Awe of God: The Feast of Pentecost

Can you name these three waterfalls?

Don’t worry, there’s no test later. If you’ve been a Michigan resident a while you almost certainly know one, while you might have to be a dedicated backpack hiker to have seen all three (hint: one is in Ontario and another in Washington state). They can become a breathtaking spectacle or a reward after an arduous hike – sort of like the awesome presence of God after a strenuous session pressing into Him in prayer.

I’ve sat under each of these falls at least once, and several rate worthy of return visits. What strikes me about them is their constancy. They each continue to pour 6,000 to 10,000 gallons of water from their crests every second. And while they will strike you with wonder as you take them in, I find it even more notable that they remain there in their glory and in testament to the Creator the rest of your time. Every second that you are in your office, stuck somewhere in traffic, sleeping, or hanging out with your friends, they continue to cascade in majesty – a little less when the snow flies in November, and a little more when spring brings the snow melt streaming down the river. The awesomeness of God is that constant as well, even when you and I are being less than our best. And the Lord is there around us too, just waiting to pour over us and be rediscovered.

But don’t go chasing waterfalls (yes, I did, and with apologies to hip-hop trio TLC). Chase instead the wonder and awe of God as our constant Creator and Savior.

That was what resonated with me after this week’s message – all the feasts and ceremonies that we studied the past several weeks, each a call to remind us of our deliverer and his awesome might, are in the end merely a foretell of the sacrifice Jesus himself made for us.

We don’t think that much of the cross as a display of power. That almost seems to be the point, doesn’t it? The creator of the universe became a baby in a stable, then a man of no particular means or standing in his community, and was humbly led away by Romans to execution for sedition. But a 60-foot high, 4-inch thick veil was torn open by more than human hands to represent the freedom to press in for the Holy of Holies, where our Maker is seated. The very act of being led by a Gentile soldier follows on a tradition centuries earlier with the Israelites and the sin goat of Azazel, and fulfills prophecies from millennia ago. All the feasts foretold of our chance to dine with our Lord.

Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

Hebrews 10:11-14

May we never lose our sense of wonder at who God is. May the majestic and even heroic way Jesus came to fulfill prophecy be ever new for you. And when you press into Him, may the torrent of His love pour over you like a refreshing waterfall at the end of your long trail.

Written by: Chad Halcom

Edited by: Tamara Sturdivant