A Sermon by Pastor Tom Lacey . . .
god likes it hot
Acts 2:1-21, Preached at Congregational Church of Boca Raton, May 23, 2010
Bert went to a psychiatrist. "Doc," he said, "I've got trouble. Every time I get into bed, I think there's somebody under it. I get under the bed, I think there's somebody on top of it. Top, under, top, under. "you gotta help me, I'm going crazy!" "Just put yourself in my hands for two years," said the shrink. "Come to me three times a week, and I'll cure your fears." "How much do you charge?" "A hundred dollars per visit." "I'll sleep on it," said Shakey. Six months later the doctor met Bert on the street. "Why didn't you ever come to see me again?" asked the psychiatrist. "For a hundred buck's a visit? A bartender cured me for ten dollars." "Is that so! How?" "He told me to cut the legs off the bed!"
Today is Pentecost Sunday, "the birthday of the Church," as you have heard me say several time I imagine. We celebrate Pentecost 50 days after the resurrection of Jesus. Forty days he taught and encouraged his followers, then after his Ascension they waited another ten days for his gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God in action. Sometimes the Holy Spirit is called ‘the third person of the Trinity’ as if he is a lesser Being than Father and Son. He has certainly been "the neglected member of the Godhead." In the Apostles’ Creed there are at least 10 statements about Jesus Christ and only one about the Holy Spirit.
Throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, our Old Testament, there is the deep conviction that no one can do the work of God without the Spirit of God; no one can lead others for God who is not led by God’s Spirit. In Genesis, the Spirit gives Joseph skill to rule; in Numbers, he gives Joshua military prowess; he gives skill to a couple of craftsmen; and he gives words to the prophets. It is the Holy Spirit that descends upon Jesus and empowers him throughout his ministry, to teach and to heal. And before Jesus ascended to the Father, he gave his followers a mandate designed to motivate them for the task ahead. He promised to send the Holy Spirit in his place.
The Holy Spirit is like Jesus, who is like God: he can think, will and feel, that is, he possesses all the attributes of any personality: intellect, emotion and will. He can be grieved and he can be quenched or stifled and ignored. The Holy Spirit ‘inspires’ people to say what God wants them to say (or to write those things down). So prophets and Scripture are ‘inspired’ by the Spirit. The Spirit guides us into the truth about Jesus, about ourselves and our sinfulness, and gives us the "big picture" concerning God’s will for the future.
When you become a Christian, the Holy Spirit enters your life, and he will never leave you. In a sense, he’s a guest: you’ve let him in the front door. He helps us to pray, to communicate to others about Christ, to love, and to do what is right.
Tom Rees, in his very good little book on the Holy Spirit,
The Spirit of Life, or Life More Abundant
says ‘I don’t like big cities; I much prefer the countryside, and for this
reason I go to London only when it is absolutely necessary. However, every week
or so I set out for
‘I went straight to my room to collect the wallet from the
suit I had worn the previous day, and then panic seized me: it wasn’t there, and
I knew that it contained nearly twenty pounds. There was only one thing for it;
I must have been robbed. Then, in a sort of desperate way, I ran my hands over
the jacket I was wearing. Can you imagine how I felt when I discovered my wallet
in the jacket pocket? It had been there all day. I had taken it with me to
And then Tom Rees asks, ‘Now, why was my journey to
How can someone have the Holy Spirit? First we must desire to have the Holy Spirit. We have to have some hunger and thirst for this relationship. But this isn't like every other relationship. To let God in, we've got to let bad out. The Holy Spirit asks us first to confess our sins. But this isn't so much to show us who is the boss over us; the Holy Spirit wants to show us what is the best for us. You see, to confess sins is nothing other than to give God our sins, to hand them over, to let them go and let God. Once we have been emptied, we can ask the Lord to fill us with the Holy Spirit instead. And as Jesus said, if you ask for anything God wants, he’ll hear you. Then thank him for filling you. All that remains is to live life believing and knowing God's Spirit is within you, and will gladly guide you. We aren't penniless when it comes to the Spirit. We are rich, certainly rich enough to do right enough.
