“When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.”
- Acts 2:6
It’s that time of the Christian year again, some 40 days after Easter is when we recognize Pentecost. The coming of the Holy Spirit to indwell the believers, helping found the Church from a ragtag small group into a worldwide movement. The Holy Spirit has had quite a busy two thousand years growing and expanding the Church and sometimes having to drag our lazy and distracted butts along.
That Holy Spirit does a lot of work in us and through us, but His work will always typically leave a sense of being bewildered. It offsets us, throwing off our groove, like a gust of wind on a non-windy day. It’s surprising, confusing, and yet something leaves us with a sense of awe. We get thrown off and yet know what just happened was right, and good. When the Holy Spirit works out something dramatic, we are left bewildered.
Our Lazy and Distracted Butts:
Though in the last few years I have had to interview numerous pastors, directors, and other church leaders, most of them I have forgotten except two of them. One was with my youth pastor, the other with my home church’s regional director. When talking with our regional director he said something about the Missionary Church that has always stuck with me and I want to apply it to every ministry I am a part of. He said, “We always try to keep step with the Holy Spirit, and the way He is at work in and around us today, even if that means we step out of the way.”
Even if it means we step out of the way.
Let me explain that a bit. Often, we can be lazy or distracted. Ministry can be like playing in a sandbox and we love building and doing as we please. Often with an accurate sense of what is right or good, but even then, we can be building something without the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we might fight over something, trying to preserve something that the Holy Spirit is trying to change or adapt for us. We can see change as a threat rather than an opportunity, and thus, our distracted butts will one day be dragged by the Holy Spirit, because we do not control the Church, God does.
It’s very easy for a minister or any Christian really to get distracted from the real Kingdom purpose and start building something else “in the name of Christ.” Some pursue politics without the Gospel as their backbone, others build mega-churches without reliance on the Spirit, and still, others seek to be cultural influencers without Christ’s influence on their heart. All this can apply to me too, which is why prayer and spiritual disciplines are so critical, they keep us in check as we see to follow the Spirit. Still, others are just lazy and don’t develop in these disciplines nor try to keep in step with the Spirit, and then get dragged along without participating.
A Bewildered Life:
Pentecost brings a whole new perspective to the Christian walk. It reveals to us that we need to be intentional participators but also faithful onlookers.
Before the moment of Pentecost, the disciples were gathered together in prayer and worship. They settled in Jerusalem just as Jesus had asked them to do. In other places in Acts, we see them praying, sharing wealth, and fellowshipping with food and communion. I believe it's safe to assume this is what they were doing when they gathered together that day. And that’s when the Holy Spirit bewildered them, coming upon them and indwelling them in what looked like tongues of fire. They are thrown off and emboldened through the Spirit and start proclaiming truth in various languages they would have never spoken before. The disciples were intentional in continuing to follow Jesus and participated in the bewildering event.
Further, though we must be faithful onlookers. This is needed even more so when we realize we have not kept in step with the Spirit. Or sometimes the Spirit is active in a situation we merely get to hear about or bear witness to. This is the position of the crowd who ran to the commotion caused by the Spirit. After Peter preaches to the crowd, some 3,000 people are added to the Church that day. These people saw the Holy Spirit at work and were faithful to the challenge it proposed. Faithful onlookers need to be comfortable getting uncomfortable, they need to be humble in what they hold to be true as well. The Holy Spirit acts in bewildering ways, confusing and puts question marks next to what we hold to be true. If we are to keep in step with the Spirit and to step out of its way, we need to be faithful onlookers at times.
Are we okay with being bewildered? A little confused, to have the way we see the world and all that happens in it shaken up a little? If not, then seeking about the Holy Spirit probably isn’t for you. But if so, and you need to ensure that in your heart you are ready to solely follow Christ by keeping in step with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is present with us, indwelling us, making grace continually available to us. As well as fueling us for the mission of God’s Kingdom, that all of our purpose here in life can become aligned with what God is wanting to be done. In some cases, that speaking a language you never have before and sharing the Gospel. In other cases, it's giving an encouraging word to a coworker or taking 5 minutes to talk to someone more intentionally. Let’s be okay being bewildered by the Spirit.
Final Blessing:
Pentecost is all about the coming of the Holy Spirit and driving the Church to join God on His mission to spread the Gospel throughout the world. It's about crossing borders, cultures, and social norms to share God’s love with the world. To keep in step, and follow close behind, we must be ready to be bewildered and adjust accordingly.
Now may the Lord of Life and Redemption be with you in every step, every breathe, and every heartbeat of your journey.
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