What is Forgiveness? | A Sermon on Matthew 8:21-35

Introduction

You know, I like to plan ahead on my messages. If you read David's article in the newsletter, he shared how I usually plan months ahead for what I’m going to preach on each Sunday. That way, he can plan the songs to go along with it. But every now and then, the Lord just grabs me and says, "I need you to change what you were planning." That’s what He did today, based on the Bible study we had on Thursday. We were talking about forgiveness, and the Lord said, "You need to preach on forgiveness today." And so, that’s what we’re going to do.

Forgiveness is a key, central theme in the Christian faith. It’s not optional. It’s one of those core things. It’s as central to our faith as the cross we adorn our churches with and often wear as necklaces. In fact, the cross should remind us every time we look at it that forgiveness is central to our faith.

Unfortunately, because it is so central—and because we talk about it so often—I think most people, even longtime, faithful Christians, often misunderstand what forgiveness truly is. So today, the Holy Spirit is urging me to preach on forgiveness. And I ask ahead of time for your forgiveness if this message goes a little long. This is what the Lord has given me to say, and we’ll also celebrate Holy Communion afterward.

Matthew 18:21-35
²¹ Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone^[a] who sins against me? Seven times?”

²² “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!^[b]

²³ “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. ²⁴ In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars.^[c] 25 He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.

²⁶ “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ ²⁷ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

²⁸ “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars.^[d] He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

²⁹ “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. ³⁰ But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.

³¹ “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. ³² Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. ³³ Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.

³⁵ “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters^[e] from your heart.”

The Meaning of Christ’s Parable
Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive. Rabbis taught three times. Peter thought he was being generous by suggesting seven. Jesus responded with seventy-seven or seventy times seven—meaning endlessly.

In the parable, Jesus was teaching about us and God. We are the servants who cannot repay our debt to God. Yet God forgives us completely. And He calls us to do the same for others.

Whenever I’ve preached on this topic over the past 25 years, it gets the most feedback and the most resistance. People struggle with it deeply. They ask, "You mean to tell me I have to forgive my ex-wife? My abusive father? The person who assaulted me?"

I understand. It’s a hard word. But it’s a true word. And it’s central to our faith.

What is Forgiveness?

True forgiveness is releasing resentment and the desire for revenge. It’s choosing to offer grace and let go of the offense.

Here’s the key point: Forgiveness is something you do for your own benefit, not the person you’re forgiving.

People often get hung up here. They think forgiving someone is a gift to the offender. But it’s not. It’s a gift to yourself. It sets you free.

Jesus used a financial example to help us understand. Imagine someone owes you a trillion dollars. There’s no way they can repay it. You can hold onto the debt and let it eat you up, or you can release it. Forgiveness frees you.

Of course, most debts we carry aren’t financial. They are personal. Unfaithfulness. Betrayal. Violence. Abuse. Murder.

You may be wondering, "How could I ever forgive what was done to me?"

Remember, forgiveness doesn’t release the offender—it releases you. They cannot repay you. Nothing they do can restore what was lost. Holding onto the grudge only continues the pain.

Holding onto unforgiveness is like drinking poison every day and expecting it to kill the other person. It only poisons you.

Jesus offers the solution so you can heal: You must forgive.

 

Misunderstandings About Forgiveness

1. Forgiveness doesn’t mean the offender escapes justice. If someone commits a crime, justice must be served. Forgiveness doesn’t erase consequences. But vengeance belongs to the Lord (Deut. 32:35; Rom. 12:19).

2. Forgiveness doesn’t mean forgetting. The Bible never tells us to "forgive and forget." Only God says, "I will remember their sins no more" (Heb. 8:12). We may still need to remember for the sake of wisdom and protection.

3. Forgiveness doesn’t require an apology. You can forgive someone even if they never say they’re sorry. Forgiveness is what you do—it doesn’t depend on them.

4. Forgiveness isn’t the same as reconciliation. You don’t have to become friends with the person. Reconciliation requires more: repentance, apology, changed behavior, and a mutual desire to restore the relationship.

Reconciliation Requires
Much has to happen in order to truly reconcile and restore a relationship.  Such as:

1.     Repentance – The wrongdoer acknowledges the harm and turns from it.

2.     Confession – Honest admission of the wrongdoing.

3.     Forgiveness – The offended person releases bitterness and offers grace.

4.     Apology – A sincere expression of regret.

5.     Restitution (if possible) – Making things right where harm was done.

6.     Changed behavior – Evidence of growth or a desire not to repeat the offense.

7.     Mutual desire to restore the relationship – Both parties willing to move forward.

8.     Time and patience – Trust may need to be rebuilt gradually.

So, you can forgive someone—release your resentment and expectation of offender restoring you—without being reconciled and becoming best buds with your offender. 

