Act 4

Rob Muthiah began began Pentecost Sunday by saying that we could learn from our Pentecostal siblings in terms of a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. Pentecost Sunday celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit in a new way following the resurrection and ascension of Jesus.

Rob reviews how the Spirit of God is present in creation, throughout the Old Testament, and in the life and ministry of Jesus. And so, Rob asks, what about today?

He goes on to use a metaphor developed by theologian and vicar Sam Wells, of performing a play that is missing an act — which we are assigned to improvise. Improv involves following the preceding acts and knowing the act to come. This is how the church discerns God’s movement today: following scripture, knowing what’s to come, filled with the Spirit, gifted by the Spirit, and guided by the presence of the Spirit.

Listen below as Rob fleshes out these ideas, following readings in John 14:15-17 and Acts 2:1-4, 12-21.

  • The Meeting Place: On Embracing Dissonance

    Reconciliation is a practice and, like a muscle, it needs to be exercised every day. Psalms 85 calls us to embrace dissonance as a generative space, cultivating spaces where mercy,…

    ·

  • What We Need Is Here

    Sue Park-Hur continued our series on “Praise & Peacemaking” with a look into trauma care. Sue shares her own history with her family, shaped by the Korean war — and…

    ·

  • Creative Nonviolence in Matthew 5

    Katerina Gea & Bert Newton demonstrated how Jesus teachings in Matthew 5 were not passive non-resistance but creative ways of engaging the offender and challenging them to see the victim…

    ·

Spam-free subscription, we guarantee. This is just a friendly ping when new content is out.

Contact us

Pasadena Mennonite Church
1041 N Altadena Dr, Pasadena CA 91107

office@pasadenamennonite.org
+1 626-398-8224