30 and 1 Sam 10:9-11), but on these occasions, the Holy Spirit was given to selected people (70 elders or Saul) for a limited time. The Spirit rested upon people but did not dwell with them permanently. Joel’s prophecy (Joel 2:28-29) was different to these examples, since he prophesied that the Spirit would be poured out on all people and Jesus confirmed this in John 14:15-18, when He told us that the Counsellor would be with them forever.  Jesus had to be exalted before the Spirit could be poured out (John 7:37-39), but this promise has now been fulfilled and can be experienced by all God’s people.

The Power

The Holy Spirit brings power, strength and ability to God’s people, bestowing spiritual gifts on His church (1 Cor 12:7-11) which enable us to have wisdom and understanding (see also Num 11:16-17 and Ex 31:1-6). Bezalel’s skill was given by the Holy Spirit and we must acknowledge that the Holy Spirit is able to give power in many different ways.

The Purpose

The purpose of the Spirit’s coming is that we should be witnesses to all Jesus has done (see John 14:24-26). The gifts of power He distributes are not for decoration or to focus attention on us, but to show God is here and working in our midst. As God works by His Spirit, He wants to fill us all, giving us new purpose to declare His goodness.

The Bible study on 1 Cor 2:6-16 continued looking at Paul’s exposition of the differences between human wisdom and God’s wisdom. Human wisdom can only reflect human knowledge and perspectives, which will focus on temporal matters only. God’s wisdom (which may be described as a ‘mystery’, but which does not mean that it is only accessible to some kind of esoteric elite; simply, that it has now been revealed through the death and resurrection of Christ) is cross-centred (see 1 Cor 1:22-24, Col 1:19), eternal (see Jer 10:12), intended for our good (for our glory) and supernatural. It was not understand by the rulers of the day (or they would not have crucified Christ!) and indeed cannot be understood in any experiential way by those in whom the Spirit of God does not dwell. 2 Cor 4:4 reminds us that the god of this age has blinded the eyes of unbelievers and ‘the person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.’ (1 Cor 2:14, see also Acts 17:18, Acts 18:15)

Those who are mature (growing spiritually because they are being transformed by the renewing of their minds) are aware, however, that spiritual truths – even the ‘deep things of God’ – are revealed by God’s Spirit, because He knows the purposes and will of God, just as a person cannot ever be fully known by another, but only by one’s own spirit. Because of this, we are attuned to spiritual matters and can make spiritual judgments. This does not mean that we can arrogantly pontificate on all kinds of subjects, but rather that our value judgments are moulded by God’s word rather than by our own thoughts. Paul does not mean to imply we are above judgments, either: later in this letter, he commands believers to judge the flagrantly disobedient in their midst (1 Cor 5:3-5), to evaluate those who claim to bring words from the Lord (1 Cor 14:29), and to examine themselves to see if they are behaving appropriately enough to take the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor 11:27-32). Here, he is talking of being unjustly evaluated by non-Christians (or by Christians employing worldly standards), who have no authority to criticise believers for their misbehaviour, since they themselves do not accept the standards they employ in making their judgments.

God has clearly prepared amazing things for His people! (1 Cor 2:9-10) These verses are often used at funerals to indicate the glories awaiting us in heaven, but Isaiah (quoted here) was referring to present-day blessings. Eph 1:3 reminds us of the many spiritual blessings God has poured out on us: salvation, forgiveness, redemption, eternal life, hope, the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit, to name just a few. These blessings may not be prized (or even acknowledged) by the world, but to those in whom Christ dwells by His Spirit, they are real and ever more precious and form the basis of our ongoing instruction and walk with God.

I like films that make me think (as well as ones when I don’t have to think at all…!)  Last night I watched the 2014 film ‘Calvary’, wondering whether this would be yet another film which lambasted the Catholic church over paedophile priests and denigrated faith.

The film is not easy to watch in parts and does indeed deal with difficult situations, including sexual abuse, drug-taking, violence and attempted suicide. But it portrays these things not simply to criticise God or the church, but to show us a fallen world and how people grapple with suffering and pain. Brendan Gleeson plays an innocent man, a good priest, in the aftermath of Ireland’s devastating sex abuse scandal. ‘A late vocation, a widower with a troubled adult daughter, he’s surrounded by people he knows better than they know themselves, characters ripe with indifference, resentment and cynicism, sprinkled with just enough courtesy to mask their contempt,’ Archbishop Charles Caput writes. The film begins in the confessional, when a man, the victim of clergy rape as a child, tells the priest that he will murder him in a week’s time, not because he is a bad priest, but precisely because he is a good priest, and to kill a good priest might shock the church into considering the effects of sexual abuse.

