Pentecost Sunday - What Did They Pray?

6/5/2022

Scripture: Acts 2:1-21

Acts 2:1–21 NRSV

1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 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. 3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. 5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, 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 Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” 12 All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.” 14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. 15 Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. 16 No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: 17 ‘In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. 18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. 20 The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day. 21 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

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What did they pray?

What did the disciples pray? The disciples had 40 days of prayer in between the Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus, plus another 10 days between His Ascension and Pentecost. I’m sure those days were filled with prayer, motivated by both the fear of persecution and the excitement of new hope for them and the world. It was a time of remembering the old ways, praying the Shema - “Listen, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord alone, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your might.” Jesus also gave them a new prayer to pray. We know it as the Lord’s Prayer. They used both of these prayers and everything they could remember from the teaching of Jesus as they made plans and prayed for guidance. At the same time, they were grieving the loss of Jesus. Even though He had come back from death, He was gone again, which made their grief stranger than the normal grief we experience. I’m sure they were wondering about this Holy Spirit that Jesus had promised them, excited by the possibilities of this new relationship with God and perhaps concerned about the responsibilities of being vessels of God’s Spirit. The windows in the house with the upper room would have been covered in curtains or wooden shutters, not glass. The breeze would have continually blown through them. On the day of Pentecost, they would have heard and felt that wind. On alert for the sounds of their enemies, wishing they could see and hear Jesus, they heard the sound of a large storm kicking up instead. Then, as if that were not a big enough surprise, they noticed tongues of flame resting above each of their heads, bringing a strange new light into a house they had covered up to keep out their enemies. The wind did not blow the flames out, and while others might have run for cover, these disciples left the protection of their building and went out into the open, preaching and testifying about Jesus in public. The Holy wind fanned those flames and soon they realized they were speaking in other languages. There are 12 different countries mentioned in that list of people represented, each with their own languages, and then the text follows by noting that there were other visitors, both Romans, and Jews, from the Mediterranean, and from the Middle East. Just enough work for each of the 12 disciples, plus any extras that may have been staying with them. Everyone has a gift and each gift has a purpose. Each gift was made to be given to another. How did the prayers of the disciples prepare them for Pentecost?

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What does this mean?

“What does this mean?” the people asked, recognizing that something holy and out of this world was happening before them. A new kingdom was being announced with delegates from every known language. Strangely, these representatives all looked like fishermen and peasants from the same little Galilean village. Looking back, this was a perfect example of everyone being in the right place, at the right time, and having the ability to do the right thing at that moment. It was not a simple plan either. The fire from heaven divided itself into at least 12 parts, and each disciple had to faithfully speak the truth, choosing the right words, in the language that God had newly empowered them to speak. They had to be brave enough to step outside their door and proclaim the name of Jesus. Not only did they have to do it in front of the Romans, whom they feared would arrest them, but God was also asking them to preach to the Romans in their own Roman language! If that was not enough, they were preaching Jesus as Lord to all the other nationalities around them as well... all those countries that Rome had occupied. In the years of persecution that would follow, many would look back to this day as the flame that lit the fuse that would call all people to serve a new king. Were they talking about a political king? No. They were talking about the true Son of God Whose love and sacrifice would win the hearts of all people, who had been ruled by fear before. They would become a generation that would honor the emperor, but only because their Lord Jesus asked them to do so, and in hopes of winning him to Christ too. This was how God chose to announce the presence of His Holy Spirit into the world. He did it through a small group of courageous, obedient, faithful followers, who were willing to step out and serve and share in ways that went far beyond their strengths and talents. Because they were obedient, the world saw God shining and heard God speaking through them.

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The Arrival of God’s Presence