Forgiveness is Hard

This isn’t just theory. Forgiveness is hard. I’ve lived it.

Many of you know I didn’t have a good father. He was abusive and abandoned our family. As a child, I hated him. Over time, I stopped hating him—but the Lord called me to do more. He said, "You must forgive him."

That process began when I was 20. My father died a few years ago. By God’s grace, I was able to forgive him and even reconcile to some degree. I preached at his funeral, by his invitation.

So when I say forgiveness is central to our faith, I speak from experience. It’s not optional. It’s real. It’s hard. But it’s necessary.

Every time we pray the Lord’s Prayer and say, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us," we’re engaging with this truth.

Every time we look at the cross, we’re reminded of how serious sin is—and how deep God’s forgiveness goes. Jesus was crucified for our sins. And as He hung on the cross, He said, "Father, forgive them."

Let us live in that forgiveness. And let us extend it to others.

 

"Following God" | A Sermon by Guest Speaker, Amy Harris

This week we have a guest blogger post.  Amy Harris shares her struggle with fear and uncertainty as she stepped into a new church role. Though she prayed for closed doors if it wasn’t God’s will, every door opened—including support from her husband. She reflects on Hebrews 11, James 1, and Isaiah 55, teaching that true faith means trusting God’s character and promises, even without full understanding. Growth requires stepping out of comfort zones, facing fear, and obeying despite uncertainty. She encourages the congregation not to miss God’s blessings by hesitating but to follow His leading with trust and confidence.

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Chris asked me several weeks ago to type something up for the newsletter about how excited I was for my new role at the church. Then, two weeks ago, he said, “Oh, can you preach on the 31st?” So, I figured—why type a few paragraphs when he’s given me twenty minutes in the pulpit and I can just talk and talk and talk?

If I’m being completely honest, I couldn’t write anything for the newsletter because “excited” was not the adjective that I was feeling. Stressed, frustrated, confused, unsure—those sounded more accurate, but probably not what he was hoping to accomplish with my brief article.

And if you’ve stopped by and asked me how things are going, I’m not one to sugarcoat things. If my words didn’t come across as my honest thoughts, my face surely did—I have no control over my facial expressions.

Now, let me stop here and make a statement: I’m not leaving my job. This isn’t my resignation sermon. If you only pay attention every now and then, or if I lose you after the first few minutes, you could walk away thinking I’m done. So, call it a spoiler alert—but that isn’t how this chapter ends. This isn’t even the true subject of today’s message; it’s simply my inspiration for it.

Called Into Something New

Have you ever felt called into something and you knew 100% it was meant to be? No reservations, just peace, excitement, and certainty? I have. I can remember multiple times when God gave me a beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt “yes.” Those are good, those are fun.

But this job opportunity was not that kind of experience for me. I had reservations. I was hesitant, uncertain, and full of questions. This new role meant big changes—my weekly schedule, my finances, my workload, and my commute (and yes, traffic on Cleveland Highway at 8:00 a.m. nearly drove me insane!).

I began praying very specific prayers: “Lord, if this is not Your will, close the door.” I prayed that before Chris even took the job description to the HR Committee. But the HR Committee approved it. Door one open.

Then the Finance Committee agreed the position was important and trusted God to provide funding. Door two open.

Finally, I thought my husband would close the door. He doesn’t like uncertain change any more than I do. But when I asked him, instead of “No,” he simply texted, “I think you should change.” God wasn’t closing doors—He was holding them wide open.

So why was I still questioning Him?

Faith Tested

I realized I trust God completely when things are out of my control. But when I do have a say—when choices affect my family, time, and finances—I hesitate.

Yet Hebrews 11:1 says: “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.”

Faith is more than believing God exists—it’s trusting His character and His promises. Even when we don’t see the outcome, we walk by faith. Hebrews 11 reminds us of people who died still believing God’s promises without seeing them fulfilled. Sometimes our faith isn’t even for our blessing—it’s for someone else’s.

Isaiah 55:8–9 says: “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways.”

A lack of understanding does not excuse a lack of obedience.

Growing Through Trials

James 1 says: “When troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.”

Faith is like a muscle—the more you use it, the stronger it gets. The more you obey God’s call, even when uncomfortable, the easier it becomes to live faithfully.

Fear is the number one barrier to following God. We want guarantees before we take the first step. But growth comes when we step forward without a guarantee—when we get comfortable being uncomfortable.

