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Sibling in Christ,
What would happen if the Holy Spirit showed up somewhere we did not expect?
Pentecost is the day of wind and fire, the day the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in languages they had never learned. It is the birthday of the church, the day the good news of Jesus began to move beyond one room, one group, one language, and one people.
But the Holy Spirit has never been easy to contain.
In Numbers 11, Moses gathers the elders of Israel, and the Spirit rests on them. But then two men, Eldad and Medad, who were not gathered with the others, also begin to prophesy in the camp. Joshua is troubled and says, “My lord Moses, stop them!”
Moses refuses. Instead, he says, “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!”
That is a Pentecost-shaped hope.
The Spirit of God is not given so that a few people can hold power over everyone else. The Spirit is given so that God’s life, word, mercy, and mission may flow through all God’s people.
In Acts 2, that hope becomes reality. The disciples are gathered in one place when the sound of wind fills the house, tongues like fire rest on them, and people from every nation hear the good news in their own languages.
Pentecost does not erase difference. It helps us hear and be heard across difference.
In John 7, Jesus gives another image for this same gift: living water. “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me,” he says. John tells us Jesus is speaking about the Spirit.
The Spirit is wind and fire. The Spirit is also water that refreshes what is dry, gives life where we are weary, and flows through ordinary people for the sake of the world.
That is a beautiful image for Pentecost at Emmanuel. We are not simply asking, “How do we keep the church going?” We are asking, “Where is the Spirit flowing?” Where is God giving new life? Where is Christ calling us to speak the gospel in ways our neighbors can hear?
This Pentecost, let us come thirsty. Let us come open. Let us come ready.
The Spirit has not stopped moving.
And by God’s grace, the Spirit is still flowing through us.
Come Holy Spirit,
Pastor Will
P.S. Where have you seen the Holy Spirit at work recently—in your life, in someone else, or here at Emmanuel?
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