Pentecost Sunday
Dear Brother and Sisters in Christ,
Today on Pentecost Sunday, ten days after Christ ascended into Heaven, the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit as tongues of fire came upon each of them. Immediately a miracle happened! Not only did they suddenly gain the courage to go out and proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to a large crowd, but they started speaking in different languages they didn’t know reaching every person who was gathered in their native tongue.
These are the same disciples who would get into arguments about who was greater while they were being told that they needed to serve others. They are the ones who fled when Jesus was arrested, and one denied even knowing him. In today's Gospel St. John tells us on the evening of Easter Sunday that the disciples were in the upper room behind locked doors for fear of the Jews. Some of the disciples had already told the others that Jesus is alive and that he already appeared to them, but they were still there waiting for him behind locked doors. When he appeared he told them, “Peace be with you”, and even showed them his hands and side to prove it was him. When Jesus said “Peace be with you” he was letting them know that they were forgiven and that he loves them.
How often can we be like the disciples when things aren’t going as we planned? Do we become nervous or afraid? Maybe we don’t like speaking in large crowds or talking to people we don’t know or maybe we have different plans that don’t align with God’s plan for us? The disciples finally realized on Pentecost what it meant to surrender themselves to Christ and to allow the Holy Spirit to use them. As we have seen, not only did the Holy Spirit give them courage and understanding, but they were also given the ability to speak in languages they didn’t know to reach others from different nations. Jesus is letting us know as the Body of Christ, his Church, that when we are doing his will, he will help us to carry it out. All we need to do is surrender everything to him.
May we surrender ourselves to Christ each day allowing the Holy Spirit to work in us and through us to do his will.
Your brother in Christ
Deacon Manny