One month into this new role, I still don’t know exactly where God is leading. But I know this: He opened every door, and He has a plan.

Conclusion

I love Jesus. I love my church. You, my church family, are one of the most precious parts of my life. Your encouragement, kindness, and prayers mean more than I can say.

And because I listened to God’s voice, I get to be part of growing the ministries of Pleasant Grove Methodist in ways I never imagined. I don’t know what that will look like yet, but I know I won’t miss His blessings—because I said “yes.”

So I ask you:

• What areas of your life do you need to stop overthinking and start following God’s direction?

• Is He calling you out of your comfort zone?

• Is fear keeping you from His blessings?

Don’t miss what He has in store for you. Ask Him. Seek His guidance. Be still and listen. And remember—He will never call you anywhere He won’t also go with you.

Ephesus - Remember Your First Love | A Sermon on Revelation 2:1-7

Introduction
Well, it's good to be back with you, but I want to especially thank Sherry Dixon for speaking last Sunday. I got to listen to the message online, and it was a wonderful message—really good information—and she spoke with such clarity. I hope that it was helpful to you.

Thank you, Sherry, for taking the time to prepare and present that. If you missed her message, you should really go and check it out. She talks about the different kinds of judgment found in Scripture. Even people who have been studying the Bible for a long time don't always have clarity about what the Bible means when it talks about judgment.

There are different kinds of judgment, and they affect us in different ways depending on the context and our relationship with Christ. We need to know that. I encourage you to go on Facebook and find the message—it’s on the church page. You can read it, listen to it, or watch the video.

It goes along well with the series we started a couple of weeks ago on the Seven Churches of Revelation. (Remember, “Revelation” has no “s” at the end—it’s one Revelation.)

The book of Revelation was written by the Apostle John—the beloved apostle—while he was in exile on the island of Patmos. The Lord gave him a vision and told him to write it down and share it. Part of what he shared were seven letters to seven churches—churches full of persecuted Christians living in the first century. These were words meant to encourage them and to correct them when they were going astray.

Today we’ll read the first letter, written to the church in Ephesus. But before we read it, let’s review a few important symbols from Revelation so we understand what we’re reading.

Review Symbolism
First: The Seven Lampstands. In the vision, Jesus showed John seven golden lampstands. These represent the seven churches He was addressing—churches meant to shine God’s light in a dark world. Despite the persecution and evil happening all around them, they were called to burn brightly for Christ.

Second: The Son of Man walking among the lampstands. This figure represents Jesus Himself. He is not far off—He is walking among His people, among His churches.

And remember, “church” here doesn’t mean a building. These first-century churches often didn’t even have a building. The church is the people—the body of believers. If something happened and this building we’re in were washed away, God forbid, we would still be the church.

Third: The Seven Stars. These are held in Jesus' right hand and represent the “angels” of the churches—likely meaning the pastors or spiritual leaders. Jesus holds these leaders in His hand, meaning He protects, shelters, and guides them.

Revelation 2:1-7
¹ “To the angel^[a] of the church in Ephesus write:  [I think the angel in this case, is the leader(s)]

These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. ² I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. ³ You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

⁴ Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. ⁵ Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. ⁶ But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

⁷ Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

The City of Ephesus
Ephesus was a major port city in what is today modern-day Turkey—one of the largest and most influential cities in the Roman Empire. It was a commercial hub, wealthy, and bustling with trade. It was also home to the Temple of Artemis, which was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

But Ephesus was also a city full of idol worship, immorality, and spiritual darkness. Yet in that same city, there was a strong Christian presence.

Paul the Apostle planted the church in Ephesus and stayed there for two years, shepherding and teaching the new believers. Later, Timothy—Paul’s young protégé—served as pastor of that church. Paul wrote two New Testament letters to Timothy while he was there.

According to tradition, the Apostle John—the same John who received and recorded the Revelation—also lived in Ephesus. Remember, John was the disciple to whom Jesus entrusted the care of His mother, Mary. Many believe John cared for Mary in Ephesus until he was exiled to Patmos. Some traditions even say Mary died there.

So this letter is written to a spiritually rich and well-established church, but also a church surrounded by intense pressure and cultural compromise.

