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The Day of Pentecost I cannot read Acts chapter 2 without some sense of excitement. When we get to Acts chapter 2 we find that here is something totally different happening among the apostles and the believers – than has ever happened before! Here is a unique and sovereign work of God where he “pours out” His Spirit on a large gathering. The only similar incident was some 1300 or so years before when God poured out his spirit on the elders of the people whom Moses was leading out of Egypt. But here, In Acts chapter 2 verse 4, it says “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to talk in other languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.” But here, In Acts chapter 2 verse 4, it says “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to talk in other languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.” What I would like to focus on this morning from this passage is just one verse – verse 12 – and I believe that it has important implications for our own mission today. In Acts chapter 2, verse 11, referring to those who gathered and were amazed at what was happening, the comment was made by the crowd that “… all of us hear them (that is, the apostles and believers) speaking in our own languages about the great things God has done.” Now in this instance, the languages which are referred to here are the languages of those Jews who had gathered for this great Feast, or Festival of Pentecost, from all around the known world. These included from Rome in the North-west– the furtherest afield some 2000Km away, to Mesopotamia, or Iraq, in the East, about 1200km, to Egypt in the southwest, or from Pontus and Cappadocia in the north. The Jews who had come from these countries, with their diverse languages, heard the great acts of God, no doubt about the life and death and resurrection of Jesus, being told in their own native tongues. This, if you like, is one of the miracles of the Day of Pentecost. The apostles and believer, without having known or learned the languages, spoke in these other languages, or tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to speak. And those who heard them could understand what they were saying. Now while this was a supernatural event and a moving of God’s spirit upon those believers, I believe that there is a principle here which is extremely important, and which we ought to acknowledge and follow. If people today are to hear the “amazing things that God has done” – as it says in verse 11, then we as a church, and individually, must speak and declare those acts and events of God also in the languages of people today. But before we even get that far, there is one underlying principle and foundation we must accept, and its probably the hardest to get into our value system :- and it’s this – “That people matter to God.” Now, most of us would agree with this, but a lot of the time we don’t own it. We believe it, but we so often disregard it. We put it up on the shelf with other statements like “David was King, Moses parted the Red Sea, or Ruth was a Moabite.” We might be convinced that WE matter to God, but are we as equally convinced that those who live next door, down the road, or of a different age or culture matter to God, and that they have a RIGHT to be able to hear and understand the gospel? Do we believe that? That people matter to God must be the starting point, before we even consider speaking to people in their own language. You see, if we aren’t totally and fully convinced that people matter to God and that it’s important for people to come to know God – then why would we bother to try and speak in their languages so that they can understand the good news? We won’t bother at all, will we? When this value really takes root, both in our personal life and in our church, then it will dramatically express itself in all that we do and how we use our resources. This is at the heart of Mission. But the language is not just the words we use, it is much wider than that, it is the total cultural package through which we communicate our thoughts and ideas and concepts. On the Day of Pentecost, those who gathered were mostly Jews, and though they had come from many different countries, they had a common Jewish culture. They understood the common customs of the worship, the dress, the music, the religious beliefs, the scriptures. They were at home in Jerusalem. But today we don’t generally have that. Many people who come into a church have no idea what we do or why – it’s a foreign culture to many. Last Tuesday I took the funeral of a twenty-year old who died of leukaemia. The church was packed. A lot of those present – and I knew they would be here – were young people who had never been in a church or never attended a funeral. I spent considerable time preparing what I had to say so that it would be culturally relevant and meaningful, and understandable, to those young people, at their age and stage in life. If I hadn’t, the message would have gone over their heads, and the opportunity would have been lost to connect them with the gospel. I did that because I believe that people – and young people – matter to God, and they will only fulfil their highest potential when they come to faith in God through Jesus Christ. And the only way they will come to faith in Jesus Christ is when they can connect with the gospel in a way that they understand; and they understand best when it is in the thought forms and expressions of their culture. This is exactly what we as a church try to do, and how we try to engage in Mission and outreach. We put on Friendship Lunches, because that is something relevant and valued by the older folks; we are involved in Mainly Music because that is relevant for young mothers and toddlers. Being culturally relevant is why we are currently trailing different styles of worship at different times. It’s because people matter to God – and because the church is charged with the responsibility of making the gospel known to people – all people - in the languages and though-forms they understand. So, older people who know the traditional hymns and music will be moved and touched by them. They will be helpful in communicating the gospel – because that is part of their culture. But the vast majority of younger people have never sung hymns, and the style of music is unfamiliar and not enjoyed by them, -- so we use a different style of music which is more appropriate to their culture. To try and tell young people that they ought to sing hymns is just as pointless, and fruitless, as telling older people they ought to learn and and sing modern songs. On the Day of Pentecost, those who gathered exclaimed “We hear them speaking in our own languages about the great things God has done!” Let us pray for the same infilling of God’s Holy Spirit , so that we, as the church today, might be able to declare to all people – to each in their own language – the great things that God has done. |
