Our last gathering at The House Coffee Sanctuary before our move to a location yet to be determined was so fitting because it took place on the traditional day of Pentecost. (We read these two pieces of scripture when we gathered Psalm 103:25-35; Acts 2:1-21.)
The radical indwelling of the Spirit of God onto the gathered scattered first church was a fitting connection of our own journey and formation as a church. We too are the scattered gathered. We too come together to worship, to celebrate, and most importantly,
to be reminded about who we are in Christ.
This echo is crucial to our formation both as a person and as a church (those two things are connected by the way). Without the consistency of returning to the Table our identity can be lost in the fray of life’s push and pull. We can be described by anything, yet choose to remind ourselves about our identity in Jesus.
That pursuit looks different (for the right reasons), and if you’re anything like me, you’re simultaneously really bad at it.
Following Jesus calls me to love radically–love that goes one step more when all else fails, and then one step more. It calls me to radical grace and forgiveness, it compels me to subvert the world around me to fight for injustice and hope. Radical giving, radical care for the poor, the widows, prostitutes, and the destitute.
I don’t triumph in any of these areas, but maybe I’m getting slightly better as the days go by. Thankfully God’s grace encounters me regardless of where I may be on this journey.
That grace encounters you as well, and it connects you with the most profound rescue story in history. There is a narrative that rests in the unfolding yet steadfast hope God has put in place for all of creation–a promise to restore and redeem the here and now.
The startling moment in this dream has to do with who can be a part of that. We all have what it takes, we get to play, and sometimes all we have to do is say, “yes” to the Spirit prompting us in the places we already exist.
We all hold a gift to be beautiful participants previewing God’s dream of love, justice, beauty, and hope.
Live it out.