Jesus Commends Ephesus
Jesus praises the believers in Ephesus for several things:

1. Hard work and perseverance – They stayed faithful even under persecution.

2. Rejecting wickedness and false teachers – They held tightly to truth and doctrine.

3. Enduring hardship for Christ – They didn’t give up when things got difficult.

4. Hating the practices of the Nicolaitans – A group who claimed to be Christian but lived immorally.

The Nicolaitans were known for:

• Sexual immorality

• Eating food sacrificed to idols

• Blending Christianity with the surrounding pagan culture

• Using God’s grace as an excuse to sin

They wanted to enjoy the prosperity of the city while still calling themselves followers of Christ. Jesus says, “You hate their practices—which I also hate.”

And let’s be clear: Jesus doesn’t say He hates the people. He hates their practices. There’s a big difference. As followers of Christ, we don’t hate people. We may hate sin, but we love the sinner—because that’s how Jesus treated us.

Jesus Corrects Ephesus
Jesus then offers a strong correction:  “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.”

What was that first love?

• Joyful, wholehearted devotion to Christ

• A personal relationship—not just head knowledge or doctrine

• Love that overflowed in worship, witness, and daily life

Jesus is saying, “You’re doing all the right things, but your heart’s not in it anymore.”

And that happens sometimes, doesn’t it?

Maybe you remember a time in your walk with Christ when your heart burned for Him—when worship was your favorite part of the week. When prayer felt natural, like talking to your best friend. When telling others about Jesus wasn’t a duty—it just came out of your life because He was changing you.

But now… maybe it’s different. Maybe it’s become routine. Maybe your faith has gotten cold. Maybe your love for Jesus has faded.

If that’s you, Jesus says: “Remember. Repent. Return.”

The Seriousness of Their Sin
Jesus says in verse 5:

“Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”

What does it mean to “remove your lampstand”?

It doesn’t mean they would lose their salvation. It means their church would lose its place as a light-bearing witness for Christ. It would:

• Cease to exist in its God-given role

• Lose its influence and spiritual power

• Continue in form, but without the presence and blessing of Christ

This still happens today. Some churches keep going long after the Holy Spirit has left the building. They may hold services, sing songs, and do ministry—but there’s no fire, no light, no love. They’re still a church in name, but not in Spirit.

Jesus is saying, “If you don’t return to love, I will no longer recognize you as My church.”

Our American Context
As we celebrate freedom this Fourth of July weekend, we’re reminded of how richly blessed we are to live in a prosperous and free nation. But prosperity comes with its own challenges.

The Ephesian Christians faced hostility and persecution. We, in America, face the temptation of comfort and compromise. Just like the Nicolaitans, there’s a danger that we’ll try to blend in—watering down our convictions for the sake of being accepted or enjoying worldly benefits.

But Jesus calls us to something higher.

The Takeaway
Jesus won’t let a church shine for Him if it doesn’t love like Him.

It’s not enough to be doctrinally right, or to have a full calendar of ministry activities. Jesus wants your heart. He wants you to love Him like you did at first—or even more.

If your faith has grown cold…

If you’ve gotten too good at guarding the gates and forgotten how to open your heart…

If you’re just going through the motions…

Then hear His voice today:

“Remember the love you had at first.
Repent, and return.”

Invitation to Communion
As we come to the Lord’s Table, we remember the greatest act of love the world has ever known:

Jesus giving Himself for us.

And maybe—just maybe—this table is your invitation to come back to your first love.

Come not out of routine, but out of repentance.
Come not because you’ve got it all figured out, but because you are deeply loved.
Come because the One who walks among the lampstands is here now—walking among us.

As you kneel at this altar, it may be that the risen Christ is kneeling beside you, placing His hand on your shoulder, and whispering,

“Welcome back. I’ve missed you. Let’s walk together again.”

The Holy Sprit Story | A Pentecost Sermon on Acts 2:1-8

Introduction
Today is Pentecost Sunday. Last Sunday was Ascension Sunday. Today is Pentecost Sunday. Pentecost literally means “fiftieth” in Greek. That’s where the name comes from. It is the 50th day after Passover. If you're Jewish, you would reckon it from the Passover. For Christians, it is the 50th day after Easter. So we reckon it from Easter. Easter and Passover fall in the same time, but it is the 50th day.

Timeline:
Easter Sunday—you know Jesus rose from the grave—and He appeared to His disciples. Then, over the course of 40 days, Jesus appeared many different times in many different ways to many different people. We have looked at several of the stories of the resurrection over the last several weeks since Easter. For 40 days, Jesus appeared in resurrected form to people. Then He ascended into Heaven, and 10 days after He ascended into Heaven was Pentecost Sunday—the Pentecost Sunday that we are remembering today.

