Grace, Mercy and Peace to you from God our Father through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Our text today is the reading from Acts, especially these words, “And it shall come to pass, that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Thus far our text.
Dear friends in Christ. Today is Pentecost, the day we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit, as described in our second reading today. The Holy Spirit came upon the disciples as they sat, starry eyed and nervous in the upper room 10 days after the ascension of Jesus into heaven. You can picture them sitting there can’t you? “Well Peter, what are we supposed to do now?” “How am I supposed to know John? I’m just a regular guy like you are.” “Well shouldn’t someone know?” These apostles, chosen by Jesus were just sitting around. They were wondering what to do! They didn’t know how to do this Ministry that Jesus had asked them to do. Where do you start? So much for brave and holy apostles.
But as they are sitting there, the Holy Spirit comes, as a flame blowing through the house. He separated into 12 different flames and landed on each one of them. It was only then, that they knew what to do. It was only then that through the Holy Spirit, they were able to fulfill the mission that Jesus had called them to do: To tell the world about Jesus’ life death and resurrection, to preach the word.
After all that is why the Holy Spirit has come, to point us always towards Jesus Christ and Him crucified for your sins great and small. To come and give you the Good News that in Him you need not worry about eternal death, but instead to look forward to eternal life with Jesus. The Holy Spirit never points to himself, but only to Jesus. He never toots His own horn, but he always works faith in you, so that you might receive from Jesus.
But that isn’t what we think of the Holy Spirit, and so often today that’s not how we speak of the Holy Spirit. Today, we often make the Holy Spirit into some sort of divine decision maker. “What would God like me to do today? Should I wear the plaid shirt, or the striped?” We expect the Holy Spirit to tell us what choice we should make so that we can be more holy, and please God with our actions. God should I go on vacation to Hawaii, or California, can you let me know? Should I marry person A or person B? Should I have chicken or beef for dinner?
Friends, it’s not bad to ask God to bless your decisions in these matters, but when we ask the Holy Spirit to divinely tell us what the right answer is, we have taken the Holy Spirit away from His true job. We have separated Him from what he has promised to do, to point us to Jesus.
And what’s worse, so often we allow the Holy Spirit to become the excuse for what we want to do. We see this all over the place. God made me gay, so its ok for me to do what I want. God will forgive me if I sleep with the person outside of marriage. God won’t care if I cheat on my taxes or steal from my neighbor. I have even heard a song that proposes that God has bigger things to worry about than the little sins I do, because he has people like Hitler and Osama Bin Laden to worry about.
Friends, when we do this, once again we are not allowing the Holy Spirit to point us to Jesus, because we aren’t allowing ourselves to realize our own condition and how much we need God. We aren’t allowing ourselves to hear how we are poor miserable sinners, by our own fault, and how we need the forgiveness of Jesus, how we need His mercy and grace. Instead, we don’t even look past our own selves and desires.
But today on Pentecost, we hear why Jesus and His Father sent the Holy Spirit, so that we might learn of Jesus. Remember those apostles, who were sitting nervous and confused in that upper room, wondering what to do? When the Holy Spirit descended upon them, they no longer doubted what to do? They no longer were nervous of the consequences or how to begin. But boldly they went out among the crowds of Jerusalem, and began preaching the Gospel. Through the Holy Spirit, they begin pointing people to Jesus, and they themselves trusted in Jesus.
It wasn’t on their own desire. It wasn’t there decision, but it was a gift that God poured out through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit always points to Jesus. So as the Holy Spirit worked through the Apostles He began to point people to Jesus. He began to proclaim salvation in His holy name. He fulfilled what the prophet Joel wrote, “that all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” For the Holy Spirit causes people to call on Jesus’ name. He says look to that cross there, for on it your sins died. Look to that empty tomb of Easter, for there is your assurance that Jesus is raised from the dead. Look to the right hand of God where Jesus lives and reigns, for there you one day will join him in eternal bliss and contentment.
Friends, the Holy Spirit comes to you, just as He did to the Apostles. He comes to you in baptismal waters, where you are washed in the blood of Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins. There, in plain old water combined with God’s word the Holy Spirit gives out freely faith in Jesus. It is as if he grabs your head and turns it to look at the cross of Jesus, completely apart from your own will and desire. There your old sinful nature daily drowns as the Holy Spirit holds him underwater, leaving your Holy perfect in Jesus self to live for all eternity.
The Holy Spirit comes to you, just as to the Apostles as you come here and hear God’s Word. The Holy Spirit promises to always work with that word to create and sustain faith in your hearts. In the weekly bible readings, the Holy Spirit comes to you. In faithful preaching, you are pointed to Jesus the author and perfecter of your faith. And in your own personal bible study, the Holy Spirit feeds and sustains that faith created in your baptism.
The Holy Spirit also comes to you as you receive the Lord’s Supper. There he brings to you and feeds you on Christ’s very body and blood, so that you might have life and have it to the full. Friends, you don’t need to go searching around to try and find the Holy Spirit, He is always at work in you, and He is always exactly where he promises to be: In the Word, and in the two Sacraments, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. And because he points you to Jesus, because he creates faith within you, you have freedom in Jesus. You have freedom to wear plaid or stripes and know that either way, Jesus has forgiven you for the Holy Spirit tells me so. You have freedom to avoid the sins of the world, to avoid stealing, to avoid cursing, to avoid living together and sexual temptation, because the Holy Spirit ever points you toward Jesus who did not give into these sins on your behalf.
Faith comes through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit ever points you toward Jesus. The Holy Spirit ever declares, you are forgiven, not because of your works, but because of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is like a giant roadside billboard that says, “Look there at Jesus, for in him, and him alone do you have forgiveness, life and salvation.” The Holy Spirit ever points you toward Jesus, and because of that, all who call on the name of the Lord will be forgiven. Amen.
