His Presence in the community His Church on the hill a recap of our vision His People in our homes His Presence in the community

Jewish Pentecost Pentecost was the Greek way of understanding the Jewish festival of Shavu'ot, or the Festival of Weeks. “From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the LORD… On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.” (Leviticus 23:15-16, 21) The people of Israel kept three annual festivals: Pesach or Passover Shavu'ot or Pentecost Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles

Pentecost was a festival that celebrated two things: the giving of the law to Moses on Mount Sinai the first fruits of the harvest. Whereas we tend to see laws as restrictive, the people of Israel viewed the law as creative and life giving. For a Jew, the law was of the utmost importance. As the Jews engaged in celebrating the Law, they were in essence celebrating their identity as the people of God. Pentecost was also a celebration of the first fruits of the harvest. This was a celebration of a harvest that had yet to fully come in and a statement of trust in God that He would be faithful in providing for His people.

Christian Pentecost Pentecost marks the moment that the Church draws its first breath. Pentecost marks the birth of the Church. For the Christian, Pentecost is also about identity. The gift of the Holy Spirit that day gave the church a clear identity and purpose in the world. The presence of the Holy Spirit : Signified that they had been chosen by God to receive His salvation Set them apart Provided guidance and direction for the church, just as the law had done for Israel.

Pentecost is also a celebration of a coming harvest, a confirmation that the promises of God through Jesus Christ were true, and evidence to the universe that a time is coming when God will make all things new, when a full harvest will be reaped of the earth. Pentecost calls us to be harvest-oriented as Christians. Being harvest oriented requires us to focus on two things: seeing workers equipped and seeing workers sent out. The early church actually engaged in life with both believers and non-believers. The result … more followers of Christ AND more mature followers of Christ. As followers of Christ, we are set apart, not for the purpose of remaining separate, but to then be sent back into the world as people transformed by an encounter with the living God.

Connecting to Our Vision Our vision statement has three components that go together to form the whole of our vision. We cannot remove or ignore any one piece of the vision. All three aspects are not only important, but vital if we are to truly become all that Christ desires us to be. We see all three of the components of our vision statement present and active from the foundation of the church.

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:42-47)

His Presence in the community They gathered together in a unified way for teaching, fellowship, prayer and worship. They scattered from central meeting places and met together in their homes, eating and sharing in life with each other. They collected together in the community – the temple courts – bearing witness to Christ, but also meeting the needs of their community, all the while enjoying the favour of all the people. And the result? … vs. 47: “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved”. Does that not sound good? His Church on the hill His People in our homes His Presence in the community

I hope that you can now see our vision in context. It is not some new creation, some new way to do church. Our vision is rooted in Scripture, founded in the experience of the early church, and based on the events of Pentecost. My prayer is that our vision directs us simply to be what the Holy Spirit formed to church to be nearly 2,000 years ago, though updated and contextualized for life in Mount Albert.