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Almighty God, send Your Holy Spirit into our hearts for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Grace, Mercy and Peace be with you from God our Father and from Lord Jesus, the Christ.
Jesus has come to you and He will come to you, again. In the meantime, He has gone to His Father and sent the Holy Spirit, another Helper, to help you hear and believe all that Christ has said and done for you. Jesus is the point of Pentecost. The Spirit has been sent, so you can hear all that Jesus taught His Apostles and that includes hearing about the mighty works of God, especially the resurrection of His Son.
The problem with building a tower up to the heavens is that it will not do what the builders of the tower expect it to do. It can’t. It can’t ever. In Babel, they wanted their tower to keep them from being dispersed over the face of the whole earth. Above all, the builders in Babel wanted unity; they figured something remarkable, created by their hands could assure them of their hope for unity.
The pyramids of Giza in Egypt, and other architectural wonders of the ancient world prove great, enduring structures can be built, but not one of the them has worked to keep the builders from being dispersed over the face of the whole earth. None of their builders or their descendants managed to retain the knowledge of how they built those architectural wonders. Nations rise and even great nations fall. This is the way of things on this earth.
But the knowledge of Jesus dying on a cross and rising from the dead has been preserved, by the power of the Holy Spirit working through the Word of God He has brought to your remembrance through the inspired words of His prophets and apostles. The result of this knowledge is unity in Christ which comes through the Spirit. But sinners that we are, we keep inventing our own ways of poorly imitating this perfect union of God.
Nothing in this world unites people like a common challenge to achieve glory. Most people want other people to be impressed by who we are and what we do. To impress people, we typically have to accomplish great things. To accomplish great things, we can work ourselves to death and accomplish quite a bit independently, and even more, when united in capable effort and unified will.
The hope of safety and the pride of accomplishment through unity is always tempting. It’s reasonable; it makes a lot of practical sense. The desire to seek safety and accomplishment in unified human organization is evident throughout the world. Look at all the groups of people that include united in their group names. United Airlines, The United States, The United Kingdom, The United Nations, United Methodists, United Pentecostals, and the ironically named United Independent School District in Laredo. When soldiers must pass through a battlefield under fire, their commanders keep having to remind them to avoid bunching up. We tend to seek safety in numbers, but in a battle, larger groups simply make larger targets.
As we stand united in our geo-political social groups, our accomplishments build a name for ourselves. Our reputations grow. Our works bring us glory. That’s what the people were doing at the Tower of Babel. They were building an edifice that would make for themselves a name to turn all the heads of their neighbors toward them and give their neighbors reason to say good things about the builders. “Well, if God does send another flood, at least they’ll have this tower to keep them above the waters.” It would be their reason to boast in themselves and their accomplishment. If they could do this great thing, build this great structure reaching up to the sky, they would be able to claim a relationship with God, and protection from Him, no one else could.
But God has other plans. There’s only One Way to relate with Him. There’s only One Way to be protected from His wrath against sin. And God is the One Who provides That Way. He knows boasting in ourselves and our accomplishments is ultimately fruitless. It’s hopelessly flawed. Nothing we do, nothing we build, nothing we make in this world will last. Rust, rot, and moth reclaim everything that robbers don’t first break-in and steal. These bodies grow old, get sick, and expire. Fortunately, our hope does not rest in our accomplishments nor in our earthly treasures nor in the strength of our backs or sharpness of our minds. Our hope rests in Christ and what He has said and done for you. Only hope in Him and His resurrection will not disappoint. His resurrection proves His dominance over rot and robbers, sickness and death. “God raised Him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for Him to be held by it.” (Ac 2:24) Death could not restrain the Son of God, nor any who abide in Him. Death cannot restrain you nor any of the baptized who remain in Christ; the Lamb Who was slain lives; He will never again die.
But, before we rise with Him, He has sent from His Father to His disciples the Holy Spirit, another Helper. The Help He provides is the mindful remembrance of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Look at what St. Peter preaches when the Holy Spirit came to Him on the Day of Pentecost.
The Patriarch David “foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.” (Ac 2:31) The Holy Spirit was sent to inspire the Apostles of Jesus to keep proclaiming the truth of Christ crucified and resurrected from the dead. On the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was sent like He’d never been sent before. With a sound like a mighty rushing wind, He appeared as flames of fire. He inspired the Apostles to tell the mighty works of God so all people could hear in their own languages God’s mighty works. The Holy Spirit did not inspire the Apostles to speak of Himself; He inspired them to speak of God’s deliverance of His People and about how God kept His promise through Jesus Christ to deliver all people from the sure and certain death awaiting all men. “The promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.” (Acts 2:39)
Above all, the Day of Pentecost is about the Son of God resurrected from the dead. The Day of Pentecost is about proclaiming the message that the Son of God in human flesh is Risen. It’s about being united to Christ in His death and resurrection through His gift of Holy Baptism and the forgiveness of sins. It’s about being united with Him as you take and eat His Body and take and drink His Blood. This gift is the gift of the Holy Spirit of which St. Peter speaks. More than anything in all the universe, everyone needs this gift of the Holy Spirit.
Better than any architectural wonder of the world, more certain than death and taxes, through the words Jesus taught His Apostles and all the words of Jesus which The Holy Spirit brought to their remembrance, generation after generation since have heard and believed what God says about His Kingdom-that-is-not-of-this-world and because we have been caused to believe, we will go to where Jesus and His Father reign for all eternity. These holy words, which they have recorded for us, preserve and convey life eternal. Jesus loves His Father. And because of His love for His Father, Jesus has done His Father’s Will and willingly went to the cross for you. Their Union is The Only Union that counts. It’s the Only Union that lasts.
The world likes to believe that if we can just get along, everything would be okay. United we stand, divided we fall is true. But, what we are united around determines whether or not our Union will stand forever and ever. Amen.
The Apostles heard Jesus say, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. (Jn 14:28–29)
Once again, Jesus has come to you through His Word and Spirit, and He will come again in His Body.
In Jesus’ Name. Amen.