Trek Day Twenty-seven

a vision for the church
"I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and daughters shall prophecy …" -- from Joel 2:23-29

I am writing this on the same day I am writing my sermon for Pentecost Sunday. The above passage from Joel is assigned by the lectionary every Pentecost. This is the day we celebrate how God poured out the Holy Spirit, creating the Church. And the first thing the Church was asked to do was PREACH.

I am particularly challenged by today's Trek card. Nancy Brubaker writes:

Let us proclaim a vision for people of faith, inspired by the teachings of Jesus...

The vision she then paints is one of Christians the world over ALL living out the claims of the Year of Jubilee in scripture. The redistribution of wealth and land so that all have enough. The voluntary reduction of comfortable incomes so that those who have suffered in poverty are equalized with those who have suffered in affluenza.

Tax collectors come to find out why so many people no longer owe military taxes. Freed from the weight of their former possessions their souls are expanding and their spirits soaring! Compassion, peacemaking and joy are epidemic among them. The Holy Spirit is breaking through even such institutions as racism, class distinctions and patriarchy. Unchurched people are flocking to their fellowships, eager to share in the life of Christ. The creative power of God, the compassion and joy of the Holy Spirit, and the unconditional love of Jesus are pouring out upon people everywhere.

I remember how this vision of the Church captured me heart and soul when I first answered the call to Christian ministry -- when I first said yes to God who called me to be a preacher. I still claim this vision as the truth of the Gospel. Yet, I have found it hard to live it out. The pull of consumer culture is strong, and I feel like Paul, "the spirit is indeed willing, but the flesh is weak."

Questions for Today

How am I nurturing the movement of God's Spirit within me?

How do I gain my understanding of what God wants for the world?

What specific things do I think would immediately become noticeably different if all Christians everywhere willingly chose to live out the practices of the Year of Jubilee?