“The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me…” (Isaiah 61:1)
In Acts, we read the founding story of the early Christian Church. As the Apostles planned and prepared to execute their mission to spread the teachings of Jesus, they had to assess who could be a member of The Way (the named used for followers of Christ in Acts). Through conversations and councils, the Apostles and other followers debated whether anyone besides Jews could join the Movement. Though well-intended, the decision makers of the early Church were susceptible to prejudice – just like any of us. Thus, Divine intervention was needed to ensure the Church became a place for people of all identities. God, in the Creator’s infinite wisdom, did just this. Early in the mission narratives, we read that while Peter preached to Gentiles, or non-Jewish people, in Caesarea, “the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word” (Acts 10:44). Peter’s Jewish companions were “astounded” that the gift of the Spirit was given to non-Jews (Acts 10:45). However, they could not deny the Spirit’s presence and, instead, followed God’s command to baptize believers in Jesus’s Name (Matthew 28:19). This Divine presence confirmed for the Apostles that both Jews and Gentiles were – and are – loved equally by God and are welcomed in the Holy Family. The idea that the Holy Spirit is omnipresent for all persons is simultaneously reassuring and petrifying. On the one hand, it shows us that God’s love is all-inclusive. On the other, it implores us to act. But what actions does this entail? The writer of Isaiah gives us some ideas. The prophet, upon whom the Spirit fell, writes that he had been charged to: bring good news to the oppressed, bind up broken hearts, proclaim liberty to captives, and comfort all who mourn (Isaiah 61:1-7). Jesus then quotes the prophet when beginning his ministry in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 4:18-19). Thus, if Christians are to live like Christ, and the Holy Spirit has been given to people of all identities, then all of us who claim to know Jesus must consider: What does it mean for the actions in our lives to know that the Holy Spirit is unrestricted, for all people, and that receiving the Spirit challenges us to live according to the LORD’s justice? |