On the occasion of Whitsuntide

It is hard to verbalize what Whitsuntide’s celebration means for a believer.People talk about the descent of the Holy Spirit in churches,congregations and everywhere.They recall the event when the Spirit of Comforter descended to the apostles.

Whitsuntide is not about the apostles,it is not even a historic event or a single happening’s ideal.If it was,then we didn’t have any chance for salvation and we were doomed to fail from the first.Thank God this is not like this!

The disciples were next to Jesus,saw His miracles,heard His teaching's explanations and followed His earthly life’s final phases.They saw how sick recovered,dead rose from the dead,blind got back their sights and the elements were obedient to His word.Nevertheless the apostles were doubtful and betrayed Him because they didn’t understand Him.When He was crucified they were shaking with fear.

The thing that brought real change and new life for them was the Spirit of Comforter sent by Christ.They had experienced numerous miracles and fulfilled prophecies beside Jesus but their real certitude was the gift of the Holy Spirit.It tore off them the old-man’s doubting half-heartedness which characterizes the physical man.The Holy Spirit brought the spiritual man into being by awakening them by taking the scales off their eyes,by steeling them with the sense of truth and by filling up them with Christ’s peace.It was such a certitude that made them suitable for accomplishing their task.  

At this time Christ words got filled with real life for the apostles.His words became reality because they could feel its essence and truth in its depth and height.

“Easter is offering life,Whitsuntide is experiencing life.Easter is the offered life.Whitsuntide is the accomplished life.Whitsuntide alloys in one the man and his mission.That’s why its power is wonderful.”

In the light of this,let’s see what Whitsuntide’s celebration hides for us.

At first,we should understand the representations in connection with the Holy Spirit.

“All of them were fulfilled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” Acts 2.4

Paul clearly words in connection with the gifts of the Holy Spirit:

“I would like every one of you to speak on tongues,but I would rather have you prophesy.He who prophesies is greater than one who speaks in tongues,unless he interprets,so that the church may be edified.” 1Corinthians 14-5

Then why did the disciples speak on tongues? Should they have proclaimed to the people who crucified the (well in advance) redicted Messiah? Speaking on tongues before the multilingual people (when everybody could hear the apostles speech on their own languages) was a manifestation and a confirmation of their task for the future.In other words:

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28.19

For us Whitsuntide means the living Word,the reality of Christ,the can-be-experienced God-feeling and the fact that Jesus Christ is with us now and LIVES!

The saddest and most crucial is that today churches accept Christ’s life and death,proclaim His resurrection but leave out the most important fact the LIVING Christ.Universal love,which was brought by our Lord,can’t be symbolized better than the multilingualism of the audience.It is UNIVERSAL.The Holy Spirit didn’t bring the source of energy of the real life to group of people,to denominations or to privileged but to EVERYBODY.

The symbol of Whitsuntide is the God-faith on the path of experiencing and the sense of evidence supported with experiences.We can’t possess these with brain or knowledge.

“Now the Lord is the Spirit,and where the Spirit of the Lord is,there is freedom.” 2Corinthians 3.17

The Holy Spirit makes us free since our real life opens before us by pushing off our “dreamt” world’s created limits.How interesting that is,by watching communities which follow the Christian principles,the most terrifying act is to share out material possessions.

All of these came true after Whitsuntide,when they felt the life-giving Word in its reality and they saw that everything that is above the needs are excess and heaping of wealth.Why did the Holy Spirit appear in the form of fire for the disciples?Fire is the cleansing and wasting-power that brings renewal. (The symbol of fire and its regularity’s representation in the physical practise won’t be discussed here.)

The experiences experienced by the physical man in the Christian principles are the followings:mistreatments,detestations,difficulties,becoming the target of hate and wickedness.The “spirit of the Whitsuntide”‘s power is fulfilled in forgiveness and in returning love to evil.This power is unlimited.By practising this power,every negative power (plotted against its own power) dissolves in love after a while.

“Gentleness is the real power,

Gentleness makes you great.”

How can we get the gift of the Holy Spirit??We can get it by saying a prayer with faith and feelings and by feeling sincere desire to truth.God’s power reveals on the humble spirits and the living faith transforms the Spirit into fact by magic.

“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.One day as he was teaching,Pharisees and teachers of the law,who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem,were sitting there.And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick. “Luke 5.16-17

“By this he meant the Spirit,whom those who believed in him were later to receive.? ?Up to that time the Spirit had not been given,since Jesus had not yet been glorified.” John 7.39

While we don’t glorify Christ in ourselves we can’t have the Holy Spirit.This is the condition of having the Holy Spirit.A revolution must begin in my work! I have been praying for being helped in my work by God! Now I let Him to use me in His work.It is a huge difference!

Whitsuntide also confronts us with our faith’s creating ability so it serves God and showers us with His gifts.

Let’s think about the gifts of the Holy Spirit! Let’s knock down our own obstacles which separate us from the Holy Spirit.God’s place is in palpable closeness we mustn’t prevent ourselves from stepping in His peace’s land.

Whitsuntide is not an ecclesiastical celebration.It reminds us how graceful God is by bending deep down and showering us with love if I let it.

Be blessed our Heavenly Father! Your grace cannot be comprehended with human mind! Your love is endless and tolerates without distinction of persons.Please, help me my Lord to have your qualities characterize me as well because I want to be similar to You!

Amen.

                                                 Gábor Gédert