May 15, 2016
Stetson Memorial UMC
Pentecost Sunday
Sermon Series:
“When in doubt.
. . read the instructions”
Be One in the
Spirit
(What did Jesus instruct His
disciples then and now. . . ?)
Acts
2:1-21
1
Corinthians 12:1-13
Psalm
104:2-35
“Keep the Candle
Burning. . . ”
Prayer
for God’s Word to be heard through me or in spite of me. . .
Do you remember when all of those forest
fires were happening in California in 2014? There were over a thousand forest
fires. I there was a drought at that time and it just seemed that no matter
what they did they couldn’t get these costly. . . deathly. . . fires at bay. It
is hard to believe that a little spark. . . a little spot that was dry but the heat of the
sun made it begin to smolder. . . could just run out of control the way it did.
. .
Today is Pentecost Sunday. It is a day
that we celebrate another fire that went out of control. It is the day that the
church was birthed in the midst of fire. . . a holy fire sent down from God
onto all who believed. This is one of my
favorite days in the Christian Calendar. Usually Ray has to bring bungee cords
to tether me. . . I love this day
because it was and is that spark that has set me on fire for God. Let’s read that account that is in the book of
Acts, chapter 2 verses 1-21.
Read
scripture. . .
Speak
about hot and cold. . . lukewarm believers. . .
But as we think about the Holy Spirit
and how it makes us one with all other believers I must ask these questions. .
.
1. Are
we really one in the Spirit?
2. Are
we really on fire for God or has that spark be doused with the stagnant water
of the world?
We are all on a reading journey as we
read the instructions that Jesus gave the first disciples and what He intended
all to follow to do. We gathered knowledge that we need to be Christ
Ambassador’s in a world in need of a Savior. We are called to take His example,
His instructions and follow them. Some of the instructions may not be words but
I think it was mostly by His actions that Jesus modeled His disciples. Now if have
forgotten your bible this morning, there are some in the pews. I want us each to
look up the instructions. . . for ourselves. . . instead of me reading them to
you. Hey. . . I have a great idea. Let’s
continue to read God’s word even though our series has reached its climax. . . you
never know what will happen. Maybe we will be transformed by the Word of God. .
.
We have now come to the last week of
this wonderful reading journey together. So. . . where have we been so far? The
first instruction was Go, tell. The
next were stay. . . wait. . . witness (stay
where they were and to wait for the Holy Spirit, then to witness to and for Him
all over the world). Another is touch. .
. heal. How about “Beware. . . don’t
worry”. . . now that is a hard one when we see them as too different to be
included? And then there is one of my favorites. . . “Don’t Argue, Agree to Disagree.” We need to unite together so that
we can see God’s Kingdom Come and His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven all heaven is in agreement so is should be
on earth. . . And next was about our
eternal life and also about the life of abundance we can enjoy now. . . on
earth. . . ”Live, now and forever”. . .
Jesus knew how we
“humans” acted and thought. Remember He
was fully human and fully Divine. So the next thing. . . the next
instruction was Be One In the Spirit.
What does that mean to be one in the spirit. . . how would that look?
In one of Paul’s letters to the people
of Corinth he talked about the Oneness of the Spirit. . . he scripture I am
talking about is found in 1 Corinthians chapter 12 verses 1-13. . . Let’s read that passage together about this
oneness of the Spirit. . .
Read
scripture. . .
Corinthians
12:1-13Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Diversity of Spiritual Gifts
12
Now concerning what comes from the Spirit:[a] brothers, I do not want you to be
unaware. 2 You know that when you were pagans, you used to be led off to the
idols that could not speak. 3 Therefore I am informing you that no one speaking
by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is
Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4
Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are different
ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are different activities, but the
same God activates each gift in each person.[b] 7 A demonstration of the Spirit
is given to each person to produce what is beneficial:
8
to one is given a message of wisdom
through
the Spirit,
to
another, a message of knowledge
by
the same Spirit,
9
to another, faith by the same Spirit,
to
another, gifts of healing by the one Spirit,
10
to another, the performing of miracles,
to
another, prophecy,
to
another, distinguishing between spirits,
to
another, different kinds of languages,
to
another, interpretation of languages.
11
But one and the same Spirit is active in all these, distributing to each person
as He wills.
Unity Yet Diversity in the Body
12
For as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body,
though many, are one body—so also is Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by[c]
one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we
were all made to drink of one Spirit.
Speak
from the Spirit about this scripture. . .
Go, tell. . . stay, wait, witness. . . touch,
heal. . . be on guard, don’t worry. . . don’t
argue, agree to disagree. . . Love, the Main Thing. . . Live, Now and Forever.
. . Be One In the Spirit these instructions really are as simple as that.
