In case you’re wondering, this is Coco Chanel, a seemingly normal if not spoiled little dog (thank you, Miss Shelly). But beneath the fur, she has an enormous problem. She is absolutely terrified of loud noises. I mean, when she hears fireworks or a gunshot or thunder, she just shakes all over and wants to be close to her pack, you know, Debbie and me. And even though we can kind of deal with the fireworks and gunshots, thunder has been a real problem. You see, if she’s alone as a storm passes through, she’ll do almost anything to get away from where she is so that she can go to where we are and for her, that means the church. Now, as of Monday, that’s happened four times. And each time, she’s clawed her way through the screen of an unlocked window. And she’s crossed 68 in the pouring rain to get here. And it would have been five times, but back in April, she knocked out four teeth trying to open a window that was locked. With all the blood, it looked like a crime scene. You see, she’ll actually hurt herself to get away. She’s just that scared of thunder.
But I’ll tell you, this idea of being scared, man, I don’t think it’s limited to little dogs with French names. As a matter of fact, I think we may have become a society moved and motivated by fear. Of course, we didn’t used to be. For example, back when I was a kid, during the summer, mom would open the door at nine in the morning and tell us to be home by six in the evening. Of course, we didn’t tell her what we did and frankly, I don’t think she really wanted to know. Now that’s the way it used to be. But now, it’s completely different, isn’t it? I mean, we’re afraid to raise a bunch of free-range kids, aren’t we? And that’s why we want them supervised by adults all the time and why we set up play-dates and why, if they go riding on their bikes, they look more like medieval knights or football players than carefree kids. Now, let me be clear, I’m not saying any of that is bad. I mean, when I was a kid, there was always someone in my class with a cast, because we did a lot of things without supervision and proper protection. Still, fear seems to be the motivation for a lot of what we do and where we go and whom we trust and of course, how we vote. Man, we’re afraid, particularly of “THEM.” And sadly, that impacts Christian just like it does anyone else. I’ll tell you, it sure seems as though we live in a world that has way too much lingering fear and way too little lasting peace.
And you know, I think that’s a shame because, to be frank, in my opinion, it’s totally unnecessary. And I’ll tell you, I believe the reason it’s unnecessary has everything to do with the affirmation we’re going to talk about this morning, namely “I BELIEVE in the Holy Spirit.” Now, as y’all know, over the last month and a half, we’ve been exploring The Apostle’s Creed. And to this point we’ve covered the following seven affirmations that, using either screen or your bulletin, I’d like y’all to say with me.
I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
Thank you. Now, that’s what we’ve covered. And like I’ve already said a minute ago, this morning we’re going to move on to the next phrase: I BELIEVE in the Holy Spirit. You see, today, we’re going to focus on the third person of the Trinity and in particular, how this Spirit, this gift from God, can be a genuine source of peace by offering us three things that we’re just not going to find in the world. Let me explain.
According to what is said in the Bible, I believe the Holy Spirit really is a source of peace, and I’m talking about a source of peace that’s grounded in both a promise made and a promise fulfilled.
For example, Jesus made a promise. I mean, right before he was lifted up on the cross, he sat his disciples down and made them a promise that involved both the Holy Spirit and some God-given peace. Just listen to what Jesus said,
I have told you these things while I am still with you. But the Holy Spirit will come and help you, because the Father will send the Spirit to take my place. The Spirit will teach you everything and will remind you of what I said while I was with you.
I give you peace, the kind of peace only I can give. It isn’t like the peace this world can give. So don’t be worried or afraid. [John 14:25-27, CEV]
Jesus replied:
Do you really believe me? The time will come and is already here when all of you will be scattered. Each of you will go back home and leave me by myself. But the Father will be with me, and I won’t be alone. I have told you this, so that you might have peace in your heart because of me. While you are in the world, you will have to suffer. But cheer up! I have defeated the world. [John 16:31-33, CEV]
Now that’s what Jesus said to a bunch of followers whom he knew were going to face some tough times and whom he knew were going to suffer and be scattered and whom he knew were going to feel a whole lot more fear than peace. And for them, that just made sense. You see, in their minds, they were going to be facing all this stuff alone and that was going to scare the puddin’ out of them. Now it was to these followers that Jesus made a promise that he was going to send them a source of genuine peace, namely the Holy Spirit.
And I’ll tell you, that’s exactly what he did. In other words, after the crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus fulfilled the promise he’d made. And according to the Evangelist John, this was how it happened, and I’m reading this from the New Revised Standard Version because, for reasons I don’t understand, the Contemporary English Version chose not to translate Jesus’s greeting:
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors were locked where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” [John 20:19-23, NRSVUE]
Now, according to John, that’s what happened. Just like God breathes his life-giving spirit into every living thing, Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit into his disciples. And he did it right after saying twice, “Peace be with you.” And I’ll tell you, I believe as sure as I’m standing here, he has breathed that same Spirit into each one of us this morning, a Spirit that offers real serenity when we’re shaken and scared and a Spirit that offers genuine tranquility when we’re ready to give up and to give in. You see, this Holy Spirit really is a source of peace. And let me tell how I think the Spirit does it.
