Whose you may wonder, well we celebrate the birthday of the Christian Church on 23 May.
When I say it is the birthday of the Christian Church, I am not speaking of any Christian denomination but of the whole body of people who belong to God. The basis of a new relationship with God was provided through the death and resurrection of Jesus. The day upon which God's Spirit came amongst and upon those first disciples of Jesus in a new, powerful and personal way was effectively the birth of the Church. This day fell seven weeks after the resurrection on the Jewish Festival of Pentecost.
Through his words and actions before his crucifixion Jesus had revealed something of God's love and his expectations of us. By his death Jesus had paid the price set by God for the wrongdoing (sin) of the whole of humankind, past present and future. In raising his son to life, God revealed his power over sin and death. A power to be released to all, who open themselves to God, as the means of living as he intended in the present and as an assurance of the certainty of a life to come. Jesus appeared to his followers several times in the five weeks following his resurrection, but it was not until the Day of Pentecost that the disciples were abruptly and very vividly equipped and enabled to do the work which Jesus had charged them to do.
Some ten days before the birth of the Church, Jesus had ascended into the Heavens and returned to his Father. The Apostle Paul wrote to the people of Ephesus (recorded in the Bible in Ephesians 3:10), "He Oesus who descended (at his birth) is the very one who ascended higher than the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.
Jesus had to return to his Father in Heaven so that his Spirit he may be in all places at all times. This enables him to be present within all those who pledge their allegiance to him and his ways. It is this Spirit or the Holy Spirit who makes real the new beginnings and new life with God that is started by believing that Jesus is the Son of God and accepting the message of Easter. It is the Spirit, who can enable us to be aware of God's presence (for God is as close as the wind on our face whether we are aware of him of not). It is the Spirit who can enable us to reflect the character of Jesus. These characteristics or attributes are described by the Apostle Paul when he wrote to the people of Galatia (recorded in the Bible in Galatians 5:22-23) as being: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Paul describes these attributes as the fruit of the Spirit. In other words they are the result of allowing God's Spirit to be present in our lives and of positively seeking to please him. The more open we are to the Spirit of God, and the greater our commitment and submission to him, the higher the quality of the fruit.
As well as the fruit of the Spirit, the Bible tells of the gifts of the Spirit. These include gifts of encouraging others as well as the more obvious gifts of teaching, preaching and healing. The gifts are given as God chooses but they all have a common purpose. They are intended to be used to strengthen the faith and effectiveness of Christians individually and collectively as the Church.
Despite of and because of God's love for us, he never imposes himself upon us. He provided the opportunity and means for all to have a fresh start with him, but we must seek it and respond to him. This is often spoken of in terms of new birth, or being born again into the family of God. Why not make this May your birth-day into a new life with God as one of his children. We all need to allow God's Spirit to be present in our lives or present to a greater degree, so that we may fulfil our full potential in God's eyes.
Happy birthday!