Weekly Bible Notes, 8th June 2003
Pentecost
Year B, Red
| First Reading: | Acts 2:1-21 | |
| Second Reading: | John 15:26-27 & 16:4b-15 | |
| Commentary: | The Red Feast | |
| Meditation: | IHS | |
| Prayers: | Prayers for Sunday and the week ahead | |
Opening Verse of Scripture-Acts 2:17-18
In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.
Collect Prayer for the Day-Before we read we pray
God, who as at this time taught the hearts of your faithful people by sending them the light of your Holy Spirit: grant us by that same Spirit to have a right judgement in all things and evermore to rejoice in His holy comfort; through the merits of Christ Jesus our Saviour, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
First Bible Reading
Acts 2:1-21When 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. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs-We hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean” Some, however, made fun of them and said, They have had too much wine.?
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
“ ' In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.' ” (This is the word of the Lord. All: Thanks be to God)
Second Reading John 15:26-27 & 16:4b-15
When the Counsellor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me. And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.
I did not tell you this at first because I was with you. “Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, there are you going?' Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgement: in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and in regard to judgement, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
“ I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you. (This is the word of the Lord - Thanks be to God)
Post Communion Prayer
Faithful God, who fulfilled the promises of Easter by sending us your
Holy Spirit and opening to every race and nation the way of life eternal:
open our lips by your Spirit, that every tongue may tell of your glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Commentary: The Red Feast
As I walked into the Garden of Remembrance at St Mark's this week I
suddenly became aware of new colour. Quite suddenly, just this week the
Cistus and Roses and Clematis and many other plants had started to flower.
This is appropriate because Pentecost is the great colourful festival of the
church celebrated when scents and colours really start to make an impact in
nature around us. Pentecost is a time when we can begin to feel good about
the possibilities around us. Remember Ascension Day left the disciples as a
corpse. Jesus had left the disciples, but he had told them that they were to
be still until the day when God breathed power and life into his church.
Pentecost was the day when the dead corpse was given mouth to mouth
resuscitation by Jesus. That is why this is the birthday of the church,
because on this day the church was born. In an instant they have the life
which they need to live and grow.
The colour of Pentecost could have been white. In English Pentecost is
Whitsunday, the word coming from the baptisms which were once held around
this time at which they wore white, and so it was called White Sunday.
However the colour for Pentecost is red, which the church choose to make a
bold statement about the power of God, the presence of Christ himself in its
midst. The red symbolised the experience described in our Acts reading when
something like tongues of fire came down upon the Apostles. In many parts of
Europe it is called the 'red Feast.' The peony often flowers around this
time and is know as the 'rose of Pentecost'
With the coming of the Holy Spirit, Pentecost changed the church for ever.
The Christian Church found peace when the Spirit came. It was not that the
coming of the Holy Spirit made the danger go away, indeed the Apostles went
on to give their lives. Instead the Holy Spirit gave the presence of Jesus
to the church and with that came renewed strength and courage. Charles
Royden
Meditation: IHS
The
letters IHS (the first three letters of "Jesus" in Greek) are an ancient
Christian symbol.
Here they are joined with a butterfly-a symbol of the
resurrection. For fifty days we have contemplated the death and resurrection
of Jesus, today the church is called to be born in the Holy Spirit and to go
out to proclaim the name of Jesus.
Hymns (Hymns & Psalms)
-
Come down O Love divine 281
-
We are one in the Spirit (on service sheet),
-
The spirit lives to set us free, walk in the light,
-
Come Holy ghost 283
-
Spirit of holiness 611 Mission Praise
-
O thou who camest from above 745
Prayers for Sunday and the week ahead
Almighty God, we your children pray: let your glory come down. Let the Fire
fall as on that first Day of Pentecost. Revive our spirits, fill us with new
excitement, with joy unspeakable and faith for a dying world. Empower us to
speak your Word; to utter the words of Life; using a variety of languages to
bring the good news to all people. Let your fire fall once aga
in
on this church, on this community, on this country, and to the ends of the
earth. In Jesus name and in the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.
O God, your eye is over all your people, and you have called them to a
kingdom not of this world; send forth your Holy Spirit into every corner of
our lives, to still and calm the noise of our daily toil; help us to carry
faith to the doubting, hope to the fearful, strength to the weak, light to
the mourners; and increase and empower the pure in heart who see, and
reveal, more and more of God. Amen
Almighty and Everlasting God look with favour upon your people. As on this
day you sent upon the first disciples the gift of your Holy Spirit, so pour
that Spirit out upon us this day. Open our hearts to your living power.
Cleanse us from every impurity and forgive our sin as you have promised.