The rest of the film charts the priest’s day-by-day life for the rest of that week, showing us how he deals with his parishioners, all of whom are deeply troubled and scarred individuals, as well as with his daughter, who has not coped well with the death of her mother and her father’s ‘abandonment’ to a religious vocation. There are no magic cures, no happy endings, no ‘perfect’ priest, but along with the darkness are moments of true faith: the priest’s kindness to an ageing writer friend; his love for his daughter; his humour and positive relationship with a young altar server; his sensitivity in dealing with a young French woman, widowed in a car accident while on holiday in Ireland. Far from giving us a black and white film about right and wrong, the grey areas of faith are discussed and in a telephone conversation between the priest and his daughter filled with mercy, reconciliation and forgiveness, we see the hope that God can bring even into desperate situations.

Faith is lived out in far from ideal conditions by people who are far from perfect. A recovering alcoholic, the priest does not always cope well with the pressures upon him and is by no means sinless. He is, however, portrayed as a men of integrity who believes that there is “too much talk of sins and not enough of virtues.” In offering forgiveness and hope even to those who would despise and reject him, he reminds us of a Saviour who ‘when they hurled their insults at him, did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.’ (1 Pet 2:23) Food for thought indeed.

‘Fill us up and send us out’ are lyrics from the Tim Hughes’ song ‘God of Justice.’ They perfectly embody Jesus’s ‘Great Commission’ (Matt 28:16-20), reminding us that empowerment from the Holy Spirit is not to make us feel good and satisfy our own needs, but to enable us to be witnesses to Jesus and hold out the word of life to those who are spiritually dead.

‘We must go, live to feed the hungry,
Stand beside the broken:
We must go.
Stepping forward; keep us from just singing;
Move us into action:
We must go.’ (‘God Of Justice’, Tim Hughes)

Stephen concluded his series on the armour of God by looking at the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. (Eph 6:12-17) In natural terms, a helmet protects the head, and in Roman times was usually made of metal which surrounded the face as well as the top and back of the head. Like the other pieces of equipment, this was a defensive piece of armour, whereas the sword was intended to attack the enemy. If a soldier had no means of attack, he would not last long on the battle ground, so the sword was a crucial weapon.

Spiritually, the helmet of salvation reminds us that we must put on Jesus, since it is only through Jesus that we have salvation. Salvation gives us total coverage or protection; Jesus gave everything for us so that we may be saved. The sword of the Spirit is the very word of God, never failing but always prevailing. Jn 1:1 reminds us that Jesus is the very Word of God who speaks life-giving words. Luke 1:37 reminds us that no word from God will ever fail, giving us confidence as we enlist in God’s army, for no matter what weapons are developed, none will be stronger than God’s very word. Jesus is the living Word who protects our minds and enables us to go on the offensive against the enemy.

Our kitbag is held together by prayer, but it is our choice whether we put on the armour of God or not. We are each vital members of God’s army, but just as in the game ‘Game of War’, when the player decides whether to equip the hero or not in order to protect the city, it is our choice whether we avail ourselves of God’s armour and stand firm or whether we allow the enemy to gain footholds in our lives. Let’s stand firm in God and put on the whole armour of God.

We also had a birthday to celebrate:

Mark’s sermon on the Holy Spirit this morning looked at how our attitudes matter enormously to seeing God move among us. If we approach God with the ‘bus stop syndrome‘, we are likely to come before Him with low expectations and desire, wondering if God will actually turn up (after all, buses don’t always…) or if we have somehow missed all He wants to do (we can miss the bus…) or if He will force us to do things we don’t want to do. We may well wonder how much longer it will take for the Holy Spirit to come or how long we have to wait, or even if we need the Holy Spirit anymore. These attitudes will hinder us, for often those who wait for buses do so with a complaining attitude, whereas God does not force Himself on anyone, but comes to those who genuinely hunger and thirst for God and who actively seek HIm.

Acts 1:4-8 gives us Jesus’s directed to His disciples as to what to do; they were commanded to wait in Jerusalem until the arrival of the promised Holy Spirit. Definite promises were made to them (that they would be baptised in the Spirit, that they would all receive power and be witnesses to Jesus.) The fact that we celebrate Pentecost at all is partly because of their obedience to this command to wait on God.

Instead of the bus stop syndrome, we need to ‘call for the cops’ (Acts 1:14): Continue in One accord (demonstrating unity) in Prayer and Supplication. God wants us to have a real desire for Him and to plead with Him, often with tears and emotion, if we are to see God pour out His Holy Spirit.

Waiting for God is not something we usually enjoy, any more than we enjoy waiting for a bus! Ps 27:13-14 reminds us that as we see God doing things and witness His goodness, we can be strong and take heart as we wait for Him. Is 40:31 reminds us that those who wait for (and hope in) the Lord will renew their strength and soar like eagles. We’re not supposed to be on a bumpy bus journey, but need to be waiting at the airport, for God to allow us to fly!

Lam 3:24-26 reminds us that the Lord is good to those who wait for Him and whose hope is in Him. He changes our souls as we seek Him, restoring and recharging us, always turning up at the right time to take us where we need to go. Is 25:9 reminds us that as we wait and trust in God, He will save us and we will see great things. The key to seeing the Spirit move in our midst is in our attitudes. Let’s ditch the bus stop syndrome and adopt the COPS syndrome instead!