Pentecost Hope of the world
“And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” Acts 2v21
Now more than ever we need the church to be the hope on earth. We need God’s kingdom to come and grow. There is so much chaos happening all around, and the only ultimate solution to the chaos of terrorism, the destructiveness of addiction, the devestation of broken relationships, the horror of war is hearts radically transformed from the inside out by Jesus.
Pentecost is a reminder of the start of the Church. A day when God took a bunch of average misfits who had spent three years with Jesus and still had somehow managed to not quite get it, and filled them with dynamite power from the Holy Spirit. The transformation was obvious to all. Peter who had been so quick to deny even knowing Jesus was enabled to preach boldly. Hope came to three thousand after that one sermon. That is the power there is when we go out and tell the world of the love God has for us, of the death Jesus died for us and the hope there is because He rose again.
From a bunch of school-dropout fishermen God built the Church on the day of Pentecost, the local church bringing hope to their community. Selling their possessions and sharing the profit with those in need. Feeding the hungry. Meeting together in fellowship. When a group of people get filled with the Holy Spirit and start telling people about what Jesus has done for us then incredible things happen. In the midst of chaos we can have faith, for we know we have hope as an anchor for our soul.
Now more than ever the world needs that hope. People need to know the Way, the Truth and the Life. They need light in the midst of darkness. People often ask in times of atrocities”why wouldn’t God do something?” But He has. He has established the church to be the hope of the world, a beacon pointing people to Him! Jesus is the hope of the world and the church should be all about showing people His love and hope.
Pentecost is a reminder that God fills us with the Holy Spirit to do what only He can do as we seek to tell those around us that there is hope and salvation in the name of Jesus. Jesus is the hope of the world, and we are called to be the church, taking that hope out onto the streets, into our communities and families. Church is not just about gathering in a huddle, it is about pioneering, going out carrying the name of Jesus into our world. Pentecost is a reminder for us to be open to God moving through regular people like us. If He has done it before, He can do it again. Through the church God builds His kingdom here on earth as in heaven. Through the church hope can burst out. And through people like us the church can grow and do God’s work. The local church, the hope of the world.