God wants to be present with us. From the Beginning of Creation, we meant more to Him than an arts and craft project to put on His shelf. He has always wanted to walk with everyone that ever lived and ever will live. It is you and I who are not always sure we want God with us. Sometimes, yes, but probably not all the time. We put up walls and shut windows so that we can build private lives away from Him. And God lets us do it. He refuses to burst our bubbles until the time is right. Even then, He often gives warnings if we are watching and listening. Like Ebenezer Scrooge in The Christmas Carol, the Spirit of God comes to us at the hour it was announced, but we do not always know how it will arrive or what shape it will take. Or who will bring it. We may be surprised at the moment until we look back and realize that we were told about this plan long ago. The first part of Peter’s message was to the skeptics in the crowd. This is not craziness motivated by drunken disorderly behavior. There may be 11 different things going on that you do not understand, but if you open your eyes, open your ears, and open your heart to God’s Spirit, there is a twelfth person that is speaking directly to you. It is telling God’s Story from the beginning, linking in all of those scriptures you have read, connecting all of those people who brought God’s word to you. That voice is calling you to step up to take your portion of the Holy Spirit as well. Our imaginations are tickled by the signs that Peter declares: the visions, the dreams, the changes in the stars, moon, and sky. In a world that did not have access to scripture, preaching, or teaching, and long before the internet let us share God’s Word across the planet in a matter of seconds, God still spoke to people. God can use all of those ways to get our attention. He can use your bible too. He can use your Sunday School teacher, pastor, or even your mom or dad. Whatever it takes get you to open the doors and windows of your heart and invite Him in so He can move in you. The miraculous signs are there to remind you to stop and pray. They are there to convince you to call on the name of the Lord and find a saving relationship that allows you to grow into someone who is a Spirit-bearing, walking, talking, miracle themselves.

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Calling on the name of the Lord

The disciples called on the name of the Lord together. Jesus did not lock the disciples in a room and tell them to work out their many differences. They had 50 days to skip town, go off and start their own ministry apart from the others, and several of them tried to at one time or another. But Jesus called them back from their fishing boats and personal agendas and taught them to do life together. Within a week after Pentecost, it was no longer 12-20 men and women trying to stay and care for each other in one house. They had 7,000 new brothers and sisters by the end of that week, and many of them were from other countries. As powerful as that Spirit is moving and shaping us, it is just our point of contact with the One Holy Spirit that leads and guides us all together. As we allow God to lead us to the right place, at the right time, giving us the words to say and the things to do that go beyond our own strength, and as we do that in a loving relationship with our brothers and sisters around us, God will move again, and grow us beyond what we can see today. Let us join our hearts together as we celebrate all that God has done for us and all He plans to do with us.

THE GREAT THANKSGIVING FOR THE DAY OF PENTECOST

The Lord be with you. And also with you. Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to the Lord. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right to give our thanks and praise. It is right, and a good and joyful thing, ​always and everywhere to give thanks to you, Father Almighty (almighty God ), creator of heaven and earth. In the beginning, your Spirit moved over the face of the waters. You formed us in your image and breathed into us the breath of life. When we turned away, and our love failed, your love remained steadfast. Your Spirit came upon prophets and teachers, ​anointing them to speak your Word. And so, with your people on earth and all the company of heaven ​we praise your name and join their unending hymn: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, ​heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Holy are you, and blessed is your Son, Jesus Christ. At his baptism in the Jordan, your Spirit descended upon him ​and declared him your beloved Son. With your Spirit upon him, he turned away the temptations of sin. Your Spirit anointed him to preach good news to the poor, ​to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, ​to set at liberty those who are oppressed, ​and to announce that the time had come ​when you would save your people. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and ate with sinners. By the baptism of his suffering, death, and resurrection, ​you gave birth to your Church, delivered us from slavery to sin and death, ​and made with us a new covenant by water and the Spirit. When the Lord Jesus ascended, he promised to be with us always, ​baptizing us with the Holy Spirit and with fire, as on the Day of Pentecost. On the night in which he gave himself up for us, he took bread, ​gave thanks to you, broke the bread, gave it to his disciples, and said: "Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." When the supper was over he took the cup, ​gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said: "Drink from this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant, ​poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." On the day you raised him from the dead ​he was recognized by his disciples in the breaking of the bread, ​and in the power of your Holy Spirit, your Church has continued ​in the breaking of the bread and the sharing of the cup. And so, in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ, ​we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving ​as a holy and living sacrifice, in union with Christ's offering for us, as we proclaim the mystery of faith. Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again. Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, ​and on these gifts of bread and wine. Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ, ​that we may be for the world the body of Christ, ​redeemed by his blood and empowered by the gifts of the Spirit. By your Spirit make us one with Christ, ​one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world, ​showing forth the fruit of the Spirit until Christ comes in final victory, ​and we feast at his heavenly banquet. Through your Son Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit in your holy Church, ​all honor and glory is yours, almighty Father (God ), now and forever. Amen.