The Spirit Awakens

I think that there is something really beautiful about the current cultural and generational makeup of America that like no one ever talks about. Maybe they aren’t talking about it because we live in a world that likes to really focus in on our disagreements and draw dividing lines between us. There is this constant tension that arises from calling attention to the major differences between the four most prevalent generations — Baby Boomers/Gen Xers/Millenials/Gen Zers. And certainly the condition of the world has been different for each of these generations, and each has faced their own struggles. And we really really like to point the finger at one another when discussing the problems of our world.

But today I’d like to call your attention to something that gives me great hope that in the end this world is going to be alright. Every person from these generations was either a young adult or a person coming of age when a Star Wars Trilogy was filmed and released. And this is very good news, because while we tend to focus on the differences that shaped us we can always remember that Star Wars — whose 3 part stories always begin in the same place — have had a fundamental role in shaping our generational experience.

All three of the three part Star Wars Sagas begin on a desert planet where unsuspecting characters — Anakin Skywalker, Luke Skywalker, and Rey are these low class and slave type characters who are found to be carrying a precious and priceless gift — a connection to the mysterious and powerful entity called “The Force.” This connection lifts them out of their mundane and often miserable existence and takes them on epic space traveling adventures where they fight against and overcome evil that threatens the Galaxy.

It’s the same general story with different details, but it is a story that most people can connect with because we all love the mystery of this spiritual entity called “The Force” and who doesn’t like a good story of an unsuspecting Good guy underdog overcoming evil against all odds? And here’s the beauty of our heroes — they each brought together diverse people from all different walks of life in order to accomplish their tasks.

This resonates with us because I think that it really points us to the nature of the church. As it turns out, this thing that we have been doing for 2000 years has kind of a similar origin story. And it begins in a desert with some unsuspecting characters. Let’s look at what I mean.

Acts 2:1–4 NRSV

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

So just prior to this, Jesus had ascended into heaven and promised that something would happen to the disciples. And this is what he was talking about… they would be filled with the Holy Spirit, which would give them power.

Now if you’re making a connection between the force and the Holy Spirt — don’t. Just don’t. Well you can. But there’s some really important differences. The force is impersonal, distributed based on genetics, and has a dark side — aka can be used for evil. The Holy Spirit is personal (Like is God), is distributed freely, and most importantly does not have a dark side. The Holy Spirit is God and God is only good. Ok. Now with those boundaries built we can continue with our analogy.

So Jesus’s closest followers encounter the indwelling presence of the Spirit of God and immediately they are given this immense power. What we find out later on in the book of Acts is that they are empowered to heal people, perform miracles, and even randomly disappear in and reappear somewhere else in one story.

But the very first thing that we find that the Holy Spirit empowers the disciples to do is to speak in different languages than they have ever spoken in before.

And this is super important because at this moment, the place where the disciples are — Jerusalem — is filled with people from all across the world. It was during the festival of Pentecost, which was a pilgrimage celebration, which means that people would gravitate towards Jerusalem to celebrate and worship God.

And so, on this day when people from all over the Roman Empire would be centered in Jerusalem, Peter and the disciples were given this supernatural ability to communicate with them. And that’s just what they did. Peter stood in front of the crowds and preached about the good news of Jesus, the anointed one, the messiah of Israel who had come to free the world from bondage to sin and to share in the resurrection power of God through the pouring out of the Holy Spirit upon them. And all of the people heard this sermon in their own heart language. Following Peter’s sermon, we find this scene.

Acts 2:37–41 NRSV

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.

And so here we see what this immediate reaction to the message of the Gospel is for the early believers. It’s the same reaction that we hope for in our modern era. We want to see hearts and lives changed, and hearts and lives change when people repent (which means to recognize that how they’ve been living has been fruitless and causing harm, and then turn from that way of life and declare allegiance to Jesus). The sign of doing this is baptism and the result of doing this is that a person is filled with the Holy Spirit and therefore empowered to live a life that lives up to the declaration of repentance that we previously made.

This is the personal application of the Gospel in our lives, and it’s very very important that we understand this, because without personal transformation we can not function in the way that God desire us to function in this world. Without personal transformation we are unable to be the people that God has called us to be. Without personal transformation the next equally important part of the Gospel will not be a functioning and fruitful endeavor.

Let’s look at what the story says happens next.

Acts 2:42–47 NRSV

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

Methodist Founding Father John Wesley once famously stated “there is no gospel apart from a social gospel.” This is what I believe he was most deeply pointing us to. There is no distinction here in the book of Acts between what the Holy Spirit does in the heart of individuals and what the Holy Spirit does in the hearts of communities of human beings.

The results of people hearing the Gospel message and being baptized was that they were added into this ever growing community called the church. And what that looked like for them was a sharing of resources, a sharing of food, a sharing of love — all which pointed them to a furthering of the mission of God in the world. And what they saw was that day by day God added to their number.

For a long time there has really been an emphasis on just this first part of the Gospel message. Repent and believe in Jesus and then you will be saved. And that’s well and good — as I said, personal transformation is really important. Without it we aren’t going anywhere. But personal transformation without a community to share that transformation in and with really doesn’t lend well to a transformed life. It misses the mark.

Within the community of the church we are given the gift of fellowship, encouragement, accountability, and cooperation that make us potentially the most influential organization on the planet — certainly the most influential organization in our city.

In the first century no one had ever seen an organization like the church before. This coming together of people from all different backgrounds, languages, and socio-economic situations for the common good of the group and the transformation of the world was a concept that did not exist. The fact that people weren’t born into this but were called into it through repentance and belief that a person who had been executed by the state was God of the universe was just wild enough to be intriguing.

And this attracted people. This caught the attention of the folks who had been told for their entire lives that Caesar was Lord and that they were stuck in the class that they were born into. It was counter cultural. It possessed a power unseen in the world before. The power of the Holy Spirit which bridged the gaps between diverse landscapes of people and demonstrated that the cultural narrative of the day was a farce. There was another way to live.

And this is a really important and relevant reality that we need to grasp today. Our world is a product of a lot of different cultural narratives — and what we are seeing in this cultural moment of our world is that tensions have risen to a point where we are likely about to see destabilization in ways that we have not seen in a long time. Most of this destabilization comes from a realization that the cultural narratives that we have come to believe are not living up to their promises.

But the good news is this: destabilization is the catalyst for new stabilized futures. In Star Wars a disturbance in the Force always precedes the awakening of the Force in a hero. What if this destabilized reality is leading to the Awakening of the Spirit in a way that we have not seen in a long long time. What if the Holy Spirit leads us to be a church that is the solution to the needs of the people in this world.

Just like in that first century, we can be something unlike anything the world sees. We can defy conventions. We can be a place that is not a cultural and political battleground but rather is a place of cultural and political healing… A place where people from all different walks of life who grew up with all different types of cultural narratives can sit at the table together and worship God with gladness in our hearts as we care for and love one another in ways that the world tells us is not possible. That’s what the early church looked like, and that is what the future church must look like.

The church is God’s means of healing this world. And I truly believe and dedicate my life to the work of the church because of this. The future is bright and good for the church, even if it doesn’t seem bright and good for our world. Where there is disturbance and distrust and dismay the Spirit of the living God is there to bring order, trust, and hope. And we get to be the vessel that carries that gift. What a blessing. What a calling. What a time to be alive.