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, . . .- Acts 2:1-3a
"Happy birthday to you; happy birthday to you; happy birthday dear church; happy birthday to you!" Pentecost, today, is the day tradition celebrates as the birth of the church. What began as a small - and some might say, insignificant - movement spread around the world. Once the floodgates of Christianity were opened, the movement couldn't be stopped. Not that the Roman government didn't try.
The fledgling church was not even what we would call "church." Instead, it was a loose grouping of like-minded people who had either an encounter with the earthly Jesus, or with someone else who had. In whatever manner this happened, their lives were changed. In the earliest days there were no Sunday School classes. There were no Council meetings. Worship was held in private homes. What we know as Holy Communion, the Eucharist, or the Lord's Supper was a fellowship meal.
And, other than the Hebrew Bible, there was no Bible. Imagine that! No choirs existed, nor musical instruments to which we might be accustomed. For we United Methodists, there were no apportionments, Conference structures, or appointed pastors. No, the early church was unlike anything we might imagine. Its very existence might even have been in doubt. But through the power of the Holy Spirit, and especially through the spirit of the risen Christ, not only did the church continue to exist, but it flourished!
The church has come a long, long way from those earliest days. Much has changed. We use liturgy and ritual in our services. We worship in magnificent structures. We offer many programs that reach out to the surrounding community. One that that hasn't changed is Jesus' mandate to the Eleven as recorded in the gospel of Matthew: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," (Matthew 28:19). That command, what we call "The Great Commission," is as compelling today as it was then, and as it has been throughout the history of the Christian church.
You and I, as are all baptized believers, are commanded to "Go therefore - reaching out to what Luke termed the least, the last, and the lost." It is not an option. It is not something that can be left to others. It is the task of all believers - with no exceptions. How often do we find it either convenient or easy to shirk our Christian responsibility?
Today the church is showing a downward trend. Even non-denominational churches are experiencing this decline. Why? Because, I believe, the church has grown complacent. And that's not where God has called us to be.
So, it's time, to use a biblical phrase, to "gird our loins" and get to work! There is no
better time than now. And there are no better disciples to do it than you & me. What
will our response be? Only we can decide. See you on the road.
Grace and peace,
Mike
May 24, 2015