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Easter 6 A
File Sermon
Pastor Dena Williams
Denver, CO

Acts 17:22-31
I Peter 3:13-22
Psalm 66
John 14:15-21

The Sprit Abides

το π ν ε υ µ α µ ε ν ε ι

The spirit abides,

the spirit remains,
the spirit stays,
the spirit lingers,
the spirit continues,
the spirit stands her ground.

το π ν ε υ µ α µ ε ν ε ι
The Spirit abides.

Sounds a bit stubborn, doesn’t she?

“Abide” is not a word we use much anymore.

We do not invite our house guests to “abide” with us.
We have never heard a teacher ask her students to
“abide” at their desks.
When the Gospel is particularly long,
I have never asked you to “abide” in your seats for the reading.

Abide.
It is a good word.
Perhaps we could use it more often.
Perhaps in this world of uncertainty and fear,
the word “abide” could be useful.
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It is a word that tells us where to find God.

The spirit abides in us.
We abide in the spirit.
In our lesson from Acts today,
Paul tells the Christians of Athens,
that the places where they think they might find God,
in statues, for example,
is not where God is found.
God is found in us.
God abides with us.
We are found in God.
We abide with God.

In a gathering of women
we talked about where we have found God,
where we sense the presence of the Spirit.
The answers were interesting.
We have found God’s Spirit
in the stars,
under the ocean,
in the mountains,
in a flock of geese landing on a lake.
We have found the Spirit
in our homes,
our schools,
in the dentist’s chair,
at the doctor’s office,
in a meeting of alcoholics anonymous,
in our work places.

God, the spirit abides in us.

We find the spirit present wherever we find ourselves.

Sometimes we are more aware of God the Spirit than at other times.
Do you remember pet rocks?
In the 1970s you could go into a store,
and there, usually by the register,
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you could buy a rock in a box.

It was a pet rock.
A rock was an ideal pet;
it required little or no attention.
It didn’t need to be fed or watered,
no litter boxes or shovels involved in its care.
Then, if someone asked you if you had a pet,
you could take out the rock to show them.
Then you could put the rock back in its box.
The rock abided in its box.
I checked the past tense and, sure enough,
it is “abided.”
The rock abided in its box,
it was there whenever it was needed for showing to a friend.

We pretty much go through life knowing that God is in the box,

knowing that the Spirit resides in us.
Then, when it is useful,
we take out the Spirit to demonstrate to ourselves or to a friend
that God is indeed present to us.
Usually we notice the presence of the Spirit at times of great joy or great
crisis.
That is when we remember that the Spirit abides in us.
We do not pay much attention otherwise.
How would our lives be different if we remembered the Spirit’s
presence in us at ordinary times,
not just in times of great crisis or great joy?

The Spirit is present in us.

We are called to be the Spirit’s presence to one another.
We are called to abide with one another,
to remain,
to stay,
to linger,
to continue,
to stand ground with one another.
When we abide with one another we are evidence of the Spirit’s presence.
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We reveal the Spirit’s presence to one another in meaningful ways at times

of joy and crisis.
We do it rather well.

When a child is baptized,

parents, grandparents, sponsors, community of faith
abide with the child.
We promise to love and support the child,
to bring the child to God’s house,
to place in his or her hands the Holy Scriptures,
to teach the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Ten Commandments.
We abide with our children in their baptism.
We abide by keeping the promises we make.
We are the Spirit’s presence to one another.

When a young person is confirmed,

the young man or young woman and the community of faith
abide with one another.
The young person promises to abide in the community,
to live among God’s faithful people.
The community promises to abide in the young person’s life,
to remain steadfast in love and support.

When two people pledge their love to each other,

they promise to abide with one another.
They promise to continue in love until they are parted by death.
The community again promises support and encouragement and prayer.

When a pastor is installed in a congregation,

she and the community of faith promise to abide with one another.
The pastor promises to love, serve, and pray for God’s people.
She promises to nourish with the Word and Holy Sacraments,
to lead by her own example in the use of the means of grace,
by faithful service and holy living.
The congregation promises
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to receive her as a messenger of Jesus Christ,

sent by God to serve with the Gospel of hope and salvation.
The people promise to regard her as a servant of Christ,
a steward of the mysteries of God.
They promise to pray for her,
to help and honor her for her work’s sake,
and in all things strive to live together in peace and unity of Christ.
There’s good news!

We have kept promises,

we have abided with each other.
The Spirit has been present in our life together.
Thanks be to God!
Today I renew my promises to God on your behalf.
I ask you to renew your promises to God on my behalf as well.
May we continue to abide with one another in the years to come.

There are other times when God’s people

abide with one another in special ways.
When one of us is ill or suffering or grieving or afraid
we become the Spirit’s presence to one another.
In the darkest night,
the most lonely times,
when we despair,
we need to remind one another that we abide in God.
It is not only the pastor’s call,
it is everyone’s call to bring the Spirit to one another.
It is easier than we might think.
A simple expression of our concern can make a real difference.
“I’m thinking of you and praying for you.”
“I know and God knows that these are hard times for you.”
“God bless you, I know you miss your loved one.”
We abide with one another.

We are called to know that the Spirit abides with us.

We are called to abide,
to bring and share the Spirit’s presence with one another.
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το π ν ε υ µ α µ ε ν ε ι
The Spirit abides,
the Spirit remains,
the Spirit stays,
the Spirit lingers,
the Sprit continues,
the Spirit stands her ground.
το π ν ε υ µ α µ ε ν ε ι
The Spirit abides. α µ ε ν