Life Notes—May 24, 2012
“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that He will take what is mine and declare it to you.” John 16:12-15
Have you tried to cram a whole lot of information into your brain in a very short period of time? One summer I thought it would be a good idea to take a five-hour Chemistry class over the summer and get it out of the way in half the time it would take in a normal semester. It was a nightmare. Another time I thought I’d try an intersession class. That is a class taught during Christmas break that covers a semester of material in one week. That was a disaster. Both experiences were enticing to me because of the time they would save. Unfortunately, whatever I learned did not have adequate time to absorb in my overloaded head. I am not even certain I saved that much time. Both classes essentially consumed my life for their duration and all I remember from either is the utter and complete exhaustion, mental and physical, at the end.
Jesus tried to cram a lot of information into the minds of his followers in his final days on earth. Even so, he hardly scratched the surface of what he desired to share. In the passage above he says, “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.” I know the feeling, and I’ll bet you do, too! Jesus knew there was too much to know about thekingdomofGodto be learned in a short time. It must be absorbed over a lifetime, requiring a lifelong companion to teach and shepherd us.
This Sunday we celebrate Pentecost—the coming of the Holy Spirit into and onto our lives. The Spirit is the third manifestation of God in our lives. The first is God the Father. The second is Jesus the Son. The Spirit of God is the aspect of God we accept into our lives as Christians, that wise “voice” in our heads that guides and informs us in the truth. The Holy Spirit is with God, just as Jesus is with God. They make up the Holy Trinity, three manifestations of the same eternal being. This is confusing to some, but in my mind it is similar to my manifesting as husband, father, son, friend and co-worker. Each role is a unique manifestation of the same person—me! The Holy Spirit is our life-long companion and teacher so we can learn at our own pace and in the ways we learn the best. And God knows some of us are very slow and difficult learners!
This is Pentecost Sunday and Mitch will be preaching downtown, where Life worship is at 10:00 AM in Brady Hall and traditional worship is at 8:30 and 11:00. His sermon title is “Red means GO!” Tom is at the west campus where worship is at 9:00 and 11:00.
Come home to church this Sunday. Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me (and you)…
Greg Hildenbrand, Life Music Coordinator
Contemplating Grace 