12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” 13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”
When God is working there are often these two reactions. Some ask questions that open the door to their spirit and some mock, closing that same door. As those gather on the Day of Pentecost they see and hear some unusual and unexplainable events. There are unexplainable sights. They hear people speaking languages they haven’t learned. They don’t know how to explain their experience. As they put the data into their brains they come up with an input error. They try to match what they are currently experiencing with their bank of memories of the past. The first group knows what they are seeing and struggle to find out what it means. The second group also knows what they see, but immediately connects it with their experiences. They obviously spend way too much time around drunk people. Their experiences in life cloud their perception of what is happening. Their mind goes to their default: drunkenness. They could very well miss the activity of God because their personal experiences eliminate healthier interpretations of this event. Notice that the first group’s reaction is amazement and perplexity. They know there is no earthly explanation for these events. The immediately start looking for the meaning. Their spirits are open to God’s intervention in human affairs. The reason I point out this distinctive characteristic is to emphasize our current lives. For some, God never gets involved in human affairs, if he even exists. Their explanation for Jesus-follower’s belief’s and activities is stupidity, simple-mindedness, bigotry, and hatred. When we stand up for the rights of the unborn we are accused of removing the freedom of women, of enslaving them in the backward practices of an infantile understanding of the world. We are increasingly relegated to the sideshow at the circus. Our voice gets discounted, after all we are Christians, and you know what Christians are like! When we stand up for moral right and wrong we are accused of inciting hate crimes. The examples could go on and on. But there are some out there for whom the acts of Jesus through us are unexplainable and they will come with genuine questions. Their hearts might be ready for the Good News we carry. We might not be able to reach those who have chosen a culture of rebellion. What we do makes no sense to them. We are not self-seeking as they are. We are not living for the moment, constantly seeking to experience some new pleasure. Our lives are simpler. Our pleasures are old fashioned. Our priorities don’t line up with theirs. And yet we have many things they will never have. We have peace with ourselves and with God. Our striving is over.
The Arnold Journey 