What is Pentecost?
What is Pentecost? It was originally the Jewish holiday that celebrated the giving of the Law of Moses to the people of Israel at Mount Sinai. Remember that? Way back in Exodus, as the Israelites—slaves—left from Egypt, they were wandering through the desert and went up to the mountain, Mount Sinai. Moses went up on top of the mountain, and like it shows in the movie with Charlton Heston, God gave them the two tablets of the Ten Commandments, right? He brought the Law down—it was the Ten Commandments, but it was also all the Law that is in the book of Moses, or the books of Moses—so that the people of Israel would know how to live as God’s people.

Every year, the Israelites wanted to remember that special moment, and they celebrated Pentecost with a feast 50 days after the Passover. Now it’s important to keep that purpose of Pentecost in your mind. What was the purpose? To remember that God gave the Israelites—what? The Law. Okay, good.

It is also known as the Feast of Weeks, because they saw it as a week of weeks. A week of weeks—how many days are in a week? Seven. So they thought, well, let’s say seven weeks of seven days. Here’s a little math—you didn’t know you were going to do math when you came to church today! Seven times seven is what? Forty-nine. Very good. You know your times tables still, even after all these years. Seven times seven is 49. Then, after the 49 days—the week of weeks has been observed—on the 50th day you have the Pentecost feast. And what does Pentecost mean? Fiftieth, right! So on the 50th day, they celebrate it.

So we’re going to read the story of what happened to the disciples on the celebration of Pentecost—50 days after the Passover, 50 days after Jesus rose from the grave. It comes from

Acts 2:1-8
¹ On the day of Pentecost^[a] all the believers were meeting together in one place. ² Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. ³ Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. ⁴ And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages,^[b] as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

⁵ At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. ⁶ When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.

⁷ They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, ⁸ and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages!

A Moment Rich with Symbolism – God Wrote His Law on Christian’s Hearts
Pentecost, also known as the Feast of Weeks or the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, celebrated the day that God gave Moses the Law in order for them to live as God's people. To represent God to the whole world, they had to know how to live. So God gave them all of these different rules and regulations and ceremonial laws so that they would stand out among the nations as holy and different from everyone else, so that they could show the world who God was. They celebrated that every year.

But of course, if we’ve ever read much of the Bible or known many Bible stories, we know the problem was that the Israelites were constantly not following God’s Law, right? And it could be because they forgot the Law. There were many times that they forgot the Law. There are a couple different times I read in the Scriptures where it says they discovered the book of the Law—it was hidden. It was kind of like the Bibles that we sometimes stick on a shelf and don’t ever read and forget about.

They forgot about it, and then they found it, and they would read it and say, “Oh my goodness, we’ve not been doing these things.” Sometimes it was because they forgot. Sometimes it was because they were rebellious people and they didn’t want to do what God told them to do. They wanted to do things their own way. Anybody ever felt like that? We all do from time to time.

So, in the Scriptures it was often looked forward to—it was a vision and prophesied—that one day there was going to be a change. For instance, in Jeremiah 31:33, the prophet Jeremiah prophesied:

“This is the covenant that I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.”

This is talking about a future time that’s coming when the Law is not going to be written on stone tablets like we see in the movie The Ten Commandments, and it's not even necessarily going to be written in a book like we have in our Bibles. It’s going to be written on our hearts and put in our minds.

Jeremiah says this is the way it’s going to be in the new covenant: “I’m going to put my law in their hearts and in their minds.” So, on the day of Pentecost, as they are celebrating the giving of the Law, something amazing happens. God sends the Holy Spirit—His own Holy Spirit—to come and dwell in believers’ hearts. So the Law of God is now inside those who believe in Jesus Christ and seek to follow Him.

That can mean a lot of different things, but one thing it means is this: now it’s not just that we have to go to a book to see what God has said. God Himself is living inside us. We have Him right there with us all the time—everywhere you go, everything you do, no matter what time of day it is—God is inside you.

And the Holy Spirit is telling you, “Look, you know you ought not be doing that.” You feel it. There’s a conscience inside you that’s saying, “Oh, I shouldn’t do that.” If you’re listening, it will guide you.

Another thing that it’s saying is that the Law of God is not just something written externally that you follow because you’re supposed to be obedient. Now, it’s something that’s in your heart. It’s something that you actually want to do. As you recognize how much God has loved you and what Jesus Christ has done for you on the cross, when you begin to really feel that in your heart—know that in your heart—it’s not just that you are obeying the rules because you’re supposed to. Now you are obeying the rules because you want to honor God. You want to show Him that you love Him. You want to do what makes Him happy. So you actually now begin to have your heart transformed into something that’s not rebellious but wants to be obedient. As the Holy Spirit writes the Word on your heart, it begins to change.

