SUNDAY TALKS

How do we know from Acts that the revolution brought by the Holy Spirit is surprisingly inclusive? Owen Lynch concludes this series with reflection on views he grew up with on what it meant to be Christian, and what he thinks and feels about this now.

The story of Acts shows the spread of God’s kingdom beyond the boundaries set by religious and cultural expectations. Towards the end, Paul’s party encountered people who had no stake in Judaism or the dominant cultures of Greece and Rome. Was Paul bringing the Holy Spirit to them, or finding that the Spirit was already there? What does this mean for our part in this revolution of love, and what kind of inclusion we can expect?

When ideas and faith spread, how much of a culture clash do we expect, and how do we deal with it? Owen Lynch looks at how the early church came into conflict with cultures that required assimilation in a forceful way. Some Jews wanted to force Christians to obey all Jewish laws. At the same time, Judaism was under threat from the Roman Empire, who tolerated differences up to a point, but would cancel and destroy cultures which they thought to be a threat. How different was Jesus’ approach, and that of his Spirit-filled followers? Had Jesus given people another way to unite through self-sacrificial love?

Why can disputes about things we believe in passionately turn so bitter and desperate? Owen Lynch looks at what happened when a leader of Jesus’ first followers shared his story with people, from his religion, who did not follow Jesus. Emotions ran high and discussion turned to violence and death plots. What happened to the hope they had shared? Can any similar fury and defensiveness rise up in us when we believe we have truth, so people who disagree with us must not? What might Jesus change about our approach to this?

Are people ultimately divided into groups, say by nationality, family or faith? Owen Lynch looks at what happened in the early church when there were arguments about newcomers and what they might have to do to fit in. People were quick to see reasons to divide and either exclude people or force them to conform. Having some agreed, shared boundaries seemed to be helpful. But what if God’s Spirit kept being more inclusive than people expected?