A Ministry Clothed with Power from on High...

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit... (Acts 2:1-4))

 

I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or in America. But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power. And this undoubtedly will be the case unless they hold fast the doctrine, spirit and discipline with which they first set out - John Wesley

 

GATHERING

 

When you give to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things. (Psalm 104:28)

And now, let the weak say I am strong... Let the poor say I am rich...

Because of what the Lord has done for us...Give thanks!​

 

CALL TO WORSHIP​

 

A Ministry Clothed with Power from on High is a ministry not just of the ordained clergies and consecrated Bishops but of all the people entrusted with the spirit of servanthood and the vision of liberation from the bondage of sin - social, economic and spiritual.​

 

'In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. (Acts 2:17)​

 

A Ministry Clothed with Power from on High is a ministry not just of the rich and famous but of those who are faceless and nameless disciples silently sharing the Good News with the poor and the oppressed in every land -

 

For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear...  in fact, we suffer with Christ so that we may also be glorified with him.

Romans 8:15-17

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A Ministry Clothed with Power from on High is a ministry not just of the high and the mighty but of the simple believer and follower of the Lord -

 

Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these... (John 14:12) ​

 

CALL TO CONFESSION/WORDS OF ASSURANCE​

 

When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. (Psalm 104:29)

 

Just as I am, without a plea, But that thy blood was shed for me,

And that thou bidst me come to thee...O Lamb of God, I come, I come!​

 

When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground. (Psalm 104:30) ​

 

SCRIPTURES

 

1^st LESSON  – Acts 2: 1-21             PSALTER     – Psalm 104:24-35

2^nd LESSON – Romans 8 :14-17     3^rd LESSON – John 14 : 8-17

 

Break thou the bread of life, dear Lord to me, As thou didst break the loaves beside the sea

Beyond the sacred page I seek thee Lord, My spirit pants for thee

O Living Word!

PRAYER

 

May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord. Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord! (Psalm 104:34-35)

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REFLECTION​

 

A Ministry Clothed with Power from on High...​

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit... (Acts 2:1-4))​

 

This must be the same power that John Wesley was referring to when he admonished his early followers –​

 

I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or in America. But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power. And this undoubtedly will be the case unless they hold fast the doctrine, spirit and discipline with which they first set out - John Wesley​

 

John Wesley also advised Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury –

 

Let all our chapels be built plain and decent; but not more expensive than is absolutely unavoidable: Otherwise the necessity of raising Money will make Rich Men necessary to us. But if so, we must be dependent on them, yea, and be governed by them. And then farewell to Methodist Discipline, if not Doctrine too. (Minutes, Christmas Conference, 27 December 1784, Baltimore, Maryland, USA).​

 

Doctrine has something to do with what we believe...discipline, with what we do with what we believe...and spirit is the power that holds the two together...No doubt, the power referred to by John Wesley is the same power from on high as promised and mediated by the Lord Jesus Christ –

 

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. (John 14:16-17)

 

Wesley died on March 2^nd 1791, in his 87th year. As he lay dying, his friends gathered around him, Wesley grasped their hands and said repeatedly, "Farewell, farewell." At the end, he said "The best of all is, God is with us", lifted his arms and raised his feeble voice again, repeating the words, "The best of all is, God is with us." Hurst, J. F. (2003). John Wesley the Methodist. Kessinger Publishing. http://en.wikipedia.org​

 

Was his fear about the People Called Methodists ending up as a dead sect a simple feeling of insecurity? Or, did it come to pass?

 

The story of the American people attaining independence from England following the American Revolution includes the story of American Methodism breaking free from English Methodism as well. There is no question that such independence signalled the rise of Methodism in America. As prophesied by John Wesley, however, we may be witnessing its fall in this our own time. The continuous decline in membership of The United Methodist Church in USA is simply heart-breaking.

 

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It broke the heart of John Wesley to see Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke and the American Methodists breaking away from his Methodist connexion. Today it is breaking our hearts to see kins, loved ones and friends in the UMC remain uninformed of the true situation, even confused with the way aimpilipinas

 

 

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