It's commonly thought, and certainly in the last 50 years, a lot of skeptics and critics of the Christian faith would have said that the world is becoming less and less religious.
As more people modernize and gain technology and advancement, that we would put away myths and superstitions.
But many scholars and folks who study this show us that the data says quite the opposite.
The world is rapidly becoming more religious.
Ecclesiastes 3.11 says that God has set in our hearts eternity.
He's designed all of us with this longing and this desire for us to encounter, to experience the divine.
However we define that, we have so much in this nation.
We are so powerful, so advanced, yet we're so bored and so empty and so hungry and so thirsty.
For the Christian, we teach and believe that this longing is ultimately and fully found in the person of Jesus Christ.
I love the author Pat Conroy, who wrote The Great Santini.
He once wrote,
I could not quiet that pearly ache in my heart that I diagnosed as the cry of home.
I'm 53 years old.
I've lived in nine homes.
And every time I drive up the driveway of my parents' house, I feel like I'm home again.
But I know that it's ultimately not the home that I long for.
Don't we all want to find home?
I thought it was interesting.
I walked in and saw the sign out there that said home.
We're all looking for community, for friendships, for relationships, for family.
This eternal longing is a longing that God has placed in our hearts to come home to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
So if the world is becoming more and more religious, and people are more hungry and thirsty for home,
then I commend to you that the answer will be given on Pentecost Sunday that the Lord has sent to us his spirit.
And I'm supposed to do this in about 17 minutes.
So buckle up.
I want to show you in just a few brief moments the beauty of Pentecost,
the work of the Holy Spirit in bringing unity,
and the great telos of God's plan,
every tribe, tongue, people, and nation.
So first, the amazing beauty and the timing,
the unique timing of this unique day of Pentecost in human history.
In the Old Testament, as Tommy mentioned from the outset,
there's this theme.
It's latent.
It's nascent.
Running through the Old Testament scriptures
that God will be our God,
and we will be his people,
and he will send to us the promise of his spirit being poured out.
We heard in the opening liturgy
the renewal of this promise through the prophet Joel
that God will send his spirit upon his people,
and young men and young women shall dream dreams.
And if you know the passage of dry bones from Ezekiel,
you see this promise of the renewing of God's spirit,
and at the end of it, Ezekiel writes about God,
my dwelling place is with them.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
Then the nations will know that I, the Lord,
make Israel holy
when my sanctuary is among them forever.
This is the great promise that we see coming
through all of scripture,
that God will be with his people.
Think about this.
What has God promised you in this life?
He's not promised you that all will go well with you in this world,
that your dreams will come true,
that the answers and longings of your hearts
will be met in the things and the events
and the circumstances of this world.
He has promised you this.
I will be with you.
And the way that he ensures you know this promise
is that he gives you his spirit.
So there's this festival in Israel,
this festival called the Festival of Weeks,
and every year people would gather in Jerusalem
50 days after the Passover Sunday.
That's the word Pentecost in Greek, 50.
So they would gather and they would bring sacrifices of new wheat,
new crops that have come up in the spring season
as a celebration that it is God who provides for them.
And this agricultural celebration of new wheat
was symbolizing it is God who brings newness of life
to his people.
And it was also tied to Moses giving the law on Mount Sinai.
So year after year and season after season
for hundreds if not thousands of years,
the people of Israel gathered together in Jerusalem
with this festival,
celebrating and being reminded of the newness of life,
the promises of God.
But at this festival, uniquely,
people had for some reason,
in God's providence, come from all over.
So who is here?
We heard a list that Aaron read for us.
Scholars and commentators have said about this list.
It represents the list of the known world nations.
So all the nations are here in Jerusalem.
We're representatives from them.
And Luke, the writer of Acts,
says that there's converts and there's God-fears.
Something very special and electric
is happening in the city of Jerusalem this day.
Back to the promise.
God would pour out his spirit upon all flesh.
Meaning we could know him personally
and intimately and relationally.
