Day of Pentecost (2025)
Pentecost • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Paris Otterbein - 9:00 AM
Paris Otterbein - 9:00 AM
*Opening Prayer
*Call to Worship
(based on Psalm 104)
Leader: O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all.
People: The earth is full of Your creatures.
Leader: When You send forth Your Spirit, they are created; and You renew the face of the ground.
People: May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works.
Leader: Come, Holy Spirit, and fill our hearts with Your fire.
People: We gather to be renewed, empowered, and sent!
Hymn #247 Spirit Of The Living God
Scripture Reading
John 14:8-17, 25-27 - Ken
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
“If you love me, 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. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Children's Message Donna
Scripture Reading
When 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 their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our 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 people 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 heavens 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.’
Sermon
Okay, so let’s review. Since Easter we have been in a series called, “Resurrection Witness”. The idea being to walk with the disciples through the days after the resurrection as well as to reflect on things Jesus said prior to His death and resurrection that help us to know how to live in light of the truth that Jesus is alive again.
So here is a quick list of the lessons we have learned so far:
Jesus commands His disciples to go and tell. A truer translation would be “as you go, tell”.
Jesus restored Peter. In the same way He can restore you and me.
He is our shepherd. We are invited to walk with Him and listen to His voice.
He gave them a “new” command. “Love one another.” In the same way we as His church are called to love one another.
Heaven is both a future destination as well as a present reality. If Christ is in us and we can have fellowship with Him, we are already experiencing Heaven.
The ability of the people of God to demonstrate unity show to the world the presence of God.
And now, we come to the day of Pentecost. The Day of Pentecost marks 50 days since the resurrection. And it’s been 10 days since the disciples watched Jesus ascend into Heaven. Luke 24:50–53 records this event. “When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.”
Now remember, this was the first time anything like this had happened. These disciples were in brand new territory. All they new was Jesus had commanded them to wait in Jerusalem for the gift the Father had promised. They probably had no idea what to expect. And even if Jesus had given them hints that aren’t recorded for us, they probably could not have imagined anything like this.
“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.” That’s quite the scene. It’s almost Hollywood style special effects. But it’s more than that. It is the power of God demonstrated in very real ways.
The arrival of the Holy Spirit caused such a commotion that people came running. They too, had never heard a sound like that. And we are not talking about just 1 or 2 people, or a dozen or two, curious onlookers. But the Bible says in Acts 2:41 “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.” So the arrival of the Holy Spirit got the attention of over 3,000 people.
Now, for some, the focus of Pentecost is on this miraculous ability of the disciples to speak in “tongues”. The argument is made that being filled with the Holy Spirit must be accompanied with the ability to speak in an “unknown” or “God language”.
But in this context, the ability of the disciples to speak in a language they had not learned gave them the ability to boldly proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. And while there were those who mocked the disciples and made fun of them, Peter, the one disciple voted most likely to chicken out is the one who boldly stands and proclaims the message of Jesus Christ.
In other words, the arrival of the Holy Spirit empowers and enables this small group of individuals to be resurrection witnesses. And in this series, we have already heard ways that we as the followers of Christ can be resurrection witnesses, but we can’t do it on our own. Like these first disciples, we need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.
Now, I don’t attempt to tell God how He has to do something. But my guess is that while the disciples experienced the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the world for the first time but the Holy Spirit is still here. In other words, there probably won’t be another blowing of a violent wind or tongues of fire, but there is an affirmation that when we desire to be bold in our witness of the resurrection, we can ask for the help of the Holy Spirit and He will respond and give us the strength we need.
Some of you may be familiar with the name Corrie Ten Boom. Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch Christian who, along with her family, helped many Jews escape the Nazis during World War II. She was arrested and sent to a concentration camp. Years after the war, while speaking at a church in Germany about forgiveness, she was approached by a man who had been one of the guards at Ravensbrück—the very camp where her sister Betsie had died.
He told her he had become a Christian and reached out his hand to ask for her forgiveness. Corrie later wrote that in that moment, her natural instinct was to freeze. She could not forgive him in her own strength. But she prayed silently, “Jesus, help me.” And in obedience, she reached out her hand. She said that as she did, she felt a rush of warmth and power—from her shoulder down through her arm—as she grasped his hand and forgave him. “I discovered,” she said, “that it’s not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world’s healing hinges, but on His. When He tells us to love our enemies, He gives, along with the command, the love itself.”
That moment wasn’t accompanied by wind or fire, but it was no less a Pentecost moment—a resurrection witness empowered by the Holy Spirit to do something utterly humanly impossible: forgive.
This morning, as we get ready to sing our theme song for the last time, I want to ask you a question: Where do you need the power of the Holy Spirit the most? At home? At work? With your family? Your friends?
Maybe, instead of standing to sing this morning, you need to ask God to give you the Holy Spirit to help you in that area, to give you the boldness, the message, the strength to be His resurrection witness.
Praise Song: Goodness Of God
Sharing of Joys and Concerns
Hymn #252 Sweet Sweet Spirit
Silent Prayer
Pastoral Prayer
Lord's Prayer
Giving of Tithes and Offering
Doxology
Prayer of Dedication
Hymn #249 Spirit Of God Descend Upon My Heart
*Benediction
Go now into the world as Resurrection Witnesses—
not in your own strength,
but filled with the Spirit of the Living God.
May the wind of the Spirit give you boldness,
may the fire of the Spirit ignite your love,
and may the voice of the Spirit guide your steps.
Go in peace, and may the Spirit empower you to live and love as Christ's own.
Amen.
