May 23, 2010

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P E N T E C O S T

Please Read

John 14:8-17

Read also

Acts 2:1-21

Psalm 104:24-34

Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied."

Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.

Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves.

Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.  I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.

"If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever.  This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.

"I have said these things to you while I am still with you.  But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.

In the Calendar of the Christian Year, three great days stand out: Christmas, Easter and Pentecost.  But while Christmas and Easter come in for wide celebration, Pentecost stands like an orphan day, without its celebrants. Perhaps this is because it is less exploitable for its commercial values; perhaps because the visual images are more elusive and less appealing. Maybe, when Hallmark finds a handle to Pentecost, things will change.  On second thought, maybe it’s just as well they don’t.

Anticipating Pentecost, Jesus promised his friends and followers an Advocate, a “Reminder”, a Teacher that would be a source of joy and peace. He could have said “Liberator.”

A few years ago, when pondering the personal impact of Pentecost on the individual believer, I set down this hymn, designed to express the power of the Spirit to liberate us from the inhibiting restraints of the past, and the exuberant joy that is the gift of God’s Spirit to those thus liberated.

P E N T E C O S T   H Y M N

Come, Holy Spirit, come once more

With Pentecostal wind and fire;

Come, penetrate my every pore,

And every sleeping cell inspire.

Come with your shining gifts of grace;

Grant me a glimpse of heaven’s scene.

Transform the darkness of my face;

Illumine me with light serene.

Awaken me to boundless joy;

Excite me with your ecstasy.

Erase bleak sanctimony’s ploy.

Replace it with a spirit free.

Thus lovingly I’ll live each day,

And joyfully your name I’ll praise,

Till Spirit fills my every way,

And Pentecost fills all my days.

The hymn may be sung to a number of tunes.  Here are a few suggestions taken from the United Methodist Hymnal:

No 408 Gift of Love 

No 157 Duke Street

No 213 Truro

No 427 Germany

No 75 Old 100^th

No. 682 Tallis Canon

rvc—1978©