This all happened at Pentecost in the second chapter of Acts, as they were remembering the first time God gave them the Law. It’s a moment that is rich with symbolism.

A Moment Rich with Symbolism – Christian’s Became God’s Temple
First of all, we see how Christians became the new temple—the new tabernacle. Think about this. In the story, it tells us that there was the sound of what? A mighty rushing wind. The word that it uses—the Greek word—is pneuma. The Hebrew word is ruach. It means—it’s hard to translate it into English directly—but it basically means the Spirit/Breath of God.

We see this throughout the Scriptures. Go all the way back to the beginning of your Bible, Genesis 1:2. In Greek, it says pneuma. In Hebrew, it says ruach. It is the Spirit/Breath of God that is hovering over the waters at creation. And then what happens? God speaks. And when you speak, what happens? Your breath comes through your vocal cords and makes sound. The Spirit/Breath of God speaks and says, “Let there be light. Let there be stars in the sky and a moon and a sun. Let there be land and let there be water.” So the Spirit speaks, and these things come into existence.

Then, in the second chapter of Genesis, God forms Adam from the dust of the ground, and then it says that He breathed into his nostrils and brought him to life. The Spirit/Breath of God comes into Adam and brings him to life.

Another example is the story in Ezekiel 37—a wonderful story. Ezekiel the prophet is walking along—maybe he's on a hike—and he comes across a valley that is filled with dry bones. Imagine that. Have you ever been walking in the woods and seen some old bones on the ground? Like an old deer that died or a squirrel or something, and the bones have been there and rotted away. But he sees a whole valley full of bones, and these are not animal bones. These are the bones of an army that was slaughtered and left in the field, and now it’s just dried, bleached bones.

And God says to Ezekiel, “Son of man, can these bones live again?” Ezekiel’s smart—he’s not going to say. He just simply says, “Well, You’re God. You’re the one that knows.” And God tells Ezekiel, “Speak the Spirit/Breath into the bones and they will come alive.” And he speaks, and the bones stand up, and flesh comes back on the bones, and they become living people once again.

And God says to Ezekiel, “This is what I’m telling you. This is a vision. You spoke the message as He commanded you, and breath came into the bodies, and they all came to life as a great army.” Then God said to me, “Son of man, these bones represent the people of Israel.”

So as the Spirit of God comes along to these dead, dry bones, He says, “This is what My people are like. They’re like dead, dry bones with no life in them.” At that time, the tribes of Israel had been scattered and dispersed. There was no hope to bring them back together. And God says, “But I am going to bring My people Israel back together with the Spirit/Breath of God.”

Now, at Pentecost, the Spirit/Breath of God dwells inside every follower of Jesus Christ. And this is represented in the Scripture we read today by tongues of fire that come to rest upon the heads of every Christian that’s gathered there in the room with the disciples.

This also is rich with meaning, looking back through the Old Testament. You go back to the time when the Israelites were going through the desert and they had a tabernacle tent where they would worship God. It says that by day, a pillar of cloud would rest on the tabernacle. And at night, the pillar of cloud would glow red with fire, representing the presence of God that was dwelling in the tabernacle.

It says whenever the cloud or the pillar of fire would move off of the tabernacle, that was the sign to the Israelites: it’s time to move. God is moving. So they would pack up the tabernacle tent and they would hit the road, and they would follow God wherever He was leading them.

That was what happened in the Old Testament. But here, in Pentecost in the New Testament, the pillar of fire is now resting over—what? Is it resting over a tent? No. It’s resting over the people who believe in Jesus Christ and are following Him.

The tabernacle was a portable temple where God dwelt among His people. But in the New Testament, we are the tent. We’re the tabernacle. Those of us who believe in Jesus Christ—because of Pentecost, Christians have become the new temple of God. We are the people of God. We are those dry bones that were out in the field, dead and lifeless, but we have been brought back to life to fulfill the purposes that God gave His people.

The Believers Spoke
Acts 2:4 says, “Everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.”

Now, a lot has been said about speaking in tongues. Of course, we often look to our Pentecostal brothers and sisters because they like to speak in tongues in their services. And if you’ve ever heard it, it can be either an amazing, awesome thing—or a really freaky thing if you’re not used to it.

But I want to point out that in this instance in Acts 2, they are not speaking gibberish. They’re not speaking some unknown language or even an angelic language. These were real languages that people spoke on earth—the languages of all the different ethnic groups that were gathered in Jerusalem at that time from around the world.

