Hi Friend,

The nature of human beings has changed little since creation nearly 6,000 years ago. However, one internal and unseen change revolutionized the world. It transformed the nature of man.

We don’t know exactly when the decision was made, but the Prophet Joel wrote about it almost 800 years before it took place. What we do know is that nearly 2,000 years ago God performed a miracle that impacted the life of man on the earth in the most profound way. He made His Holy Spirit available to the common man. This simple but fundamental alteration in the last trimester of man’s existence on earth may be the most overlooked and undervalued gift ever given.

The Spirit given is the same that was used to heal the sick and even raise the dead. Imagine a person born with a deformity of body or mind suddenly healed—or a person blind from birth receiving sight. It defies the Laws of Nature. It is supernatural. The God who created nature demonstrated power over nature. Those who have learned to trust it are witnesses that spirit rules over matter.

It is more than a little significant that the Spirit was offered to the “common man.”  No longer was it reserved for Kings, Priests and Prophets. It became available to everyone, young or old—Jew or gentile—man or woman—common or slave—who would respond to the message.

I don’t know if it’s possible for those of us living in 21st century America to fully comprehend the magnitude of difference from what was to what is. Understand it or not, the word “demos” is the Greek word for common man from which we get the term “democracy” meaning that all men are equal before the law. Pentecost is a commemoration of a decision made in the 3rd Heaven to give, for the first time in history, the common man access to something formerly reserved to a select few. It was the democratization of the Holy Spirit. And the Spirit was given to the New Testament church on the same day the Law was given to Old Testament Israel.

As a community we celebrate birthdays, wedding anniversaries and national events. Even work is celebrated—by taking a day off work.  While all of these may be worthy of honor, it is far better to observe the day set aside by the Creator to celebrate the gift that changed the world—the day God gave His Spirit to mere mortals.

It is an irony that we who have been so blessed by the free exercise of the Spirit are so characterized by apathy—an absence of Spirit.

This week congregations around the world will gather to celebrate the event commemorating God’s great gift. If you want to understand more about this phenomenon, join us to celebrate and give thanks to God our Father for His generous love.

Until next time,

Jim O’Brien