ThemeThe Holy Spirit
Gen. 11:1-9 - the tower of Babel.
Acts 2:1-21 - the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
John 14:8-17, 25-27 - Jesus tells his disciples they have seen God through him, and after his death, the Holy Spirit will come to them.
Acts 2:1-21
1. When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. 5. Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7. Amazed and astonished, they asked, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8. And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9. Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10. Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11. Cretans and Arabs--in our own languages we hear them speaking about God's deeds of power." 12. All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "What does this mean?" 13. But others sneered and said, "They are filled with new wine." 14. But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, "Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. 15. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o'clock in the morning. 16. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: 17. "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. 18. Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy. 19. And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. 20. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord's great and glorious day. 21. Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.'
In Mary Shelley's famous horror story of "Frankenstein", the mad scientist creates a robot-like creature with intelligence, who turns out to be terrifyingly amoral and wreaks havoc amongst human beings. When "Frankenstein" was written in the 19th century, although horrific, it was sheer fantasy. But now, a century and a half later when we actually have intelligent machines, it begins to look much more feasible and so in a way, much more threatening. Perhaps machines could eventually take over the world!
I can't help thinking of those fears when I look at God's reaction to the human beings he created, in the account of the dawn of pre-history in the early chapters of Genesis.
God drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden because they ate the forbidden fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He drove them out because as God himself said, "The man has become like one of us, knowing good from evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever" - therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden (Gen. 3:22).
It seems in those early days when humans had just been created and God wasn't yet sure of his relationship with them, that God felt quite threatened by this new creature. Should human beings add immortality to their knowledge and their skills by eating the fruit of the tree of life, then they would indeed be indistinguishable from gods. Today's reading about the Tower of Babel reinforces that impression of God feeling threatened by humans:
The LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built. And the LORD said, "Look, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down, and confuse their language there so that they will not understand one another's speech." So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city (Gen. 11:5-8).
So here at the Tower of Babel God went out of his way to reduce the power of human beings, to divide them and scatter them and make it impossible for them to communicate effectively.
But as time goes on, it seems God increases in confidence from those very early primitive times, and it isn't long before his love for his human creation becomes the overwhelming factor of his relationship with them.
First, he leads his people, in the wilderness, but lives far off, in heaven. Then he makes his home amongst his people, in the ark of the covenant which they carry with them (Ex. 25:8,22). Then his home with them becomes more permanent, in the temple built for him (1 Kings 6).
By the time of Jeremiah, we learn God no longer writes his law on impersonal stone tablets, but on people's hearts in order that they might always be close to him as individuals, rather than simply as a nation (Jer. 31:33; 32:40).
And then God himself comes to dwell on earth as a human being, in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. As Jesus told Philip in today's gospel reading, anyone who has looked at Jesus has seen God, for Jesus is "in" God, and God is "in" Jesus. And that's exactly what both God and Jesus want for all human beings, that they shall have God/Jesus within them (John 17:21).
So when the person of Jesus reaches the end of his life on this earth, as all human beings do, then God sends not just his law, but his whole spirit, himself, to dwell in the hearts of his people. After the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost, God himself is forever within each human being.
There's a wonderful symmetry about Luke's account of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Just as God divided and scattered the human race at the Tower of Babel by confusing their language, so now the Spirit of God becomes manifest in human beings by them speaking once again in a language which can be understood by all. It's as though that division and scattering of the human race which occurred at the dawn of pre-history, has at last been reversed. At Pentecost, God enabled a language to be used which everyone understood, in order that human beings might be drawn back together and to God.
The coming of the Spirit at Pentecost was augured by a mighty, rushing wind. God's spirit is his breath, his life-force, which, like the wind, blows where it wills (John 3:8). In St. John's gospel, on the first Easter Day when Jesus appeared to his disciples, we're told he breathed on them and gave them his Spirit (John 20:22). In his breath was his life-force, the life-force of God.
The presence of God within the apostles is shown by the tongue of flame which hovers over each head. In the OT, fire often indicated the presence of God. Moses found himself in the presence of God when he saw the burning bush (Ex. 3:1-6), and God led the Israelites in the wilderness by fire (Ex. 13:21). And when Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal, fire from heaven raged over his sacrifice and consumed it (1 Kings 18:38,39).
Once the apostles were aware of the presence of God within them, amazing things began to happen. Their fears, which had kept them locked away, no longer mattered. They were so filled with joy and courage and love, that they could move mountains. The fear had gone. And they used their newly-discovered powers for God, to tell others about Jesus. Timid people dared to be up front. Frightened people dared to stand up and be counted. Miserable people were full of joy. Lonely people were full of love. And they were all one, united in this tremendous experience of the God within.
What does this mean for us, in 1998? As Christians, do we have the Spirit within us, or do we need some spectacular supernatural event in order to receive the Spirit?
I believe all human beings are born with God within them, with the opportunity, the potential, to become Christ-like. But human sin opposes the God within, and in some cases, crushes the Spirit almost out of existence. The Spirit needs space and time and openness to grow and to blossom and to be effective. The sacraments (sacred acts) of baptism and confirmation and the Eucharist affirm the presence of the Spirit within and enable the Spirit to be active within us.
So on those formal occasions, the spark of God within is fanned into flame. Of course, the Spirit isn't limited to occasions chosen by human beings. It blows where it wills. So sometimes people enjoy profound and unexpected spiritual experiences, which can take many different forms, and usually which leave them feeling "high" or ecstatic.
But if the flame within is to become strong, it needs more than all of that. It must be nourished on a regular basis. And to communicate with God within, we need regularly to go deep within ourselves in prayer.
Good, satisfying, rewarding, deep prayer is an art that has to be learned and then practiced regularly. It involves listening and silence in God's presence just as much as it involves speaking with God. But once that line of communication with the God within is fully open and functional, then the Spirit may burst into action and change lives.
Timid people will dare to be up front. Frightened people will dare to stand up and be counted. Miserable people will find themselves full of joy. Lonely people will discover they're full of love. And we will all become one, united in the tremendous experience of the God within. And once that happens, the power of the Spirit will be uncontainable.
Pentecost wasn't a one-off experience. It was for all time, and for all of us. All we have to do is to open ourselves to receive what God has waiting for us and allow our hearts to respond to him.
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