bishop's perspective:
Open Letter to Laity:
Yield to the Holy Spirit
Dear Partners in Ministry,
There is no way on earth we can fulfill the mandates of Jesus Christ to "make the disciples." It is an impossible task. Even "all the means" we can imagine or implement will not be enough.
John Wesley learned that his ardent prayer life and his commitment to theological excellence and his good deeds of mercy were insufficient.
The Apostle Paul wrote of a works-based faith as nothing more than a clanging cymbal. Sacrifice of even our burnt bodies added up to nil.
At the heart of our Wesleyan theology is the conviction that God longs to give us the gift of the Holy Spirit. Accepting this gift requires us to cease relying on our own insights, intelligence, good works and even personal piety. It is allowing the indwelling Holy Spirit to assume full control of our thinking and doing. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we become living, breathing expressions of God's image and will for the human family.
We call upon United Methodists throughout the Holston Conference to yield themselves to the Holy Spirit. It is God's gift for us. It is by the power of God's spirit working in and through us that will bring the love, joy and peace so urgently needed today. Jesus commissioned his followers to wait for the Holy Spirit before attempting to win disciples to the Christian faith. We are called to wait and receive.
Henry H. Tweedy says it cogently in his powerful hymn:
O Spirit of the living God, thou/ light and fire divine, descend upon thy/ church once more, and make it truly thine/ Fill it with love and joy and power, with/ righteousness and peace; till Christ shall dwell in/ human hearts, and sin and sorrow cease.
Let it be so Lord Jesus. Amen and Amen.
Ray W. Chamberlain Jr.
Resident Bishop
Bob Lockaby
Conference Lay Leader
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