“Still Trying to Catch Up with the Spirit”

Pastor’s Ponderings

August 2025

In the month of August, we will conclude our summer sermon series: “Catching Up with the Spirit.” We will follow Paul as he speaks to the crowds in Athens and as he defends himself before the religious authorities and how he makes a final appeal to Rome. 

Spoiler Alert: In the Book of Acts the Apostles never do catch up with the Spirit, which implies that we will never fully catch up with the Spirit either.

To quote New Testament scholar Matthew Skinner, “If we learn anything from Acts, let it be that the Holy Spirit has never been under the church’s control, for believers in Acts learn what it means to keep in step with the Spirit by paying attention to the insights of outsiders, by wrestling with scripture together, by listening to one another’s testimonies about what the good news is all about, and by boldly challenging the lies and injustices they observe in their various settings.”

Without controlling the Spirit, we can sense the Spirit at work in our churches when we open ourselves up to the surprising grace of God and find ways to be more inclusive, more hospitable, more forgiving, and more daring. Through the Spirit we dare to affirm that the story of our faith is ultimately a love story that includes the whole world, and that—in spite of all the evidence that seems to suggest otherwise—self-giving love is ultimately the most powerful force in the world, often working undetected, bringing together the most unlikely of friends, changing lives in big ways and small ways, and leading us somehow to recognize “the seamless love of God for all creation, including ourselves.” (the phrase in quotes is from the late novelist Reynolds Price).

Indeed, we will never truly catch up with the Spirit, but, as Matthew Skinner says, “we can remain in hot and joyful pursuit” as we expand our outlook—both mentally and with the eyes of our hearts—and as we dare to hope for the final triumph of God’s love in a broken and fearful world. 

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Jack