{"id":1304,"date":"2009-05-31T21:58:00","date_gmt":"2009-05-31T21:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/?p=1304"},"modified":"2020-12-02T23:23:35","modified_gmt":"2020-12-02T23:23:35","slug":"spirited-stuttering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/spirited-stuttering\/","title":{"rendered":"Spirited Stuttering"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Acts 2:1-21<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

May 31, 2009<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today\u2019s lesson is one of my favorites in the Bible. I must have read it, studied it, preached on it, and written about it countless number of times. Acts 2<\/a> is my favorite because it speaks about \u201cdivided tongues of fire\u201d that I can identify with from the very beginning of my life and all the way up to today. I suspect that it\u2019ll be a favorite for the rest of my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I might say that Acts 2<\/a> defines me. As you know by now, I have occasions when I would stutter\u2014a speech impediment as they say. When I come to some words that conjure up in me fears of pronouncing them, I have this overwhelming fright that I can\u2019t say them. I stutter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Growing up as one with some stuttering, there\u2019ve been embarrassing times that I wish I could forget. To avoid stuttering or stammering, I would never raise my hands to offer an answer at school. A teacher even said to me one time, \u201cI know you know the answer.\u201d There were many times when I would rather work on individual projects that wouldn\u2019t require me to speak. Maybe this was the reason why my father thought that I could be an electrical engineer where one didn\u2019t necessarily need to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not too long ago after I have already become a minister at FCBC in the 70s and served in Valley Forge for a number of years that my dentist noticed that I was severely \u201ctongue-tied!\u201d He recommended that I surgically untie my tongue in a simple in-office operation. When the surgeon performed this procedure, he was amazed that I could speak at all! For a good part of my life, I had learned how to speak by overcoming my \u201cphysical\u201d disability! I was amazed over myself too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Day of Pentecost<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luke reports in Acts 2<\/a> that on the day of Pentecost, they were all together in one place. The pilgrims assembled in Jerusalem for the feast of Pentecost, an agricultural festival marking the first harvest of the growing season. Called in Hebrew Shevout, or \u201cweeks,\u201d it is seven weeks past Passover, or roughly the 50th<\/sup> day after Passover. It\u2019s like us today. We have come from many different places, not only geographically but also spiritually to worship this morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And to those gathered on that Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended, and they all began to speak, began to proclaim \u201cthe mighty works of God.\u201d Maybe you thought that proclamation was limited to preachers like me, people whom God and the church have called into the ministry of preaching. Think again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given my past, my fears, my physical disability, my stuttering and stammering, the last job I ever wanted was to be a preacher. As I stand behind this pulpit today, I believe that the Holy Spirit must have done something to me. The Holy Spirit descended on me and I began to speak to proclaim the mighty works of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The word, \u201cspirit\u201d in the New Testament is the Greek word pneuma. Pneuma means \u201cwind,\u201d or \u201cbreath,\u201d usually always indicating air in motion. We need to breathe in order to speak. Our spoken words are the product of breath moving through our vocal cords.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luke says in Acts 2<\/a> that the main effect of God\u2019s holy wind, holy breath is that things are brought to speech. Those who previously had nothing to say are given something to speak to the world about and the power to speak those words \u201cboldly.\u201d I am amazed that I am given something to say almost every Sunday and I pray that I may have the power to speak these mighty words and works of God boldly!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All Prophets<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus began his ministry by calling 12 people to be his first disciples. And then he sent them out to tell the mighty works of God to everyone, sent them out to preach. But now we see, after the resurrection, that the risen Christ has no intention of limiting proclamation to just these 12.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew prophets are portrayed as individuals who were \u201cfilled with the Spirit\u201d and prompted by the spirit to speak. But there were just a few individuals called out to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Acts 2<\/a>, this empowering, commissioning work of the Spirit is not confined to the circle of the 12 apostles. Now the Spirit is poured out to everyone. There were 120 believers present all together and, Luke tells us, \u201cAll of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak boldly.\u201d This Spirit, as Peter will go on to explain, is now poured out to \u201call flesh.\u201d Peter recalls the words of the prophet Joel. Joel had foretold a day when God\u2019s Spirit\u2014once given to just a few individuals\u2014would be graciously given to all, enabling all believers to be prophets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It doesn\u2019t matter whether you are young or old. It doesn\u2019t matter whether you are male or female. It doesn\u2019t matter if you came here from a powerful, wealthy, educated family or a family of indentured workers. It doesn\u2019t matter; because God\u2019s Spirit is poured out on all who call on the name of the Lord. We are all prophets empowered by the Spirit to speak for God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For me to be allowed to preach, I had to be examined by the church and approved by the church before I could preach. For all of you \u201cpreachers\u201d called by the Holy Spirit, it doesn\u2019t matter whether some church body has ordained you or not. Remember when you joined the church. You professed your faith in Jesus Christ whether by believers\u2019 baptism or a public profession of faith and then you stood up here behind this very pulpit and you preached. Luke mentions in Acts no qualifications, preparations, or requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All that happened to these believers and to you was that God\u2019s Holy Spirit descended upon them and us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the rushing of the mighty wind and tongues of fire on the heads of the believers, the next thing that follows is a sermon, a weighty sermon in which Peter explains how to read scripture rightly, and how even the events of Pentecost are prefigured in the Old Testament. Peter preaches from the prophet Joel and quotes him, \u201cEven upon my slaves, both men and women, In those days I will pour out my Spirit; And they shall prophesy.