FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, ATLANTA, GEORGIA

Communion Meditation by Dr. George Bryant Wirth

Pentecost Sunday

May 31, 2009

CHRIST AT THE CENTER: THE FAMILY OF FAITH

GOD’S STIMULUS PACKAGE

Scripture: Acts 2:1-13

I

There are different theories and a wide spectrum of opinions about how and when this recession began. Six months ago, the AJC ran an article describing the number of recessions we have weathered in America since the end of World War II – ten of them prior to our present crisis, which the National Bureau of Economic Research says was first visible in December of 2007. (From AJC article “A Procession of Recessions,” December 7, 2008, page B-2)

We may question when and why the trouble started and how long it will last, but of one thing we can be certain: our leaders in Washington, D.C. have been working on it, and people across this land have been watching and waiting (many also praying) for viable strategies that can lead us out of this mess.

To date, we have stepped up to the plate and taken two major swings at the economic trauma we face. The first came last fall with a $700 billion bailout endeavor to rescue some of our largest financial institutions from going under.

The second government program was just passed by Congress in February (February 13 and signed into law by President Obama on February 17), pumping another $787 billion into the economy, designated for agriculture and technology, health and human services, child care and senior citizens, law enforcement and labor, the arts and the environment, education, energy, homeland security and tax relief (to mention some but not all of the components). The official title is “The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009,” but most folks refer to it as “The Stimulus Package.”

Now, there are millions of citizens throughout our nation, especially those hit hard and laid low by this recession, whose expectations are high that the billions of dollars from this government investment will trickle down to them…including one businesswoman from India whom I know in the Ansley Mall. On Friday when I walked into her dry cleaning store and we started to talk about these matters, she said to me, “We hope this big inflation from the stimulus package will come sooner than later to us.”

I think I understand what she meant, but “inflation” isn’t exactly what the President and Congress have in mind. Instead, what they and what we want and need is to re-build our economy, to re-instill confidence in our banks and businesses, and to re-fill our financial resources for the future so that there will be enough to go around for everybody.

I am not a financial expert and I didn’t sleep overnight in a Holiday Inn Express (have you seen that TV ad?), but as best I can determine, that’s what all of us hope is going to happen through our government’s “Stimulus Package Program.”

II

Now, did you know that God set His own “Stimulus Package” in motion nearly 2000 years ago? The first two chapters in the Book of Acts tell us how it all unfolded, and the background which the gospels piece together for us is important.

John reports that following Jesus’ resurrection, He appeared to His disciples in the Upper Room where they had shared the Last Supper (John 20), and all of them, including Thomas, believed that their Lord was alive. Lindsay Armstrong preached about that miraculous moment on the Sunday after Easter.

Then, Matthew tells us that Jesus came again to His disciples by the Sea of Galilee and gave them the Great Commission to go out into the world to proclaim His name to all the nations (Matthew 28).

The Gospel of John records another post-resurrection appearance, describing how Jesus and His disciples had breakfast together on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, which Craig Goodrich preached about last Sunday (John 21). And Luke picks up the story in his gospel, locating the ascension of Jesus in the town of Bethany outside of Jerusalem (Luke 24:50-53).

Luke goes on to say in Acts I that for forty days, Jesus revealed Himself to many others. And when Day of Ascension came, the last words He spoke to the disciples, His final words on earth, were these:

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ And when He had said this, as they were watching, He was lifted up and a cloud took Him out of their sight.”

So, what did the disciples do next? They went back to the Upper Room in Jerusalem and held a committee meeting to elect a man named Matthias to take Judas’ place, which indicates they might have been the very first Presbyterians. But then Luke also reports that those disciples, together with Mary, the mother of Jesus, and his brothers and some other women “devoted themselves to prayer.”

Do you see? Jesus had promised them the power of the Holy Spirit, but before the power was released, those early believers got down on their knees to pray.

And that is the background of Pentecost Day, recorded in Acts chapter 2…

…“when they (the disciples and the others) were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled the whole place…tongues like fire rested on those believers and they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability” …

When they spilled out onto the street, the worshippers who were there in Jerusalem from other regions and nations, heard the word of the Lord in phrases that were familiar to them. It was such a surprising and spectacular moment in time, that some of the naysayers in the crowd spoke out loud in their own vernacular and said “These people have been drinking too much wine.”

Which prompted Peter to stand up and say, in so many words, “It’s too early in the morning for any of us to even think about taking a drink.” And then he launched into the first Christian sermon ever preached about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and the hope of salvation which He has given to us.

Luke records that more than 3000 people were converted and baptized into the faith that day…something like a Billy Graham Crusade in the first century A.D. …which is why we have come here this morning to celebrate Pentecost, to rejoice in the birth of the Christian Church, and to believe in and receive again “God’s Stimulus Package” – the power, the presence and the peace of His Holy Spirit.

