The
second chapter of the Book of Acts tells what happened on the Jewish feast of
Pentecost (50 days after Passover). “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.” (Acts 2:1-21)
We often
focus on the rushing wind and flames of fire, or even the ‘speaking in
different languages’ as the signs of Pentecost. I think the Spirit of the
Living God is seen just as actively in the transformation of frightened, hidden
disciples of the Crucified and Risen One into courageous men who rushed into the street with such
excitement that people thought they were drunk with ‘new wine’.
‘New
wine’ is the result of the first fermenting of the grape juice and can be
especially high in alcohol content. It is still actively changing from grape
juice, sugar, and yeast into wine. Jesus cautions against putting new wine in
old wineskins, precisely because the active fermentation will split the skins
(Luke 5:37-39). The apostles rushed out into the streets of Jerusalem shouting the Good News of salvation in such a frenzy that the crowd understandably thought they were drunk or perhaps crazy. Then Peter takes charge. This man who denied his Master becomes an outspoken evangelist quoting the prophet Joel to a crowd of strangers. His words amaze and convert those who hear him.
It’s
strange, isn’t it, that we are willing and even eager to share the latest diet
craze with our friends or repost a joke or picture on Facebook, but become
reticent when it comes to telling others about what God has done for us?
(Guilty as charged, I fear.) I must remind myself that we, too, have the ‘new
wine’ flowing in our veins. We might think that those around us know about the
Gospel, but do they really? Each one of us is just as empowered as the apostles
were to tell what God has done in our life. Tell how the Lord of the Dance has
walked beside you in joy or sorrow or pain or fear.
On this
Pentecost, 2000 years later, what ‘new wine’ is God giving you and me to share
with those nearby? When Cleopas and his friend returned to Jerusalem with their
amazing story of Jesus walking and talking with them, they were met with the
news “The Lord is risen indeed and has appeared to Peter!” Each of the
disciples had a story of the Lord of the Dance. Each of us does too.
It
starts with “God is Love…and I know this because…” What is the story of your own Pentecost-of God coming into your life-can you share?
In June a new series
will start, exploring the image of the Holy Bridegroom-choosing, betrothing,
rescuing, loving the Bride-and that’s not just the Church, that’s you and me!