But it’s so easy to get burned out. It’s so easy to just get too tired, or jaded, or self-absorbed. There is a part of us, a large part of us, that just wants to be safe. While this is normal, it’s not what God asks of us. When we get so locked into our own little worlds, we will ultimately pay the price ourselves. If we don’t hold onto hope, we will lose heart. And if there is anything that Pentecost stands for, it is hope.
And not just anybody's hope; it especially reveals God's hope for us, and through us. Look, a ragtag, motley crew of some seriously off the reserve Jesus freaks is all the Big Guy had; One room full of these wingnuts for the Lord. That and three dollars will get you a grande at Starbuck's. If it weren't for the Holy Spirit and a serious dose of hope, nothing would have happened. The same is for today because nothing has changed.
Some of us listen to hours of talk radio or so-called news commentary every week. Some of us tune into FOX or MSNBC for several hours a day where talking head after talking head say absolutely nothing hopeful about anything and are critical of almost everyone and everything. Or we pick up our daily paper, listen to the nightly news, and we read about another hate crime, or someone killing someone who just didn't believe the same way they did, or a bunch of other sad, sad tragedies. It seems ignorance and fear leaves the rest of us wondering what on earth is going to happen next. And then we wonder why we have so much trouble feeling hopeful. Is it too far fetched to suggest that if you or I bathe our brains in vinegar long enough our minds become pickled?
His name is John. He has wild hair, wears a T-shirt with holes in it, jeans and no shoes. This was literally his wardrobe for his entire four years of college. He is kind of different, independent, and very bright. He became a Christian while attending college.
Across the street from the campus is a well-dressed, very conservative church. They want to develop a ministry to the students, but are not sure how to go about it. One Sunday John decides to go there. He walks in with no shoes, jeans, his T-shirt, and wild hair. The service has already started and so John starts down the aisle looking for a seat. The church is filled and so he can’t find a seat. By now, people are looking a bit uncomfortable, but no one says anything. John gets closer and closer to the pulpit and when he realizes there are no seats, he just sits down right on the carpet. (Although perfectly acceptable behavior at a college fellowship, trust me, this had never happened in this church before!) By now the people are really uptight, and the tension in the air is thick.
About this time, the minister realizes that from way at the back of the church, a deacon is slowly making his way toward John. The deacon in question is in his eighties, has silver-gray hair, a three-piece suit, and a pocket watch. A godly man, very elegant, very dignified, very courtly. He walks with a cane and as he starts walking toward this young man, everyone is thinking to themselves, “You can’t blame him for what he’s going to do. How can you expect a man of his age and of his background to understand some college kid on the floor?”
It takes a long time for the man to reach the boy. The church is utterly silent except for the clicking of the man’s cane. All eyes are focused on him. You can’t even hear anyone breathing. Then this elderly man drops his cane to the floor, and with difficulty lowers himself to sit down next to the college student, so he won’t be alone.
Everyone chokes up with emotion. When the minister gains control he says, “What I’m about to preach, you will never remember. What you have just seen, you will never forget.”
The truth is you just never know who is filled with the Spirit; sometimes perhaps we hide it too well. Let the Spirit move you to do the unexpected, the really good; it is the Holy Spirit who burns us enough to turn us into shining lights.
Pentecost Sunday could be named this: Possibility Sunday! When the Holy Spirit and a few good people get together, watch out. You can set the world on fire. And it's true, God likes it hot. As a very smart person once said, “The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.” Marshal Ferdinand Foch So believe. Have hope. Keep the fire alive. God wants to do the new thing, the next thing with you, and with us. There is a living God able and willing to enter your heart, your life, and change it all for good.
Return to Sermons (table of contents)
Return to Homepage of the Congregational Church of Boca Raton