Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”
-Acts 2:12
We recently came through the Pentecost season in which we celebrate the coming and gift of the person of the Holy Spirit. But the Spirit of God is perhaps the most misunderstood or not understood at all person of the Triune God. Yet, the Holy Spirit is just as needed today as 2,000 years ago!
We live in an age of bitter division, culture wars, heated political rhetoric and more. It is nearly impossible to say anything that will not upset one side or another. If people do not align with our every view, opinion, political persuasion, issues we are passionate about, or specific nuance of secondary theology we separate and seek to find those just like us (tribalism) instead of together striving to become more like Christ amid our differences.
But one of the things I have been reflecting on this year, is that when the Spirit of God came on Pentecost, he united very different people from many different nations and languages and occupations. Even among Jesus’s own disciples there were fishermen, business owners, a tax collector, a political zealot, and those who came from different backgrounds, experiences, and trades.
Pentecost means there is a way to be brought together around the person of Jesus, the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, and the love of our Father in heaven. It means we can worship and fellowship with those different than us. It means God has made a way. Jesus is that way by which the Spirit empowers us towards that end and reaching out with his heart to others. You cannot choose your family. And neither can you choose your brothers and sisters in Christ.
When was the last time you worshiped with those who viewed life differently than you, spoke a different language, have a different culture and life experiences, or even a different political view?
If there is any hope today it is found in the Holy Spirit as he unites us around obedience and faith in Jesus Christ. Only then can our different personalities, perspectives, and cultures have a chance of making us stronger rather than divided.
Ben Foley 