(texts: Ezekiel 37:1-14; Acts 2:1-21)
In the tale, “Hope for the Flowers” by Trina Paulus, the heroes are two caterpillars named Stripe and Yellow. Stripe and Yellow want something more from life than eating and growing bigger. They get caught up in a "caterpillar pillar", a squirming mass of bodies, each determined to reach a top so far away it can't be seen. Finally disillusioned, they discover that the only way for caterpillars to find who they REALLY are, is to enter the cocoon and risk becoming a butterfly. Surrendering to the cocoon is the only way for the two caterpillars to finally soar to the top.
This was not the end of the caterpillars; it was a new beginning. Risking the known, placing themselves at the mercy of the unknown of the cocoon, Stripe and Yellow are transformed by the power and energy created within the cocoon. The caterpillar chapter of their life was over. Now they began a new life as a butterfly, a life filled with unknowns and new possibilities.
Pentecost is also a day of endings and new beginnings; a day of transformation and new life. It’s a celebration; a celebration in the life of the Christian church when we rejoice over the coming of the Holy Spirit, an outpouring of God’s power and energy upon those early followers moving them out of their comfort zones into the unknown realm where the Living Christ lives. It’s a day of great change; a day when new life arrived as promised: sudden, unmerited and irresistible new life. The old and familiar is made new and fresh.
If you look carefully enough, you can see new life take shape all around us. There is a boat shop in Pemaquid, Maine called the Carpenter’s Boat shop, a Christian ministry that teaches people of all ages how to build boats and Shaker style furniture. They build mostly new wooden boats, but they also restore old boats in disrepair. Now and again someone brings over an old boat that was rotted, worn out and in disrepair. The folks at the boat shop gladly put their “Hands to Work” and their “Hearts to God” to bring new life to these old boats. It is tedious, time-consuming work that requires a lot of energy with great attention to detail. Replacing old rotted wood pieces, restoring the original hardware, and a quality paint and urethane job in the finishing room brings new life to these old boats. A boat that had been thrown away, discarded and once considered junk is now a new creation.
For the Carpenter’s Boat Shop it would have been easier to not bother restoring old boats with all the time, treasure and talent that’s involved. To restore something, to transform someone’s life or the life of the church, it takes the power and energy of the Holy Spirit revealed by God through the time, talent and treasure each of us has to effect change in our homes, communities and in our church. Through restoration and transformation, the old is gone and the new has come; there is both a simultaneous ending and beginning.
The promise of Pentecost is we have been given the Holy Spirit, the mighty power of God to transform our culture, our world and our own lives, so we may have new life and have it abundantly. Like the caterpillar becoming a butterfly and the old wooden boats given new life, the dry bones that lay barren on the valley floor and the dry spirits of the believers in the upper room are given new life from God through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The disciples are powered up for a new day has arrived. No more hiding out and no more running away. The past is left behind and the future is open to unlimited possibilities through the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit becomes the dominant reality in the early church.
The Holy Spirit became the source of all guidance for Peter and the others. We see it at work throughout the Book of Acts. The Apostle Philip is moved by the Holy Spirit to engage an Ethiopian eunuch with the Good News. The Holy Spirit prepares Peter to receive the messengers of Cornelius and moves him to go with the messengers back to Cornelius. The Apostle Paul is led by the Holy Spirit on his missionary journeys through Asia Minor, Greece and Macedonia to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles. It is clear the early church is guided by the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit serves the believers as a source of courage and power each and every day. In Acts 1:8, the disciples are promised the power of the Holy Spirit from Christ. We see the power of the Spirit in Peter when he addresses the crowd in our text this morning quoting the prophet Joel. Remember Peter was the one who denied knowing Christ three times after Jesus was arrested. He ran away and hid. The power of the Holy Spirit made a home in Peter and has replaced the fear and insecurity Peter once felt with courage and power. This once fisherman turned disciple of Jesus Christ speaks with a boldness and eloquence he never had before. The work of the Holy Spirit is visible and real in that the Spirit gives us courage to confront dangerous situations; the Spirit gives us power to cope with life more than adequately; the Spirit gives us eloquence in moments when eloquence is needed; and the Spirit gives us a joy which is independent of the circumstances where we find ourselves. These and more are attributed to the leading and influence of the Holy Spirit in each of our lives.
The early church was a spirit-filled Church and that was the source of its power. It’s the Spirit that led them into unknown adventures and unfamiliar places.
My friends, where do you see the power of the Holy Spirit at work in your own life? In the life of your family? In the life of your co-workers and classmates? Where do you see the power of the Holy Spirit at work in the life of this congregation?
I have heard it said that we, the Presbyterian Church (USA), have missed the mark, we’ve lost our edge, our energy, and the power and courage of the Holy Spirit. After all, why are so many churches declining in membership and so many others closed because they are no longer viable. I’ve heard it said that we’ve lost touch and out of tune with the power of the Holy Spirit. And perhaps we are.
Are we truly asking ourselves what does God want to do through us in this time and place to build the Kingdom of God? We need to bow before the throne of grace seeking guidance and direction on how we can be Christ in our time and in this place.
My friends, I believe it’s time to get powered up! It’s the time to move forward seeking new ways of being the church of Jesus Christ. The Bible says, “We see in a mirror, dimly, but then we shall see face to face.” We have an idea of what is to come, but its fulfillment is not yet known. The Festival of Pentecost is a new beginning and an ending. It is the time when the past is left behind, the past of fear, safety and complacency, and we see a new beginning emerging on the horizon.
I think about those graduating this spring, one phase of life is ending and a new phase is beginning. This new beginning is both exciting and scary because you don’t know exactly what will happen. The familiar and comfortable is replaced with many unknowns and new beginnings. With a new beginning, there is great potential to excel, to make a difference in the world, to make a positive contribution to society. We see a part of the picture, but what will the rest of the picture show? The old life is gone and the new life has begun.
For our youth who will be confirmed this morning, today is the end of childhood and the beginning of adulthood in the life of the church. Yes, our youth have learned a great deal from their years in church school and confirmation class specifically. But this is just the tip of the iceberg! There is so much more to learn about the Christian life. There is so much to experience following Christ each and everyday. There are new responsibilities to meet and new opportunities to share the love of God in Christ Jesus with friends, family and the church. The old life is gone and the new life has begun.
You are no longer a caterpillar. It’s time for you to fly! It’s time for you to speak truth to power and to lead our church into a deeper relationship with the Living God. It won’t be handed to you. You gotta assert yourself. You gotta get up and take it!
The meaning of Pentecost is new life: new life for the church, new life for you and me in the church, and new life through the Holy Spirit. The only way for you and me to find who we REALLY are, is through the Holy Spirit to enter the cocoon and risk becoming a new creation. Surrendering to the cocoon is the only way for each of us to finally spread our wings and soar, allowing God’s power and energy to move us out of our comfort zones into the unknown realm of the Holy Spirit of the Living God. Amen.
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