A New Pentecost, a New Future
“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up the other… and though one might prevail against another, two will withstand one. A threefold cord is not easily broken.” - Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, 12
The passage from Ecclesiastes (see above) came up at the recent gathering of people in leadership roles from Riverview Park, Pilgrim, and Zion churches. We gathered for a soup supper on a Thursday evening in May to discuss something that’s been on the mind of a lot of people, I think… whether our three churches can discover a shared future together.
The person who quoted this passage was making a comment on how good it might be for our three congregations to be connected in some way. What that connection might look like is for all of us to discover together, but the general point is that we might be stronger together.
I’ve been thinking about this idea of the three churches coming together quite a bit, and it seems especially appropriate now,
because we’re coming up to the celebration of Pentecost on June 8. This day marks the end of the Easter season and celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit to the early followers of Jesus. On that day, we’ll hear again the story as it’s told in Acts 2, when all the disciples were gathered in the upper room and “were filled with the Holy Spirit.” (vs. 4)
Some people consider the coming of the Holy Spirit on that first Pentecost as the “birthday of the church.” When they were filled with the Spirit, those early followers of Jesus had no idea where they would be led, how other people would react to them, or what their community would look like in the years ahead. All they knew is that Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection had shown them the power of God’s love and justice, and their mission was to share that love and justice with all they met.
So, perhaps we are now at our own “Pentecost,” when the Holy Spirit is calling us to a new path in our mission to share God’s love and justice. We might not know yet where it will lead, but we can be confident that God will travel with us, that Jesus’ ministry and resurrection give us the example we need for that journey, and that the Holy Spirit will guide us.
In the coming months, we will consider a shared future between our three congregations, whether that be a once-a-year shared worship, some kind of consolidation between the three churches, or something in between. As we consider all this, the most important question is, “What form of church will best serve our mission of helping build the Reign of God?”
I continue to believe that the Holy Spirit is leading us to a future where all three of our churches are connected in some way. That connection may very well give us the best opportunity to serve our mission. As the passage from Ecclesiastes says, the mission of a three-strand cord can not be easily broken.
May God continue to bless and uphold us as we together enter into this new future, this new Pentecost, this new birthday of our churches.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Dan Robinson