A relationship with God was no longer just speculation
or the activities of our mind,
but a reality of our heart.
It was personal.
So this year, this particular year in the history of Israel,
this particular time and celebration of the newness of life
and the first fruits
has now become the stage for the most powerful event
in human history,
the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Some say this is the birth of the church.
Second point.
Jesus had told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem.
Acts 1.8 says, he says to them,
the Holy Spirit will come upon you
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,
in Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
So the 120-ish disciples waited
and they're waiting and they're waiting on the Holy Spirit.
And at the Festival of Weeks celebration,
this day we now call Pentecost,
God poured out his spirit on the disciples.
As the writer says,
when the day of Pentecost came,
they were 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 them.
And all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in other tongues
as the Spirit enabled them.
Before our theological and denominational minds
get tied up in these symbols
and these words and these concepts,
let's just simply see the work of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus says,
if you love me, you'll keep my commands
and I will ask the Father
and he will give you another advocate to help you
and be with you forever.
The Spirit of Truth.
He says further down,
I will not leave you as orphans.
I will come to you.
This is the fulfilling of the promise of God
throughout scriptures.
And the Christian life that we teach
and that we strive to live
is simply a life trusting
and walking in the power of the Spirit.
We can often think that the Christian life
is lived by just what I do,
but it's a life lived in trust
and surrender to God.
On the contrary,
Jesus sends his Spirit to dwell in us,
not just by what we do,
but he sends his Spirit to us
to assure us that we are not alone,
to remind us that we are coming home.
You know, I think about all of the power
that we possess.
My cell phone has more information
within a click of a button
than the whole library of ancient Alexandria.
And yet we are the most disconnected people,
the loneliest people.
I hear it everywhere I go.
People say,
I'm looking for community.
We had the Comfort Man share yesterday,
and a number of them remarked
one of the reasons why they ended up here at Advent
is they found a home.
They found community.
If you're a guest today,
we pray that you'll come back
and find that kind of community.
The Father sends us his Spirit
so we are not alone in this life.
You are not an orphan.
Yesterday, Bayou shared with us
some of her story,
and something you said really stuck with me.
Of all the things that you have gone through
and the things that we have gone through
in this life,
we are reminded that Jesus was with us
through them all.
That is the work of the Spirit
assuring you,
you are not alone in this life.
Psalm 68.6 says that
God sets the lonely in family.
Romans 8 says
that if the Spirit of Him
who raised Jesus from the dead
is living in you,
He who raised Christ from the dead
will also give life to your mortal bodies
because of His Spirit
who lives in you.
He continues,
for those who are led by the Spirit
are children of God,
not orphans.
The Spirit you receive
does not make you slaves
so that you live in fear.
Rather,
the Spirit that you have received
brought about your adoption
to sonship.
And so by Him we cry,
Abba,
Father.
The Spirit Himself
testifies with our spirit
that we are God's children.
I'm not finished in Romans.
Listen,
He says that a little bit further down
in the same way.
The Spirit helps us
in our weakness.
We do not know
what we ought to pray for,
but the Spirit Himself
intercedes for us
through wordless groans.
And He who searches our hearts
knows the mind of the Spirit
because the Spirit intercedes
for God's people
in accordance with the will of God.
And probably the most famous verse of Romans,
and we know
that in all things
God works for the good
of those who love Him,
who have been called
according to His purpose.
The hardest thing for me
to believe
in my 53 years of life
is not,
is there a God?
But is there a God
who is good
and really working
through the circumstances
of this world
when I see the troubling things
that happen,
troubling things that happen
to us,
to me,
to believe that God
is actually at work
in all of these things,
takes a trust
in the Holy Spirit.
You're not alone.
The Spirit is poured out
so everyone can be filled.
And just to show off,
not because I'm a Greek scholar,
but one of the confirmands is,
the word filled
means present,
imperative,
passive,
and plural.
The Holy Spirit
is continually
or repeatedly
filling us.
We leak.
We need the Spirit.
It is imperative.
We are to be filled.
