The Main Thing
First UMC Fort
Dodge
May 11, 2008
Mark Haverland
Acts 2 2 And
suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled
all the house where they were sitting. 3 And
there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one
of them. 4 And
they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues,
as the Spirit gave them utterance. 5 Now
there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under
heaven. 6 And at
this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each
one heard them speaking in his own language. 7 And
they were amazed and wondered, saying, "Are not all these who are speaking
Galileans? 8 And
how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native
language? 9 ….We
hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God." 12 And all were amazed and
perplexed, saying to one another, "What does this mean?" 13 But others mocking said,
"They are filled with new wine." 14 But
Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them,
"Men of Judea and all who dwell in
A friend of mine reported that she was the
program for a group of elderly ladies in a church once. Dana is quite the singer and she has a
program of songs which she brings to women’s groups, particularly older women’s
groups. She particularly likes the look
on their faces when she sings “Holy City.”
The women beam as they listen to the familiar music, music often lost in
the rush for contemporary songs with a beat.
And they become rhapsodic with old familiar tunes like You Are My
Sunshine, Bicycle Built For Two and In the
Garden. We like it when we hear familiar
sounds whether it is music or words. The
most moving part of funerals us often when the congregation recites with me
from memory the 23rd Psalm.
And we don’t like it when unfamiliar sounds and words hit our ears. I heard recently of employees disciplined at
Wal-Mart for speaking their native Bosnian language while on the job. Wal-Mart knows that people are uncomfortable
when they hear a strange language in what should be a familiar setting. I used to hear my daughter coming home from
way up the street because her radio blasts what she thinks is music so, I
suppose, we could all can join in her enjoyment of the music she loves. As it turns out, I am as likely to flee from
her radio station as she is from mine.
I’m told that convenience stores have solved the problem of too many
teens loitering around their parking lots by playing Mozart very loud over the
loudspeakers. Clever merchants know that
we like to hear what we have grown accustomed to hearing and that we flee when
the music or the language is unfamiliar
That’s why Pentecost is so spectacular. People listened to words which were totally
foreign to them and yet they did not flee.
People heard a strange wind rush by and did not run for cover. People were touched by fire and did not grab
a hose. Strangers from all over the
known world gathered at Pentecost and found that they belonged to and with each
other after all. This is the work of the
spirit. It makes us belong to and with each
other. It takes a miracle to make us
belong to a group of people who are different from us. In fact, it takes a miracle like the first
Pentecost to form real community from disparate people.
Luke
describes that first Pentecost experience as the spectacle it must have been. It’s
a pedal to the metal, full speed ahead, no holds barred, throw caution to the
wind, extravaganza. Something very holy
is taking place: a heavenly sound like
that of a rushing wind, descending fire, tongues of flame, speech allowing
everyone to understand what was being said in a myriad of languages, and
finally a moment of conversion resulting in thousands of people being added to
a tiny community of faith. So wild, so free, so strange and so wonderful was
the day that not even the most lavish use of the human language could capture
the experience of Pentecost. For Luke,
the first Pentecost was a dramatic and colorful demonstration of the power of God's
spirit to bring human beings together.
Pentecost is
the moment when the church was born. The
church is where people of different stripes and different colors can together belong
to God. Pentecost gave new life to a fragile
and forlorn community of faith grieving the loss of their savior, and gave
birth to the church, which would nourish that community in the absence of their
leader.
No one who
was present on that day escaped God's grace. The tongues of holy fire rested
upon each of the disciples. The crowd
surged forward. Each person heard the
disciples speak in his or her own language. It was an outpouring of God's
creating energy touching every life present. Some mocked it, others got it
confused with being drunk and still others concluded that it was not what it
appeared to be. But it was exactly what it appeared to be–God's powerful spirit
unleashed on a diverse community and in that moment the church came to life. The church, one, holy and apostolic, as we
like to say, came into being mid mingled, mangled voices each speaking a
different language.
One of my
jobs during the week is to prepare the hymns for projection and then practice
singing them so that I know what to expect on Sunday morning. This week as I rehearsed the hymns, I found
myself moved in spirit by the third verse of the last hymn, O Spirit of the Living God. It made me realize that this Pentecost event was
not only something that happened long ago.
It was also a glimpse into the future, when every day will be Pentecost. God’s hope is that one day the entire world
will hear as one the words of God. Teach us to utter living words of truth
which all may hear, the language all may understand when love speaks loud and
clear; till every age and race and clime shall blend their creeds in one, and
earth shall form one family by whom thy will is done. One day, when the Kingdom comes, we will be
one people. For now the church gives us
a chance from time to time to experience what some day will be complete: all
people everywhere will live in the peaceable kingdom together. As our Bishop likes to say, religion may be
personal but it is not private. We will
all be one someday together.
The first
Pentecost changed lives, deepened commitments and caused a burning desire to
share the good news of the new life born of the Spirit. What about us today? Today is Pentecost also,
nearly two thousand years after the first one. Do we possess the same power,
the same surge for new life, the same courage to speak the truth in love with
each other, the same commitment to be about God's mission in the world? Do we
see the signs of God's power in our midst? Have you felt the rush of the wind
blowing in this congregation? Do you see tongues of fire transforming human
speech and calling us toward a more radical inclusiveness within the community? We’re a little staid for all that Pentecostal
enthusiasm, I’m afraid; although you surprised me with you spirit last Sunday
as Jennifer led you in some rousing songs from Sidewalk Sunday School. My big regret as a preacher is that I am not
more Pentecostal. The gospel seems to
expect more exuberance than I can muster.
But we have our own form of Pentecostal enthusiasm here at First United
Methodist Church Fort Dodge as Jennifer demonstrated last week.
