Faithful and Fearless
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all
together in one place.
Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and
filled the whole house where they were sitting.
They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest
on each of them. Acts 2:1-3
This time of year you gointo any garden or landscaping outlet and the shelves
and bins are full of bulbs and seeds for planting, along with rows and rows
of flats filled with annuals and perennials. But it is the bulbs and seeds
I want to think about for a second. Take a bulb--any bulb. A gladiola bulb,
for example.
You plant it about this time of year and you will get a tall stalk with
large colorful blooms, sometime in late summer.
You just know that if you plant them, they will bloom.
But you take one in your hand and look at it, and you don't see much.
It's alive and will remain alive in its dried out state for quite a while.
Wheat seeds recovered from the tombs of Egyptian pharoahs have germinated
when planted.
They had to be alive to do that.
But just looking at a grain of wheat or corn or a gladiola bulb reveals
nothing of the life inside it, let alone what it will eventually become.
When you give your life over to God, the Holy Spirit becomes a living force
in you in much the same way.
Some people notice the difference right away, especially if their conversion
represents a significant change in life.
People who grow up as believers don't often notice that kind of profound
inner change, and sometimes feel left out.
But whether the experience has been dramatic or subtle, the life of God
is alive in you and at work.
It may seem to lie dormant like the life in a gladiola bulb seems to lie
dormant over the winter.
But once in the ground with moisture and the warm summer sun, that life
expresses itself. And isn't it great!
The Holy Spirit in you will express the presence of God in your life when
its season comes as well.
After Jesus' resurrection, He reamained with them teaching and encouraging
them.
They wanted to know when the Kingdom was going to blossom full flower and
full of the fruit of justice and peace and prosperity for everyone.
I guess that is a prayer we pray too.
Come soon, O Lord!
Let you will be done on earth as it is in heaven!
We pray this every week. And God hears it every week and takes note.
We mean it, and God knows.
Let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Let there be justice. No more the strong suppress the weak.
We see soldiers taking the meagre relief supplies meant for typhoon victims
and we say, "let you will be done on earth as it is in heaven, Lord!"
We hear of hundreds of thousands dying of starvation yearly, or is it millions?
Its hard to keep track.
We pray, "let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, Lord!"
We hear ominous rumblings of this country or that trying to aquire nuclear
weapons.
We hear this nation or that building up its military to unprecedented levels.
We hear the catastrophic prophecies of our earth's environment in peril,
and a new shadow crosses our mind.
A shadow we had never heard of twenty years ago, to go along with war,
pestilence and famine.
And we pray, "O Lord, let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!"
But do we hear the voice of God saying, "You feed them." "You be the peace
makers." "You care for my creation." ?
We ask, "how?"
Lord we are small and weak and puny. How can we possibly affect any of
these things?
We ask like his disciples asked, "Lord, will you now restore the kingdom?"
Jesus says, "wait"
Wait for what? Can't anyone see what's going on?
Jesus says, "wait for the Spirit."
And so they waited.
Then as we read, on the day of Pentecost the Spirit came. And how the Spirit
came!
A sound of a mighty rushing wind, then tongues of fire. Everyone around
heard the commotion.
Then they heard the gospel in their own languages.
God was breaking out.
The Spirit was breaking out.
Condider Peter: Peter before Pentecost was not someone you would count
on in the clutch.
He was impetuous, brash and impulsive.
But he had a knack for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time, for not
coming through in the clutch.
But consider Peter once the Spirit got hold of Peter.
A man who spoke to thousands and swayed them to put their faith in Jesus.
A man who commanded the lame to walk.
A man who was fearless and brave.
In a 2007 edition of Newsweek magazine, author and radio personality
Garrison Keillor was asked to choose what he considered to be the five most
important books. Some readers were probably surprised to find that he ranked
the Book of Acts at the top of his list. When describing the Book of Acts,
Keillor offered this concise but potent summation: "The flames lit on their
little heads and bravely and dangerously went they onward."1.
I like that description. Bravely and dangerously went they onward.
Jesus said wait and so they waited.
Then the Spirit came and Jesus said, Go! And they went. Faithfully and fearless.
God sometimes says wait.
Wait on God, but at the same time ask, "where do you want me, Lord?"
He will show you.
Then go.
The gladiola bulb just has potential until it is planted in someone's garden.
You have the Spirit by virtue of Pentecost.
You have the potential to bring real change to your home, your world.
As a church we have the Spirit's power.
The two ingredients to realease the power is to be faithful and fearless.
We pray, Lord where do you want us to give away our life?
Then we do it.
We plant our life in faith.
We plant our life without fear.
The Spirit will do the rest.
Preached May 11, 2008
Dr. Harold McNabb
West Shore Presbyterian
Church
Victoria, British Columbia
Notes
1. Garrison Keillor, "My Five Most Important Books," in the
"Life in Books" section of Newsweek magazine (12-24-07), p. 17
Resources Consulted
Return to Main Sermon
Page
Email Harold McNabb
