Receive The Holy Spirit

Father Jim Fosdick

St. Mary of the Snows Anglican Church
Pentecost 2007

In the name of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

"It is my heart-warming and world-embracing hope," said Mark Twain, "that all of us - the high, the low, the rich, the poor, the admired, the despised, the loved, the hated, the civilized, and the savage - may eventually be gathered in a heaven of everlasting rest and peace and bliss, except the inventor of the telephone." Can you identify with that? Mark Twain obviously held a great dislike for the telephone, probably because, among other things, it renders a person to be easily accessible, even when they prefer to be inaccessible. Of course, someone is always quick to remind us, "You don't have to answer the telephone." We know that. But we also know, with Mark Twain, that the presence of the telephone has had an incredible impact upon our daily lives. Particularly now that cell phones and cordless models are so commonplace, the telephone suggests a kind of "ever-presence." Not only is it everywhere, but because of the rapid access it provides, we can be almost anywhere in seconds. To express it in a very unrefined manner, the telephone allows us to be effectively anywhere any time and that’s not always such a good thing. Remember this the next time your telephone rings and you answer it to discover a voice on a computer inviting you to travel to Las Vegas if you’ll just listen to a time share presentation. Twain may have had a point.

We deal with all kinds of things which appear to be "ever-presences," don't we: responsibilities, concerns, medical conditions, financial obligations, never-ending duties which we have to do over and over, and so on. But what occupies a person and the extent to which it occupies them is not the same for everybody. What is considered "ever-present" in a person's life is largely determined by what one chooses to allow to be ever-present.

There is another kind of Ever-Presence, that so totally engulfs all things, that it abides quite beyond the choice and preference of any of us. It just is and it, let me say, spreads its presence around. "On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.' And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained' (John 20:19-23)." That’s our gospel today from John and there are at least four sermons in there. I’ll try to limit myself to one.

From the Acts of the Apostles we read, "When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” Try to imagine what that must have been like.

 Moreover, the potential of the Holy Spirit is unlimited. According to Paul, the life which seeks only after things of this world achieves corruption and death, while life in the Spirit achieves eternal life (Galatians 6:8); the Holy Spirit intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words (Romans 8:26); participation in the Spirit is the common experience of all Christians (Philippians 2:1); the Holy Spirit unifies the church, enabling it to transcend worldly affairs (1 Corinthians 12:13); the Holy Spirit will transform the natural body into a spiritual body (2 Corinthians 5:5). There are fruits of the Spirit: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22, 23)." And of course there are the gifts of the spirit which our reading today from 1 Corinthians spelled out. What a remarkable "presence." You can relax, I’m not going to try to produce an exhaustive definition of the Holy Spirit and its work here; I’m just going to give some glimpses of it. A person might as well attempt to produce a photograph of the wind. It is possible to see where the wind is blowing, where it has been, and feel it upon our faces, but to actually see, or describe the wind, that is another matter. So it is with attempting to define the Holy Spirit. It is possible to see where it has been, and feel its presence in our lives, but it is not within human capacity to satisfactorily describe nor explain exhaustively the Holy Spirit, commonly referred to in the New Testament by the word, "paraclete." Angus Benigus Sanrey, a French theologian, wrote a ponderous volume titled, Paracletus seu de recta pronumciationa tractatus, in the 17th century. The sole purpose of the work was to establish the correct pronunciation of one word, Paradetus. The Bible translates the word simply as Comforter. Ironically, neither the French theologian nor the word Comforter ever begin to gather the full meaning of the word Paraclete or the nature and function of the Counselor to whom Jesus referred. Christians, however, do not fret about not being able to construct a succinct, beautifully worded paragraph packaging the sum-total of the Third Person of the Trinity, with its form and function described in detail. The really distressing thing would be if it were limited to the extent that we could understand it.

I think it’s significant, that following the resurrection when Jesus appeared to the disciples, showing them his hands and his side, he did not make any explanations. Twice he said, "Peace be with you." Twice he said, "Receive the Holy spirit." The words, "Peace be with you," were spoken as both a greeting and a blessing. The words, "Receive the Holy Spirit," contain something more. I want to cover three things contained in the words Receive the Holy Spirit with you this morning: invitation, confirmation, and consecration.

