06/05/2022 – Pentecost
Morning prayer: O God, the Holy Spirit, Come to us, and among us; come as the wind, and cleanse us; come as fire, and burn; come as the dew, and refresh; convict, convert, and consecrate many hearts and lives to our great good and to Thy greater glory; and this we ask for Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen. (#335 UM hymnal)
Hymn #61 Come, Thou Almighty King
- Come, Thou almighty King, help us Thy name to sing, help us to praise!
Father all glorious, o'er all victorious, come and reign over us, Ancient of Days! - Come, Thou incarnate Word, gird on Thy mighty sword, our prayer attend!
Come, and Thy people bless, and give Thy word success, Spirit of holiness, on us descend! - Come, holy Comforter, Thy sacred witness bear in this glad hour.
Thou who almighty art, now rule in every heart, and ne'er from us depart, Spirit of power! - To Thee, great One in Three, eternal praises be, hence, evermore.
Thy sovereign majesty may we in glory see, and to eternity love and adore!
O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.
These all look to You to give them their food in due season;
when You give to them, they gather it up; when You open Your hand, they are filled with good things.
When You hide Your face, they are dismayed; when You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
When You send forth Your spirit, they are created; and You renew the face of the ground.
May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in His works--
who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke.
I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to Him, for I rejoice in the LORD.
Bless the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD!
Children’s message: Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)3
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)
One way we can know the wind is there is that we can hear it. When I wake up in the morning, I sometimes turn on the TV to see what the weather is doing. There are some mornings that I don't even have to look at the TV to know that the wind is blowing because I can hear it! I can hear it whistling through the trees, down the chimney, and around the windows and doors. We can't see the wind, but we know it is there because we can hear it.
Another way we can know that the wind is there is that we can see it moving things. We can see it moving the leaves on the trees and blowing bits of paper around. We can't see the wind, but we know it is there because we can see what the wind is doing.
Still another way we can know that the wind is there is that we can feel it. Blow onto the back of your hand. Did you see anything? No, but you could feel something, couldn't you? We can't see the wind, but we can feel it blowing against our faces and blowing through our hair.
Today, many churches celebrate a special day called Pentecost. It was on the day of Pentecost that God sent His Holy Spirit to the church. The Bible tells us that the apostles were all gathered together when suddenly there was a sound like a mighty, rushing wind. Then, it says, they were filled with the Holy Spirit. God's Holy Spirit is like the wind; we can't see Him, but we can know that He is there, just like we can know that the wind is there.
We can know that the Holy Spirit is there because we can hear Him. The Bible says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock, and if any man hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him." (Revelation 3:20) We can't see the Holy Spirit, but we know He is there because He speaks to our hearts.
Another way we can know that the Holy Spirit is there is that we can see Him moving people to do God's will. The Bible says that the Spirit of God moves His people to speak and to do things for Him. (2 Peter 1:21) We can't see God, but we can see people doing things that God's Holy Spirit has moved them to do.
We can know that the Holy Spirit is there because we can feel His presence. The Bible says, "I will fear no evil for Thou art with me." (Psalm 23:4) The Bible also says that "if we love one another, God lives in us." We can't see the Holy Spirit, but we know He is there because we can feel His presence in our life.
Father, thank You for sending Your Holy Spirit. Even though we can't see Him, we are thankful that we can hear Him speak to our hearts, feel His presence in our daily lives, and see Him moving us to do Your will. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. (www.sermons4kids.com)
Prayers of Intercession: Thank You, Lord, for hearing our prayers for those dear to our hearts. We now pray as You have taught us: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Offering spotlight: Thank you for funding the ministries of Lightstreet United Methodist Church. We will soon begin to welcome families in the neighborhood to VBS Thursdays. Your tithes make the crafts, snacks, and most importantly relationships available.
Offering prayer: God of wind and fire, breathe Your Holy Spirit over us again this day. Help us to better hear one another and untangle the differences we have allowed to divide us. May Your Spirit give us the power to be the church You had hoped we would be, one body, one people seeking to build Your beloved community of justice, mercy, and hope. As we bring our tithes and offering to You this day, set us on fire once again. Fill us with Your power; in Christ, we pray. Amen. (Discipleship Ministries)
Hymn of Preparation #599 Break Thou the Bread of Life
- Break thou the bread of life, dear Lord, to me, as Thou didst break the loaves beside the sea;
beyond the sacred page I seek Thee, Lord; my spirit pants for Thee, O Living Word! - Bless Thou the truth, dear Lord, to me, to me, as Thou didst bless the bread by Galilee;
then shall all bondage cease, all fetters fall; and I shall find my peace, my all in all.
Acts 2:1-21
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.
Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”
But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: ‘In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. Even upon My slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy. And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day. Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
Message: To Come and Dwell With Us Pastor Becky Cuddeback
Within the Church, there are celebrations, remembrances, rituals and sacraments. And last week, I told you I love the seasons of the Church because they inform us and remind us of who God is, what God did, does and will do in relation to God’s creation. Each is an act of worship and an opportunity for growth for us, growth in relationship with God and growth in understanding God and God’s vastness.
Today’s celebration is Pentecost. Now, Pentecost isn’t something new that Christians came up with. It is the Feast of Seven Weeks, held 7 weeks after Passover. It is a pilgrimage feast. Adult Jewish men and their families were to travel to Jerusalem to bring their offerings to the temple. It is one of the feasts declared in Leviticus 23. Because they are called to Jerusalem, God promised to be in the midst of the celebration.
Jesus also called His disciples to go to Jerusalem and wait there for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Because Jesus was an observant Jew, He knew all of Israel would be in Jerusalem and have the opportunity to hear the good news of His death, resurrection and ascension; thus, ushering in the birth of His Church.
The Holy Spirit, on the day of Pentecost, enabled the disciples to speak to all of Israel and anyone else that was in Jerusalem that day. They were given the ability to communicate the message of Jesus Christ in a language that was understandable to all, in their native language – not the universal language of the temple, that being Hebrew. Israel would have understood Hebrew, yet the Holy Spirit gave the language they spoke in their homes with their families and the communities they lived. The message was to be accessible, easily transmitted from the disciples, right back to the communities Israel inhabited.
The Holy Spirit does the same with us. We may not need to know another language, but we do have different ways we communicate in English based on our professions, interests, and hobbies. This enables us to spread the message of Jesus in ways that are understandable to those around us and that we have relationships with. The Holy Spirit enables us to translate, articulate ideas into messages others understand and can apply. We have a short hand with those in the same profession as us and we can draw upon those to make the message become accessible and livable. There are people God has put on your path for you to tell of Jesus and the Holy Spirit will enable you to speak to them. We have shared experiences that connect you with people that have never heard the message of Jesus, or maybe have never heard in a way that makes sense to them, but you can make it make sense. That is one of the many abilities of the Holy Spirit – to teach you everything and remind you of all that Jesus has said. You are not orphaned, Jesus is with us, even to the end of the age.
Let us pray: Holy Spirit, You are always with us, You need no invitation, You have made Your home in us. Remind us of all that we have because of You. Thank You God, for giving us this immeasurable gift. Amen.
Closing Hymn #557 Blest Be the Tie that Binds
- Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love;
the fellowship of kindred minds is like to that above. - Before our Father's throne we pour our ardent prayers;
our fears, our hopes, our aims are one, our comforts and our cares. - We share each other's woes, our mutual burdens bear;
and often for each other flows the sympathizing tear. - When we asunder part, it gives us inward pain;
but we shall still be joined in heart, and hope to meet again.
Go into your week with the blessings of The Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit.