WONDERING GURU
19 May 2024
Acts 2: 1-11;1 Cor 12: 3b-7, 12-13 or (Gal 5: 16-25)
Jn 20: 19-23 or (Jn 15: 26-27; 16: 12-15)
We celebrate the birth of
Jesus & most of the world pauses to celebrate Christmas with us. We
celebrate His resurrection and recognize Easter as a very special day on the
calendar. But unfortunately, Pentecost does not receive the worldwide fame and
importance. Yet, this day is important to us, because Pentecost is the birthday
of the Church, & God has given us the wonderful opportunity of being a part
of it. Pentecost was a once in history event, when the Church was born. So let
me share with you three things that we learn from "Pentecost."
I. THE CHURCH IS THE WORK
OF GOD- It’s God who started the Church not any man. God brought the Church
into existence & it is His Church, not ours. We are just a part of it. It
is essential for us to realize that.
II. THE CHURCH WAS BORN
TO COMMUNICATE THE LOVE OF GOD-The mission of the Church is to communicate the
love of God to a lost & dying world. The theme of Pentecost actually is
communication. God gave the gift of tongues to the apostles for one purpose,
& that was for the purpose of communication. They had a problem because of different languages
and cultures. So language barrier was the main issue. Because God wanted each of them to hear the
message in his/her own language, He performed a miracle, & gave the
apostles the gift of tongues so they could communicate His message to everyone
there. The mission of the Church is to
communicate the message. Today that gift of speaking in tongues is put into black
and white. And therefore today, we have translated the Bible into hundreds of
different languages & dialects.
III. THE CHURCH WAS BORN
TO CREATE UNIQUE FELLOWSHIP AMONG BELIEVERS-On the Day of Pentecost there are
3,000 new converts, & they suddenly share something that has never been
shared before. All of them know they are guilty - by their sins they are guilty
of crucifying Christ. But now they have repented of their sins. They've been
baptized. They've been redeemed, & they've been given the gift of the Holy
Spirit. Suddenly, they are part of a new society, new fellowship. They've come out of a world of slavery &
superstition, of selfishness & greed.
Now they're part of a new fellowship where they can share things about
themselves with others whom they know will listen & be kind &
compassionate towards them.
IV THE CHURCH IN THE
MODERN WORLD- How does the feast of Pentecost affect the church in the modern
world? Let me share a story. "A
young man was apprenticed to a master artist who produced the most beautiful
stained glass windows anywhere. The apprentice could not approach the master’s
genius so he borrowed his master’s tools, thinking that was the answer. After
several weeks, the young man said to his teacher, ’I’m not doing any better
with your tools than I did with mine.’ The teacher replied,’ So, it’s not the
tools of the master you need; it’s the spirit of the master you need.’
The Spirit of our master
Jesus Christ has been with the Church since the first Pentecost, so that it
could enter our spirit and enable us to be the kind of people God intended for
us to be. Each day we need to renew ourselves and allow God’s Holy Spirit to
replace our pride full spirit so that we can bear His cross in this world. The
Holy Spirit works constantly with our spirit so that our lives may be
transformed, be made new and rewarding.
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