June 4, 2017; Pentecost Sunday, Page 1 4 JUNE 2017 ILC, WICHITA, KS ACTS 2:38 PENTECOST SUNDAY Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. The text which forms the basis for my message today is an extension of the Epistle lesson. The Epistle lesson is from Acts 2: 1-21 but I would like to move on a little further in this chapter in Acts. From Acts 2:38 we read: 38 And Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Here ends the text. My good friends in Christ! I had quite the week this past week. From Sunday through Wednesday I made a prayer retreat at the Spiritual Life Center here in Wichita. I have been making these retreats for many years. Several years ago one of the nuns who was my spiritual advisor on the retreat put me in silence. That is she told me that I was not allowed to talk. She taught me that while on a retreat like this talking just takes up time and energy that one could spend focused on prayer with the Lord. Being in silence is not easy. If you pass someone while walking on a sidewalk you do not say hello. If you pass someone while you are walking a hallway, you do not say, How is your day going? It is not easy to be in -- silence. And for my first several times I almost exploded. Those of you who have had any contact with me know that I am not a quiet person! But it has gotten easier over the years.
June 4, 2017; Pentecost Sunday, Page 2 So this past Sunday I entered the Retreat Center. I was assigned a room in the priests living quarters and into silence I went. Silence was going pretty easy until I came out of the private retreat wing to go to breakfast. There in the dining hall were about 200 college students from all over the nation. They were there for a Catholic Youth Meeting. And they were not in silence! Watching those Youth at breakfast noisy, laughing, praying they were full of the Spirit! And that is what Pentecost Sunday is all about being filled with the Spirit. For today is Pentecost Sunday. For Pentecost Sunday is that day when the Holy Spirit came upon the Disciples of our Lord. The Disciples went throughout Jerusalem, preaching to all the Jewish pilgrims who had come to Jerusalem for the Jewish Festival of Shavuot or the Festival of the Spring Harvest. On Pentecost Sunday, the Scriptures tell us that over 3,000 people converted to Christianity. The Festival of Pentecost is a time for us to reflect upon the fact that 1) The Holy Spirit is a free gift given to us; 2) How are we to use this gift of the Holy Spirit. I. The Holy Spirit is a free gift given to us by our gracious God.
June 4, 2017; Pentecost Sunday, Page 3 A. When Jesus was preparing His Disciples for Jesus Ascension into heaven He told His Disciples not to panic. Jesus was going to send them another. A counselor, a helper, a guide one who would be with not only the disciples but with every Christian to give us internal and external guidance as we live out our daily lives. B. The historic, traditional Christian Church has always believed and held that a special blessing, a special anointing of the Holy Spirit is given to us as various occasions in our lives. We are given a special blessing of the Holy Spirit at our Baptisms and our Confirmations as the words are spoken over us: Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Every baptized and confirmed Christian has the Holy Spirit living in them. With the Holy Spirit in us then it is up to us to decide how they are going to use the Holy Spirit or whether they are going to ignore the Holy Spirit as they live out their lives. Another occasion in which we receive the Holy Spirit is every Sunday when we gather together and make Confession of our sins to God. The pastor, speaking the Words of Christ, says to those who confess their sins: I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. We are given the gift of God s Holy Spirit at various times in our lives.
June 4, 2017; Pentecost Sunday, Page 4 The Spirit lives in here in our hearts to help us show love, to help us show compassion, to help us feel the need to help others. But more in involved than just knowing that the Spirit lives in us II. What is important for us is how we use the Holy Spirit. We are told in Scriptures that the Holy Spirit plants faith in our hearts and in our minds, and helps to nurture that faith. That is what we should focus upon when it comes to our relationship with the Holy Spirit of God. How can the Holy Spirit help us grow in our relationship with God? How can the Holy Spirit help us make decisions so that we will do God s will as we live out our lives? A. The Holy Spirit helps us grow in our relationship with God as we study God s Word, as we spend time with God in prayer as we come to receive Christ in the blessed Sacrament of Holy Communion. When we receive Christ in Holy Communion we also receive His Spirit. That Spirit offers us forgiveness of sins and strength. Strength to face the world and know that whatever temptation faces us we will be successful.
June 4, 2017; Pentecost Sunday, Page 5 B. And, the Holy Spirit will help us make decisions so that we will do God s will as we live out our lives. For you and I since we are human beings one of the biggest challenges we face is doing the will of God. We want to do God s will. But we face temptation from ourself and we have Satan who is constantly throwing temptations our way to try and lead us astray. The way that we continue to walk the path of God is when we need to make a decision we go to God in prayer. And we ask the Lord to reveal to us the right choice for us to make. And the Holy Spirit of God will grant us that wisdom. When you listen to God s answer to your prayer and a peace comes across your mind and your heart that is the Holy Spirit giving you direction. Walk with God the Holy Spirit. That is what Pentecost Sunday is all about. Turning to the Holy Spirit of God to make wise decisions, to trust that God will lead you, and to turn to Christ to heal the pain in your heart.
June 4, 2017; Pentecost Sunday, Page 6 For because Christ has come into our world to suffer and die on the Cross to save us from our sins that means that Christ has made a commitment to be with us. Christ is not going to let go of us. And now it s time to turn for us to turn to the Holy Spirit to pray for His presence in our lives to lead us and to guide us for the Holy Spirit will guide us to make wise decisions just as He guided the disciples. We are truly blessed as Christians for unlike those who do not follow Christ we have a place to turn and that is to God. My prayer for each one of you, my friends Is that as you travel through life that you will turn to the Holy Spirit for guidance, for wisdom, and for the direction to make wise decisions in our lives. May God bless each of our lives with the gift of His Holy Spirit. Amen. Now may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen. Nicene Creed Reception of New Members
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