Pentecost
Sunday – Confirmation Sunday June
9, 2019
Acts 2:1-21 Panzer
Liturgical Chapel
What
Was Private Is Now Public
Many of the most important scenes involving the
followers of Christ after Christ's death took place in out of the way places. Mary
seeing Jesus at the tomb, Jesus with the disciples on the road to Emmaus, the
ascension at Bethany, these all took place in private or remote scenes. But
with the advent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, all becomes public.
It starts out private. The disciples and other followers gathered in an upper
room, to pray together, and to await Christ's promise, God's gift. But soon
that small room cannot contain all of that power. People outside begin to
notice something is going on... Something unusual.
Of course, those outside were human, too. They
wondered if those Galileans were not imbibing on some new wine. "Drunk in
the middle of the day!!!" All of that Spirit was unsettling to say the
least. And Peter stands up and addresses those assembled. “This Spirit is sent
by God, to witness to the fact that Jesus Christ is God's own Son. Prophecy is
fulfilled on this day. All who invoke the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Peter,
the one who denied Jesus before the crucifixion and had to see for himself that
Jesus was not in the tomb… the Spirit has created a new man, one not afraid to
stand up and proclaim boldly, "Jesus Christ is the Son of God."
If there is anything this story teaches us about
ourselves, it is not by our own power that we are able to proclaim God's
victory in our lives. It is the power of the Holy Spirit, the power of the
risen Christ, that gives us the courage to speak aloud the truth, that Jesus
Christ is the Son of God.
Today is a joy-filled day in the life of our congregation
as our confirmation journey comes to a close. For the last four months, these
youth people have gathered to learn in two areas: about the beliefs and history
of the church and what it means to live everyday as a disciple of Jesus Christ.
Don’t tell anyone, but this has been one of my favorite groups – I can assure
you from the very first class, they have kept me on my toes.
First-week
questions in our discussion of baptism included:
•
Why does the bible always refer to God as a man?
•
How is the Holy Spirit different from God and Jesus? and
•
If God has a plan, does that mean we don’t get to make choices for ourselves?
Week
by week we tackled new questions. Some had easy answers, but please let it be
noted that sometimes the best answer is, “I don’t know… but let’s try to figure
it out together.”
Throughout
the class, we have not talked so much about the “don’ts” but mostly about the
“dos.” We took for our class motto, “Love God – Love neighbor” – even and
especially if that neighbor is nothing like us. And we tried to think of the
ways that we can live the gospel – the good news – using words only when necessary,
because as we are taught from kindergarten, “Actions speak louder than words.”
I
think it’s very appropriate to celebrate this important milestone – a public
profession of faith – on Pentecost Sunday. This is the birthday of the Church -
a day of new beginnings. It reminds us that Confirmation is not graduation. Today
is not the day these youth graduate from church; this is the start of something
important. Confirmation marks a new beginning in their faith journey, a public
profession of faith, the first of many recommitments to a life of faith in God
and Jesus Christ.
Confirmation does not mean freedom from, but instead responsibility
to Christ and the Church. Each young person here has had the opportunity to
think about what this means in their lives. Through the last few weeks, we have
had some chances to share what difference, what impact, this act of public
profession will have on each of their lives. The overarching theme of our time
together has encompassed these two points:
++ First, that confirmation is about taking
responsibility for your own faith journey. Each of these young people were
baptized when they were infants, or when they were too young to take on the
responsibilities of their baptisms for themselves. Now is the time when they
are affirming the promises made at their baptisms. God said, “I do” to them a
long time ago. Now they are saying, “I do” to God for themselves.
++ Second, confirmation is about being faithful and
responding to the opportunities for spiritual growth which are offered in this
community, at home, and in the world. You see, it is not enough to say, “I’m in
charge now” without the understanding that being in charge has certain
requirements. Each of these young people is charged with the responsibility to
continue the good work that they have started. Not only do we encourage them to
continue worshiping and learning about the life of faith, but ask them to serve
God and their neighbors in the ways they see opening before them. We encourage
them to practice spiritual disciplines, like prayer and studying their bibles
and looking for the story of faith in the world, expecting to see and
experience God is the neighbors who are like us, and those who are not.
This Easter season we have spent a lot of time on the
word, “Love.” It is the centerpiece of what it means to be a Jesus follower.
Love should drive everything we do as we respond to the love that Christ has
showed us. Whether we are young people making our first public profession of
faith, or adults who have refocused our faith many times, we must remember that
our commitment to faith is all about responding to the love that we have
received. And even if the faith we bring is very small, God has the ability to
take that tiny bit of faith and grow it into something that is life-changing
for us and for the world.
Peter Storey was a Methodist Bishop in South Africa.
Partnering with Bishop Desmond Tutu, he helped the Christian church there be a
force for good in the transition from Apartheid to democracy. His words here
echo the dramatic nature of event this first Pentecost Day, when all people who
were willing were united in the power of the Spirit, God’s gift to the church.
He wrote, ““Some tell us that following Jesus is a simple matter of inviting
him into our hearts. But when we do that, Jesus always asks, “May I bring my
friends?” And when we look at them, we see that they are not the kind of
company we like to keep. The friends of Jesus are the outcasts, the
marginalized, the poor, the homeless, the rejected—the lepers of life. We
hesitate and ask, “Jesus, must we really have them too?” Jesus replies, “Love
me, love my friends!” —Peter Storey, Listening at Golgotha: Jesus’ Words from
the Cross
Peter and the followers of Jesus gathered in the Upper
Room to grieve the loss of their beloved leader. But before the day was done,
they were driven into the streets, speaking in the languages of the world,
proclaiming the good news of God’s love. On that day, what was private became
public, and that is what we celebrate today. These young people are making a
commitment to continue to grow in faith and to the best of their abilities, to
be the church. Our response is to make sure that WE continue to be the church,
and to provide a place for us to be in faithful ministry together.
In the name of the Triune God, let us pray:
Gracious God, Please give us:
intellect to understand you, reason to discern you,
diligence to seek you, wisdom to find you,
a spirit to know you, a heart to meditate upon you,
ears to hear you, eyes to see you,
a tongue to proclaim you, a way of life pleasing to you,
patience to wait for you, and perseverance to look for you.
May your Holy Spirit guide and teach, give us the courage to walk in your ways, to the glory of your name.[1] Amen.
Crystal Ayers - Confirmation Prayers, https://connectusfund.org/9-best-prayers-for-confirmation-candidates
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