Lead us and teach us and grace us with your presence. Grant us the dreams
and visions you have promised and make us messengers of the good news of
Christ Jesus our Lord. Indeed, unite us through the power of your Spirit so
that all people may be moved by the witness we make and so that songs of
praise may rise to you here and everywhere, both now and for ever more.
May Christ's Holy, healing and enabling Spirit be with us every step of the
way, and be our guide as the road of life changes and turns, and the
blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be with us and remain
with us now, in the week ahead, and for ever. Amen
| First Reading: | Acts 2:1-21 |
| Second Reading: | John 15:26-27 & 16:4b-15 |
| Commentary: | The Red Feast |
| Meditation: | IHS |
| Prayers | Prayers for Sunday and the week ahead |
| Intercessions | |
| Sermon | Pentecost |
| Liturgy | Service Booklet (PDF format) |
Additional resources
Verse of scripture
You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you
shall be my witnesses (Alleluia!) Acts Chapter 1 Verse 8
Commentary Acts and John
There's a brilliant word for describing the Spirit in Greek, its 'parakletos'
It has a range of meanings which includes counsellor (as in the passage in
John), advocate, encourager, comforter, and helper. All of these images can
be helpful in our Christian journey. As we live in the world, so God comes
along side us through the Holy Spirit. He helps us understand and make sense
of our society and culture, helps us speak out in His name, guides us in all
truth, and encourages, comforts and helps us in our times of need.
The passage in Acts also tells us that the Holy Spirit is available to
all, and empowers and equips us for the tasks God has planned for each of
us. This is still as true today as it was in the time of the apostles. The
tongues of fire rest as much on each one of us as it did on them. For those
gathered together in Acts 2 it resulted in them speaking in tongues. Much
has been written and said about this phenomenon and it is important not to
take things out of context. Paul tells us that there are many and varied
gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit and just as each one of us is different,
each one of us has different gifts and ministries to bring to the church.
They may even vary over time. God can and does act in ways that we might
describe as supernatural, such as in the gift of tongues or perhaps words of
knowledge or prophecy. When He does so it's sometimes difficult to
understand what's happening, as it was in Acts. Sometimes it seems as if the
supernatural gifts get over emphasised and are given a lot of publicity or
their authenticity is questioned. And sometimes it seems that just the
reverse is true. Some might say that we don't emphasis or use God's
supernatural gifts to us enough. The true test should always be whether or
not God is at work, and our own experience tells us that it's not always
easy to recognise when and where He's active! Perhaps sometimes we'll never
even know. What we do know is that God acts through the everyday, the normal
and the mundane as well as the supernatural. God is God and we shouldn't try
to predict or limit the way in which he might want to operate. Our role is
to stay close to Him so that we can be open to be used by the Holy Spirit in
the way that He knows is best for all, using whatever power, gifts and
ministries He equips us with.
Whatever way He operates, it's for the extension of His Kingdom here on
earth, as it was in Acts. The inauguration of the new era of the Spirit
which Acts 2 describes tells us that all who call on the name of the Lord
can and will be saved. As the Holy Spirit comes on us as Christians we are
called to be witnesses to this awesome truth. God uses each one of us in His
work on earth. To Him no gifts, ministries or individuals are more valuable
than others. All are equally valuable, precious and important. As God
continues to break through into our world He uses the power of the Holy
Spirit to do so, however unlikely the resources or methods. He even uses a
body of fallible believers, with all their shortcomings, and an often
imperfect church.
Prayers for Sunday
God of power, may the boldness of your Spirit transform us, may the
gentleness of your Spirit lead us, and may the gifts of your Spirit be our
goal and our strength, now and always. Amen
O God, your eye is over all your people, and you have called them to a
kingdom not of this world; send forth your Holy Spirit into every corner of
our lives, to still and calm the noise of our daily toil; help us to carry
faith to the doubting, hope to the fearful, strength to the weak, light to
the mourners; and increase and empower the pure in heart who see, and
reveal, more and more of God. Amen
May Christ's Holy, healing and enabling Spirit be with us every step of
the way, and be our guide as the road of life changes and turns, and the
blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be with us and remain
with us now, in the week ahead, and for ever. Amen
Christ has no other hands but your hands to do his work today; no other
feet to guide folk on their way,
no other lips but your lips to tell them why he died, no other love but your
love to win them to his side.
Lord Jesus, thank you that we are a part of your body the church.
May we work together always to do your will and in unity always be obedient
to you,
that the world may see your love in us and be drawn to you
Hymns for this Sunday (Mission Praise)
Breathe on me breath of God 67,
God forgave my sin 181,
For I'm building a people of power 151,
Spirit of holiness 611,
Come Holy Ghost 90,
Sing a new song (on service sheet tune: Lord for the Years no 428).