May 24, 2026

Everyday Easter

How The Resurrection Impacts Our Daily Lives

Pastor Scott Wildey

PENTECOST & THE BIRTH OF THE GLOBAL CHURCH
“Pentecost is the oldest season of the church’s calendar year, going all the way back to the Jewish feast of weeks—a pilgrimage festival. It is so called because it was celebrated seven weeks or fifty days after Passover. For the Church, Pentecost celebrates the descent of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-13), the retellings of the historic promise of the Spirit, the great gospel story (Acts 2:14-39), and the growth of the church in the power of the Spirit (Acts 2:40-47).”
—Pentecost: A Day of Power for All People, by Emilio Alvarez

Are we open to the Holy Spirit?

If the Holy Spirit was withdrawn from the church today, 95 percent of what we do would go on and no one would know the difference. If the Holy Spirit had been withdrawn from the New Testament church, 95 percent of what they did would stop, and everybody would know the difference (A. W. Tozer).

Approaches to Spirit-ual Growth

(see Todd Hall's, The Connected Life)

Spiritual High: Dave & Buster's Approach
• Reliance on emotional high
• Experiences replace relationship
• Spiritually bypass pain + deeper emotional work
• Cycles of powering up + down lead to burnout

Willpower: Nike Approach
• Just do it (make it happen)
• Performance = growth
• If fail, try harder
• Religious activity works (more = more)

Intellectual: Jeopardy Approach
• Knowledge = knowing
• I think therefore I am
• Knowledge is power
• I “know” God (I got it)

Relational: Koinonia Approach
• God is fellowship (koinonia)
• God’s being is communion
• We are imago Trinititas (Triune God's image)
• We grow in and through relationships: God + Others
• God’s Spirit unites us growing Christ-like love

Spirit-ual Practice

Breath Prayer
Fill me, Holy Spirit [inhale]
Love in and thru me now [exhale]

Acts 1:8
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 2:1-4
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

CONTEXT: GOD'S SPIRIT
Temple: Heaven Meets Earth
• Genesis 1-2 - Creation is temple, humans sharing God’s presence + purpose  
• Genesis 3 - Humans break relationship, icon cracked, God plans redemption 
• Exodus 3 - Burning bush 
• Exodus 19 - Mt. Sinai 
• Exodus 25 - Tabernacle
• Ezekiel 10 - Presence leaves
• John 1 - God became flesh, tabernacled among us
• John 14 - Spirit promised 
• Acts 2 - Spirit given,  human temple, sharing God’s presence + purpose

Acts 2:36-39
36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”
37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

Sin v Symptoms
Our behaviors are the symptoms of a deeper disease.
Throughout church history, leaders have interpreted sin in the Bible as destructive:
and dehumanizing: Disordering loves, Blindness (desensitized),  Covering over our image), Bondage, Destructive Patterns, Weight, Power

Repent
Respond to the call of the Spirit: Turn from your private agenda; turn towards the koinōnia love of God.

Baptism
Beach Baptisms July 15 - FloodChurch.org/Baptism

“‘By him you were called into a shared life with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord (1 Cor 1:9).’ Sin tears apart and leads us to push each other away; but God stitches together and reconciles. The heart of Christian ‘fellowship’ is the gospel that draws us in and forms us into one body and life (Nijay Gupta)."

Acts 2:42-47
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Koinōnia  

Sharing together in the Divine fellowship, through the Holy Spirit, in both sorrow and joy.

Acts 2 uses language about sharing in the koinōnia life of God, who exists in loving relationship, and desires us to share in this relationship—which we were made for and fuels our fire, inspires us, and gives us passion to be ambassadors of this love to others.

“At its very core, the kingdom is made of the resonating relationship of the Father to the Son through the Spirit. The kingdom is the relational koinōnia of Jesus to his disciples, whom Jesus sends into the world to love the world by being with and for the world, through the Spirit (Andrew Root)."

Spirit-ual Practice

"When we participate with God, we’re like new branches that are grafted into a living vine, which begin to yield the fruit of that vine (John 15:1-11). So if God is loving, patient, and always emanating peace, then as we participate with God, we will bear that same spiritual fruit (Galatians 5:6)."
For a full list of fruits, visit BibleProject.com

Circle the fruit of the Spirit that you sense…

...an invitation to grow in: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control
…a need from others now: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control
…a call to share with another: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control