The Day Of Pentecost
Devotional
Water From the Well
Lectionary Devotional For Cycle A
Object:
Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord!
-- Psalm 104:35b
On Pentecost we reflect on various aspects of the Spirit. In the famous interchange between Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3:1-10, we hear of the essential nature of the Spirit for a fully embodied life. "Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and of the Spirit" (John 3:5). Then we are quickly reminded that this empowering Spirit is absolutely free from our manipulations. "The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8). In Psalm 104, the psalmist celebrated the creation of God and reminds us that all aspects of our life are dependent on God. "When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust." In both Hebrew and Greek, the word for breath and spirit are the same. "When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground."
God's creative and sustaining power is a mystery beyond our comprehension and control. At the same time, in an echo of the celebration of wisdom in Proverbs 8, there is recognition that God's creation, while beyond our full comprehension, nevertheless is reflective of a wisdom that brings order out of chaos. "In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures." As an example, the psalmist noted that Leviathan, the sea monster that was often seen as a symbol of chaos, was a creature that God created to sport and play in the sea. To explore the secrets of this universe is to engage in appreciating the wonders of God. On Pentecost we are invited to reflect on the creative, wonderful, and sustaining power of the Spirit that reflects both the absolute freedom of God and also the empowering love of God. While Pentecost is often celebrated as the birthday of the church, the church is but a microcosm of the power that also created and sustains the universe. When we truly comprehend the power behind all of creation, we are led to a natural response of praise. "I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being." Pentecost would be an appropriate season to reflect on our treatment of the environment as an act of worship or, far too often, an act of blasphemy.
-- Psalm 104:35b
On Pentecost we reflect on various aspects of the Spirit. In the famous interchange between Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3:1-10, we hear of the essential nature of the Spirit for a fully embodied life. "Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and of the Spirit" (John 3:5). Then we are quickly reminded that this empowering Spirit is absolutely free from our manipulations. "The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8). In Psalm 104, the psalmist celebrated the creation of God and reminds us that all aspects of our life are dependent on God. "When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust." In both Hebrew and Greek, the word for breath and spirit are the same. "When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground."
God's creative and sustaining power is a mystery beyond our comprehension and control. At the same time, in an echo of the celebration of wisdom in Proverbs 8, there is recognition that God's creation, while beyond our full comprehension, nevertheless is reflective of a wisdom that brings order out of chaos. "In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures." As an example, the psalmist noted that Leviathan, the sea monster that was often seen as a symbol of chaos, was a creature that God created to sport and play in the sea. To explore the secrets of this universe is to engage in appreciating the wonders of God. On Pentecost we are invited to reflect on the creative, wonderful, and sustaining power of the Spirit that reflects both the absolute freedom of God and also the empowering love of God. While Pentecost is often celebrated as the birthday of the church, the church is but a microcosm of the power that also created and sustains the universe. When we truly comprehend the power behind all of creation, we are led to a natural response of praise. "I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being." Pentecost would be an appropriate season to reflect on our treatment of the environment as an act of worship or, far too often, an act of blasphemy.
