An Experience of Spirit

Last week I mailed a card to a member of our congregation. The note I wrote said something to this effect: There's a new spirit alive among us, thank you for your generous contribution to our mission and ministry.

As the celebration of Pentecost lies just over our shoulders, I'm puzzled by how I communicated my word of thanks. What did I have in mind? Frankly, as I wrote the note I struggled with whether or not to capitalize the "s" in spirit. I made a conscious decision not to do that.

I sat at my desk for several minutes staring at the page. I knew that the next word I wanted to write was "spirit." What I was unsure about was whether or not I wanted to make either a personal or a corporate claim for knowledge about the Holy Spirit's presence and activity.

What was going on here -confusion or cowardice? Those of you who've heard me preach can attest that I know how to sound bold when I want to. Those of you who've heard my fulminating know that I can communicate with a bravado that masks for certainty!

What was my claim? What is my claim? Was I citing evidence for an esprit de corps, or was I trying to testify to what I take to be evidence of the presence of the abiding Spirit of the loving God who seeks to be with us always?

Esprit de corps is no trivial thing. It can make grown men, like the Indiana Pacers, shave their heads to win basketball games. It can also impel someone to leap onto a hand grenade to save comrades in arms.

St. Paul says that no one can say Jesus is Lord unless by the prompting of the Spirit. Luther says, The Holy Spirit reveals and preaches that Word (Christ), and by it illumines and kindles hearts so that they grasp and accept it, cling to it and persevere in it.

Our tradition gives us lots of language, even personal language, by which to speak about God and to speak to God. Jesus taught us to say, Abba, Our Father. Doubting Thomas taught us to say, My Lord and My God.

But we don't have much language by which we make personal claims about the Holy Spirit. In fact, part of our experience makes us leery of those who speak as though the Holy Spirit were handy in their pockets, or otherwise hooked-in by some sort of pipeline to direct knowledge of God.

Perhaps the insight lies here. It's not we who claim the Holy Spirit. Rather, the Spirit of the Living God claims us.

In John's Gospel, especially chapters 15 and 16, Jesus tells the disciples that he will send the Paraclete. That is, one who "stands beside" to be their comforter, advocate and teacher. In his letter to the church at Rome, St. Paul says, For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a sprit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, "Abba! Father!" it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ -if in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.

This Spirit is neither a silent partner nor an idle sidekick. The Spirit is the presence of God with us and in us. The Spirit is the ongoing work of God to transform us into a continuing declaration of concrete Good News, in the face of particular bad news.

So in the choice of language I used in my note, I was right and I was wrong. It's difficult to claim the Spirit. But it's even more difficult to deny the signs of God's presence, nearness, and activity in a congregation of believers whose love for God and neighbor becomes increasingly evident day after day.

That I can claim. Your faith makes it so. Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.