From the Pastors Desk

One of my favorite church holidays is Pentecost

From the Pastors Desk - June 06, 2020

One of my favorite church holidays is Pentecost. I am sad that as a congregation we missed celebrating it togeth-er. In our building. On May 31. It truly makes me sad. But what encourages me is that we have several weeks of the time after Pentecost that we can celebrate together, even if we can’t be physically together.

One of the reasons I like Pentecost so much is because it really is the day that the disciples really get it! Jesus’ disciples don’t seem to get this whole Messiah thing. Of course we do. We have only existed on this side of Easter. Even as we journey though Holy Week, we know Easter is coming. Even as we listen to Jesus’ teachings, see the miracles, wonder at the healings, we know that Easter is coming. We know the high point of the story long before any of the disciples who lived nearly two thousand years ago know the end of the story.

Yes, the disciples have moments of clarity and insight. First of all, they all saw something in Jesus that made them follow. Along the way they have the vision to catch a glimpse of what is going on. In Mark 8 Jesus asks the disciples “Who do people say that I am?” The answer was complicated. “Some say John the Baptist, and others, Elijah, and still others, one of the prophets.” Then Jesus makes it personal: “But who do you say that I am?” Peter says to Jesus “You are the Messiah.” We want to cheer! He gets it. They know. Not quite.

After all, Peter is the one who on the first Maundy Thursday would deny him. James and John argued about the heavenly seating arrangements. Easter morning the women were afraid and confused. The resurrection was a surprise. The disciples were in a locked room in total fear when the risen Lord appeared among them. They are still having trouble “getting” it. When Jesus cooks breakfast for them on the beach, they are too afraid to ask Jesus who he is.

But by Pentecost Jesus has left them. They know things are not going to be like they were “before.” Finally on that Pentecost day, they are all together when they are filled with the Spirit. Pentecost at the time of Jesus was a harvest festival, with the celebration of the Covenant of Noah rolled in. Jerusalem was crowded with pilgrims that were filling the streets celebrating the festival. When the Holy Spirit came to the disciples, they began to proclaim the Good News of God’s action in Jesus in all the languages of the known world. They get accused of being drunk. At the time, part of the tradition of the harvest festival was that the men would get drunk on the new wine. Peter’s protest reflects some of this. “No they are not drunk, it is only 9 o’clock in the morning.” Sort of a “Please don’t worry, we will get there, but before we do we have to tell you about this magnificent thing that has happened.” And then Peter, who has stumbled a great deal on his journey as a disciple, begins to preach.

These days we are learning how to preach in new ways. The obvious of this is online worship. But it needs to move out. We can’t stay at only Easter day. We have to get to Pentecost. We have to get beyond 9 o’clock in the morning! What does this look like for Good Shepherd? How are you a witness to the Good News when you are not in our building? How are you loving your neighbor as we are now two months into quarantine? How are you a messenger to tell others do not be afraid? I wish I could give you a simple, easy to understand and implement answer, but I can not. But it is a journey we can be on together, even though the doors of our building are closed, we are still the church for the sake of the world.

Pastor Leah Schafer