A Pentecost Message
This Sunday, we will celebrate the birth of the church at Pentecost, remembering the story of the apostles’ gathering and the Holy Spirit descending upon them, giving them the ability to speak in various languages to spread the good news to those from many nations who were gathered in Jerusalem. When they were accused of being drunk (!), Peter reassured them that it was only 9am (!!). He interpreted the apostles’ ability to speak in various languages at Pentecost as a fulfillment of the prophesy given by Joel:
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.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit,
and they shall prophesy.
The days have come, in other words, when the hierarchies with which we’re familiar -- including social structures based on sex and gender, age, and economic classes -- will lose their meaning. In these days, God pours out God’s Spirit on all of us – sons, daughters, and intersex children; younger and older; those with lower, middle, and higher incomes; men, women, and non-binary people; lesbian, gay, bisexual, and straight people; trans people and queer people; people of all skin tones, shapes, and sizes; people with various ethnicities and migration backgrounds. What a wonderfully diverse and beloved community!
In this great leveling of the Holy Spirit, all may proclaim that Jesus the Christ has made known to us the ways of life. And that they did. Many were be baptized and joined the Christian community, devoting themselves to Jesus’ teaching, to covenantal life together, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.
This Sunday, we have the honor of fully welcoming seven new members into our beloved community by baptism and confirmation. These young people have each made the decision to affirm their baptisms – to decide for themselves whether they would like to become members of our local congregation.
It has been my honor to get to know many of them in confirmation classes this academic year. They are amazing young people. As we met on Sundays after worship, I got to know a bit about their journeys of faith, their questions, and their desire to make a commitment to God in Christ by the power of the Spirit.
We drew our Life Lines, marking significant events in our life histories, and shared times we have felt God’s presence. We investigated the mission and history of Little River UCC, scavenging for pamphlets, website information, and information sheets around the building. We filled-in-the-blanks to learn how the Bible came to be. We drew a big timeline to discover the history of Christianity and its many branches. Then we turned to our big ideas: what does it mean that God creates, redeems, and sustains? Who is Jesus, and what was important about him as a person and about what he did on earth? What is the meaning of his death and resurrection? How is the Spirit alive in our community, and what gifts might I have to offer? We also talked about what LRUCC is doing these days inside and outside of Sunday worship, and where we hear God’s call to serve. We highlighted our sacraments – baptism and communion – and reflected on the sacredness of ordinary things. Finally, we learned about confirmation and what it means to make this decision in our faith journeys.
It has been an honor and privilege to walk alongside our young people since the fall of 2023. As we welcome them into full communion with our local community, I hope you will congratulate them during the reception after worship, sign a card for them (a card for the congregation will be available on the gift table), shower them with words of welcome, and invite them to join our ministries and teams. These are the leaders of the church! Let us rejoice as the Spirit adds faithful disciples to our congregation!