Introducing With God: Now
Welcome to an eight-week exploration of what it means to experience the dynamic and active presence of God in our present moment. What does it mean to actively live, move, and align ourselves with our God as today’s local church? Together, we’ll explore how we can intentionally embody Jesus Christ’s identity, engage in deep spiritual formation, step into courageous mission, experience radical transformation, and build genuine unity in spite of differences. Join us as we learn what it means to live With God: Now.
The Discipline of Lectio Divina
The practice of lectio divina invites us to pause and reflect on Scripture through quiet meditation, repetition, and prayer. As we enter the With God: Now series, we will encounter the beauty and struggle of the early church led by the Holy Spirit. Our Scripture texts from Acts and the New Testament letters deserve thoughtful reflection. Through lectio divina, we seek to understand what they meant for the early church then and then apply what we learn to our lives now. The discipline of lectio divina can keep us from rushing past these familiar accounts, and instead to simmer, slow down, and enjoy the power of these passages of Scripture. Lectio divina invites us to read, reflect, respond, and rest with God in his word.
Prayer
A General Thanksgiving from the Book of Common Prayer
Almighty God, Father of all mercies,
We your unworthy servants give you humble thanks
For all Your goodness and lovingkindness to us and to all men.
We bless You for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life;
But above all for Your incomparable love
In the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ;
For the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.
And, we pray, give us such an awareness of Your mercies,
That with truly thankful hearts
We may make known Your praise,
Not only with our lips, but in our lives,
By giving up ourselves to Your service,
And by walking before You in holiness and righteousness all our days;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord
To whom, with You and the Holy Spirit,
Be all honor and glory throughout all ages.
Amen.
Read | Acts 2
When the day of Pentecost had arrived, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like that of a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were staying. They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and rested on each one of them. Then they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them.
Now there were Jews staying in Jerusalem, devout people from every nation under heaven. When this sound occurred, a crowd came together and was confused because each one heard them speaking in his own language. They were astounded and amazed, saying, “Look, aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? How is it that each of us can hear them in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites; those who live in Mesopotamia, in Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts), Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the magnificent acts of God in our own tongues.” They were all astounded and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But some sneered and said, “They’re drunk on new wine.”
Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and proclaimed to them, “Fellow Jews and all you residents of Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and pay attention to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it’s only nine in the morning. On the contrary, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
And it will be in the last days, says God,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all people;
then your sons and your daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
and your old men will dream dreams.
I will even pour out my Spirit
on my servants in those days, both men and women
and they will prophesy.
I will display wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below:
blood and fire and a cloud of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.
Then everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.
“Fellow Israelites, listen to these words: This Jesus of Nazareth was a man attested to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs that God did among you through him, just as you yourselves know. Though he was delivered up according to God’s determined plan and foreknowledge, you used lawless people to nail him to a cross and kill him. God raised him up, ending the pains of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by death. For David says of him:
I saw the Lord ever before me;
because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad
and my tongue rejoices.
Moreover, my flesh will rest in hope,
because you will not abandon me in Hades
or allow your holy one to see decay.
You have revealed the paths of life to me;
you will fill me with gladness
in your presence.
“Brothers and sisters, I can confidently speak to you about the patriarch David: He is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn an oath to him to seat one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was to come, he spoke concerning the resurrection of the Messiah: He was not abandoned in Hades, and his flesh did not experience decay.
“God has raised this Jesus; we are all witnesses of this. Therefore, since he has been exalted to the right hand of God and has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit, he has poured out what you both see and hear. For it was not David who ascended into the heavens, but he himself says:
The Lord declared to my Lord,
‘Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies your footstool.’
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know with certainty that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”
When they heard this, they were pierced to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” With many other words he testified and strongly urged them, saying, “Be saved from this corrupt generation!” So those who accepted his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand people were added to them.
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.
Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles. Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as any had need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Click here to listen to the Scripture in ESV.
What does the phrase “the local church is the hope of the world” mean to you? How does the picture of the church at work and empowered by the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 2 help us understand that the local church is the hope of the world?
Focus
Read “What is Lectio Divina?,” a blog by Pastoral Resident Benjamin Asante.
Walk step by step through your own practice of lectio divina with Sunday’s passage (Acts 2):
- Lectio: read
- Meditatio: reflect
- Oratio: respond
- Contemplatio: rest
Pray
“Enlighten us, O God, by your Spirit, in the understanding of your Word, and grant us the grace to receive it in true fear and humility, that we may learn to put our trust in you, to fear and honor you, by glorifying your Holy Name in all our life, and to yield you the love and obedience which faithful servants owe to their master and children to their fathers.”
—John Calvin
Going Deeper
If you are also following the BibleProject’s One Story That Leads to Jesus reading plan, complete today’s reading.