If you read farther down in the chapter, it tells you about the different nations represented—Parthians, Medes, Greeks, Egyptians, Romans, and more. These Galileans, who didn’t know how to speak those languages, were suddenly, supernaturally enabled to talk in them—languages they had never learned before.

Why? It was to fulfill God’s original intent for Israel. The original purpose for God’s people was to be a light to the Gentiles—to represent God to the whole world—to help the whole world come to know God and follow Him.

We can see that purpose spelled out throughout the Old Testament. God always intended for Israel to be a witness to the nations—a beacon of light pointing the world to the one true God. This calling is fulfilled and expanded in Jesus and in the Church’s mission to make disciples of all nations.

They Spoke First
And I want you to notice something else important, too. The believers started speaking in tongues before there was anybody there to hear them. They were all Galileans in the room, and all of a sudden, they started talking in other languages—each one speaking a different language.

They started speaking in tongues in verse 4, but the outsiders didn’t come to hear them until verse 6. There was nobody else there—it was all believers, all disciples. Everyone else was outside doing their own thing.

Why did they come running? It says, “When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.”

So imagine all the people milling around. It’s like if we’re here gathered in the church building, and there are people out there going to Ace Hardware, trying to beat the Baptists to lunch. All of a sudden, they hear something happening inside our church—a mighty rushing wind—and a bunch of people start talking. They can't quite make it out, but they know something amazing is happening. And they come running to see, “What are those disciples doing? What’s going on in there?”

When they get there, that’s when they hear the believers speaking in their own languages.

The Spirit gave them the gift to speak in other languages. The believers responded to the Spirit. They obeyed. And the noise drew the crowd.

There’s a quote I love, attributed to John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement. He said something like this: “If you will light the church on fire with the Holy Spirit, the whole world will come to watch it burn.”

Have you ever seen a house catch on fire? If you see something like that—a car on fire, a house on fire—everybody comes to see it. It’s usually a bad thing, a destructive thing. But fire can be a good thing too.

When the church is filled with Holy Spirit fire—when we catch fire with the Spirit and we start doing the amazing things God calls us to do—people want to see it. They start coming to see why.

Why is that important for us today?

We don’t need to wait for the crowds to show up. We don’t need to wait for more children to come. We don’t need to wait for something else to happen.

The Holy Spirit of God—who created the stars in heaven, the mountains around us, and filled the oceans with water—lives inside us and enables us to worship and witness boldly.

So let the Spirit speak through you. Don’t wait for something else. Go ahead and be obedient. Be filled with the Spirit’s power. Use the gifts that He gives you. Worship boldly. Witness boldly. Live for Jesus boldly.

Live out loud. Speak the truth. And it will draw the crowd that needs to come and hear it.

We often want to wait for the “right time,” but Pentecost calls us to be the spark—the spark that gets things started. The Holy Spirit works through bold obedience before the results are visible.

Conclusion: Be the Spark
The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost changed everything. God no longer dwells in a temple made by human hands. He dwells in His people.

His people—the Church—now includes all nations, not just Israel. And His law is no longer just carved in stone but is written on our hearts.

But don’t miss what happened first: the believers didn’t wait for the crowds to gather before they spoke. They simply obeyed. They opened their mouths. They spoke as the Spirit gave them the ability.

And then the crowds came running.

So I ask you: what would happen if you did the same?

What if we worshiped boldly—even if we looked around and noticed some people were missing?

What if we served generously—even before we knew exactly what was needed or how it would all work out?

What if we shared the gospel—even if we weren’t sure anyone was listening?

But we decided we would live the way Christ called us to live. And we would speak out and be bold.

The fire falls before people respond.

So don’t wait.

Don’t hold back.

Be the spark that ignites those around you.

Live out loud.

Speak the truth.

And watch how the Spirit draws people—people who need to hear the good news, who need to be part of the love that God has for us, who need to find the reconciliation with God and with one another that comes through Jesus Christ.

The Ascension Story | A Sermon on Acts 1:6-11

Introduction
For six Sundays since Easter, we’ve been exploring powerful stories of the risen Jesus—appearing to His followers, proving He was alive, and changing lives forever.

We serve a risen Savior. Death could not defeat Him!  Today, we turn to the final moment Jesus appeared to His disciples before ascending into heaven.  It’s a pivotal scene—a farewell, a promise, and a mission—all in one.  Our Scripture comes from Acts 1:6–11.

Acts 1:6-11
⁶ So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”

⁷ He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

⁹ After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. ¹⁰ As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. ¹¹ “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”

The Disciples Question
The question the disciples asked amounts to this: “Lord, when are You going to fix everything?”