Sanctuary
Vermilion - 10:30 am
Vermilion - 10:30 am
*Call to Worship
*Call to Worship
(based on Psalm 104)
Leader: O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all.
People: The earth is full of Your creatures.
Leader: When You send forth Your Spirit, they are created; and You renew the face of the ground.
People: May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works.
Leader: Come, Holy Spirit, and fill our hearts with Your fire.
People: We gather to be renewed, empowered, and sent!
*Opening Prayer
Hymn #389 Spirit of The Living God
Scripture Reading
John 14:8-17, 25-27
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
“If you love me, 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. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Scripture Reading
When 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 their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our 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 people 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 heavens 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.’
Sermon
1. Okay, so let’s review. Since Easter we have been in a series called, “Resurrection Witness”. The idea being to walk with the disciples through the days after the resurrection as well as to reflect on things Jesus said prior to His death and resurrection that help us to know how to live in light of the truth that Jesus is alive again.
2. So here is a quick list of the lessons we have learned so far:
a. Jesus commands His disciples to go and tell. A truer translation would be “as you go, tell”.
b. Jesus restored Peter. In the same way He can restore you and me.
c. He is our shepherd. We are invited to walk with Him and listen to His voice.
d. He gave them a “new” command. “Love one another.” In the same way we as His church are called to love one another.
e. Heaven is both a future destination as well as a present reality. If Christ is in us and we can have fellowship with Him, we are already experiencing Heaven.
f. The ability of the people of God to demonstrate unity show to the world the presence of God.
3. And now, we come to the day of Pentecost. The Day of Pentecost marks 50 days since the resurrection. And it’s been 10 days since the disciples watched Jesus ascend into Heaven. Luke 24:50–53 records this event. “When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.”
4. Now remember, this was the first time anything like this had happened. These disciples were in brand new territory. All they new was Jesus had commanded them to wait in Jerusalem for the gift the Father had promised. They probably had no idea what to expect. And even if Jesus had given them hints that aren’t recorded for us, they probably could not have imagined anything like this.
5. “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.” That’s quite the scene. It’s almost Hollywood style special effects. But it’s more than that. It is the power of God demonstrated in very real ways.
6. The arrival of the Holy Spirit caused such a commotion that people came running. They too, had never heard a sound like that. And we are not talking about just 1 or 2 people, or a dozen or two, curious onlookers. But the Bible says in Acts 2:41 “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.” So the arrival of the Holy Spirit got the attention of over 3,000 people.
7. Now, for some, the focus of Pentecost is on this miraculous ability of the disciples to speak in “tongues”. The argument is made that being filled with the Holy Spirit must be accompanied with the ability to speak in an “unknown” or “God language”.
8. But in this context, the ability of the disciples to speak in a language they had not learned gave them the ability to boldly proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. And while there were those who mocked the disciples and made fun of them, Peter, the one disciple voted most likely to chicken out is the one who boldly stands and proclaims the message of Jesus Christ.
9. In other words, the arrival of the Holy Spirit empowers and enables this small group of individuals to be resurrection witnesses. And in this series, we have already heard ways that we as the followers of Christ can be resurrection witnesses, but we can’t do it on our own. Like these first disciples, we need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.
10. Now, I don’t attempt to tell God how He has to do something. But my guess is that while the disciples experienced the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the world for the first time but the Holy Spirit is still here. In other words, there probably won’t be another blowing of a violent wind or tongues of fire, but there is an affirmation that when we desire to be bold in our witness of the resurrection, we can ask for the help of the Holy Spirit and He will respond and give us the strength we need.
11. Some of you may be familiar with the name Corrie Ten Boom. Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch Christian who, along with her family, helped many Jews escape the Nazis during World War II. She was arrested and sent to a concentration camp. Years after the war, while speaking at a church in Germany about forgiveness, she was approached by a man who had been one of the guards at Ravensbrück—the very camp where her sister Betsie had died.
12. He told her he had become a Christian and reached out his hand to ask for her forgiveness. Corrie later wrote that in that moment, her natural instinct was to freeze. She could not forgive him in her own strength. But she prayed silently, “Jesus, help me.” And in obedience, she reached out her hand. She said that as she did, she felt a rush of warmth and power—from her shoulder down through her arm—as she grasped his hand and forgave him. “I discovered,” she said, “that it’s not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world’s healing hinges, but on His. When He tells us to love our enemies, He gives, along with the command, the love itself.”
13. That moment wasn’t accompanied by wind or fire, but it was no less a Pentecost moment—a resurrection witness empowered by the Holy Spirit to do something utterly humanly impossible: forgive.
14. This morning, as we get ready to sing our theme song for the last time, I want to ask you a question: Where do you need the power of the Holy Spirit the most? At home? At work? With your family? Your friends?
15. Maybe, instead of standing to sing this morning, you need to ask God to give you the Holy Spirit to help you in that area, to give you the boldness, the message, the strength to be His resurrection witness.
Praise Song: Goodness Of God
Sharing of Joys and Concerns
Hymn #391 Sweet Sweet Spirit
Silent Prayer
Pastoral Prayer
Lord's Prayer
Giving of Tithes and Offering
Doxology
Prayer of Dedication
Hymn #390 Spirit Of God Descend Upon My Heart
Benediction
Go now into the world as Resurrection Witnesses—
not in your own strength,
but filled with the Spirit of the Living God.
May the wind of the Spirit give you boldness,
may the fire of the Spirit ignite your love,
and may the voice of the Spirit guide your steps.
Go in peace, and may the Spirit empower you to live and love as Christ's own.
Amen.
God Be With You
