Pentecost

 Pentecost, or the feast of weeks was another Jewish festival to celebrate God giving them the Torah & the wheat harvest. Just like the death & resurrection of Jesus took place in conjunction with Passover & first fruits, it is no coincidence that the receiving of the Holy Spirit & birth of the Church would fall on Pentecost. Before his ascension Jesus told his disciples to stay in the city until they were clothed with power.  

A Visible & auditable manifestation of Holy Spirit Power came upon all 120 disciples in that room. Because of Jesus’s death & resurrection a change happened, the Holy Spirit took up residence in the disciples, & likewise in us to continue His mission, & harvest souls for the Kingdom.

Up until then the Holy Spirit was active but not resident. Would come upon people for a variety of reasons but was temporarily & few were chosen.  God dwelt among them & interacted with them & empowered them, but was not in them. 

If we are born again he Indwells in our our hearts & minds. He comes to live in each of us and reveals truth to us. This is how the the kingdom of God resides in us. 

The Holy Spirit becomes the primary driver of our sanctification process to be more like Jesus. Indeed after Pentecost they became more like him. Likewise that should happen with us. His revelation of truth helps us to have victory’s over our sin nature that resists him. 

We are encouraged to be filled with the Holy Spirit so that the fruit produced will be a sweet blessing & invitation to others.

 A summary of my thoughts on Jesus sending out the 72

Read Luke 10:1-23

Things we see in the instructions Jesus gave them.

Not a direct application for us? or is it?  but definitely some things we should hear. We have the advantage of post resurrection.

1. Workers in the harvest- we are invited into the process of gathering.
2. Go in humility & also to expect opposition- apparently we have a role in their rejection as well.
3. We are to go empty of stuff to help us stay focused, no distraction on the way.
4. Go to where they found peace & hospitality. Move on if rejected or no interest. Engage where there is willingness.
5. Peace, hospitality & willingness are signs of ripeness.
6. Control of the situation was yielded to the people. Their willingness, their house, city, their generously. Is this the reason they were to take nothing? Do people respond better when they are included & empowered?
7. Do you see where this dependence & inclusion forced the disciples into their circumstances? Living with them in some shared context allows us to disciple them. Being in proximity to see & hear things about needs, needed healing & demons. Incarnational living with the ripe.
8. Did Sickness & troubling demons seem to be other indicators of ripeness? Can we see that in those experiencing poverty, crisis, & marginalization today?
9. If there is such a great number of ripe people, why aren’t we seeing more entering the family of God? What about the people of Blaine & Birch Bay? Have they all already rejected our accepted Christ? Or are we not in close enough proximity to the ripe?

Where do the lonely go to be around people where they will not stand out? Library?coffee shops? senior center?

Where could you go to stretch your hang time with only a cup of coffee?

Historically our Christian based culture was a little like the Jewish culture was in that day. There was some kind of a God frame of reference. Because of this much of our church history, certainly in the USA, is a gathering & attraction orientation model. We invite people to come learn & experience in our place & under our circumstances & our control. Our efforts to evangelize are often framed the same way. We want to do it under the circumstances we can control. 

Many in our culture today have no church or Christian reference. I think today we need to go into places or circumstances to find the ripe. But can we?

Key points for me.

*They were sent

*We play a part, partner

*Empty handed & focused

*Look for ripe fruit, hearts, lots of, language indicates shouldn’t be hard to find.

*Yielding control forces us into their life circumstances, even a relationship were we can listen, share, disciple, & heal until Christ completes His work.

Wasn’t their objective the same as ours?

In our post resurrection world & complex culture it’s not as simple for us. But we have more tools & insight examples. The whole word, Jesus instructions,the spirit within us. Starts with listening & observing with spiritual eyes & ears.