by Fr. Bill Garrison
Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.
One of the things I do each week, early in the week, is send a little something about the scriptures for the coming Sunday to the Sunday school teachers to help them in their lesson planning. I looked at the scriptures for today and honestly none of them appealed to me as the subject for today’s sermon or the subject of Sunday school. And then I began to think about next Sunday, Pentecost, and the celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit. And I thought, what if we thought about the nature of the Holy Spirit?
We are familiar with the theological concept of God we call the Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We think a lot about God and Jesus Christ, but not so much about the Holy Spirit. I think many of us do not have terribly well-developed notions about the Spirit. So, I want to share some of my personal thoughts with you today on the subject.
But first here is a funny, one I don’t believe I have told in this forum for a few years. It’s about being an “advocate,” one of the names Jesus used to describe the Holy Spirit. And this little story is about a terrific advocate.
During a game of little league baseball, Coach Rogers called aside little Jimmy and asked him this question. “Tell me Jimmy, do you understand the words co-operation and teamwork?” Jimmy nodded in the affirmative.
The coach asked again. “Do you agree that what matters is whether we win or lose together as a team?” Jimmy nodded in agreement.
Coach Rogers continued, “Then I am sure you would agree that when a batter is called out on strikes, we shouldn't shout at or argue with the umpire, or call him names. Do you agree to that?” Little Jimmy nodded in the affirmative again.
Coach Rogers went on, “And when I take you out of the game so another player gets a chance to play too, it's not good sportsmanship to call your coach a moron or lunatic is it?” Jimmy shook his head “No.”
“Good”, said coach Rogers, “Now could you go over there and explain all that to your grandmother?”
Now one thing we don’t need to worry about is whose side the grandmother is on do we? I imagine Jimmy knew full well how much his grandmother loved and supported him.
As we begin our study of the Holy Spirit, it would be wise to recognize a couple of things. The Holy Spirit is just that, spirit. We cannot see the Holy Spirit. Just like the wind we can only see the impact of her actions. The wind moves the branches in the tree and blows away your hat invisibly. The Holy Spirit involves herself in our lives the same way.
And let me also explain to you my own most basic way of understanding the Holy Spirit. I see the Spirit as feminine. I am not alone in this viewpoint, but I respect your own viewpoint if you cannot see the Holy Spirit in this way. I do this because Wisdom in the Old Testament is presented as feminine and I see Wisdom and the Spirit as the same. I also see her in this way because it balances the books of the Trinity. Father, Son, and Spirit. But please, if this raises your hackles, I respect that. Think of her as you will. When I say she, referring to the Spirit, during the rest of our time on the subject today insert your own preferred word if you like.
So, let’s use some metaphors to describe and understand her. Jesus said “advocate.” We might think of attorney, but I think even more than that. The Holy Spirit is in our corner. Perhaps not like the young man we discussed a bit ago, but she is on our side. In fact, think about Jesus and how he had compassion for people and prayed to God on the behalf of people. He said the Holy Spirit was coming. He wasn’t going to leave the people as orphans. To me this means the Holy Spirit represents us to God, converses with God about us, just like Jesus did. The Holy Spirit cares about us and advocates on our behalf.
Photo by Daria Obymaha from Pexels
I think of the Holy Spirit as “Comforter,” a term Jesus also used. When things are hard, when we find ourselves in physical or psychic pain, the Holy Spirit is right there with us. That feeling of warmth that suddenly comes on us out of nowhere is her seeking to comfort us. Think back over your lifetime and I am sure you will find times when during the worst of times suddenly you unexpectedly felt better, comforted.
I also think of the Holy Spirit as friend, a companion if you will. We are never alone. This is one of the things I tell folks before a baptism. We receive the Holy Spirit and no matter what happens in our lives, no matter how alone we might feel, we are never by ourselves. Being aware of our companion, the Holy Spirit, makes all the difference, every day, but especially when we need a friend.
Another way I experience the Holy Spirit is as a playmate. When times are great the Holy Spirit celebrates with us. When we are happy the Holy Spirit shares in our happiness. When we are experiencing joy in our lives the Holy Spirit is joyful with and for us. It’s like being out having a great time with your best friend, which in essence you are.
And this is going to sound a little weird, but I experience the Holy Spirit as the first search engine. Think Google. There is nothing in all the cosmos that God does not know. The creator knows everything. I mean literally everything. So, when we have decisions to make, or are trying to understand an issue, the Holy Spirit, if allowed, will lead us to the truth. It may not be the truth we expected, but we almost immediately get a glimmering of the reality of a situation the moment we ask for help for help from her.
I am sure we could come up with many more metaphors for the Holy Spirit if we sat down and began to list them. A couple of times I have led groups who were attempting to describe the attributes of Jesus. We came up with over one hundred key terms on each occasion. I have no doubt the Holy Spirit would lead us down the same path if we went there and we would list just as many. She is after all the third part of the Trinity, that impossibly difficult concept of God. Martin Luther said that attempting to understand the Trinity could make a person insane. So, I think it is enough just to say that She is God, is one third of the Godhead, and leave it at that.
So here is our invitation today as we get ready for Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit. Think about her. What does she mean to you? Do you know her as your advocate, your companion, and your friend? Do you feel that your relationship with her could be enlarged? Would that be a good thing? Would you like to know her better? Some things to ponder – relax and enjoy the possibilities.