Pentecost Sunday

Title

The River of Pentecost

Outline

Pentecost is the river flowing out of the New Temple that carries us into mission with it

Often Pentecost has been seen as the birth of the Church, but Jesus had called people into his new community, built on the Johannine baptism, developed and appointed leadership, and actually had them functioning before his crucifixion.

Pentecost, rather, is the river of the Spirit flowing from Jesus, the New Temple and bringing life to the nations

We see this in our Gospel

Let me retranslate it as the two couplets it is:

“If any one thirst, let him come to me

and let him drink, 38  He who believes in me.”

Then comes the explanation: “as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39  Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive”

This takes place at a water festival in Jerusalem, when water was brought from Siloam and poured out on the altar as a prayer for rain

Jesus uses the image of the rivers of Eden, the river from the ideal Temple in Ezekiel, and (in anticipation) the river flowing from the New Temple the New Jerusalem in Revelation.

These bring fruit and fertility, these flow into waste places and bring wholeness, these have trees whose leaves bring healing to the nations.

And they flow from Jesus, from his “belly” or “heart”

But in John this is “not yet” for the Spirit was “not yet” until John 20

In John the Spirit is granted in chapter 20 after the resurrection; in Acts there is a narrative of the action of the Spirit

The Spirit comes on people who are spending their time in prayer and worship

The Spirit comes as wind, which is what “spirit” means in Hebrew and Greek, and as “tongues of fire” anointing them, so to speak, to proclaim the good news

The Spirit comes when people from many languages were gathered in Jerusalem to worship and enables the disciples to speak the gospel in the heart language of each. This reverses the curse of Babel that broke up the unity of fallen human purposes and restores unity in the Church.

This also indicates that the nations, not just the Jews, will be called into the kingdom

The Spirit is not against the rational proclamation, but inspires Peter to make a clear proclamation after indicating his presence in the praise of God in various languages.

Well, let us not just celebrate Pentecost, but live Pentecost

We live Pentecost by making the focus of our lives prayer to and worship of God - our marriages, our everyday tasks, and all should get caught up in this center - we can be conscious of the presence of God always and offer all we do to him

We live Pentecost by letting the life-giving water of the Spirit flow through us or carry us along to others, allowing him to enable us to speak this language and announce to them the good news of Jesus

We live Pentecost by crossing barriers to those outside our community and bringing God’s living water to them so that they may become part of the one people of God

Brothers and sisters, Pentecost is not just a one-day celebration, but the start of a life-long celebration. Let us celebrate it in spirit and in truth.

Readings

Byzantine Lectionary (Revised Julian) 6-20-2021: Holy Pentecost

EPISTLE

Acts 2:1–11

2 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and wondered, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”

GOSPEL

John 7:37–52, 8:12

37  On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and proclaimed, “If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink. 38  He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39  Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive; for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

40  When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This is really the prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? 42  Has not the Scripture said that the Christ is descended from David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” 43 So there was a division among the people over him. 44  Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.

45 The officers then went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why did you not bring him?” 46  The officers answered, “No man ever spoke like this man!” 47 The Pharisees answered them, “Are you led astray, you also? 48 Have any of the authorities or of the Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd, who do not know the law, are accursed.” 50  Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, 51  “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” 52  They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Search and you will see that no prophet is to rise from Galilee.”

12  Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Notes

Byzantine Lectionary (Revised Julian) 6-20-2021: Holy Pentecost

SUNDAY, JUNE 20, 2021 | PENTECOSTARION

HOLY PENTECOST

Bright Vestments

Matins Gospel John 20:19–23

Epistle Acts 2:1–11

Gospel John 7:37–52, 8:12

Green

Our Venerable Father Michael, Bishop of Synnada in Phrygia (banished over iconoclast controversy); Our Venerable Mother Euphrosenia of Polotsk