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| Pastor's Page Dove. Sevenfold flames of fire. Divine light. Red paraments and banners. These are the images of Pentecost Day, the date on the Church's calendar dedicated to the commemoration and adoration of God the Holy Spirit. Every year, fifty days after Easter, the disciples of Jesus gather in solemn worship, as promises of the Holy Spirit are retold, the account of the Holy Spirit's appearance in Jerusalem is read, and prayers for guidance and renewal are offered. In this 2008th Year of our Lord, we shall gather on May 11 and participate in the living tradition of the Church. The work of the Holy Spirit is essential to our lives as Christ's disciples. So it is proper that a day is set aside for the formal recognition of His activity in us. As we gather in solemn worship, we will hear about the role that the Holy Spirit has for us. Jesus' words will be heard again by us: "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'" (John 3:37b-38) Our Lord speaks of the Holy Spirit's presence in us, the fountain and source of life. This is what John was quick to point out in the next verse of the gospel: "Now this He said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." (John 7:39) Christ Jesus shows the importance of the Holy Spirit's work in our lives. It is the Holy Spirit who brings us everlasting life, the benefits that Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection earned for us. This work is what Luther describes in the Small Catechism:"the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, santified and kept me in the true faith." The Spirit's activity is found in those verbs: calling, enlightening, sanctifying, keeping. It is the purpose for which He works, just as Jesus states: "When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth, for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take what is Mine and declare it to you."(John 16:13-14) That testifying work is what has been done for all of us. Christ's truth has been declared to us-the truth that sets us free, that leads us to the Father, that brings us everlasting life. It has happened in the catechumens who will receive the Rite of Confirmation on Pentecost Day. They, too, have heard the witness of Christ that the Holy Spirit brings, so that they share the gifts that Christ bestows. And so it will be untill the end of the age, as the Holy Spirit guides all of the elect, all those chosen for salvation. The Day of Pentecost shows us how the Kingdom of God comes to earth and makes us and all believers part of it. We hear the account of that powerful event in Jerusalem, the same powerful event that happens among us, even if we don't see the miraculous. Our minds will be focused on our being brought into God;s Kingdom, as the Small Catechism describes: "God's Kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that by His grace we believe His holy word and lead Godly lives here in time and there in eternity." This is what we pray for on Pentecost Day. In truth, it is what we pray for every day as Christ's disciples. The work of the Holy Spirit is not a once-a-day occurence, but a constant activity. What we most especially need is provided for us who belong to God's Kingdom: In this Christian Church (the Holy Spirit) daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers." Pentecost Day will simply remind us of that in a formal way. But every day we are recipients of that work, the promised work of the promised Spirit. So on May 11, gather together with your fellow disciples, the ones whom the Holy Spirit has put into fellowship with the communion of saints. Pray for the continued guidance and renewal that the Spirit brings to Christ's people. And receive again in a formal way the source of your everlasting life. For in you, the promise of Jesus will be made good, as the Holy Spirit works in you: "Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." (John 7:38) Pastor Zimmerman |