For the past
35 years or so, management consultants have been stressing a common theme: “Remember, the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” Most successful companies follow this
advice. First you figure out what the main thing is for your organization;
then you spell it out in a mission statement; then you make every decision, no
matter how big or small, with that main thing
in mind. Part of the value of a mission
statement is that it helps organizations distinguish the good things from the
best things—especially when it comes to how they invest their time and their
talent and their treasure.
So what is
the main
thing for us to tell and show?
Once a teacher of the Old Testament law asked
Jesus, “Of all the commandments, which is
the most important?” “The
most important one is this,” Jesus said. “Love the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your mind
and with all your strength. (Mark
12:28-31). Loving God for us Christians is the main thing. In fact, this
commandment, along with the one that immediately follows it “to love your neighbor as yourself” makes
up what we call “The Great Commandment.”
Loving God and loving neighbor is the central theme of both the Old
Testament and the New Testament. Loving God and neighbor is the main thing. Note that this is not optional. It is a commandment. We must love God and neighbor. We are encumbered with this dual
commandment. It is a commitment we made
when we became members of Christ’s church.
When we keep
the main thing the main thing, it
changes our center from ourselves to Christ.
Jesus becomes the center of our lives, and people begin to see Christ in
their interactions with us. That’s what
it means to be witnesses. People see
Jesus when they look at us. When we love
God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength, it changes what we do and how
we do it. We’ll do things for love that we wouldn’t do for any other
reason.
I had car
trouble in Canada last weekend. My car
was in the shop and Kate wouldn’t be able to get back for work on
Wednesday. New at her job, Kate was
really nervous about missing work. So,
Faith drove to International Falls on Sunday afternoon and Kate and I drove
there in our loaner car. Monday morning,
Kate and Faith drove back to Polk City so Kate could be at work as promised on
Wednesday morning and I drove the three and a half hours back to Sioux Lookout. This is what people do when they love each
other. Haven’t you done such extravagant
things for people you love? Driven great
distances to be together? Spent
excessive amounts of money on flowers and gifts? Devoted days of hard labor
to help someone do a task that wasn’t much fun? At times we do crazy, but wonderful, things
for those we love. Think of the extravagant
things you’ve done for a friend, or a relative, spouse, or children or parent. The extravagance of your actions may have
seemed excessive or undeserved to those looking on. But the spring from which your actions flow
is a heart full of love.
Likewise,
love for God will cause us to do things we would otherwise not do, in ways we
would otherwise not do them, for people we don’t even know. That’s keeping the main thing the main
thing.
When you
spend energy, time and money taking the gospel to the neighborhoods with
Sidewalk Sunday School, you are keeping the main thing the main thing. When you dedicate the entire proceeds from
the spring and fall rummage sale to missionaries around the world, you are
keeping the main thing the main thing.
When you contribute time and food to the Lord’s Cupboard, you are
keeping the main thing the main thing.
When we dig into the work of making this church a live active witness to
the love of God in our community, we are keeping the main thing the main thing;
we are following the commandment to love God and neighbor. We do these things for the love of God, so it
should be no surprise that we do them extravagantly and at some personal
sacrifice.
In our
scripture reading this morning, the author of Acts quotes the prophet Joel saying
that the young will see visions and the old will dream dreams as God pours out his spirit on us. I am greatly encouraged that as I grow old I
can fulfill God’s plan just with my dreams.
I can’t do as much as I used to do, but I have as many dreams as ever. I have great dreams for this church, for
instance. I dream it will continue to be
a witness so that others see Jesus Christ at work in their community. I dream it will be a place where growing
numbers of people worship and serve God.
I dream it will be a place where children can learn and grow in
Christ. I have many dreams for this
church. Many of these dreams will come
true, I’m sure.
I have other dreams, as well. For instance, I have great dreams for my
daughter, Kate, as she grows into a young woman on her own. I dream that she will find a vocation that
will give her satisfaction. I dream that
she will find a mate that will please her as much as Faith pleases me. I dream that she will learn to be proud of
her many talents and gifts. I dream that
she will remember her home as one of love and faithful Christian discipleship. I dream that she will create a similar home
of her own one day. And I dream that she
will develop a love of the church, and find in the church a way to express and
experience her love of God. I dream that
she will become the woman of love, hope and faith that Jesus asks her to
be. I know in my heart that these dreams
will come true. And I also know that the
parents of the seniors we honored earlier this morning are similar to mine.
The spirit
of Pentecost calls us to dream dreams of a new life and a new world in the
powerful realm of God. Do not be afraid
to dream new dreams and see new visions.
It’s what Christians do. God's people dream the best dreams of all: dreams
of love, grace, peace and justice. God’s
people dream dreams that say, "Love just might work. Give it a try."
God’s people dream dreams that cause the world to sing, as we will sing in just
a few moments: Teach us to utter
living words of truth which all may hear, the language all may understand when
love speaks loud and clear; till every age and race and clime shall blend their
creeds in one, and earth shall form one family by whom thy will is done. As a forgiven and reconciled people, let
us offer ourselves and our gifts to God.
Perplexing,
Pentecostal God, you infuse us with your Spirit, urging us to vision and
dream. May the gift of your presence
find voice in our lives, that our babbling maybe transformed into discernment
and the flickering of many tongues light an unquenchable fire of compassion and
justice. Amen
God, we are commissioned to tell the lonely
of your companioning presence, to speak to the sick in body or soul of your
healing love, and to testify to the reality of hope for the hungry and homeless
in practical ways. Use us and these gifts, that relief, release, and justice
may be proclaimed in the world by your Spirit.
Amen.