Book: Psalms

The Day of Pentecost is one of the most widely misconstrued events in Church history. Contrary to popular belief, the Day of Pentecost is about far more than the gift of speaking in tongues – it is about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Church, empowering Christians as God’s chosen people to go forth and renew the face of the earth.

When we live like the rest of the world around us, it is because our idea of ministry is too small, our heaven is too small, and our Christ is too small. Indeed, without the Ascension there is no reason to rejoice at all. But thanks be to God, that is not the case. Let us go forth with great joy, just as the disciples did, for our savior Jesus Christ has ascended into heaven, and he will return in the same way as he departed.

We who enjoy the luxuries of 21st century America are the unmatched champions of vain things! Our lives are so dedicated to vain things, trivial things, pointless things, that we go out of our way to celebrate vanity itself! The Gospel calls us away from vain things just as it did the pagans at Lystra. But are we willing to turn away from vain things?

Jesus told his disciples, “Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34). The Rev. Galloway challenges us to examine how far we fall short of this commandment and reminds us that love does not mean saying things people want to hear – it means telling the truth.

Decades of spiritual apathy have given over Western Civilization to the evils of abortion, lured in by the false promises offered by politicians and celebrities – and the modern Church bears much of the blame. The Rev. Galloway exhorts Christians to defend the dignity of life regardless of the fate of Roe v. Wade.

Our lives are littered with difficulties and differences which seem irreconcilable. The will of the nations are brought to naught, and so the nations go to war. Our own plans for life and ministry are thwarted, and we go to war with ourselves to find the answers. Looking to the Apostles Peter and Paul, let us remember that God’s plan for our lives is dramatically different from what we want in our sin – and that is a good thing.

After Christ’s death, the disciples took refuge in the Upper Room. Without warning, the risen Christ appeared to them. Listen as the Rev. Galloway discusses Christ’s miraculous appearance and explains what it means for our lives. “Shalom,” Christ said, “Peace be with you.”

Paul explains to the Philippians how Christ is the ultimate example of counting others as more significant than yourself. Christ’s entire life, in fact, was singularly oriented toward His willing humiliation and death on the Cross, a perfect sacrifice for our sins, to the Glory of God the Father. Jesus, of all people to ever live, had every excuse and every means to exalt himself and save his life, and yet He laid His life down without grumbling or complaining. Let us examine ourselves, therefore, against Christ’s perfect standard of humility.

The LORD says through the prophet Isaiah, “I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert… for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise” (Isaiah 43:19, 21). We all have wilderness experiences in our lives, but God will never leave us or forsake us, and it is the mark of the Christian to praise God even when everything life appears to be going wrong.