You see, I believe the Holy Spirit is our source of peace by offering to us three things that we desperately need, and I’m talking about when our fear is cranked up to eleven and when we feel too scared to do much of anything and when we’re just begging for something that might offer us the assurance and the strength and the focus to move forward. And let me tell you what they are.
You see, first, according to scripture, I believe the Holy Spirit offers us presence, in other words, an assurance that we’re not alone, that God is on our side and that we can face whatever the future can throw against us. And I’ll tell you, I think we can see this special presence in what Jesus promised to his followers, again, right before his arrest:
Jesus said to his disciples:
If you love me, you will do as I command. Then I will ask the Father to send you the Holy Spirit who will help you and always be with you. The Spirit will show you what is true. The people of this world cannot accept the Spirit, because they don’t see or know him. But you know the Spirit, who is with you and will keep on living in you. [John 14:15-17, CEV]
Now that’s what Jesus said, that he was sending us a presence that would always be in us. And just think about what that means. Good night nurse, even when the world around us seems the most threatening and even when the opposition seems the most aggressive and even when we feel the most isolated, Jesus is telling us that we’re not alone, that aggressiveness doesn’t matter and that the threats are paper thin. You see, in the face of all that, we can feel peace. Why? Because through the Spirit, God is present with us, and in my opinion, that’s the first thing the Holy Spirit offers, but that’s not all.
You see, second, according to scripture, I also believe that same Spirit offers us power, and I’m talking about the power to stand up when folks are telling us to sit down and the power to speak out when those same people are telling us to shut up and the power to move forward when the world is telling us to look back. Man, right here and now, we have power, something that the Evangelist Luke described in two little passages there in his Book of Acts. You see, after the disciples asked the resurrection Jesus if Israel was about to get a new king, Luke wrote this:
Jesus said to them, “You don’t need to know the time of those events that only the Father controls. But the Holy Spirit will come upon you and give you power. Then you will tell everyone about me in Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and everywhere in the world.” [Acts 1:7-8, CEV]
And then a little later, in describing the earliest church, Luke said,
After they had prayed, the meeting place shook. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and bravely spoke God’s message.
The group of followers all felt the same way about everything. None of them claimed that their possessions were their own, and they shared everything they had with each other. In a powerful way the apostles told everyone that the Lord Jesus was now alive. God greatly blessed his followers, and no one went in need of anything. Everyone who owned land or houses would sell them and bring the money to the apostles. Then they would give the money to anyone in need. [Acts 4:31-35, CEV]
I’m telling you, as a people who’ve been given the Holy Spirit, we can stand up for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, something that we’ve taken the time and made the effort to learn, even when people, even Christians, would prefer to believe a bunch of empty, spiritual-sounding words that allow them to stay exactly the way they are. And grounded in the truth, we can speak out with so much intensity and energy and force that, man, it’ll rattle the rafters. And as a community, we can move forward with purpose and principles and priorities rooted in the Word of God and not the values of the world. I’m telling you, in the face of all that, we can feel peace. Why? Because our power comes from God, and, in my opinion, that’s the second thing the Holy Spirit offers.
And finally, right along with presence and power, I believe the Holy Spirit offers us purpose. In other words, it offers us some personal values that we can claim and some personal qualities we can develop and some personal goals we can set within ourselves as we go about living our lives. You see, our lives can have focus and direction and intention, something that Paul described in his letter to the Galatians:
God’s Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled. There is no law against behaving in any of these ways. And because we belong to Christ Jesus, we have killed our selfish feelings and desires. God’s Spirit has given us life, and so we should follow the Spirit. But don’t be conceited or make others jealous by claiming to be better than they are. [Galatians 5:22-26, CEV]
Now that’s what Paul wrote. Of course, I recognize that the world has its own values that we’re told to endorse and its own qualities we’re told to apply and its own goals we’re told to claim. And I’ll tell you, from where I stand, a lot of folks seem to do exactly what they’ve been told to do. But listen to me, we’d don’t have to endorse and to apply and to claim. In other words, we don’t have to buy what they’re selling, and we sure don’t need to go down that wide path they’ve constructed. Man, we can buck the trend. And then we endorse and apply and claim those values and qualities and goals that will show to the world what it means to belong to Christ Jesus and what it means to follow the Spirit. You see, in the face of all this, we can feel peace. Why? Because thanks to God, man, our lives can have purpose, and for me, that’s the third thing the Spirit offers.
Of course, I’m not sure any of that will help our Coco Chanel who is so scared of thunder. And even though we’ve gotten some excellent suggestions, everything from medication to doggie earmuffs, that I’m sure will help when we’re around but not so much when we’re out, I guess the bottom line is this, when there’s a thunderstorm on the way, somebody better be close to her, something that, personally, I don’t want to do, because, as most of y’all know, I really don’t like that little dog.
But for us, as we face all those things that scare us so much, well, I think we do have a reason for confidence and hope. You see, based on scripture, I believe the Holy Spirit is a source of peace by offering presence and power and purpose. And I’ll tell you, that’s something that we can claim every time we affirm together: I BELIEVE in the Holy Spirit.
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