Bethlehem Lutheran Church
The Heart of Bay Ridge
Sunday Service 10:30am
4th & Ovington Avenues
Brooklyn NY 11209
718.748.9502
Dear Members and Friends,
During the Lent and Easter seasons, I accentuate the fact that we need both the suffering and death of Jesus, and the resurrection, to fully understand the Christian faith. The cross enables us to discover a God of sacrificial love, and the empty tomb provides assurance that God claims victory over death. There is truly a life beyond this one and there will be a time when God calls us home to be with him in a place of light, peace, love and beauty. This will happen not because we earn it or achieve it, but because we humbly believe and have faith in the truth of salvation through Christ.
But, what happens in the meantime? We remember Good Friday and Easter and these religious observances are significant, but how does God affect our lives? How does God interact with us in the present time, guiding our thoughts, giving us the right words, and directing our actions? When Jesus ascended to heaven he declared, “Lo, I will be with you always.” But, how? How is Jesus with us? He also said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Clearly, Good Friday & Easter were not enough. What else did we need? We needed Pentecost. We needed God to send His Spirit into the lives of his followers and into His church. The powerful presence of “God with Us”, occurs because God’s Holy Spirit calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies His people. The Holy Spirit turned a group of frightened, sad, immobilized and clueless disciples into fearless, joyful, energized and faithful apostles, determined to share the Good News no matter the cost. This absolutely could not have happened on its own. These early followers could not have been transformed without the Holy Spirit in their lives.
So, here we are, 2,000 years later. Still preaching the Good News. Still gathering as followers of Jesus. Still teaching Jesus’ words and messages. Still baptizing, confirming and sharing the Lord’s Supper. Still carrying out the Lord’s ministry to children, older adults, the hungry and abused. How does all of this still happen? Yes, it is God’s Holy Spirit in your lives and in the life of this church that motivates, inspires and empowers us to serve. The words, “take up your cross and follow me” still resonate with us, because we are filled with God’s Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit arrived on the Day of Pentecost and Peter boldly proclaimed, “In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” The power of the Holy Spirit does not diminish in time. God’s Spirit is just as active today as it was on that first Pentecost Day.
Yes, “Lift High the Cross.” Yes, “Christ is Risen.” And, Yes, “Come Holy Spirit.”
In the Lord's Service,
Rev. Paul H. Knudsen
Pastor Paul's May Message
Bethlehem Lutheran Church ® | 4th & Ovington Avenues, Brooklyn NY 11209 | 718.748.9502
A member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
