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will sometimes make a rich man weep / & knock him off his feet

A Pentecost sermon on Philippians' conclusion

I like the Narrative Lectionary because there’s just one passage of Scripture instead of a series of loosely connected ones. Focusing on one passage is much less confusing in a world that’s less and less familiar with the Bible. 

I also appreciate the straight progression through the Bible. I believe this strategy helps broaden our familiarity with the entire gamut of the Bible. Hopefully, working our way from Genesis to Pentecost helps us see that the Bible is a unified story culminating in Christ.

Today, though, we have two passages. And this is because, although we’re working our way through Paul’s Epistle to the Church in Philippi, you can’t not have the reading of that first Pentecost on Pentecost Sunday! Can you?!

At first, this bothered me. Frankly, I wanted to preach on Philippians. And having another long passage before the one we were focusing on seemed distracting to me. As I thought about it, though, I came to see these two passages are linked. And intrinsically so.

The Acts passage narrates the event. And the Philippians passage describes the event’s repercussions. Acts tells of the day Christ’s Holy Spirit was unleashed. And Paul tells us how that event impacts our present lives! 

As such, I thought we might reflect on the portrait of life in the Spirit Paul holds up to us today / 

Paul: Who’s that!? What’s going on?! What’s happening?!

Me: Ohmigosh! I can’t believe it! It’s happening again!

Paul: …What’s happening? Who is this?! What’s going on?!

Me: Okay, this is Pastor Ryan. We’re at a church in Burlington, Iowa. In the year 2022. Who is this?

Paul: Who is this?!? Who are you??? None of what you said makes any sense!

Me: …No, it usually doesn’t…

Paul: What’s that mean? Well, anyway, my name is Paul. I am a servant of Christ Jesus. Currently, I am in prison for the defense and confirmation of the Gospel /

Me: No way! That’s incredible! It’s truly an honor to get to talk to you, Saint Paul!

Paul: Saint Paul?

Me: Erm. Never mind. You know, today we’re remembering Pentecost. Maybe you could tell us a little about the Pentecost when all those who were gathered were filled with the Holy Spirit.

Paul: Ah, yes. I know of that day. I wasn’t there, though. In fact, at that time, I was still a persecutor of the church of Christ. It wasn’t until I was on my to Damascus with letters of extradition that /

Me: Yeah, yeah, yeah! We know all about that. Today, though, we’re remembering the original of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came down. 

Paul: Why would you do that?

Me: …Do what?

Paul: Remember Pentecost!

Me: Well, it’s a very important day!

Paul: Indeed it is. But why would you just remember it? Pentecost is not a bygone occasion. Pentecost is not like other days! 

No, that Pentecost was the dawning of an entirely new and different epoch! That Pentecost was a harbinger that an old world was passing away and a new one coming to birth through that demise! You don’t just remember something like that! No! something like that affects everything! 

It’s like I’m sending word to the church in Philippi; because of this post-Pentecost era we live in, we can now rejoice always! We can now be gentle with everyone. We now no longer have to worry about anything! Instead, by prayer and supplication, we can just give everything to God!

Me: What good fortune! Philippians is just the book we’re reading from in worship today!

Paul: What?

Me: Umm, that would take too long to explain…

Maybe you could just talk to us a little about the kind of life you’re talking about.

Paul: Of course. What would you like to know?

Me: I guess, for starters, how does someone like us experience these consequences of Pentecost you’re describing?

Paul: What do you mean, “how?”

Me: Well, in the hustle and bustle of everything, it doesn’t always seem like Pentecost and what happened that day, has much of an impact on us and our lives these days. 

Paul: Ah, now I understand. 

Well, first of all, there’s baptism.

Me: Oh. Yes, we’re all baptized here. 

Paul: Well, there you have it! 

Don’t you know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? THEREFORE we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so WE too might walk in newness of life!

Me: Yes, we’ve heard that before, too. But it doesn’t always feel like we’re walking in that newness of life. Sometimes it seems as though we’re running on our own steam. And we’re running low, too.

Paul: Well, yes. Of course, you will. I know all about that, too. After all, here I am in prison. When I look around, it doesn’t look like the Holy Spirit is changing anything.

Me: Yeah! That’s what I’m talking about / 

Paul: Nevertheless! Nevertheless, the Lord is near! Even here. Especially here! 

That’s what Pentecost means! Pentecost is the power of the peace of God which surpasses all understanding guarding my heart and mind even while I’m here under guard myself!

…Hmm. That’s good! I might use that…

Me: I bet you will.

Paul: What’s that?

Me: Nothing. So you’re saying, even in prison, you sense the Holy Spirit?!? You have that even while you’re locked up?!?

Paul: Well, yes and no. 

No, in the sense that it’s not the world’s peace. It’s not that the Pax Romana. 

What I’m talking about is the peace of God. The peace of God that passes all understanding. The peace of God that comes from handing everything over to God in prayer.

Me: And that’s enough?

Paul: Mostly.

Me: Mostly?

Paul: Well, it’s not enough to ever become self-sufficient. But all my insufficiency is just perfect for the Holy Spirit! God’s power is made perfect in weakness! It’s right on this razor’s edge that the Spirit of Christ is most blunt!

Faith is not an idea about God. It’s a way of life! A mode of existence. 

What’s more, it’s not one we can muster, either. No, faith is an essence only the Holy Spirit can make happen.

Yes, my flesh looks around and cries out, I’m doomed. But the Spirit within me trusts something else, something more, is at work. That’s why, although I don’t know what’s to come, I carry on. 

Me: hmmm. Maybe that’s our problem. Maybe because nothing so dramatic has happened to us, it’s harder for us to sense the Spirit in our lives.

Paul: Well, I bet there are some pretty dramatic experiences out there. And anyway, something very dramatic indeed has happened in your baptism. In baptism, you have been wrenched out of that death of life by your own steam into new life in Christ’s Spirit!

Me: That’s true… / 

Paul: Yes, it’s true! My experience here in prison is proof of that!

Me: Well, that might give someone second thoughts about this life in the Spirit you speak of!

Paul: Sure! But while this life in the Spirit may make certain things harder, it makes everything that really matters all that much better!

Me: Better?

Paul: Yes, better! More meaningful. More hopeful. More joyful.

Me: Well, /

Paul: Whoah! Did you feel that? *SHAKING*

Me: Feel what?

Paul: There’s an earthquake! 

*CAMERA CUTS*

Me: *LOOKING TO CONGREGATION* 

Well, I had a whole other sermon, but I think this will do it. Don’t you? 

So how about, since we too have this Spirit, let’s do like Paul so often did in prison? Let’s sing!