\u201d We are God\u2019s sons and daughters empowered to prophesy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speak Boldly<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Spirit not only enabled them to speak, to speak up, but it also enabled them to speak \u201cboldly.\u201d I am one who can testify to the fact that one of people\u2019s greatest fears is the fear of public speaking. People are willing to do almost anything in front of a group of people except speak. Which makes it all the more impressive that Luke says the Holy Spirit\u2019s descent enabled them to speak \u201cboldly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do we speak boldly today? Remember how Jesus\u2019 ministry began in Luke\u2019s Gospel? The Spirit impelled Jesus to stand up in the synagogue and preach, \u201cThe Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord\u2019s favor\u201d (Luke 4:18-19<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some conservative Christians speak of \u201cprophecy\u201d as predicting the future. Some liberal Christians speak of \u201cprophecy\u201d as social critique, making liberal statements about politics. And with the state Supreme Court\u2019s ruling on Proposition 8 this past week, there are many who are speaking out boldly on both sides of this matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But here prophecy means what it means throughout most of scripture: to speak forth the word of God, to stand boldly and declare God\u2019s mighty works. One of God\u2019s mighty works is the gift of the Holy Spirit that enables people to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The people who speak are often those who the world keeps silent\u2014farm workers, day laborers, restaurant workers and domestics who are told to keep quiet and just do what they are told by their bosses. Young people who are told that they are inexperienced and are too young to speak. Old people who are told that their days have past and they are too old to speak. Chinese-speaking only people who are told that they don\u2019t count unless they know how to speak English. Now the Holy Spirit enables them to stand up and to speak out. And they shall prophesy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Acts says that they were so inspired that it was as if \u201cDivided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. And all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit.\u201d All of them became preachers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I know of someone in our congregation who, when encountering an unethical practice at the office where she works, spoke up. She is a rather quiet person by nature. She has absolutely no theological training (other than what she receives here on Sundays!). And yet, she boldly spoke up. She braved the disapproval of her boss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What on earth enabled her to do that? Well, I don\u2019t think it was anything \u201con earth.\u201d It was a power from on high. She spoke boldly in the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit enabled her to speak up. That\u2019s why even though her job calls her a \u201csecretary,\u201d around here we call her a \u201cprophet!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s a church that was hosting a community homelessness program one evening. The associate pastor came into the church\u2019s sanctuary while a homeless woman was praying, sobbing. She finally shouted toward the ceiling, \u201cGod, can\u2019t you tell we need some help down here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As is so often the case, God responded through God\u2019s church. A lawyer in the congregation helped her get some money owed to her. The owner of some apartment buildings got her some lodging. A dentist helped by repairing her teeth, a tutor helped her children get ready for school, and a businessman came forth to offer her a job. The Holy Spirit enabled ordinary people to speak up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spirited Stuttering<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t know why I stutter. I like to say that my stuttering is \u201cspirited stuttering.\u201d I could have avoided public speaking and not go into the Christian ministry by turning my back on God\u2019s calling. I could have become an electrical engineer and speak only numbers instead of words. I could have avoided the many occasions of stuttering and my life would have been less stressful. But the Holy Spirit has descended on me and God\u2019s holy wind, holy breath; this pneuma\u2014air in motion, is moving through my vocal chords and I am able to speak about the mighty works of God boldly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This same Spirit that impelled Jesus to stand up in the synagogue and preach is now poured out on everyone, no matter what linguistic abilities or disabilities we have. The Spirit enables ordinary people to do what Jesus did\u2014to speak boldly for God and God\u2019s good news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the upper room on the day of Pentecost, 120 followers of Jesus were gathered. And here we are gathered, on this Day of Pentecost about 2000 years later. And I stand before you to testify that the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, still descends upon all, still enables a crowd of rather ordinary people, many of whom lack theological training or church credentials, to speak about the mighty works of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s still embarrassing for me when I stammer and stutter. I know that I\u2019ll continue working on it perhaps until I die. But today, I believe that God has called me like the way he called Moses who was a stutterer and said that his brother Aaron is a better speaker than he is or Jeremiah who said, \u201cTruly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy\u201d that even in my \u201cspirited stuttering,\u201d I am proclaiming the mighty works of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, the Holy Spirit is poured out on you and on me. Today we are all prophets and preachers standing up in the world and proclaiming the mighty works of God!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let us pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lord Jesus Christ, on this day of the Holy Spirit, we pray that you would come to us in the power of your Spirit. Baptize us afresh with this life-giving breath. Give us the words you would have us to speak. Embolden us to testify in your name, to tell the whole world about your mighty works, to be your mighty works, your courageous prophets and preachers, your tellers of the truth. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Acts 2:1-21 May 31, 2009 Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco. Today\u2019s lesson is one of my favorites in the Bible.Continue readingSpirited Stuttering<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[20,11],"class_list":["post-1304","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-donald-ng-sermons","tag-acts","tag-fcbc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1304","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1304"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1304\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2480,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1304\/revisions\/2480"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1304"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1304"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1304"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}