But
we as Christians sometimes forget that we really are one body that should work
together. We spend so much time trying to follow the instructions Jesus gave
His disciples then and all who will follow that if we ignore His instructions
and not follow them to the point of us truly being that image of Christ our
commissioning that Christ gave all of His disciples we cannot live them out in
our lives. As I have said before. . . there are going to be times when we
forget these instructions. One way of remembering is reading God’s Word each
day. . . if we spend time daily with the Author of the manual, Immanuel we will
have more of a chance of following the instructions for life.
Maybe if we read God’s word. . . if we
ponder on His goodness, if we count our blessings. . . maybe just maybe we can
ignite that fire again, maybe we can be that body of Christ working together
with all of our gifts side by side. But in order to be one. . . we need the
fire to ignite us to do so. Here’s my analogy of what happens when tou let the
Spirit in. . . the locked door. . .
Let us go forth with our Spirit blazing
and setting the entire world around us a blaze in the Spirit. . . As we follow our calling from God we will
begin to see our part in the WHOLE body of Christ rather than just our small
piece of the pie. Let us Go forth for God, in the peace of Christ and the
strength of the Spirit to be that light bearer in the world with a burning hope
inside that is given to us and through us in the Name of our Risen Lord Jesus
Christ,
Amen.
May 15, 2016
Stetson Memorial UMC
Pentecost Sunday
Sermon Series:
“When in doubt. . . read the instructions”
Be One in the Spirit
(What did Jesus instruct His disciples then and now. . . ?)
Acts 2:1-21
1 Corinthians 12:1-13
Psalm 104:2-35
and sermon, “Keep the Candle Burning. . . ”
text
video
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
sermon blog
meditation blog
“God’s Whisper” blog
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
May
15, 2016
&
May 8, 2016
Stetson Memorial UMC
Sermon Series:
“When in doubt. . . read the instructions”
Live, Now and Forever
(What did Jesus instruct His disciples then and now. . . ?)
Luke 10:25-37
John 3:14-17
Mathew 19:16-22
Psalm 47
and sermon, “Do You Want To Live Forever. . . ?”
text
video
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
May
8, 2016
&
May
1, 2016
Stetson
Memorial UMC
Sermon
Series:
“When
in doubt. . . read the instructions”
Love,
the Main Thing
(What
did Jesus instruct His disciples then and now. . . ?)
1
Corinthians 13:1-7a
Mark
12:28-32
Psalm
67
The
Proof of Your Love by King and Country
sermon,
“Love, Is A Many Splendid Thing. . . ”
text:
video
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
May
1, 2016
&
April
24, 2016
Stetson
Memorial UMC
Sermon
Series:
“When
in doubt. . . read the instructions”
Don’t
Argue, Agree To Disagree
(What
did Jesus instruct His disciples then and now. . . ?)
1
Corinthians 1:10-18
Mark
9:33-35; Matthew 18:18-20
Romans
12:15-17; Philippians 4:1-3;
2
Timothy 2:22-25; Titus 3:8-9
Psalm
148
sermon,
“Can We Just Get Along. . . ”
text:
video
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
April
24, 2016
&
April 17, 2016
Stetson Memorial UMC
Sermon Series:
“When in doubt. . . read
the instructions”
Beware, Don’t Worry
(What did Jesus instruct
His disciples then and now. . . ?)
Mark 13:9-11
Matthew 6:25-34
Psalm 23
Philippians 4:4-7
sermon, “Be Courageous. .
. ”
text:
video:
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
April
17, 2016
&
April 10, 2016
Stetson Memorial UMC
Sermon Series:
“When in doubt. . . read
the instructions”
(What did Jesus instruct
His disciples then and now. . . ?)
Acts 3:1-10 AMP
Mark 6:53-56 AMP
Psalm 30
sermon, “Touch. . . Heal. . . ”
text:
video:
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
April
10, 2016
&
April 3, 2016
Stetson Memorial UMC
Sermon Series:
“When in doubt. . . read
the instructions”
(What did Jesus instruct
His disciples then and now. . . ?)
Acts 1:1-14 NKJ
Psalm 150:1-6
sermon,
“Stay. . . Wait. . . Witness”
text:
video:
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
April
3, 2016
&
March 27, 2016
Stetson
Memorial UMC
Resurrection
(Easter) Sunday
Acts
10:34-43 AMP
John
20:1-18 AMP
sermon,
“On the Third Day”
text:
video:
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Children’s Message from Mystery Box
by Pastor Ruth Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
Resurrection
(Easter) Sunday
March
27, 2016
All
of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000,
2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013,
2014, 2015, 2016. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for
usage. See all 41,220+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com
Poetry Where You Live.
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