The Real Presence of Christ by Pastor Bob Gochenour
John 16:12-15; Preached at SCUMC on July 6, 2014
Jesus met with his disciples in the upper room for a
last supper.
It was Holy Thursday—moments before his betrayal by
Judas, the arrest, the denial by Peter, the trial before Caiaphas, and the
eventual execution on a Roman cross the next day.
He had predicted his coming death three times already.
The disciples had a difficult time accepting his words.
Jesus prepared them for their future:
Jesus knew
that resurrection follows crucifixion;
Jesus knew
that they have a glorious future ahead of them;
Jesus knew that he would
soon be ascended to the Father’s right hand in heaven.
Jesus knew that the Father
will send the Holy Spirit to these disciples.
Jesus knew that the Church
would be born on Pentecost.
The words for John 16 are a part of Jesus’ farewell
address designed to prepare his followers for the events to come.
“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot
bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all
truth…” (John 16:12-13)
Pentecost was the great Christian Holiday where the
Holy Spirit fell upon these same disciples—filling them with the “Spirit of
Truth.”
We continue to celebrate this great beginning as the
Holy Spirit continues to reveal the Spirit of Jesus to His Church.
Pentecost continues as a season of the Church!
Pentecost continues as a reality of God:
Breaking
into the world,
Breaking
into our lives,
Breaking
into our hearts.
Jesus told us this would happen:
“…for the Spirit will not speak on his own, but will
speak whatever he hears, and he will declare the things that are to come. He
will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you…”(John
16:13)
The Holy Spirit = the Spirit of Jesus.
This reality is still at work in our daily lives.
This reality is still at work in my life.
It wasn’t always that way.
The first time I experienced the Holy Spirit was when I
was 12 years old.
I was raised at First Methodist Church in Morristown,
NJ.
This was a big, active church.
I was baptized when I was 6 years old.
This was not because my parents had any great
theological reasons for waiting until I was this old, I was the 4th
child of 5, and they were just tired of raising children.
I was six because they finally got around to it!
They were faithful in making me attend church every
Sunday.
I went to Sunday School and worship every Sunday.
I sang in all the Children’s choirs, cantatas,
Christmas pageants.
I attended the MYF every Sunday afternoon.
As a 6th grader, I joined the Pastor’s
confirmation class—13 weeks of study every Tuesday night to prepare for full
membership in the church.
Dr. Lancy made sure that confirmation class was a big
deal.
He required us to memorize the Lord’s Prayer, the
Apostles’ Creed, and all 4 verses of “A Mighty Fortress is our God.”
He tested us on this—we had to pass in order to join
the church.
He required us to take notes on his sermons every
Sunday and turn them in at class time to make sure we understood the content.
Dr. Lancy was “old school.” Raised as an Episcopalian
he followed the traditions of the Anglican Church.
This meant that none of us children could partake of
the sacrament of Holy Communion until we were full members of the church.
When the day came for us to join the church, we were
allowed to take Holy Communion for the first time in our lives.
As we gathered around the Communion rail—I received the
bread and the juice.
As I ate it and drank it: I felt the Holy Spirit tug on
my heart.
It felt like a warm burning in my heart.
I didn’t know what it was!
I had not been prepared for this mystical experience.
On the way home from church, I told my parents what
happened.
I asked them: “what was that?”
They made the mistake of saying: “It was nothing, don’t
worry about it!”
I do not fault them for their incorrect answer.
As parents of 5 kids—they were preoccupied with getting
home, preparing for Sunday dinner, taking the roast out of the oven and other
such concerns.
Their mistake is instructive: many people do not know
about the Holy Spirit.
Even folks who have been in Church all their lives.
Many people do not understand that the Holy Spirit is
still working in us.
Many people do not understand: the Holy Spirit = Spirit
of Jesus.
Some people do not understand that the Holy Spirit is
still present to work through the various means of grace.
The Holy Spirit works through Holy Communion.
It is far more than a memorial feast—a simple
re-creation of Jesus’ last supper from 2000 years ago.
It is a
means of grace;
It is an
open door for God to break into our lives;
It is an
opportunity to experience: Real presence of Christ.
God’s presence is found in the elements of bread and
juice.
We experience God’s grace/love/mercy as we receive this
sacrament.
This isn’t magic: we do not teach that the bread and
wine miraculously transform into the real body and blood of Jesus.
This is a divine reality: we do teach the real presence
of Jesus Christ appears every time we celebrate Holy Communion.
This was what Jesus was explaining to his disciples:
when you gather together to worship and celebrate Holy Communion—you invite me
into your heart.
You allow the Holy Spirit to break into your life in a
new way.
You allow the Spirit of Truth to minster to you in a
unique and personal way.
It took me some time to learn this lesson.
After 3 years of rebellion—
Running
away from the church;
Running
away from my membership vows;
Running
away from God;
Doubting
that God was really real;
God caught
me with his Holy Spirit.
I went to a Christian movie with some of my Christian
friends.
In the middle of the movie, I prayed this prayer:
“If you are
really real, prove it to me.”
That was all the invitation God needed: instantly I
felt the same “warm heart” experience that I had felt at my first communion.
It was the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of Truth teaching me
that Jesus is real.
The Spirit has continued to teach me the things of
Jesus for 41 years.
He will break into your heart as well—fulfilling Jesus’
words:
“All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I
said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” (John 16:15)