The Apostle Paul says,
don't get filled up on wine
or any other thing
that you want to substitute,
but instead be filled
by the Spirit.
It's passive.
I don't make the Spirit
fill me.
I surrender
and say,
Holy Spirit,
come
and have your way
with me.
A very dangerous prayer.
Lord,
have your way
with me.
And lastly,
it's plural.
It's not just for me.
It's not just for
super people
or leaders.
It is the filling
of the Spirit
for all
of God's people.
So God
pours out
His Spirit
on disciples
and He pours out
His Spirit
on people
from all over
the known world
at Pentecost.
But what else happens?
Let's look at Acts chapter 8
for just a second.
Acts chapter 8,
those who had been scattered
preached the Word
everywhere they went.
Verse 5,
Philip went down
to a city in Samaria
and He proclaimed
and he proclaimed
the Messiah there.
When the crowds
heard Philip
and saw the signs
he performed,
they paid close attention
to what he said
for with shrieks
impure spirits
came out of many
and many who were paralyzed
or lame
were healed.
So there was great joy
in that city.
Jump down
to verse 14.
When the apostles
in Jerusalem
heard that Samaria
had accepted
the Word of God,
they sent Peter
and John
to Samaria.
and when they arrived,
they prayed
for the new believers
that they might receive
the Holy Spirit
because the Holy Spirit
had not yet come
on any of them.
They had simply
been baptized
in the name
of the Lord.
Then Peter
and John
placed their hands
on them
and they received
the Holy Spirit.
Acts chapter 10,
Peter began to speak.
He's with Cornelia
and he said,
I now realize
how true it is
that God does not
show favoritism
but accepts
from every nation
the one who fears him
and does what is right.
You know the message
God sent
to the people of Israel
announcing the good news
of peace
through Jesus Christ
who is Lord of all.
You know what has happened
throughout the province
of Judea
beginning in Galilee
after the baptism
that John preached.
How God anointed
Jesus of Nazareth
with the Holy Spirit
and power
and how he went around
doing good
and healing
all who were under
the power
of the devil
because God was with him.
Jump down a little bit.
While Peter
was still speaking
these words
the Holy Spirit
came on all
who heard the message.
The circumcised believers
who had come with Peter
were astonished
that the gift
of the Holy Spirit
had been poured out
even on the Gentiles
for they heard them
speaking in tongues
and praising God.
See what's happening
in the book of Acts.
The disciples in Jerusalem
the disciples in Samaria
the Gentiles
jumped to Acts 19.
While Apollos
was in Corinth
Paul took the road
through the interior
and arrived at Ephesus.
There he found
some disciples
and he asked them
did you receive
the Holy Spirit
when you believed?
And they answered
no we've not even heard
that there's a Holy Spirit.
That's most of the church
it seems like some days.
So Paul asked
then what baptism
did you receive?
John's baptism
they replied.
Paul said
John's baptism
was a baptism
of repentance.
He told the people
to believe
in the one
coming after him
that is in Jesus.
On hearing this
they were baptized
in the name
of the Lord Jesus
when Paul placed
his hands on them
the Holy Spirit
came on them
and they spoke
in tongues
and they prophesied
there were about
twelve men
in all.
What is happening
is that God
was making
his promise
come true
through belief
and the filling
of the Spirit.
The book of Acts
gives testimony
that there is this
one holy Catholic
and apostolic church
and faith
and those
who believed
became witnesses
in Jerusalem
Judea
Samaria
and to the ends
of the earth.
This is the promise
of God
through the scriptures
and you
friends
by faith
are included
in that family.
Think of this
staggering fact
with me
for just a moment.
On Pentecost
there were about
120 people
waiting on the Spirit.
That was
2,000 years ago.
Today
there are more
than 2.5 billion
men,
women,
and children
around the world
identifying
in some way
with the person
of Jesus.
Feng Gang Wong
who studies
Christianity
in China
says,
in China
by the year
2060
the nation
of China
will be
a majority
Christian nation
and the largest
nation
with Christians
in the world.