III

I looked up the words “stimulant” and “stimulate” in Webster’s Dictionary, and this is the combined, abbreviated definition:

“An agent that arouses or accelerates activity…an incentive which leads to action…an alcoholic beverage”

Well, the Apostle Peter ruled out the last part of that definition on the first Pentecost Day, so we’re left with this description: God’s Stimulus Package is the gift of the Holy Spirit as His agent which arouses our faith, accelerates hope and leads us to love in action.

If that is so, then let’s remember how the Holy Spirit came upon those first disciples long ago. God aroused their faith as they got down on their knees to pray. That’s where the power comes from, and if we ever forget it and try to bring in the Kingdom by our own strength and stamina or through our own strategic plans and organizational structures, then we are going to fall flat on our faces. What we need, first and foremost, is to get down on our knees to pray.

The Revival of 1857 in New York City began with a prayer meeting. J. Edwin Orr describes it this way:

“Jeremiah Lanfir, a city missionary in Lower Manhattan, went out onto the streets passing around handbills, inviting anyone who was interested to join him from 12:00 to 1:00 on Wednesdays for a prayer meeting. He didn’t care whether they came for the whole hour or for just five minutes. The first day six people came. The next day there were forty. Then they made it a daily instead of a weekly meeting, and within six months, 10,000 people in New York were gathering every day for prayer. Within two years, a million converts had joined American Churches” and it all began with a prayer meeting… (From a sermon “Power for Mission Renewal” by Dr. Samuel H. Moffet, delivered at the Congress on Renewal, Dallas, Texas, 1983)

You see, there is a power greater than our own which comes from God. And when we get down on our knees to pray, or however we do it, our faith will be aroused and the power will begin to flow through us… which is exactly what Jesus promised as He said “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.” That is how God’s Stimulus Package starts to work within us.

And then, as our faith is aroused, our hope will accelerate, knowing beyond the shadow of a doubt that “With God, all things are possible” (Mark 10:27) – which does not mean that we get everything we want, but rather that God will give us what He knows we need.

One of the lessons that many of us in this church are learning from our mission trips to Brazil, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica and Kenya is that our Christian brothers and sisters in those places may be lacking for resources but they are rich in hope because they trust God to provide for them.

On our first trip to Kenya in 1995, we visited a new church development outside of Nairobi. The congregation of more than 250 people had raised enough money to build four walls and install a pulpit, but there was no floor, no pews and no roof. I asked one of the elders “When you worship here, what do you do if it rains?” He smiled and replied “We get wet, and we praise God from whom all blessings flow. We need the rain.”

I thought to myself back then and share it with you now, especially in the midst of this recession, that we in America need to learn how to thank God for everything that we have received, and to trust Him with hopeful hearts to supply whatever we may need. If the words printed on our coins and bills – “In God We Trust” – mean anything at all, then perhaps the time has come to let go of our fears and to hold onto hope as the Lord draws near to us.

CONCLUSION

God’s Stimulus Package – the gift of the Holy Spirit – arouses our faith, accelerates our hope and finally leads us to love in action.

After Pentecost, Luke paints the picture in Acts chapter two, of how those early Christians began to believe that love is something you do:

“All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, as they worshipped in the Temple and broke bread in their homes, they praised God with glad and generous hearts” (Acts 2:44-47, paraphrase).

Philip Yancey, who is one of America’s best known Christian authors and has spoken from this pulpit, wrote an article in January for Christianity Today magazine about “How to pray in the midst of financial catastrophe,” and this is what he said:

“Jesus taught us to pray, ‘Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’ We know that heaven will include no homeless, destitute or starving people (for all will be well there). But what a testimony it would be if we Christians on earth resolved in 2009 to build more houses for the poor, combat AIDS in Africa and announce Kingdom values to our culture. Such a response defies all logic and common sense – (unless, of course, we take Jesus at His word).”

The greatest commandment, Jesus said, is this: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.” You see, God’s Stimulus Package, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and all of the blessings that He has promised, are not meant for just you and for me. They have been given to a whole world in need. And if we care enough about the people out there and want to share our Lord’s compassion, then by the power of His Spirit, He will help us put our love into action.

For many months now, we have been surrounded by construction and renovation workers. At one point, I think we counted more than 57 workers in this building all at once. It made me think of another construction crew laying a drain line as part of a new building project. While they were excavating the workmen discovered a power cable directly in their path. The foreman called over the electrician in charge of wiring the new building. The electrician looked at the cable and assured the foreman that the cable was dead. “Just cut it out of your way” he said. The foreman asked “Are you sure there’s no danger?” “Absolutely,” said the electrician. The foreman said, “Then will you cut it out for us?” The electrician hesitated and then said with a smile, “Well I’m not quite that sure.”

My friends, we can be sure, we can be absolutely certain as we come to this table today, that the power is here to arouse our faith, to accelerate our hope and to help us put God’s love into action out there in the world.

That is God’s Stimulus Package which He has given to us - the power of His Spirit alive and at work in you and in me - just as the Lord Jesus promised that it would be – wow!

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.