I am excited to be at an event like this, because I believe God is renewing his church in our day, and there is so much more of God that he wants for each of us than any of us have yet begun to experience.
God has so much more blessing that he wants to pour out on us, and not just to make us feel special, but because the church is chosen by God to be the sign, agent and foretaste of God’s kingdom.
Sometimes Christians get discouraged and feel everything is going wrong…sometimes Christians get tired and weary – after all we are none of us getting any younger, and we look back wistfully and think, nostalgia isn’t what it used to be…
However I am more excited now by the future of the church now than I was 24 years ago when I was ordained…
- charismatic gifts are no longer the preserve of Pentecostals, but found in all the denominations…
- biblical scholarship is no longer the sole preserve of the liberals and the sceptics – when I was reading theology at St. Andrews Uni it was the most liberal theol coll in Scotland where to say that you believed in miracles was to invite ridicule, yet today…
- churches of all traditions have recovered their confidence in evangelism and mission – when I was ordained, evangelism was a word which rarely if ever appeared on deanery or diocesan agendas, whereas now the majority of chs in this diocese run courses for enquirers…
- we live in an age that is hungry for authentic spirituality, and where doors are open as never before….e.g. the V Festival
God is at work in his world today, and we can be part of that. But we can’t be part of God’s work in our own strength. Jesus told his disciples to wait for the empowering of the Holy Spirit – wait in the city until you receive power from on high…
So I am really excited that on this eve of Pentecost we have come together to seek a fresh touch of the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives and in our churches.
I am really excited too by the theme of our gathering – the Breath of God…
The Greek word pneu- translates Hebrew ruach and means
- to blow (of wind, air, also musical instrument)
- to breathe
- to emit a fragrance
- to radiate
The breath of God is at work in the world
The Spirit blows where He wills
The breath of God gives life to the world -
The breath of God breathed into Adam and he became a living being
- unseen yet powerful
Do our churches run on fossil fuel or on wind power??
Fossil fuel is limited and easily exhausted, wind power is renewable and unlimited
Are we going along in our own strength, doing what we have always done, feeling frustrated that it seems to be harder work for less return, or are we catching the wind of the Spirit and moving in new directions…
If we want our churches to run on wind power, not fossil fuels, we need a fresh touch of the breath of God
And if we want to receive a fresh touch of the breath of God the first place to go is the Bible, for all Scripture is literally ‘God-breathed’ – that is what the word inspired means in 2 Timothy 3.16
And the passage we are going to look at tonight is John 20: 19-23 page 1029
READ PASSAGE OUT LOUD TOGETHER
What better verse for a renewal conference on the breath of God than v22 – ‘Jesus breathed on them and said, Receive the Holy Spirit’
Let’s look at the context for a moment
After the resurrection – the evening of the first Easter Day
The disciples are locked away
The Breath of God’s Spirit brings peace
READ vv19, 21
Peace in Hebrew, shalom, is not just the absence of conflict, but wholeness of body, mind and spirit
The disciples needed peace because they were afraid – see v 19
Some of us here this evening may need to breathe in God’s peace too
- because we are afraid, perhaps of illness, awaiting the results of tests, or a job that is about to be taken away from us. Come and receive prayer this evening for peace…
- or because we are frantic; trying to juggle two jobs, two children, two cars, two holidays, too much. My first parish in Accrington, Lancashire
I am one of those who needs regularly to breathe in God’s peace, because naturally I am a bit of a rusher, always on the last minute, always in a hurry
And sometimes putting other people under pressure because I am in a rush…
That’s why spending time in the Egyptian desert has been so helpful to me…
Breathing is a rhythm, letting God be God in his time
Not rushing…
Deep spiritual breathing takes time – not rushing into God’s presence
But you don’t have to go to Egypt
e.g. Glasshampton – tell the story…
personal testimony – Bernard’s vision…
Is your breathing shallow or deep?
Deep spiritual breathing needs Scripture – all Scripture is inspired by God and is God-breathed…
Deep spiritual breathing means taking every opportunity to receive from God, because we leak
Opportunity
The Breath of God sends us out
– v21, ‘As the Father has sent me, so I send you’
One of the signs of the Spirit’s filling is that he leads us where we would not otherwise choose to go…
Being blown along by the breath of God is exciting, but also scary
- it means leaning on God for support and trusting that he will hold you up
- like wind-surfing, or sailing…
- e.g. ministering at St. Patrick’s in Bloemfontein
Opportunity
anointing for ministry to the least, the last and the lost; discerning and using spiritual gifts…
The Breath of God gives us awareness of sin and assurance of forgiveness– READ v23
TAKE A DEEP BREATH, HOLD YOUR BREATH, NOW BREATHE IN AGAIN…
Breathing in also requires breathing out
If we want to breathe in more of God’s power into our lives, we need to breathe out those things which are not pleasing to him –
- planting seeds requires pulling up weeds – I have been busy in the vegetable garden this week,… and the weeds keep coming back, and you need to hoe them while they are small, otherwise they are much harder to deal with
personal testimony…we need to keep short accounts with God, and to receive assurance of forgiveness often
Opportunity
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