Acts 2:1-211 Corinthians 12:3b-13 Dear Partner in Preaching, This will be a very different Pentecost. On one level, that’s pretty obvious, as it’s been a very different everything – Lent, Easter, spring, Memorial Day, and more – this year. On another level, however, this particular Sunday will be even more different in light of the now national debate on opening up church buildings. It seems that nothing these days – wearing masks, the death toll of the virus, congregational worship – can escape the taint of partisan politics. As a result, many of us are now making decisions that we hope are informed by the best...

Acts 2:1-21 Dear Partner in Preaching, Some insights take a little while to sink in. And that is definitely true with something I realized about four or five years ago with regard to the Pentecost story. You know the details pretty well, as do many of our people: the disciples are gathered in the Upper Room (or at least in some room), waiting for the consummation of Jesus’ promise of the Holy Spirit, when the earth shakes, the wind blows, tongues of fire descend, and they are emboldened to preach the Gospel first in Jerusalem and eventually to the ends of the earth. In other words, a dramatic event which transforms the disciples, solves...

Dear Partner in Preaching, It’s been another hectic week – probably my new normal! – and another late post, so I’ll keep this relatively short. But goodness, I felt my spirits lift immensely when I read this line from Paul to the faith community in Rome: “For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption.” Not a spirit of fear, but one of adoption. And I understand a “spirit of adoption” to mean the confidence and courage that comes from knowing that you have been chosen, accepted, and loved for who you are. Not fear, but courage. I think part of why this struck me...

Dear Partner in Preaching, I’ve written three or four introductions to this letter now, and none seems quite adequate, so I’ll just come out and say it: I think we’ve misnamed the Holy Spirit. The word Jesus uses in John’s Gospel, as you know, is Paraclete, which we sometimes translate as “Advocate” and often translate as “Comforter.” It’s this second name in particular I’m calling into question, as I just don’t think it’s the Holy Spirit’s job to make us feel better. Yes, I know, it’s not that simple. The Holy Spirit as Comforter eases our distress, encourages us, and comes to us in times of trouble to remind us...

True story. About a week after our “Easter is Coming” video went sort of viral – or perhaps I should say, “viral” for us 🙂 – the President of the seminary said to me, “So what are you going to do next?” Truth be told, we had no “next” in mind. But prompted by the implicit challenge in the question, Ben Cieslik and I went back to the drawing board and decided to experiment with how we might bring out a new dimension of Pentecost. This time we found inspiration from something Pete Rollins said: “We all have holes we want filled, but more times than not, God doesn’t just fill those holes, God makes them bigger.”...