Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - Pentecost Sunday/Memorial Day Sunday - 05/24/15 Sermon - “I have much more to say to you, but you can't handle it now” (The "I" series: Part 5 of 5)

Sunday 05/24/15 Freeville/Homer Ave UMC’s

Sermon Title: “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t

handle it now”                      

(The “I” series: Part 5 of 5)

New Testament Lesson: Acts 2:1-21

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Romans 8:22-27

Gospel Lesson: John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15                   

          Welcome my brothers and sisters, my friends, to this our Pentecost Sunday. To this day where holy wind and holy fire was unleashed on the disciples of Jesus Christ. It says in the Book of Acts 2:2-3 from this morning that, “Suddenly a sound from heaven like the howling of a fierce wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be individual flames of fire alighting on each one of them” (Acts 2:2-3, CEB).

Today, hold wind, holy fire shows up, and the promise that Jesus made last Sunday of “I’m sending to you what my Father promised,” shows up (Luke 24:49a, CEB). Not only does it show up, but the disciples were so loud and were so ruckus, that they were accused of being drunk. The Apostle Peter responded by saying, “These people aren’t drunk, as you suspect; after all, it’s only nine o’clock in the morning!” (Acts 2:15, CEB).

Today then, is the day of Pentecost, the day of holy wind, and holy fire, where the Christian Church is officially born. For on this day, the Apostles finally begin to preach the gospel, and to build the church. Before the day of Pentecost however, the disciples were to wait for what Jesus promised, when he said last week, “I’m sending to you what my Father promised,” (Luke 24:49a, CEB).

Now while today is Pentecost Sunday, tomorrow is also Memorial Day. Memorial Day of course, is the national holiday where we remember and honor those have died while serving in the armed forces of our country. As a result of this, we have some music this morning, and some inclusions to this worship service, to honor those and their families who have died while serving in the United States armed forces. We also want to honor those who have served in the armed forces in general.

While some people don’t always agree with some of the decisions that our government has made regarding our military and wars, we honor the men and women who have died, their families, and all who have served this morning.

 So with this our Pentecost Sunday and with this our Memorial Day Sunday, I am concluding my five-week series on “I” statement that Jesus made in the gospels. Some of these statements were declaratory statements about who he was. In the first week of this series for example, Jesus said to the disciples and to us, “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11a, CEB). By saying this, Jesus was saying that we can trust him, and that he will never leave us or abandon us.

In the second week of this “I” statement series, Jesus then said to his disciples and us, regarding himself, “I am the true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB). Jesus was saying, that if you believe in me, if you love me, and if you have faith in me, you can do amazing things through me. You can bear spiritual fruit, and you can bring other people to know Jesus Christ.

In the third week of this series, on Mother’s Day, Jesus said to his disciples and us, “I have loved you” (John 15:12b, CEB). While Jesus was telling us who he was, he was also commanding the disciples and us to love each other. To preach his gospel of life and truth, and to bring forth a world of peace, love, and justice.

The fourth week of this “I” statement series was when Jesus promised his disciples, that “I’m sending to you what my Father promised,” (Luke 24:49a, CEB). That he was promising this Pentecost, this movement of the holy wind and holy fire, which we have today.

To complete this five-week “I” statement series, I took an “I” statement that Jesus said from our reading from the gospel according to John, from this morning. This “I” statement is found in John 16:12, when Jesus says, “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t handle it now” (John 16:12, CEB).

Now in the gospel reading for this morning, like the promise that Jesus made last week of “sending to you what my Father promised,” Jesus also is recorded as saying the same thing in John’s gospel, as well (Luke 24:49a, CEB). Last week, we read the account in Luke’s gospel of Jesus telling the disciples that the Holy Spirit would come, and today we read it in John’s gospel.

Interesting that we have the reading from Acts 2 for this morning, about the Holy Spirit showing up, and a Gospel of John reading about waiting for the Holy Spirit to show up. At first to me, these scriptures didn’t seem like a good match for this morning. I mean why have one scripture that fulfills Jesus’s promise to the disciples from last week, and one gospel reading that talks about the promise of the Holy Spirit coming? This is sort of like watching a movie, and then after the movie is over, watching a preview for the movie that you just watched.

As I was reading the gospel of John reading for this morning over and over though, one verse struck me. That verse once again is John 16:12, where Jesus said to the disciples, “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t handle it now” (John 16:12, CEB).

Then I thought about it more, and the reality that on this day of Pentecost, on this day that the Christian Church was formally born, the Apostle Peter suddenly turns into a fiery preacher. That he preaches a sermon that blows people away, and thousands come to know Jesus Christ on Pentecost. So why the gospel of John reading for this morning then?

Well when I read the verse from John 16:12 over and over that says, “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t handle it now,” I came to a realization (John 16:12, CEB). This realization is this, when we first encounter God, when first feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in us, this is not the end, but the beginning.

You see on Pentecost, the disciples and the followers of Christ were reborn. They then knew who Christ was, and they then knew that they had to preach the gospel, and to build God’s kingdom. Yet within all of this, even though there was a great outpouring of God’s love, grace, wisdom, and power on that day, Jesus Christ says, “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t handle it now” (John 16:12, CEB).

Like Pentecost, if we have a mighty and a powerful experience with God, we still don’t have it all. I would argue that we will continue to grow, continue to struggle, and continue to have many spiritual rebirths. Like an onion, we will continue to shed layer upon layer of sin and confusion, until the core of us is exposed. Until the core of us is like Jesus Christ. This is the continued process of re-birth and coming closer and closer to being like Jesus Christ. 

