5/7/2025
It’s kinda sad to see the chocolate bunnies, eggs and marshmallow peeps in the Publix discount bins. Like the folks who take their Christmas trees down on December 26, the “fun stuff” goes away a long time before the celebration’s over!
While the secular world moves on from bunnies and chocolate, we continue to celebrate Easter! In fact, the season after Easter, called Eastertide, is the second longest season in our Christian calendar. It runs for 50 days, from Easter to Pentecost (the Greek word, pentekoste, means, “fiftieth”).
There are seven Sundays in Eastertide, starting with Easter Sunday. On the 2nd and 3rd Sundays, we looked at Jesus’ appearances to his disciples after his resurrection. On the 4th Sunday (this Sunday), we’ll look at Jesus' role as the Shepherd of his people. In the scriptures for Sundays 5 and 6, Jesus prepares his disciples for their life and ministry once he is no longer physically here. Jesus emphasizes the importance of loving one another (May 18), and the importance of relying on the coming Holy Spirit (May 25). Which brings us to:
Ascension Sunday. 40 days after the Resurrection, Jesus ascended to the Father (Thursday, May 29, but we celebrate it on the following Sunday, June 1). Ascension Sunday should be right up there with Christmas Day and Easter Sunday, but most churches barely acknowledge it. It’s the true “Christ the King” Sunday, because Jesus, the Son of Man, ascends to the Father and takes his seat at God’s right hand. Before ascending, Jesus told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the gift of the Holy Spirit. So, they returned to Jerusalem, rejoicing, and praying until . . .
Pentecost Sunday. This day is often called the “birthday of the church.” From the beginning, God wanted to dwell among his creation, and he did so through the tabernacle and the temple. But with the coming of the Holy Spirit, God dwells not only with us but in us! Pentecost Sunday commemorates the giving of the Holy Spirit, the beginnings of the Church and its mission to all peoples and nations, which is what God wanted from his people all along (Genesis 12:1-3). So this 50 day long celebration of the Easter season ends with a new beginning for God’s people.
But wait! There’s more!
Trinity Sunday. Eastertide may end with Pentecost, but the celebration continues with a Feast celebrating all three Persons of the Godhead: The Father who made us, Jesus who dwelt among us, and the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. Trinity Sunday, in a sense, sums up all we have celebrated over the past months which have centered on God’s saving acts: Christmas-Epiphany celebrates God’s taking flesh and dwelling among us in Jesus Christ; Easter celebrates Christ’s death and resurrection for us; Pentecost celebrates the Holy Spirit who sanctifies us, guides us into all truth and teaches us all things.
And that wraps up the year until All Saints, which will be Sunday, Nov. 2.
But we’re not just coasting in the meantime! By no means! The Sunday after Trinity Sunday begins . . .
Camp Meeting Days. When I was a kid, we’d often hear sermons from Revelation at Camp Meeting, so it’s appropriate that I’ll be preaching through the book of Revelation from June 22 - July 27. It’s only six weeks, so we won’t be able to cover the entire book (we’ll do a more detailed study later), but by the time you’re done you should have a good understanding of this often misunderstood and misinterpreted book. But, trust me! Our focus will be on interpretation and NOT speculation. Our theme for these weeks come from chapters 2 & 3, and chapter 21: “to the one who overcomes” the promises are made over and over. By summer’s end you’ll know what you need to know in order to “Be an Overcomer.”
Then, on August 3, we’ll gather for our 3rd annual “Symphony of Prayer,” a service of songs, scripture and, most of all, prayer.
One of the best parts of Camp Meeting Days is always the music! Over the next month and a half we’re going to be redoing the Green Folders (these are folders we put together of public domain songs from our past that are either not in our hymnal or aren’t sung that much anymore – the sorts of songs we would sing at Camp Meeting). If you have any suggestions of songs you’d like to sing this summer, write them down and give them to Dorene or me, and we’ll do our best to include them.
So that’s it! There it is. Looking forward to experiencing all this – and more – with you!
Blessings,
Pastor Terry