It’s such a revealing question. After all they’d seen—Jesus’ teachings, His death, and His resurrection—the disciples were still holding onto their old expectations.  They were still hoping Jesus would throw off Roman rule and restore Israel’s independence.  In other words, “Is now the time You’re going to fix everything for us?”

We can relate to that, can’t we? We often want God to step in and take care of everything—
to fix our problems, change our circumstances, and do it now.

The disciples weren’t wrong to hope, but their vision was far too small.
They wanted national restoration. Jesus was about to launch a global mission.
They were focused on their country. Jesus was thinking of every tribe, tongue, and nation.
They wanted comfort and control. Jesus offered power and purpose.

How often do our prayers sound like their question?  “Lord, when will You finally fix this situation?”
“When will You restore my idea of how things should be?”

Jesus doesn’t rebuke our questions, but He gently lifts our eyes to something far greater than we can imagine.

Jesus’ Response
Jesus doesn’t answer the disciples the way they expect.  He doesn’t give them a timeline.  He doesn’t lay out a political plan. He tells them two key things:

First, “It’s not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set.” In other words—“You don’t need to know the schedule. That’s the Father’s business.”  How often do we want God to give us the when and how?  But Jesus shifts their focus from timing to trusting.

Second, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you…”  This is the true gift—not power to take control, but power to share the Good News.

And here comes the surprising part.  Jesus said:  
“You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”  This is bigger than national renewal. It’s a worldwide revolution of grace and truth.

And let me ask you—have you ever thought about this?
If the disciples had clung to their small vision—if they had kept the Gospel only for Israel—you wouldn’t be sitting here today.  There would be no Pleasant Grove Methodist Church.  No Christian faith in America.  No Bible on your nightstand.  And more importantly—no forgiveness of your sins, no hope beyond the grave, no peace that passes understanding.  Every blessing you know in Christ is possible because those first followers let go of their narrow view and embraced God’s global mission.

In His response, Jesus is also saying:  “Don’t wait around for Me to do the work you’ve been called to do.  I’m sending you.  But I’m also equipping you—with Holy Spirit power—to fulfill your purpose.”

It’s not a small story about Israel anymore.  It’s God’s mission for the world.  And the Disciples—and everyone who calls Jesus Lord—is part of the mission. 
And that means you.

The Ascension
On the Christian calendar, today is known as Ascension Sunday—the day we remember that Jesus ascended back into heaven.  But that raises a question: Why did He leave? Why not just stay on earth?

First, because He belongs on Heaven’s throne.  After conquering sin and death, Jesus takes His rightful place as King—not just of Israel, but of all creation.

Second, Jesus left for our good. In John 16:7, Jesus said, “It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go, the Advocate [the Holy Spirit] will not come to you.”  You see, Jesus’ resurrected body is still a physical body.  Glorious and perfect, yes—but still bound by time and space like ours like all physical bodies.  That means Jesus, in bodily form, could only be in one place at one time.

But the Holy Spirit is not limited that way. The Spirit can be with me in the hospital room, with you in the middle of a stressful workday, with a mother protecting her children in Gaza, with a world leader making a critical decision, and with a high school student taking their final exams—all at the same time.

The Holy Spirit makes the presence of Jesus available everywhere, to everyone who trusts Him.
So yes—it was good that Jesus ascended to Heaven to sit on His throne so we could receive the Holy Spirit.

Finally, by ascending, Jesus passed the baton to us.  If He had stayed on earth, we might still be sitting around waiting for Him to do the work.  But instead, He gave that work to us.  We are now His hands and feet in the world.

The Promised Return
I wonder how long the disciples stood there, mouths open, eyes on the sky.  After seeing such an incredible thing, I probably would have stood there a long time.  I think that’s why two angels appeared—to snap the disciples out of their wonder.  They asked, “Why are you staring into heaven?”

In other words—don’t just stand there!  Jesus has gone, but now you’ve got a mission.  There’s work to be done, lives to be changed, Good News to share. Get going!

But the angels also offered reassurance:  “This same Jesus who saw going up to heaven will come back in the same way you saw Him go.”  So don’t lose heart.  Jesus reigns.  The Spirit empowers.  And one day, our King will return.  But until then—let’s get to work.

Holy Communion
But before we go out to serve, let us pause to remember and be empowered.  At the table of Holy Communion, we remember His sacrifice, we receive His grace, and we are nourished by His presence.  The Risen, Ascended Christ is still with us through the Holy Spirit. Come to the table, not because you have it all together, but because Jesus invites you—to be forgiven, to be filled, and to be sent.