Inclusive Environment

Acts chapter two is a record of the grand entrance of the Holy Spirit into the life of the church. The Spirit did not come in quietly but with “a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, …. then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them, ….and they all began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” The sound was so loud that the Bible said “the multitude came together,…. and everyone heard them speak in his own language.”

The Holy Spirit definitely wanted everyone’s attention. When Jesus walked on the earth, His teaching and miracles attracted people from every walk of life, and out of this diverse group of people He called an equally diverse group to be His disciples, one-hundred and twenty of whom were in the upper room seeking for the promise of the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit made His grand entrance, the Bible records in Acts 2:5 that He attracted “Jews from every nation under heaven.”  The writer records the names of fifteen of these nations that heard the disciples praising God in their own language. If you were to look for these nations on a map, they cover a 360 degree circle around Israel, fanning in every direction on the face of the globe.

None of this happened by chance. God is very intentional in all that He does. Why did Jesus and the Holy Spirit’s ministry attract such a diversity of people?  I believe it is because God by His very nature is inclusive, and everything He does is inclusive. Why then are we as the church so exclusive? We exclude people by our traditions, doctrines, and practices. We surround ourselves with people who act and think just like we do.

Jesus is not calling us to sameness but to oneness. Jesus prayer for us is “that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.”  Inclusion is not watering down your belief or condoning that which is wrong. Inclusion is loving people where they are and allowing the diversity to enlarge us and our vision and understanding of God. It is having “fervent love for one another, for "love will cover a multitude of sins." (I Peter 4:8) It is removing the plank from our eye before we attempt to remove the speck four of our brother’s eye. (Matthew 7:4-5) It is by love, trusting the Holy Spirit to do His work in each of our lives as He sees fit according to His unique will and plan for each of us.

We need to cultivate an inclusive environment. The conclusion of the grand entrance of the Holy Spirit among this diverse group of nationalities, traditions and practices is recorded in Acts 2:46-47, “Now all who believed (3,000 diverse people) continued daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.”

Andy Clark