10/5/26
Easter 6
Acts 17:22-31
John 14:15-21
This is the last Sunday of the Easter season! It has gone by quickly; Easter Sunday feels like years ago. Over the last few weeks we have heard the stories of the first disciples and the establishment of the early church. Year A, our current lectionary year, has a focus on the conversion of Saul from the persecuting, misguided baddie to Paul the Saint following his encounter on the road to Damascus. The disciples are still in the Upper Room with Jesus on the last night of his life.
We are starting to hear snippets about the work of the Holy Spirit when it is finally sent. Jesus (according to the church calendar) has not yet ascended into heaven but is telling people to expect the Advocate, the Holy Spirit. Paul, a few years on from Damascus, has travelled to Athens and is waiting for his followers to arrive and is getting impatient. He has been changed by his encounter with the Holy Spirit and is anxious for others to hear the good news too. Paul decides to explore the city and ends up in the marketplace where he is able to engage and challenge the locals on their belief system of various gods (with a small g).
What is the message for us here this morning in Charlwood ahead of our Annual General Meeting?
As we celebrate Jesus, our patron, in the work of this church I came up with three things to be reminded of and celebrated today.
Firstly, know the God you worship. Sometimes we need to take a wider view of what is at stake. This is what Paul is getting after the Athenians about. The people of Athens worshipped many different gods in their polytheistic society. They were anxious that no good be left out; to cover all bases they acknowledged any god that might exist. Paul sounds suspiciously flippant here; I see how extremely religious you are in every way!
Yet they were ignorant of the one true God. Paul proclaims to them the God who has revealed himself to Israel as creator, judge and saviour. What is the first thing that pops into your head when I ask who God is?
I love how Paul talks about God. God who made the world and everything in it, the Lord of heaven and earth, he gives himself to all mortals (us) life and breath and all things. God is not far from each one of us. In Him we live and move and have our being. We are God’s offspring.
It is of extreme importance that we know who God is. Why? When the things of this life: the inconveniences, the problems, issues, sorrows and disasters threaten to overwhelm knowing who God is will carry us through.
When I look around this church and get frustrated at various things; I need to rely on God for strength and wisdom. It might not change the situation but it will change how I see it; give my patience when it runs short. This comes from trusting and knowing who is really in control.
Secondly, in John’s Gospel Jesus is preparing the disciples for his imminent departure. He tells them ‘I have not left you as orphans. I will come to you.’ Without wanting to give you a veiled telling off, I would like to remind you that you have not been left alone. In verse 27 as Paul speaks to those who are looking for God, “though indeed he is not far from each one of us.”
It is God who is the head of this church. We come here to worship him. In 1st Corinthians 1 Paul has strong words for the people in the church at Corinth. They were making personality cults and dividing themselves up along the lines of the leaders of the church. They were saying ‘I follow Paul, I follow Peter’. Paul is clear that they were not crucified for them or baptised in their names. Only Jesus was.
As a church, we need to know who God is, believe that He is with us and for us. It is Him alone we worship as a church. Paul instructs the early church to be in agreement and there should be no divisions among us; rather be united in the same mind and purpose. That is the mind and purpose of Christ.
There is so much opportunity in this church beyond what we can ask or imagine. There is opportunity to be united in mind and purpose; there is opportunity to serve the community we live in. There is so much need.
Take a moment to think of the people, maybe some are in church this morning who have been a blessing to you. The people that took an opportunity to reach out to you. Think of the people that you have been a blessing to. It is really okay to acknowledge that you have been a blessing to others.
We are not alone; we are in this together.
Thirdly, we have the evidence, the promise of the Advocate. Jesus is promising the disciples the Spirit of Truth to be with them forever. Paul has encountered and been filled with the Holy Spirit and we see the fruit of that in his missionary journeys.
Many Christians are okay with Father and Son but when it comes to the Holy Spirit they get a bit nervous. If this is you it is worth some time and thought in these weeks leading up to Pentecost.
The original meaning of the Holy Spirit, a grammar lesson for you, was ‘one who gives strength’ but it is more than that. The Greek word is ‘parakletos – one who is called alongside to assist or one who stands by another to plead their cause’.
In English we are familiar with words like paramedic, paralegal, someone who works alongside or near a doctor or lawyer. Para means with or alongside and kletos means called or invited.
This word has tremendous meaning and importance to Christians. Jesus has promised us a parakletos sent by the Father and the Son to be ‘alongside’ us. This is what the Spirit does – comes alongside us. The Holy Spirit was sent to help us in our times of need; in those desperate prayers or situations we find ourselves in sometimes.
This church will only grow with the power of the Holy Spirit. Not on who is leading it, not on our activities and services. The Holy Spirit is alongside us, with and within us. It was sent as a gift to fill us with faith, grace and power to help us forgive those who hurt and offend us and to ultimately and eternally connect us to the Father and the Son.
St Nicholas, we have some work to do! As we come to Communion this morning we remember and celebrate the sacrifice of Jesus for us. As we meet together to look at the past year we are reminded of the commandments of Jesus to love God and neighbour, be wise stewards and to grow his church. And most of all – to know Him.