Hi everyone, I listened to a sermon on Pentecost day last year and wanted to share it with you, the transcript which isn't long is below. Pentecost day is nearly upon us and it is my favourite date in the Christian calendar, The church I go to usually asks us wears red on this day to mark Pentecost day. Pentecost day is when the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles and Mary and they spoke in different languages with tongues of fire. I do sometimes wonder if members will be visited by the Holy spirit on this day. Jesus promised his believers after he departed to send them the Comforter which is the Holy Spirit.
This sermon is based on (John 15:26) and (Acts 2:1-47)-
Witnessing is what the apostles proved to us over and over again in the scriptures. We heard today that they were gathered in Jerusalem. It was a part of their tradition to meet at Pentecost in Jerusalem 50 days after the Passover to celebrate except even as they celebrated they were in a room with our Lady the mother of Jesus and maybe just maybe there was a part of them that was still fearful even though they had met the Risen Lord even though they had seen him ascend.
Maybe as they prayed they were conscious that if they went out and proclaimed who they were their lives could be in danger. On the day of Pentecost, a small crowd gathered in a room on the highest floor of a house in Jerusalem to wait for the manifestation of the promise Jesus made before his ascension. While they were in the room the Acts of the Apostles tells us the Holy Spirit Came Upon them like tongues of fire and came and rested on their head. In other words anointed them and demonstrated that their work was anointed by the Holy Spirit and that they could go out and not to be afraid anymore. So as they went out other people heard them speaking in their own languages and could understand them and they could respond to them with better fluency. People came to see the presence of the Holy Spirit.
So all who were there to celebrate later could understand what was being said because they could hear their own languages being spoken as the Holy Spirit empowered them by an outpouring of the Holy Spirit to speak in diverse lanagues. That tells us that the spirit of God comes for all people no one set of people but that the spirit comes and welcomes everyone regardless of where you're from because the word of God the life of God is sent for each and every one of us and as they celebrated they realised that truly The Advocate was with them.
The Advocate that Jesus had promised would be with them until the end of time was very much there in that new Pentecost for each and every one of the Apostles and for Mary they would then go out into the world and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ the lord and saviour of the world they would go out and teach what the Lord had taught them. They would go out and make what we today have as our faith possible we celebrate the faith of the Apostles we celebrate the faith of Mary. I share and live that tradition so the gifts of the Spirit are sent to guide us to strengthen us to help us the fruits of the spirit gives life and meaning to what we do every day.
The spirit of God has come into our lives to give meaning and strength and guidance and in one of the prayers for Pentecost it tells us that the spirit brings light into our Darkness. We live in a world where there is war continuous War not just Wars between nations but Wars between people relationships. At home can be very sad and painful and the spirit comes within that to open our eyes and our minds and bring light in our Darkness if we only allow the spirit to do that and not close ourselves off from the gift that God has in store for us the prayer of the church tells us that the spirit turns hatred into love.
Who among us can say that we love unconditionally as God has loved us. Who among us doesn't need the guidance of the Holy Spirit to turn the pain of hatred in our hearts into the love that God wants us to experience and to live every day. The spirit comes to bring sorrow into joy that the many of us who are grieving that the many of us who have the pain of the experiences of daily life that we have to live every day the spirit comes and in spite of what is happening.
The spirit brings joy to lift us into this into the love of God and to help us to open our eyes to see the love that God has for us. We've heard it said over and over again in the scriptures especially in the gospel of St John that we read and reflected. The spirit comes to bring hope and to take away our doubt. So today really is a day of joy today is a time of accepting the spirit in our lives and allowing it to change us because we allow our hearts our minds and our lives to be renewed by the spirit who comes to bring light who comes to bring love who comes to bring joy who comes to bring hope.
Witnessing is what the apostles proved to us over and over again in the scriptures. We heard today that they were gathered in Jerusalem. It was a part of their tradition to meet at Pentecost in Jerusalem 50 days after the Passover to celebrate except even as they celebrated they were in a room with our Lady the mother of Jesus and maybe just maybe there was a part of them that was still fearful even though they had met the Risen Lord even though they had seen him ascend.
Maybe as they prayed they were conscious that if they went out and proclaimed who they were their lives could be in danger. On the day of Pentecost, a small crowd gathered in a room on the highest floor of a house in Jerusalem to wait for the manifestation of the promise Jesus made before his ascension. While they were in the room the Acts of the Apostles tells us the Holy Spirit Came Upon them like tongues of fire and came and rested on their head. In other words anointed them and demonstrated that their work was anointed by the Holy Spirit and that they could go out and not to be afraid anymore. So as they went out other people heard them speaking in their own languages and could understand them and they could respond to them with better fluency. People came to see the presence of the Holy Spirit.
So all who were there to celebrate later could understand what was being said because they could hear their own languages being spoken as the Holy Spirit empowered them by an outpouring of the Holy Spirit to speak in diverse lanagues. That tells us that the spirit of God comes for all people no one set of people but that the spirit comes and welcomes everyone regardless of where you're from because the word of God the life of God is sent for each and every one of us and as they celebrated they realised that truly The Advocate was with them.
The Advocate that Jesus had promised would be with them until the end of time was very much there in that new Pentecost for each and every one of the Apostles and for Mary they would then go out into the world and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ the lord and saviour of the world they would go out and teach what the Lord had taught them. They would go out and make what we today have as our faith possible we celebrate the faith of the Apostles we celebrate the faith of Mary. I share and live that tradition so the gifts of the Spirit are sent to guide us to strengthen us to help us the fruits of the spirit gives life and meaning to what we do every day.
The spirit of God has come into our lives to give meaning and strength and guidance and in one of the prayers for Pentecost it tells us that the spirit brings light into our Darkness. We live in a world where there is war continuous War not just Wars between nations but Wars between people relationships. At home can be very sad and painful and the spirit comes within that to open our eyes and our minds and bring light in our Darkness if we only allow the spirit to do that and not close ourselves off from the gift that God has in store for us the prayer of the church tells us that the spirit turns hatred into love.
Who among us can say that we love unconditionally as God has loved us. Who among us doesn't need the guidance of the Holy Spirit to turn the pain of hatred in our hearts into the love that God wants us to experience and to live every day. The spirit comes to bring sorrow into joy that the many of us who are grieving that the many of us who have the pain of the experiences of daily life that we have to live every day the spirit comes and in spite of what is happening.
The spirit brings joy to lift us into this into the love of God and to help us to open our eyes to see the love that God has for us. We've heard it said over and over again in the scriptures especially in the gospel of St John that we read and reflected. The spirit comes to bring hope and to take away our doubt. So today really is a day of joy today is a time of accepting the spirit in our lives and allowing it to change us because we allow our hearts our minds and our lives to be renewed by the spirit who comes to bring light who comes to bring love who comes to bring joy who comes to bring hope.
