Pentecost — Happy Birthday Church!
God has placed in the heart of mankind a unique tension between longing for the familiar and the anticipation of new. Take the seasons for instance. Every season brings with it both comfort from the memories of past and an anticipation of the fresh exciting celebrations to come. For the church, the changing of the seasons and calendar is not much different. Each occasion has tremendous significance to a Gospel-centered worship experience and can, when used strategically and creatively, bring beautiful benefits for leading a church.
There are many powerful seasons in the church calendar. But for a moment, let’s briefly look at Pentecost and how it can be used and taught in the life of a church.
After Christ arose from the dead and after He ascended into heaven, the next crucial event for the life of the church was Pentecost. We get the account of what occurred in Acts 2:1–4:
“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
While the disciples were together for the festival of “Shavuot” (celebration of the wheat harvest), which was a time also associated with the law given to Moses, God chose this festival associated with giving to be the day He would gift the church the Holy Spirit. It’s truly remarkable when you see the connection.
Pentecost began 50 days (7 weeks) after Easter and the name comes from the Greek pentekoste meaning “fiftieth.” While some seasons for the Christians are ones of anticipation or somberness, Pentacost is one of celebration and great meaning. It’s the start of our mission as the church to accomplish the great commission and reach the world with the gospel by the power of the Holy Spirit.
As a child of a Worship Pastor who ministered for 45 years, I celebrated many of the church calendar seasons growing up. But interestingly enough, Pentecost was rarely one of them. Although, I’m not completely sure why this was the case, I suspect it was because it was the season that dealt with the giving of the Holy Spirit and in a traditional Baptist church, we certainly erred on not touching that which we did not fully understand. But as I look closer upon this day, I think it’s such a powerful reminder of the of the start of the church and the gift of the Holy Spirit. In other words, it’s the churches birthday! I mean, who doesn’t celebrate their birthday?!?! (Ok, in all honesty, I have a nephew that was born on my birthday 6 years ago and now no one hardly remembers my birthday — but I’m not bitter of course!) Not only is this day the churches birthday, but it’s also the day that the church was given the greatest gift we would ever receive next to the gift of salvation. And that, my friends, is worth celebrating.
Here are just a few ways you could incorporate the meaning, teaching, and remembrance of this day in your local church.
1. Sing and Praise the Holy Spirit
There are wonderful songs that teach us about the Spirit of God as well as worship Him as part of the Trinity. When we praise in this way, and connect the dots to our people why we are putting emphasis on His role in our lives and in the church, we are exhorting and training the church.
2. Read Acts 2 in Worship
Although this may seem simple, reading God’s Word in worship is always powerful and profound. Sometimes the greatest thing we can do to teach and train our people is just let the Word speak for itself. Reading the account of Pentecost can be a beautiful transition into a song, a segue into the Pastor’s message, or even a precursor for baptism.
3. Preach on the Holy Spirit
I think in general the Church, especially the Baptist denomination, needs more clear and powerful teaching on the person and workings of the Holy Spirit. This is a perfect time for your Pastor to preach a single sermon, or even start a series on the subject. Then, it will allow you as a worship leader to build week-to-week on crafting services that continue to take your people deeper in this theme.
4. Renew the Passion for the Mission of the Church.
The birth of the Church is the birth of the mission of the church. The church must be about its mission or it becomes nothing more than country club or a cult. Our mission sets us apart and guides our decisions and values. Pentecost is a powerful time for a renewed sense of mission by following the example of the disciples who immediately went out preached the gospel. We must do the same.