God continues
to pour out
his Holy Spirit.
He is making us
witnesses
to the ends
of the earth.
There are
3 billion people
alive
who do not know
another living
breathing Christian
in this world.
Who will go
and preach
to them
the good news?
My last point
is this,
the effect
of Pentecost
is that
God is building
a people
for himself
as he's promised
through the scriptures
from every tribe,
tongue,
people,
and nation.
God is building
his people.
This is the impact
and the effect
of Pentecost.
What happened
2,000 years ago
is staggeringly
effective
even today.
In Genesis
chapter 11
there's this
fantastic story
about people
then who wanted
to make themselves
great,
their name great
and they built
a ziggurat,
a tower
to ascend
on high
and God
scattered them
and confused
them with languages
that divided
and separated
them.
but here
at Pentecost
what's happening
is God
is reversing
Babel.
The world
is present
at Pentecost.
This is why
the world history
is one story
after another
of racial
hatred
and enmity.
No people
on earth
have clean hands
on this.
On Pentecost
day,
this is God's
answer to the
problem of enmity
between the races
and the nations.
The message
of Jesus
makes a new
people,
one family.
Tongues
even meant
everyone at that
moment could
understand.
A few years ago
at Church of the
Redeemer in
Greensboro,
we were reading
the Acts 2
passage and I
kind of slipped
a surprise on
people.
After about
the first two
verses,
someone stood
up in the
congregation
and they
started reading
aloud in
German.
And another
person about
three or four
verses later
stood up and
started reading
in Swahili
and another
one in Spanish
and another
one in Arabic
and this lady
who was visiting,
she was visiting
our church
first time ever.
She got up
from her seat
in the back
and walked up
to me and she
said,
they're speaking
in tongues.
You have to
get an interpreter
and make them
stop.
And I said,
the interpreter's
reading in English.
And she went,
oh.
And she
understood.
That's the
moment that
God made
clear to
every nation
his gospel.
Seven times in
the book of
Revelation,
the phrase,
every tribe,
tongue,
people,
and nation
appears.
Seven times.
Why so much?
It's as if
at the end
of the book
God is saying,
I want you
to understand
what I'm up
to in the
world and
with people.
Every tribe,
Fule,
every kin,
every clan,
every tongue,
glossolalia,
every language,
every people,
Laos,
every living
place where
people exist,
whether it's
a yurt in
Mongolia
or a high
rise here
in D.C.
And ethnos,
every race
coming together
as one
people,
one family,
no more
enmity.
Through the
spirit,
God is
reversing
Babel
and making
one big
beautiful
family.
You know,
we talked
today about
the goal
of diversity,
but diversity
is too low
a goal.
God is
interested
and committed
to a
family.
Psalm 133,
how blessed
it is
when brothers
and sisters
dwell in
unity.
God is
making a
family through
his spirit
of people
who love
him and
will be
loved by
him,
and he's
doing that
as we
become
witnesses
of his
gospel.
Let me
close with
this thought
to you,
Church of
the Advent.
Don't be
content to
find your
space
and have
a place,
although it
will be
amazing.
But see
this church,
this family,
for every
tribe,
every tongue,
every people
and every
nation,
believing in
Jesus,
filled with
his spirit
to worship
and to go
tell their
worlds
and their
neighbors
where to
find
home.
Would you
pray with me?
I invite
you just
silently to
think and
consider the
idea of
God filling
you with
his spirit.
And I
encourage you
just for a
moment,
in your
heart or
even with
your hands
physically,
just to
open them
and say,
come,
Holy Spirit,
and fill
me today.
We thank
you, Lord,
for the
promise of
your spirit
that you
give generously
and graciously
to all who
believe.
So fill
us that
we may be
witnesses of
you in
our day
and in
this time.
And we
thank you
for the
power of
your Holy
Spirit.
may you
receive
honor and
glory and
blessing from
our lives.
And we pray
this in
Jesus' name.
Amen.
.