In the Book of Acts, Jesus said to his disciples:” You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you”!
On the Pentecost Day (50 days after Resurrection), the Holy Spirit came down and filled all those who were in the upper room.
(As was promised).
By the new power, the disciples and others went to every corner of the known world preaching, teaching and baptising.
(As were commanded).
The church from that day on kept proclaiming the marvels of God and calling all people to faith, love and new life in Christ.
Today, more than anytime in the two thousand years history the Church is calling you to open your hearts to the same power of the Holy Spirit and to the richness of his gifts, asking you, as a new generation of apostles to come forward and catechise and bring the world to Christ.
Jesus promised his disciples before his ascension; “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you”. The same promise is directed to you today, you who are baptised and confirmed by the gift of the Holy Spirit during baptism and in every Liturgy.-2-
What is the power of the Holy Spirit and what did it means? It is the power of God’s life. It is the power of the same spirit which Jesus sent to stay with us and in us. It is the same spirit and the same power which points us and our words towards the living of the Gospel and towards the coming of the kingdom of God, the Church, brothers and sisters, Christ’s body, and living community of love, embracing people of every race, nations, and tongue, of every time and place. In the unity born of our faith is the risen Lord. This power of the spirit, will never cease to fill the Chruch with life.
Yet this power, the grace of the spirit is not something we earn or achieve, but it is given to us as a gift.
God’s love can only unleash its power when we allow Him to change us from within. We have to allow Him to break through the hard crust of our indifference, our spiritual weariness, our blind conformity to the spirit of age and our self-love. The daily prayer, the private prayer, and the sacramental prayer are the means to achieve His love and gift. In the power of His spirit, Jesus is there always in our hearts, quietly waiting for us to be still with Him, to hear his voice, to abide in his love and to receive power from on high, enabling us to be His disciples. He told them:” You will be my witness to the end of the earth”!! The same He is telling you today.-3-
Let me ask you some questions: - Are you his disciples?
Do you know his word? What are you going to leave to the next generation? Are you building your lives on firm foundation? Are you living your lives in a way that open up a space for the spirit to come in, to a world that want to forget about him, or even reject him in the name of falsely conceived freedom? How are you using the gifts you have been given? What legacy will you leave to young people of the future? What difference will you make?
Do you curse the darkness or light a candle?
Are your hearts searching and will not find peace until they rest in Him? (Augustine)
The power of the Holy Spirit directs us to the future, to the coming of the Kingdom of God. It can creates a new world, a new generation of Christians called to help build a world in which God’s gift of life is welcomed, respected and cherished, or rejected in fear. A new age in which love is not greedily or self-seeking but pure, faithful and genuinely free. Open to others, respectful of their dignity, seeking their good, initiating joy and beauty. A new age in which hope liberates us from the shallowness, apathy and self-love which deaden our souls and poison our relationships, and destroy our families.-4-
Friends:-
The Lord is asking you to be His disciples to this new age, messengers of his love, drawing people to Him and building a future of hope for all humanity. The world needs you, there is a spiritual desert there and it is spreading an interior emptiness, a quiet sense of despair. How many of young you know, friends, relatives and family members, who have got lost because of their trust and hope of the world promises? Jesus love is the only and real liberating gift.
The Church needs you, needs your power, your faith, your idealism and your generosity. It needs you to carry the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to a world refusing of God’s Grace. Are you listening to your calling? Come forth and repeat with prophet Isaiah:” Here I am Lord, send me”.
Do not be afraid to say “Yes” to Jesus, to find your joy in doing His will, giving yourselves to the persecute of holiness in the service of the others.
May God bless all of you.
+Paul
Metropolitan Archbishop Paul
Primate of Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines
Metropolitan Archbishop Paul
Primate of Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines
Tagged: Saint Michaels Orthodox Church, Dunedin, New Zealand