1. Invitation: Jesus was inviting the disciples to acknowledge and receive the Holy Spirit - the divine EverPresence. Three years prior to this he had extended an invitation of a different nature, saying, "Follow me." The invitation would summon the disciples from whatever they were doing… from their fishing nets and tax tables; from their families, friends, and whatever security they had. To what?

Matthew writes,"These 12 Jesus sent out, charging them, 'Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And preach as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons (Matthew 10:5-8).' "

Jesus initial call of the apostles had involved commitment to the person of Christ and his ministry. As Lord of their lives, his ministry would be their ministry. But there was more:

"He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me (Matthew 10:40)."

Have you ever really thought about the invitations I have made in my short time here to pray to follow Jesus? The idea is to offer the opportunity for someone outside of Christ to accept Jesus Christ as Lord. Whatever else we might say about the Christian life and becoming a disciple is irrelevant unless a person first embraces Jesus Christ as Lord. That is how the invitation is understood from my perspective and presumably from all priests and other ministers who preach evangelistic messages. What about from the laity's perspective? It may or may not be heard and understood by the listener as it was intended by the preacher. Studies have shown for some time now throughout all denominations that we can no longer assume that everyone (even in the same congregation) is on the same wavelength. In fact, any assumption about doctrine, interpretation of Scripture, attitude toward mission, or most anything else, is clearly inappropriate. Is everyone even reasonably in agreement then regarding the invitation?

Jesus initially invited his disciples to receive him as Lord: "Follow me." Two thousand years later, this remains the initial step which we are invited to make. Then later, Jesus extended the invitation to the disciples to receive the Holy Spirit- "The Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father," as he expressed it. Two invitations. The second being offered as the ever-present and arguably inevitable consequence of the first; an invitation that Jesus extends to all those of any age who confess Him as Lord: "Receive the Holy Spirit." I want to suggest to you that it is the giving of the Holy Spirit that makes it possible to understand the invitation to follow Jesus. The Holy Spirit also provides us with the power to do what Jesus calls us to do.

2. Confirmation. Jesus made so many promises. For the most part, they were rather spectacular promises, weren't they? "Ask, and it will be given you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be Opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened (Luke 11:9-11)." Sweeping words spoken privately to the disciples without any reservations whatsoever. "The Holy Spirit will teach you (in times of trouble) what you are to say (Luke 12:12);" "Fear not, little flock for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32);" "Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division (Luke 12:51)." So many more. And then there were Jesus’ predictions  about the Son of Man being "mocked and scourged and crucified and raised on the third day (Matthew 20:19)." To name only these few, stop and consider what an incredibly mind-bending list of remote possibilities Jesus was laying out before his disciples as absolute certainties. He was asking them to accept a pretty extensive list of things which would stretch any imagination to believe. Here’s the really amazing thing. Every single thing Jesus ever said came true. The disciples would slowly come to understand that if something had been promised, no matter how spectacular, it would be accomplished. Even the part about "the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name." One by one, the promises were confirmed. We need to pay attention to that because Jesus is still keeping his promises. See in your mind's eye Jesus standing in his resurrected form before his disciples, showing them his hand and side confirming all that he had promised.

The post-resurrection appearance to the disciples confirmed some things, connected some things, which reached back considerably beyond the life and ministry of Jesus. (a) It confirmed the consistency of God's plan through the ages. In Old Testament times a great procession was conducted through the streets of Jerusalem on the last day of the feast of tabernacles. The procession moved slowly from the temple through the city streets, out the Water Gate, down the hill of Zion to the pool of Siloam. There, the white-robed priests who had marched at the front of the procession filled their golden vessels with water. The procession then retraced its steps to the temple where the priests gathered around the altar of sacrifice and emptied their vessels of water against the side of the altar. As the vessels were being emptied the choir chanted the words of Isaiah 12:3: "With joy shall you draw water out of the wells of salvation." The New Testament records that seven and a half centuries after Isaiah wrote these words, Jesus of Nazareth stood near the temple watching the traditional procession, listening to the music of the trumpets and the chanting of the Levites on the last great day of the feast of tabernacles. Above it all, the voice of Jesus was heard to proclaim, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink (John 7:37)." We can almost envision another puzzle piece dropping into its appointed place in the complicated puzzle of God's redemptive events. But there’s more:

"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. When they heard these words, some of the people said, 'This is really the prophet.' Others said, 'This is the Christ.' But some said, 'Is the Christ to come from Galilee? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ is descended from David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?' So there was division among the people over him. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him (John 7:39-44)."

