A Pentecost Sermon

“Breath, Fire, Dove”

Gather round people of the Spirit, spiritual people, Pentecostal people, for I have a story for you today. It’s an old story, a story passed down through the ages across the religions of the world.

A story about God and God’s people. A story about the Spirit and the Spirit’s people. And this is, by the way, a true story. Perhaps the truest story.

Breath

In the beginning, in the time before time, in a place before places, God looked around, and out of God’s total joy, God wanted humanity to feel something of what it is like to be alive, the ecstasy of living. So, God sent God’s spirit into the world to be the breath of humanity. God breathed into that first person the breath of life, and with every breath the human experienced God.

Breathing in, the human breathed in something of God.

Breathing out, the human breathed out something of God.

Breathing in, breathing out. God. God’s presence. Holy Breath.

God’s presence as close to us as our very breath. The mighty rushing wind of God somehow mysteriously contained inside of us. In every moment of every day, the human always breathing in God’s presence. About 22,000 times a day. Breathing in and out. The breath of God, the symbol of the Holy Spirit. Near to us.

And the people of God walked around with energy and activity and movement because of this Breath. They loved each other, cared for each other, and helped each other. Animated by the Spirit., the Holy Breath of God. Breath gave them life and sustained them even when they forget about it. They didn’t have to think about it to breathe. They didn’t have to will it to happen. It wasn’t a chore or a task. Breath was gift. It was always with them. And when they forget it, they can always return to their breath. Breathing became a way for them to practice the presence of God.

And God said, “if you need a reminder of the closeness of my spirit, my breath within you, place your palms together and put them in front of your lungs.”

Fire

Then, even though we humans were breathing in and out, breathing Holy Spirit, even though God was near to us, so near to us that God was moving in us, we still found ways as humans to wonder, to find ourselves lost, to make poor decisions, to harm others.

So God sent God’s spirit again and said this time perhaps we need a different form: not breath, not nearness, not intimacy, not breathing in and breathing out. This time also fire. Cleansing fire. Energizing fire. Fire that burns away that which is false so that growth might happen. Fire that cleans the forest floor so that new birth might happen. Fire to burn away our oppressive systems. The ways of being we construct and maintain to control others and keep them down. Fire to burn within us our prejudices, our racism. Fire to burn away our desires for revenge and to seek harm of other people, to manipulate. God sent fire among God’s people to clear away the harm.

God sent the Holy Spirit as breath. Breathing in and breathing out. But also Fire. to burn us within. And fire to energize us toward A love for justice and peace.

Never to burn away who we truly are. Never to burn away our breathing in and out. Our intimacy with our Creator. Only to burn away the ways in which we seek to destroy ourselves, our neighbor, and creation. Only to burn away from us. God sends the holy spirit to burn. But not just to burn away but to empower. To burn within us a passion for good.

And God said to the people. Do not misunderstand my fire. Do not think that fire is punishment. Do not think that fire is judgment for sin that you are not aware of. No, fire, my fire is for those parts of you that are not truly you. It’s for those places in you where you have betrayed yourself. Those places warped by societal ills. Fire is for racism. Fire is for transphobia. Fire is homophobia. Fire is for sexism. The fire is to burn away the pile of rubble.

And the people walked around with energy and power. They examined their prejudices and created within them a passion for justice.

And God said, “if you need a reminder of the passion and power of my spirit, my fire among us, place your palms together, intertwine your fingers, and wiggle them to make fire.”

Dove

Then as time went on, even though we humans were breathing in and out, breathing Holy Spirit, even though God was near to us, and even though the Spirit was burning away the evils of the world, people felt the need to create religions, systems of thought, and these systems sometimes limited their freedom, their ability to think about God. They began to tell each other how to think about God, how to know God, and what God was like and not like. They began to tell each other that God didn’t like certain people or certain ideas. They made long lists and statements of faith. They even developed a whole group of people they called clergy and priests who often had strong opinions about God and religion.

So, God sent the Holy Spirit not a breath, breathing in and breathing out, near to us. Not a fire burning away that which is not our true self. But now this time as Dove, as a bird, as a soaring free animal. Free to fly where it will. Totally out of the control of the humans. Not confined to certain rules or ideas about the world. A Dove – an untamed bird sailing about in utter freedom. Soaring not walking.

And the people learned to be free themselves as they connected to the Dove. They learned to be less rigid with their understandings of God. They learned that God had no frontiers. And the people remembered that the Wind, the Breath of God, also blows where it wishes. So it is with the Dove.

And God said, “if you need a reminder of this type of freedom as God’s dream for you, place your palms toward your body and put your thumbs together. Now move your hands to create a dove flapping its wings.”

Conclusion

The spirit of God is:

as near to us as our breath,

as consuming as fire,

as free as the dove.