Every year around Pentecost various signs pop up and among them I have seen one that says, “Keep Calm and Wear Red on Pentecost”. This year I found more appropriate reminder of that special day. Asking us to “Keep Calm” on Pentecost is like asking us to “Keep Calm” when the oxygen masks fall from above in the event of an Emergency on an airplane. Keep calm and breathe normally?
The Festival of Pentecost was the day when all Heaven broke loose on the disciples. Originally, it was a Jewish Festival that took place 50 days after Passover. It was a celebration that attracted Jewish visitors from all over the known world to Jerusalem. But 50 days after the last Passover Jesus celebrated with his disciples before he was crucified, that Festival became the birthday of the church. The Holy Spirit came upon the huddled disciples in the Upper Room and they were anything but calm. They spilled out into Solomon’s porch and the rest is history. They had a Holy Spirit Fire Drill!
This Sunday, for the first time since March15th, some of us will gather in a room to celebrate Pentecost, the day that the Holy Spirit descended on the gathered disciples and filled them with the power to share the good news of Jesus with the world.
We will ask you to wear Red that Sunday, but we will not ask you to … keep calm.
Joyful Life Lutheran Church 