|
Beyond history
|
It is fascinating to me how many
parallels we find between the Old and New Testaments. In the book Sitting at the Rabbi Jesus, authors Ann Spangler and Lois Tverberg
point a few of these out:
“…the rabbis noted that the
Israelites reached Mount Sinai fifty days after they left Egypt…On Sinai, God
had given his people the covenant of the Torah meaning “law” or
“instruction”. On Pentecost he gave his
Spirit to seal a new covenant of the forgiveness of sin. Like the Torah, the Spirit reveals God’s
truth, instructs us, and convicts us of sin.”
“Many centuries before, on
Passover, God had redeemed
Them
from Egypt. Fifty days after their
departure, God enacted his covenant on Mount Sinai to form Israel into a
nation. The death and resurrection of
Christ on Passover brought redemption to all who believe in him. And fifty days later, God poured out his
Spirit to seal a new covenant for the forgiveness of sins. Believers were commissioned to make disciples
of all nations and empowered by the same Spirit who spoke through the prophets
of long ago. Just as Passover and
Firstfruits illuminated the meaning of Jesus’ death and resurrection, Shavout
[Hebrew for Pentecost], communicated what God was accomplishing on the birthday
of the church.”
Though these parallels
are fascinating, the significance goes beyond history: What does the gift of the Holy Spirit mean to
us in our own lives? It is apparent that
in the first century it was much more than speaking in tongues and it went far
beyond any exclusive group. It overcame
barriers of communication, barriers of physical differences and disabilities,
barriers of socio-economic status. The
Spirit of God set the believers free from their own sin of self-preservation,
and shifted their focus toward generous expression of God’s love.
Is
your church emphasis on spiritual gifts?
Evangelism? Caring for the poor?
The early church embraced all three.
Consider how you can be a part of an early church type of holistic
approach where the Spirit of God overcomes a wide variety of barriers.
Read and Pray: 1 Corinthians 12,
Isaiah 61:1-3
No comments:
Post a Comment