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Tuesday, June 10, 2014

“Hello My Name is…Ruach”

June 8, 2014
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Pentecost Sunday
Sermon Series on “The Names of God”
Sermon 22 of series-
“The Sacred Names of God: Ruach”
Joel 2:28-29 Names of God Bible
Genesis 2:7 Names of God Bible
Acts 2:1-18 Gods Word Translation
    Names of God Bible (with direct verse lookup), The Baker Publishing Group


Let us pray… (Pray for God’s illumination of our hearts, minds and souls.)
As we continue our journey of learning about and praying in the Sacred Names of God, we have heard many names for God on our journey thus far. But one of the most important to the church is the name that started the church. It is why we are celebrating today Pentecost Sunday. It is the name that began all of creation itself. The name is Ruach…(well…it is more of a thing than a name…) the breath…the Spirit…the wind. Ruach Yahweh…the Lord’s Spirit, Ruach…Spirit, Ruach El…God’s Spirit, Ruach Elohim…Spirit of God (breathe), Ruach Qodesh…Holy Spirit…on that day of Pentecost the church was transformed by the very breathe…the Ruach of God…
The Names of God Bible tells us that:
The Spirit offers wisdom, ability, guidance, power, and revelation. So powerful is the breath of the Spirit that it can even bring the dead to life. Though Ruach when used in connection with God in the Hebrew Scriptures may simply refer to his power or his will, more often it signifies that God is present by his Spirit. The New Testament speaks of the gifts of the Holy Spirit (Ruach Qodesh) is given to the body of Christ so that together we can do the will of God on earth. The Holy Spirit is the One with the power to re-create the life of God within us.
Today, as we celebrate the power of the Spirit in the church, the scriptures remind us that the
Spirit is a social Spirit – a Spirit that leads us to certain solidarity with each other, the whole world, and all its people. The Spirit does more than make individuals feel good or different.

