When the Friend I plan to send you from the Father comes--the Spirit of Truth issuing from the Father--he will confirm everything about me. John 15:26
As I prepared to share a message in worship on Pentecost Sunday (which was yesterday), I struggled with how to talk about the Holy Spirit. Too often, we just ignore the concept and even the person of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We believe in God, and we believe in Jesus. But when the Holy Spirit comes up, we get uncomfortable. And I think that is a huge problem. Why? Because my observation is that our discomfort with the Holy Spirit is more about our idolatry of self and less about a misunderstanding of who the Holy Spirit is.
Yes, idolatry. The Holy Spirit is God alive in our midst, active and alive, filling, protecting, leading the people of God into God's mission in the world. We, however, are uncomfortable. Why? Because if we were filled with the Holy Spirit, that would mean that we are no longer in charge of our own lives. And isn't that the point? Look at life the way you have lived it, and at history. The reality is that when we mistake our own comfort, our own convenience, our own agendas, for God's mission, we mess things up big time. I am very familiar with how this works out in my own life. My heart is as prone to this idolatry as anyone's. Still, the purpose of being filled with the Holy Spirit is so that we can join God on the mission of Jesus Christ. Are you hungry for that kind of life?
When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, and not filled with ourselves, this is what life looks like:
- We are energized and motivated to share Jesus so that other people will know him and love him as Lord and Savior.
- We are hungry and active in the pursuit of a stronger faith, and our lives look more and more like Jesus' life.
- We live by the truth of God, and are no longer distracted by the lies handed us by the world.
We are called to have that kind of life. Thank you, God.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in us the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit, and we shall be created anew, and you will renew the face of the Earth.
In Christ, Michael