So Jesus says this morning, “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t handle it now” (John 16:12, CEB). How many us have grown a lot in faith, but still have a long way to go? Maybe we all here need a few more Pentecost’s of our own. A few more re-births to continue to grow closer to Jesus Christ. This is exactly what the founder of the Methodist Movement John Wesley meant when he said that we should all strive to, “Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can.” By doing this, and by continuing to grow strength from God, and each other, we grow. We have more Pentecost’s.

So as I mentioned, in the Book of Acts reading for this morning, we have the Pentecost Story today, where holy wind, holy fire, moves. The disciples speak in tongues, the church is born, and the Apostle Peter delivers a powerful sermon, in which thousands become Christians.

In the Apostle Paul’s Epistle or Letter to the Church in Rome, or Romans, it says in 8:26, “In the same way, the Spirit comes to help our weakness,” as we will never fully ever get it all (Romans, 8:26, CEB). We are in need of the transforming power of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirt, many times, not just once.

In the gospel reading for this morning, Jesus describes the Holy Spirt as the “Companion,” and says, “When the Companion comes, whom I send from the Father—the Spirit of Truth who proceeds from the Father—he will testify about me” (John 15:26, CEB). The Spirit will bring us closer to Jesus Christ, to show us where we are broken and what we are missing, but it rarely happens all at once.

Before Jesus ascended into heaven, I really think that he wanted his disciples and followers to realize that they wouldn’t see him again, until his second coming or return to earth. As a result of this realization, Jesus was coaching them and preparing them to trust God, and to follow the Holy Spirit. 

As I said though, we still have Jesus saying in the gospel according to John this morning, “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t handle it now” (John 16:12, CEB). Pentecost then is powerful, it is life changing, it is when the Holy Spirit moves, but it is not end or our spiritual transformations. No, it is only the beginning. We will be sinners saved by grace until we die, as we are all continuing to work on “going on to perfection” in Jesus Christ, as John Wesley would say. We will have more spiritual re-births, as we move more from sinner to saint. It is a process my brothers and sisters, my friends, so don’t be discouraged if you don’t have all the answers yet, because I don’t either.

I would like to share a story with you, about the conversion of the founder of the Methodist Church John Wesley that I took from, www.Christianity.com. You see John Wesley was an ordained priest or pastor in the Church of England, or what we might call in the United States, the Episcopal or the Anglican Church, yet he never really converted fully to Christianity internally.

After being ordained, he went on a Christian mission in Georgia, which was a miserable failure. John Wesley at that point, even considered giving up being a pastor altogether. This is where this morning’s story picks up. Here it what it says:

“John Wesley was almost in despair. He did not have the faith to continue to preach. When death stared him in the face, he was fearful and found little comfort in his religion. To Peter Böhler, a Moravian friend, he confessed his growing misery and decision to give up the ministry. Böhler counseled otherwise. "Preach faith till you have it," he advised. "And then because you have it, you will preach faith." A wise Catholic once made a similar statement: "Act as if you have faith and it will be granted to you."

“John acted on the advice. He led a prisoner to Christ by preaching faith in Christ alone for forgiveness of sins. The prisoner was immediately converted. John was astonished. He had been struggling for years. Here was a man transformed instantly. John made a study of the New Testament and found to his astonishment that the longest recorded delay in salvation was three days--while the apostle Paul waited for his eyes to open.”

“The Moravians assured him their personal experiences had also been instantaneous. John found himself crying out, "Lord, help my unbelief!" However, he felt dull within and little motivated even to pray for his own salvation. On this day, May 24th, 1738 he opened his Bible at about five in the morning and came across these words, "There are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, even that ye should partakers of the divine nature." He read similar words in other places.”

“That evening he reluctantly attended a meeting in Aldersgate. Someone read from Luther's Preface to the Epistle to Romans. About 8:45 p.m. "while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death."

“It took him some time to learn how to live the life of faith, for he was not always possessed of joy and thought he had fallen from salvation. It took time for him to see that it is not Christ and good works, but Christ alone who saves, resulting in good works.”

“As time went on, John Wesley was mightily used of the Lord to reform England. His Methodists became a national force. John rode thousands of miles (as many as 20,000 a year) preaching as only a man filled with the Holy Spirit can preach, telling the gospel to all who would listen. He acted "as though he were out of breath in pursuit of souls." Wherever he preached, lives changed and manners and morals altered for the better. It is often conjectured that his preaching helped spare England the kind of revolution that occurred in France.”

My brothers and sisters, this is a Pentecost story, if I ever heard one! This is what the holy wind, the holy fire of Pentecost is all about. It is also the reality that the Holy Spirt grows us, often step-by-step, as we get closer to being like Jesus Christ. It is so important to have the Holy Spirit, that holy fire. For as John Wesley said about the Holy Spirt, “Catch on fire and others will love to come watch you burn” (www.goodreads.com).

So today then, is about the Pentecost story, the Holy Spirit, and the reality that even the founder of Methodist Church didn’t get it all at once, and most likely we won’t either. Today we also remember those who have died in the armed forces, serving the United States of America.

Be of good cheer then, for while Jesus Christ says on this day, “I have much more to say to you, but you can’t handle it now,” I bet if the Apostle Peter, John Wesley, Martin Luther, and many others were here today, they would likely say to us, “don’t we know it Lord!” (John 16:12, CEB). As our faith in Christ and the changing process of the Holy Spirit is a lifelong process. Amen.