Pentecost
Pneumatikoi
The term Pneumtikos is from the Greek word for "Spirit". 'Agia Pneumatos is the Greek word for Holy Spirit. In the Eastern Orthodox tradition "pneumatikoi", a plural, are people who are specially gifted by the spirit and can hear confession and offer sage wisdom to spiritual seekers. The best translation might be "Spirited ones" or "Spirit gifted ones". As Presbyterian Protestants we believe that all Christians are pneumatikoi. I mean that all of us are gifted ones, by the Holy Spirit. Paul says we have received our spiritual gifts for the common good. Some have certain gifts of wisdom perhaps and others of service. Some are called to ministry and others to music. Each person, who is sealed by God's Spirit in baptism and confession, has a calling. We are all pneumatikoi, each with our individual gifts from God
s Holy Spirit, but serving the church and the world as part of our service to the risen Christ.
Some of us don't take that very seriously. In most communities of faith and of other types of human community, there is something called the 80/20 principle. Eighty percent of the people do twenty per cent of the work, and twenty per cent do eighty per cent of the work. That seems to be universal, and with little possibility of changing it. However, what if we changed that to at least 50 per cent of the people sharing their gifts? It is not likely to happen but each of us who has been made a Christian by God's grace must ask the question: "What are my gifts and how can I better use them for the work of God's Kingdom in the world"? This may be a major call to some kind of service, it may be a call to better serve in the local church, or it may be a call to be a better Christian in our daily lives. What gifts do you have? How can they be placed in God's service by the power and grace of God's Spirit?
At Pentecost, the 50th day after Easter and end of the Easter Season, we remember the coming of the Spirit upon Christ's Church. Often we emphasize empoweredness for the church to go out, proclaim the Good News, and be instruments of God's peace around the world. As individuals and congregations we may not be able to change the whole world, but how we can help in our part of it? What are your gifts? How are you using them in God's service? What is God calling you to do with them?
In Fire of God's Presence,
Jim
Pneumatikoi
The term Pneumtikos is from the Greek word for "Spirit". 'Agia Pneumatos is the Greek word for Holy Spirit. In the Eastern Orthodox tradition "pneumatikoi", a plural, are people who are specially gifted by the spirit and can hear confession and offer sage wisdom to spiritual seekers. The best translation might be "Spirited ones" or "Spirit gifted ones". As Presbyterian Protestants we believe that all Christians are pneumatikoi. I mean that all of us are gifted ones, by the Holy Spirit. Paul says we have received our spiritual gifts for the common good. Some have certain gifts of wisdom perhaps and others of service. Some are called to ministry and others to music. Each person, who is sealed by God's Spirit in baptism and confession, has a calling. We are all pneumatikoi, each with our individual gifts from God
s Holy Spirit, but serving the church and the world as part of our service to the risen Christ.
Some of us don't take that very seriously. In most communities of faith and of other types of human community, there is something called the 80/20 principle. Eighty percent of the people do twenty per cent of the work, and twenty per cent do eighty per cent of the work. That seems to be universal, and with little possibility of changing it. However, what if we changed that to at least 50 per cent of the people sharing their gifts? It is not likely to happen but each of us who has been made a Christian by God's grace must ask the question: "What are my gifts and how can I better use them for the work of God's Kingdom in the world"? This may be a major call to some kind of service, it may be a call to better serve in the local church, or it may be a call to be a better Christian in our daily lives. What gifts do you have? How can they be placed in God's service by the power and grace of God's Spirit?
At Pentecost, the 50th day after Easter and end of the Easter Season, we remember the coming of the Spirit upon Christ's Church. Often we emphasize empoweredness for the church to go out, proclaim the Good News, and be instruments of God's peace around the world. As individuals and congregations we may not be able to change the whole world, but how we can help in our part of it? What are your gifts? How are you using them in God's service? What is God calling you to do with them?
In Fire of God's Presence,
Jim
posted by Theoblogger at
5:00 PM