Let me read to you the account of when the Spirit of God…the Ruach of God…became a reality to the church…the body…the Disciples of Christ from Acts chapter 2, verses 1-21. Now when Christ left He told His disciples that He was going back to heaven but the Spirit…the Advocate would be sent to help them. They had been waiting and praying for days until that fateful day. (I am reading from the God’s Word Translation this morning)
The Believers Are Filled with the Holy Spirit
“2 When Pentecost, the fiftieth day after Passover, came, all the believers were together in one place. 2 Suddenly, a sound like a violently blowing wind came from the sky and filled the whole house where they were staying. 3 Tongues that looked like fire appeared to them. The tongues arranged themselves so that one came to rest on each believer. 4 All the believers were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.
5 Devout Jewish men from every nation were living in Jerusalem. 6 They gathered when they heard the wind. Each person was startled to recognize his own dialect when the disciples spoke.
7 Stunned and amazed, the people in the crowd said, “All of these men who are speaking are Galileans. 8 Why do we hear them speaking in our native dialects? 9 We’re Parthians, Medes, and Elamites. We’re people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the country near Cyrene in Libya. We’re Jewish people, converts to Judaism, and visitors from Rome, 11 Crete, and Arabia. We hear these men in our own languages as they tell about the miracles that God has done.”
12 All of these devout men were stunned and puzzled. They asked each other, “What can this mean?” 13 Others said jokingly, “They’re drunk on sweet wine.”
Peter Talks to the Crowd
14 Then Peter stood up with the eleven apostles. In a loud voice he said to them, “Men of Judea and everyone living in Jerusalem! You must understand this, so pay attention to what I say. 15 These men are not drunk as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning. 16 Rather, this is what the prophet Joel spoke about:
17 ‘In the last days, God says,
    I will pour my Spirit on everyone.
        Your sons and daughters will speak what God has revealed.
        Your young men will see visions.
        Your old men will dream dreams.
18 In those days
    I will pour my Spirit on my servants, on both men and women.
        They will speak what God has revealed.”
There are 4 P’s that we receive from this Ruach Qodesh…the Holy Spirit.:
1.     Power – it came upon the believers in power. As I said that one of the words for Ruach is wind. Now we have all seen the power of wind. It can turn windmills. It can be devastating as in a hurricane. A tornado can pulverize a house. In the account I read we hear how the Holy Spirit…Ruach Qodesh… came as a mighty wind.  When the church is filled with the Holy Spirit, barriers come tumbling down, lives are healed and transformed by that same Spirit. But…but…this power is not to be used to manipulate believers through guilt and fear but to free people from the paralyzing grip of sin in their lives.
2.     Presence – As Jesus came into that upper room where the frightened disciples were after His death, He lifted their spirits by His presence, we can be fearless because we are promised that we will have the presence of the Holy Spirit with us. If we know that God is with us and that His love and grace can reach us at our lowest, darkest point, we can face almost anything.
3.     Peace – We can have peace because of the Ruach Qodesh. As the disciples were offered peace when Jesus entered the locked upper room we too are offered that same peace through the Spirit.
4.     Prophecy – The Acts scripture tells us that those who witnessed the “download” of the Spirit were perplexed. They didn’t know what to make of it. They even thought that the disciples were drunk on wine. Peter boldly, through the Spirit, stood up and told them that they weren’t drunk but it was the fulfillment of what the prophet Joel had prophesized. The word “prophecy” means to speak forth or declare. As a matter of fact that is what Peter did so that they could make sense of the signs and wonders.
5.     Now I said there were only 4 P’s but there actually is a 5th one. The 5th one is purpose. The Spirit acts with purpose. It gives strength and power so that the disciples of Christ can make known the forgiveness of sins…so that others can also receive the gift of the Spirit. There is a purpose for why we stand here today. There is a purpose for the Spirit that is within you and within me…to enable us to preach, teach, to share the gospel of Good News.
6.     OK…let me add one more…personal. The Holy Spirit is not an idea but a person. It is the third part of the Trinity…Father, Son and Spirit. Our job is not to understand but to receive the Holy Spirit into our lives. The Spirit is given to all who know, trust and walk with Jesus.
The Spirit changes behavior and moves us into community.
Ø The coming of the Spirit transformed the early Christian community
1.     Locked doors were opened.
2.     Fear was replaced by courage
3.     Peace was proclaimed.
4.     The power to forgive sins was present
5.     Those who were afraid spoke boldly
Thousands heard the message in their own language.
Ø The coming of the Spirit today is reflected in our social values.
1.     In a world of racism and prejudice, the Spirit speaks to people of every nation under heaven.
2.     In a world of fear and doubt, the Spirit inspires people to open doors and to speak out.
3.     In a world of selfishness, competition, and control, the Spirit gives out gifts that are shared for the benefit of all.
4.     In a world where too many people lack basic freedoms, the Spirit invites us to work for honesty and freedom for all.
5.     In a world with war and violence, the Spirit proclaims a message of peace to all.
6.     In a world of with great wealth and affluence, the Spirit calls us again to a special concern for the poor.
The gifts of the Spirit are for liberation. We might say that the Spirit is an inclusive spirit who
desires to set everyone free.
Today is Pentecost Sunday and we have a lot to celebrate. We are give a Spirit of power and might. We are given a Spirit of presence…we do not travel alone in our faith journey. We are given a Spirit of peace in knowing that fact. We are given a Spirit of prophecy as we proclaim the truth of our Risen Lord, Jesus Christ from our own door to the ends of the earth. We are given a Spirit of purpose as we have boldness and strength as we share the Gospel of Peace. And we have a Spirit within us that is not just some ones thought or invention but is living and breathing within us as we walk this journey of faith. It may be hard to grasp this fact but it still remains and we understand by faith what the world cannot ever understand. Let us then go forth and prophesize that Jesus is Lord through the Spirit and have peace in knowing we never walk alone.
Let us pray…
Spirit of the Living God, Ruach, breathe your life into us. Purify, counsel, encourage, convict, and enable us. Give us your gifts that we may use them wisely in your service as we step out in faith and trust in you. Ruach Qodesh, fall down upon us again, give us boldness,  as we share the Good News of our Risen Lord, Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth. Fill us again with Your salvations power. May we stand in the gap for those who cannot stand…transform us and make us anew.
 ( Adapted from - (2011-09-01). Names of God Bible (with direct verse lookup), The (p. 30). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.)

Amen!

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