The Sixth Sunday after Easter ---- 10 May 2015

Acts 10:44-48

44 While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. 45 The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles, 46 for they heard them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter said, 47 "Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" 48 So he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they invited him to stay for several days.

"Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?"

·      You all probably know that the book we call “the Acts of the Apostles” was written by the same writer as Gospel of Luke. Luke addresses both of the books to someone he calls “Theophilus.” Whether this is an actual person named Theophilus or a reference to anyone who is a “friend of God” (the meaning of the word, Theophilus) is unknown to us. It doesn’t really matter to us as far as today’s conversation goes.

·      The book is called The Acts of the Apostles, but we really hear of some of what Peter in particular did before the focus shifts to what Paul did. We hear almost nothing of what the other apostles did. Because of this, there are some who thing this book should be called “The Acts of Paul.”

·      I wonder if this book would be better titled “The Acts of the Holy Spirit.” This wouldn’t mean that the Spirit was limited to the events that Luke records. Nor would it mean that the work of the Holy Spirit was ended when Paul reached Rome. This alternate title would just give credit where credit is due.

·      In many ways, it comes down to this question: Who’s really in charge here? Did the apostles do all they did on their own? Or were they empowered by the continued presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives, their ministry, and their preaching?

·      In today’s reading from Acts, Peter is amazed and a bit shocked that the Spirit has come upon the people he has been talking to. He is amazed because the Spirit has fallen upon them before they were baptized. He is further amazed because the people present are not Jewish. He is in the house of a Roman centurion, Cornelius, a “God-fearer”, which means a Gentile who has come to follow the ways of the Jewish people even though he has not undergone what is required to become Jewish. Cornelius and all his household remained Gentiles.

·      Peter sees that the Spirit has come where he didn’t expect the Spirit to be and he is moved to baptize the entire household. Before this, Peter would not have ever even thought of associating himself with Gentiles. Only the children of Israel could become Christians. It took this experience and the vision that preceded it an earlier passage of the book, to convince Peter that the Spirit cannot be denied and must be obeyed.

·      The Spirit of God is really in charge here. Both Peter and Cornelius respond in their own ways, but it is the Spirit they respond to.

·      In our own era of the Church’s life, we don’t always see such great examples of the power of the Holy Spirit being revealed among and around us. Still the Spirit is present – a fact we can easily forget.

·      To be honest, the Spirit of God is still in charge, here and everywhere. And the Spirit continues to do the unexpected. Throughout the history of the Church, people in power and people who wish to be in power have tried to tame the Holy Spirit and limit both her work and her strength. (I say “her” because in the original languages of the Bible, Spirit is feminine.) Despite all that, the Spirit remains outside of the control of the leadership and the clergy, the councils of the Church and the congregational councils, just as the Spirit was beyond the control of the apostles and led them to do quite heroic things and unusual things.

·      We are present for an outpouring of the Spirit this very day. We have baptized Aria and have been present as the Spirit of God has come upon her, even as an infant.

·      We continue our long-time custom of baptizing infants and not just because it’s cute. We do it in response to the Spirit of God within the Church and within the members of the Church. This day was chosen for the baptism because a series of event all came together allowing all of us to be present today. We baptize infants in response and with trust in the grace of God. That grace is given to all the baptized no matter what their age or state. In a number of ways, the baptism of an infant or young child emphasizes the reality and the power of God’s grace in the sacrament of Baptism; It is God who choses us, long before any choices we might make.

·      As the book of Acts goes on, we hear of the presence of the Spirit in the preaching of Paul. We hear of his troubles and the persecution he endured. Eventually he reaches Rome, the centre of the Empire and of the known world at the time. It is the Holy Spirit that leads him on his journeys and it is the Spirit that gives him the words to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ.

·      The Spirit seems so powerful in the book of Acts, especially when compared to our own day. Could that be because the apostles expected more of the Spirit than we do? What might the Holy Spirit do here and now if we expected her to be present… and active? Maybe it’d be odd and maybe it’d be uncomfortable, but for sure, it’d be filled with grace.

·      I hope and pray we all find out.

While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles, for they heard them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter said, "Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?"