"Gathered Community" - a sermon for St. Andrew's Lutheran Church, Pentecost Sunday

Hey all -

It's been a while! Just thought I'd update real quick with my sermon from Pentecost Sunday at St. Andrew's Lutheran in Grand Rapids! I preached on gathering community, and how the promises of the Spirit through Christ continue to inform and impact our relationships with others and with God - things, too, that I have been dwelling on as of late.

Before I begin, let me ask you a question. Ponder this for a while now. What does the word “community” mean to you? What have been your experiences? What have been different communities that you have been a part of? Think of your church, your homes, your families, your support systems. Part of my personal narrative includes a yearlong stay at Holden Village, an intentional Lutheran community in the North Cascades Mountains of Washington State. In whatever form they take, community is important to us all as a means of life-giving support, embrace, and fellowship as followers of Christ and as children of God.

            Today is Pentecost, a day held in the Church for years as commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Christ’s apostles and followers. Throughout his ministry, Jesus taught in community with people – his followers, the lame, downtrodden, and those on the margins. Now, in Christ’s absence, it is fitting that the people witnessing the story unfold are gathered as community – they are gathered together in houses, in upper rooms, behind locked doors – all together. Having served and listened to and been with Christ until the very end, they are waiting for the fulfillment of what Christ promises just a few days earlier at the Last Supper – in the Gospel of John, when Jesus promises the Spirit among them – “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth.” Jesus has promised his followers that they will not be left alone after his death, even while they don’t understand it all, and now they are waiting. Gathered together, in expectation, wonder, and fear of what is to come.

            In the Gospel text for today, the disciples are gathered in together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews. Jesus died three days prior, and they are probably expecting rebuke and censure for their actions that day Christ died. By all accounts, the disciples are not sure what to expect. Jesus comes through the door, however, and ends all doubt with “Peace be with you!” Jesus shows the gathered his hands and his sides and his feet and then the disciples recognize him – sort of an “ah-ha!” moment – as if to say, “this is the One we have been waiting for”. Jesus then charges them with the Holy Spirit, giving them exactly what they need to hear in that moment – “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” The Spirit will advocate for the disciples in this task, and in their future ministries carrying out Christ’s message. Just as the Spirit guided the disciples and Christ’s followers, even today the Spirit is still moving in and among us.

            This provides an interesting parallel to today’s modern Christianity. We have had the Spirit guiding and advocating for us for the past two thousand some years, and we have not seen Christ, and still we believe in the promises that accompany his teachings. This begs questions, namely, in what ways do we experience Christ in the here and now; in the same way how do we experience the Spirit personally moving in and among us? It’s helpful to consider how, as a gathered community we experience the Spirit at work and how we see forgiveness and reconciliation and the fellowship of all people happening as we live out our calling as Christians, as called and claimed children of God. The Spirit brings unity in Christian assembly and calls us each into participation in God’s kingdom. With the Spirit, we are called to act with God’s agency to promote what the Spirit promises to generate: love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control that will bring about in the here and the now the kingdom of God. The Spirit’s unleashing upon the disciples (both in the John and Acts texts) was the beginning of the hand-off of ministry from Jesus to his followers. In the Spirit through Christ we are freed to proclaim the Gospel of reconciliation and hope to all people – to those who doubt, to those who struggle with understanding, and with those who are marginalized. Full of the Spirit’s life we can forgive and reconcile with one another, and daily die and rise in our Christian life.   

            Just as the Spirit came to the disciples through Jesus’s breath (ruach in Hebrew) and in Acts like a mighty rushing wind, so too we can be witnesses to the Spirit moving and breathing and working among us. I notice the Spirit at work in St. Andrew’s in so many ways through my time here – the community worshipping through the Lenten season, through festival worships, through Myrna Peterson’s smile, through lay work with Grace House, through cups of coffee shared, and through a tangible deep, deep commitment to this church and her people. The Spirit is used metaphorically throughout scripture, defined as fire, wind, and clothing – all things that usher in and refine and protect – and so it is used here at St. Andrew’s – the Spirit ushering in the kingdom of God, refining us to be better stewards and caretakers of ourselves and each other, and protecting the faith near and dear to our souls.    

            My prayer for you this day is that you will begin to notice the Spirit moving as swiftly as fire, both in the church and in ourselves as children of God. We can begin by recognizing each other’s talents and gifts as Spirit-ordained, used to build up our church. We can begin by continuing to gather in communities we love and share together – this congregation and each other. We can begin by being like Christ towards each other – recognizing our humanity while striving towards forgiveness of wrongdoings.

My prayer for you this day is that you realize that the Spirit’s work here is not finished. The kingdom of God is here but not yet, at hand but not in hand – and the Spirit still has her work to do among us. With God’s help, we can keep our eyes afresh of what the Spirit is doing. Much like the disciples who gathered behind locked doors, we have an enormous, beautiful task ahead of us. May this holy work, the ushering of the Spirit, burn deep in your bones. Thanks be to God. 

Other opportunities for worship leadership have presented themselves this summer as well - this Sunday I'm headed to St. Andrew's to preside over worship, and then on July 27th I'll be presiding and preaching at Spring Garden Lutheran (my home congregation) while the pastors are away on a servant trip. I'm thankful for these cloud of witnesses and mentors who continually affirm and encourage my call to Christian public leadership by giving me these opportunities and saying, "Go for it!" - it makes a huge difference. When I'm up front leading worship, it feels right. It feels good. Unmistakably, the Spirit is moving among us. Without these gathered communities and congregations for support, reflection, and encouragement, I wouldn't be where I am today - I'm finding myself more and more in a state of gratitude for how the Spirit brings together all things for good. 

May God's deepest peace be with you this night & always - 

Dean