It does not matter that there was division over him. What was done, was done. Later, as Jesus appeared to the disciples, another piece fell into place, confirming the consistency of God's plan through the ages; (b) it confirmed the incalculable power of God.

When Jesus appeared to the disciples and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit," he was dramatically, by his very presence, confirming the incalculable power of God to be so awesome  as even to raise the dead! And if the power of God can raise the dead, then the Holy Spirit is capable of lifting and removing burdens and weights of any nature as might come into our lives.

3. Consecration. It is not all greeting, invitation and confirmation. Something more was presented to the awe-stricken, wide-eyed band. Jesus said, "As the Father has sent me, even so I send you (v. 21)." The disciples were being consecrated into service filled with the power of the Spirit, "Receive the Holy Spirit."

At age 30, Florence Nightingale made this entry into her diary: "I am now 30 years of age, the age at which Christ began his mission. Now, no more childish things, no more vain things. Now, Lord, let me think only of Thy will." Someone asked her years later, as her illustrious career and exceptional life began to wind down, "What is the secret of your good life?" She replied, "I can offer only one explanation and it is this, I have held nothing back from God." Jesus was asking the disciples to hold nothing back. The Holy Spirit stands ready now to consecrate each of us into his service, but we must hold nothing back.

I found a poem this week which has apparently been around so long that no one remembers the author.  It reminds me of the Cat Stevens song about a man who had no time for his son and by the end of the song the son has no time for the father. Any way the poem  relates an all-too-common response to the call of total consecration:

"I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord, real service is what I desire. I'll say what you want me to say, dear Lord, But don't ask me to sing in the choir. I'll say what you want me to say, dear Lord, I like to see things come to pass, But don't ask me to teach girls and boys, dear Lord. I'd rather just stay in my class. I'll do what you want me to do, dear Lord, I yearn for the kingdom to thrive. I'll give you my nickels and dimes, dear Lord. But please don't ask me to tithe. I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord. I'll say what you want me to say. I'm busy just now with myself dear Lord, I'll help you some other day."

That which has not been dedicated cannot be consecrated. In other words, if you haven’t decided to follow Jesus and dedicated your life to Him, he can’t consecrate your life to His service.  If we don’t see our lives as having been given to us for God’s service then God won’t be able to use us for his plan of salvation. Jesus said whoever is not for him is against him. Apathy serves the devil’s purposes equally as well as outright opposition. The person whose mind is not made up is a candidate for compromise, but the consecrated life whose spirit has been dedicated to the leadership of the Holy Spirit can never be compromised.

Any deer hunter has had the experience of seeing a nice deer and then seeing it disappear into some brush. In thick woods, like some of the tag alder areas in Vilas County you can see movement but never really see the animal. The thought occurred to me of how frustrating it must be for thinking people who are looking for strong, convincing evidences of God. They can see the Bible, read it and hear it read. They can see the church and observe its program, see the gestures. But what people are really looking for is eye-to-eye contact with the Source. There are plenty of obstacles. Christian friends, the Bible says in so many ways that if the almighty God, and the manifestation of the Holy Spirit are ever to be visibly evident in human affairs, it will be through the human witness. The dedicated, consecrated witness! If Christianity is ever going to get beyond words and gestures, it will be because it has gotten into a person. You can be that person. You can be the difference between someone looking through the brush and never seeing clearly and coming to know the Jesus who changed your life.

Jesus invited his disciples to receive the power of the Holy Spirit, to witness to the confirmation of his promises, and to be consecrated into the service of the "Ever-Presence." As Christ spoke to them, so I speak his words to you: "Receive the Holy Spirit." Amen.