Sermon Tone Analysis

*Steve  May 11, 2008 Bothwell & Clachan*

*Mother’s Day & Pentecost Sunday*

*"Pentecost Sunday - The End of our “50” Days"*

*Message: No. 07.

“So What if God Lives Inside Me?”*

*Acts 2:1-21**; John 7:37-39; First Corinthians 12:1-13*

* *

*Introduction                                                                                 *

Some of you are familiar with the series of books organized around the theme: "all-I-really-need-to-know-I-learned-in-kindergarten".

The author, Robert Fulghum also spent many years in the pulpit in Washington State.

He writes about his preaching days and his fear of Mother's Day in these words: \\     For twenty-five years of my life, the second Sunday of May was trouble . . .

I was obliged in some way to address the subject of Mother's Day.

It could not be avoided . . .

The congregation was quite open-minded and gave me free reign in the pulpit.

But when it came to the second Sunday in May the expectation was summarized in the words of one of the more outspoken women in the church: "I'm bringing my mother to church on Mother's Day, Reverend, and you can talk about anything you want, But it had better include MOTHER, and it had better be good!"[1]

Perhaps that’s because it's not easy being a Mom.

 

*What's a Good Mother Like?*

Judith Viorst once wrote an essay based on interviews she had with children.

The subject was "What's a good mother like?"

 

Viorst reports that the children expected their mother to get angry from time to time.

"She has to," said Ted, "or she'll faint from holding it in."

"But it's best to remember," said Randy, "that when your mother starts to act real weird, you have to look scared and serious.

Don't giggle.

When mommies are mad, they get madder if you giggle."

"My mommy got so mad," said Megan, "that she yanked the plate off the table and all the mashed potatoes flew into the air."

"And why," Viorst asked, pretending she'd never heard of such shocking behavior, "why would a mother do a thing like that?"

 

"Well," said Megan, "she told my older brother, Mike, he's 11 years old, to eat the potatoes on his plate and he said ‘Later.'

And then she told him again to eat the potatoes and Mike said ‘Soon.'

And then she told him he had better eat those potatoes right now and he said, ‘In a minute.'

And then she stood up and Mike finally took a bite and told her, ‘How can I eat them?

They're cold!'"[2]

                                               

*Two Birthdays*

In writing about Mother’s Day, author Leonard Sweet notes that Mother’s Day is actually about two “birthdays”:

on the day a first child is born, two birthdays are established and should be celebrated.

It is, of course, the birthday for the new child.

\\ \\ But it is also the birthday of another new person: a mother.[3]

He also goes on to note the coming together this year of both Mother’s Day and of Pentecost Sunday.

We read earlier the account from Acts 2:1-21 of the arrival of the Holy Spirit after Jesus had ascended to Heaven:

With Easter arriving so early this year, Pentecost Sunday and Mother's Day Sunday fall on the same day and I can't think of two institutions more alike than the Church and Mothers.

For many of us who grew up in a church going family we associate the church of our childhood with our Moms.

My mother's church.

The spirit of our Mother's church we carry with us throughout our lives.

It pursues us, woos us, reminds us of God's love for us.

The great church father Augustine knew something of this.

His mother, Monica, hounded him, in a compassionate way, but she hounded him.

Whenever Augustine ran, she followed him; whenever he came home, she challenged his rebellious ways.

And when he wasn't with her he knew that she was praying for him, because he caught her often on her knees pleading to God for the salvation of his soul.

One day she got so desperate she went to a bishop and wore the man out.

She wanted the Bishop to speak with Augustine.

At last, annoyed by her persistence and moved by her tears, he answered her with a roughness mingled with kindness and compassion, "Go, go! Leave me alone.

Live on as you are living.

It is not possible that the son of such tears should be lost."

So what else could happen?

Augustine gave his life to God and later became a Bishop of the church.

All mother's prayers should end so well.

\\ \\ Sweet concludes:

Celebrate with me two traditions.

Mother's and their spirit, the church and her Spirit.[4]

*River of Life*

In regards to the theme of “The Spirit” I hope that you also paid close attention to the reading from John 7:37-39.

Those words of Jesus directly connect the life-source of water with the life-force of the Spirit.

They also form the basis of that “Favorite” Chorus that is so often requested here at Bothwell Baptist.

I can’t think of a better song to sing on Pentecost Sunday than “I’ve Got a River of Life.”

Today’s message asks the question: “So what if God Lives Inside of Me?” Well if he does then you have that “River of Life.”

That is why I think it important that we occasionally remind ourselves of the importance of the Spirit of God, and that we take time to remember that special occasion that took place 2000 years ago.

*Which Holiday Would You Delete?*

Pastor and writer Lloyd Ogilvie asks:

If we (did) have to forgo the celebration of Christmas, Good Friday, Easter, or Pentecost, which one would seem least crucial?

Many Christians, because of the congregational and cultural emphasis of the first three, would probably say, “Well, if I must choose, I can do without Pentecost.”

Not so!

Without Pentecost the other three would not be celebrated at all.

Just as the resurrection vindicated Jesus’ death on the Cross, so too His indwelling in His followers gave them the power to believe what He had done and tell the world about it.

Actually, there could not have been Good Friday without the advent of Christ we celebrate at Christmas, and Good Friday would have been a meaningless martyrdom without the victory of Easter.

But Pentecost engenders the gift of faith by which we can know that Christ’s birth, death, and Resurrection were for us!

Christ was not finished when He arose from the dead, or ascended to be glorified with reigning power.

He came back to give the greatest gift of all—His own Spirit to live in us.[5]

*The First Disciples*

…On that first Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples they started to act strange, so strange that outsiders accused them of being drunk, the same way in which the parent of an infant might be accused of being crazy making baby sounds and using exaggerated expressions on his or her face.

Even more peculiar, the disciples began to speak in different languages.

The interesting thing is that these uneducated Galileans were not making strange babbling sounds.

Rather they were speaking in recognizable languages, not their native language, but in the tongues of strangers from far off places.

Strangers visiting Jerusalem from other lands suddenly heard the disciples of Jesus speaking to them in their own tongue.

It was an amazing event.

No wonder the disciples attracted so much attention and won so many converts.

There’s no earthly explanation for something like this.

Only God could touch people in such a way that they could communicate with strangers from other lands in such a profound way.[6] \\ \\

*Christianity's Initial Growth*

Robert Cueni reminds us that:

In less than 100 years the fire of the Gospel of Jesus Christ was carried as far as Spain to the west, India to the east, and Ethiopia to the south.

It subsequently took several hundred years for the Gospel to arrive in the northern reaches of Europe, but it did.

Down through the centuries the flames of the Fire burned brightly.

The Christian faith gained and its ranks grew because people who were attracted to Christ had their lives changed.

When people were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, they came to know that peace that passes all understanding.[7]

As one writer stresses:

If we are to be effective witnesses for our Savior, we cannot be water boys in the game of life.

We have to roll up our sleeves and pitch in.

Our lives must display the inner reality of what we externally proclaim.

That is why gospel flames raced across Asia.

The apostles walked their talk... Are we witnesses like that?[8]

 

Now please remember, Jesus did not tell his disciples that they would not have problems.

In fact, their problems would dwarf most of our problems.