Filled with the Spirit
COME, HOLY SPIRIT - The Festival of the Coming of the Holy Spirit: June 9, 2019
Fifty days after the Passover, God's Old Testament people celebrated the gathering of the harvest at the Festival of Weeks. Fifty days after Easter, God's New Testament people celebrated the harvesting of Gentile souls at Pentecost. Pentecost celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit according to Jesus' promise. It marks the birthday of the New Testament Church and begins the gathering of souls won by Jesus' death and resurrection. At the first Pentecost, 3,000 souls were added to the Church's number.
Pentecost is the third great festival of the Church. It has been celebrated since at least 217 AD. The Church dresses in red to remind us of the tongues of fire that marked the Spirit's gift, as well as the blood of the martyrs which was the seed of the Church.
In the Old Testament, the 50th year designated a year of jubilee. Land was returned to its ancestral owners; slaves were freed; debts were forgiven. The year of jubilee marked the completion of "a week of weeks" (7 x 7 = 49). In the New Testament, Easter sounds the triumphant victory song of God's salvation. We are released from our slavery to the Devil; our sins are forgiven, and the promise of our heavenly land is restored. The season of Easter, appropriately, lasts for a week of weeks (49 days), followed by this joyous jubilee festival of Pentecost where the Holy Spirit empowers us with peace.
"I will pour out my Spirit on all people." Come, Holy Spirit!
► Readings:
• Genesis 11:1-9: At the tower of Babel, people spoke in tongues.
• Acts 2:1-21: The coming of the Holy Spirit.
• John 14:23-27: The Holy Spirit brings peace.
• Psalm: 104
► Sermon theme: "Filled with the Spirit"