Holy Spirit Walk
Second Sunday of Easter
Revelation 1:4-8 and John 20:19-31
As we celebrated the truth of the resurrection in Christ Jesus last Sunday, it was not the end of our Easter Season, rather the beginning.
Our walk has now been completed in the darkness of the wilderness, into a joyous walk in the light of the glory of Jesus’ resurrection.
So where do we find ourselves in our journey? In our walk?
Perhaps John Wesley summed it up very nicely in his prayer in the 1700s,
“Lord, I am no longer my own, but Yours. Put me to what You will, rank me with whom You will. Let me be employed by You or laid aside for You, exalted for You or brought low by You. Let me have all things, let me having nothing, I freely and heartily yield all things to Your pleasure and disposal. And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, You are mine and I am Yours. So be it.” Amen.
In Ephesians, Paul states his own prayer when speaking with those in Ephesus:
“I pray that out of God’s glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:16-19 NIV)
We ended our Luke scripture reading last week with these words spoken by Jesus, “so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
“Clothed with power from on high.” These are very important instructions.
Until the disciples have been properly clothed, they cannot fulfill God’s mission, and continue the work Jesus started. So what clothing is required?
We find the answer here in John.
When Jesus appeared before the disciples, we are told he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
This is a very important step in the mission of God’s work. Without the Holy Spirit leading the disciples to their next steps on their walk, would they be accomplishing the mission of God, the mission started by Jesus in his walk with the disciples?
In our walk, it is the same with us. Once we are filled with the Holy Spirit, we have a desire to walk in the light of Jesus and to follow in his footsteps in bringing the good news of God’s love and mercy which surpasses even death. However, it is not an easy walk.
For example, in one of our Lenten devotional readings, Brueggemann questions whether we find ourselves walking in the wrong temple.
He says, “Most of us, most of the time, find ourselves in the wrong temple, places that make promises of safety that leave us more anxious, offers of joy that leave us disconsolate. Partly we are in the wrong place by will, partly by habit, partly by accident, partly seduced.”
Brueggemann urges that we are to move away from these fake temples to the true temple who is Jesus. Through Jesus and the Holy Spirit, we are able to walk in the light and receive a different life, a life that Jesus lived. A life that we are invited by God to enter and enjoy.
When we enter that life, all things are not perfect or without pain and suffering here on earth, but it is a life that is filled with the Holy Spirit that brings peace and mercy, safety and assurance in the arms of Jesus. Truly a peace not found in anything offered in worldly possessions or worldly events. We may find peace and joy in fleeting moments in our daily worldly activities; however, they are fleeting, unlike the presence of God which is ever present.
Knowing that we have been breathed upon by our Lord, Jesus Christ, upon his resurrection, how can we continue walking in this drama of redemption? How can we continue as did Jesus’ disciples in spreading the good news of the gospel? Where and how can we find places and ways to actively participate in the story that God is still telling?
These are very important questions for us to consider.
When I reflect back to Paul’s writing in Ephesians and read the sentence, “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God,” it is rather inspiring and a spirit-filled message.
It truly is an unimaginable knowledge to know this love of Christ who was willing to take our sins to the cross so that we might be redeemed.
Having this knowledge of truth, as we discussed last week, are we allowing ourselves to be filled to the measure of the fullness of God?
I often hear, “How much more do I need to do?” “When is enough really enough?” “How do I know if I am doing what I am supposed to be doing?” These are questions I have also asked myself.
The only way I know to answer these questions is that when we realize the full measure of God’s love for us, we have a desire to never stop being in relationship with God. We have a desire to never stop growing spiritually, even when we may get stuck on our walk.
Even when we find ourselves wandering again in the wilderness, it’s realizing that God is with us waiting for us to once again acknowledge a mighty presence that fills us with an unimaginable love and peace. Living a Spirit-filled life is not an item to be checked off a to-do list, rather it is a way of living. God’s relationship is never-ending.
As John Wesley so appropriately prays, we are God’s and forever we will be God’s chosen children to continue each day at God’s will until our his glorious return.
Surely we recognize that we are not perfect, and we stray from the path placed before us, but we should never use it as an excuse as a broken relationship with God, rather a learning experience to grow spiritually. To pick ourselves up, feel the breath of the Holy Spirit, and continue the walk Jesus began.
The work of Jesus, God’s mission to show the world who God truly is and to save the people from themselves, did not end on the cross, it continues in the resurrection and our redemption.
Through our faith and our believing we are able to live a life in Jesus’ name.
There are very important words in John that also comes with this knowledge and power that we are given by the Holy Spirit. “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
It is by the gift of the Holy Spirit that we are able to forgive others. It is by the gift of the Holy Spirit that we are able to share God’s forgiveness and God’s love with others.
Because of the gift of the Holy Spirit, this remarkable breath delivered by Jesus, we are able to connect to a new birth. In giving our lives to Jesus, God’s Spirit indwells in us and we are sanctified and renewed.
As Christians, we can expect the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, to work within us to grow spiritually closer to God, and in doing this, we have the assured hope of a kingdom to come.
The thing that we sometimes miss on our walk in life is that our Lord in the Holy Spirit is not “over there” but “right here.”
We are on a Holy Spirit walk.
To God be the glory!
(Silent Reflection)
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE and LORD’S PRAYER
Living God, hear our prayer as you make of this world your new creation. Before we call, you answer. Before we speak, you know our words. Let there be joy in Jerusalem, O Lord, and peace among all nations. Let sounds of weeping and cries of distress turn to shouts of joy and laughter. Let infants grow and thrive; let the old dance like children. Let every person find a home and enjoy the fruit of their labor. Let the wolf and the lamb live in peace; let no one hurt or destroy another. Holy One, you have made us and redeemed us through Christ to be your kingdom and your priests, serving you and your dominion forever and ever. Help us to be healers who bring your peace into the world. Help us to recognize those who are in need of our prayers, even when they do not ask for them. Remember the gifted caretakers that they be blessed with strength as they care for those who are ill. We pause now to pray for all those on our prayer list, all those on our hearts and minds, and all who have asked for our prayers:
Show us, O God, the holy mountain you have prepared, the new heaven and new earth you have promised, so that we may be glad and rejoice in your presence forever; through Jesus Christ our risen Lord who taught us to pray, Our Father, who art in Heaven………