The Beatitudes

And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

- Matthew 5:1-10

On Saturday, we read of Jesus choosing His first apostles. As He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw the brothers Andrew and Simon (Peter), casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. He told them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." They followed Him. He found two other brothers, John and James Zebedee, mending their nets with their father. He called the brothers as well, and they left their nets and their father and followed Him. The Gospel then sums up His ministry: Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. Great multitudes followed Him -- from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan. This sets the stage for the Sermon on the Mount, which we begin in today's reading.

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." The Sermon on the Mount begins with the Beatitudes, a series of declarative sentences setting out what it is to live this life of discipleship in the Kingdom. My study bible calls them "the joys of true discipleship, the blessed way of life." It adds, "The people of God await the rewards of the promises Jesus makes." If we look carefully, we can see the hints of the One for whom the Way must be made straight, the valleys brought up and mountains leveled. We have the words of the One who lifts up the lowly, and fills the hungry with good things. Jesus is seated; this is the traditional position of a rabbi when teaching. My study bible notes, "To understand this sermon is to recognize this Rabbi is the one true Teacher of Israel." In this first teaching in the Sermon, it explains, "In Hebrew, 'poor' means both (1) the materially poor and (2) the faithful among God's people. The poor in spirit, the humble and lowly, have the heart of the poor and their total dependence upon God. These are truly the 'spiritually rich.'" "Blessed," it notes, "in this context indicates heavenly, spiritual blessedness rather than earthly happiness or prosperity." So, for those who rely on God as their true source of security and wealth, theirs is the kingdom of heaven. It is this kingdom to which they belong, of which they are citizens and members. Let us consider all that it means to be a part of something, the rights and laws and responsibilities that go with citizenship, what it is to be governed by a good leader, the grace of this kingdom. It sets us at once in a spiritual place, with an orientation toward the spiritual reality of our lives.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." The passage from Isaiah 40, quoted by John the Baptist, which declares "Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert, a highway for our God," begins with these famous words: "Comfort, yes, comfort My people!" Christ will send us a Comforter; He will declare to His disciples that He will not leave them comfortless. Here, the promise is made to all disciples of this kingdom, that no matter what our losses, our sadness and sorrow and grief, even the things we leave behind in repentance, we will be comforted, we will find comfort from our king. Our heavenly blessings will include this comfort. My study bible points out that this type of holy sorrow, a sadness over both sins and suffering of mankind, is distinguished from ungodly sorrow, a sadness which leads to despair.

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." Meekness or gentleness is contrasted with the violent, manipulative or controlling in the sense of worldly power. It is, says my study bible, "an attitude of being content with both honor and dishonor. . . . an imitation of Christ who said, 'Learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart.'. . . Meekness is not passive gentleness, but strength under control." In those who wait on God, are God-directed, lies the inheritance of an eternal kingdom: the rightful promise of the age to come.

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled." Righteousness, in the Greek as well as the Hebrew, is akin to justice or justness. My study bible says it may also be translated into "justification." If we hunger and thirst for a righteous life, one in which we are capable of living with justice and righteousness, then we shall be filled in this kingdom.

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." In Matthew's Gospel, this is the first of the many reciprocal teachings of Jesus. There is a kind of mutual reality here, that also depends upon our disposition. My study bible says, "Mercy is love set in motion, love expressed in action. God's lovingkindness, His mercy in taking our sufferings upon Himself in order to grant us His Kingdom, sets us free from captivity to the evil one. In view of God's lovingkindness we in turn are to be merciful to all others." Perhaps, in some sense, our own disposition of mercy allows us to receive, to perceive and understand, the mercy of the kingdom and its King.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." Here is the great promise. What is it to be "pure in heart?" We are not duplicitous, we don't have two different goals but one. When we "hunger and thirst for righteousness," we are in some sense pure in heart -- with one aim. To be pure in heart is also, as my study bible puts it, "to be unmixed with anything else." That is, a heart that is true, as a person the same on the inside as the out. We can compare this to the "pearl of great price" - as a rare natural pearl, the same through and through. I find that in the ongoing practice of worship and faith, this process of "purification" takes its time in me, pointing out my own conflicts, flaws, things that I need to repent and change or turn away from, leave behind. This is done with and through action of the Holy Spirit, a dynamic living process of discipleship. This promise, it seems to me, is an eternal one. My study bible says, "Then the heart -- holding fast to the new life in Christ and contemplating the glory of God -- shall see God through communion with His Son."

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God." It's interesting to consider each of these Beatitudes in the context of relatedness and relationship -- to God first and to one another. As the poor in spirit we rely on God, first. As those who mourn, we leave behind the things God asks us to "lose" for citizenship in this kingdom. As the meek, we rely on God's wisdom and grace for our lives. As those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, we ask to be filled with God's justice, discernment, guidance for our lives. As merciful, we seek to be like God. As pure in heart we seek a faithfulness that is true to God and to others. As peacemakers, we shall be called sons of God! In this peace is reconciliation, through the Reconciler, the Prince of Peace. My study bible says, "The Holy Spirit gives peace, the sign of God's presence, to those who meditate on Christ and imitate Him. Peace brings communion with God and concord with all creation, the sign of our sanctity. Thus, peacemakers share God's peace with those around them, participating in the work of God's Son and becoming, by God's grace, sons of God themselves." This is a peace born of righteousness and mercy and faith, another promise!

"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Finally, in today's excerpt of the Sermon, in the Beatitudes, we have a summing up of what it is to be like Christ in the world. We accept persecution for righteousness' sake. This is not a promise of a perfect worldly or material life, but rather with all our blessings may come persecution. We belong to another kingdom, not a worldly one, and may be at odds with the worldly kingdom. This may be a part of our loss and mourning too. But we are blessed in that persecution. Christ makes it clear here that righteousness may not always lead to a worldly sort of peace, but even persecution for the sake of that righteousness. Inherent in this statement is the tremendous value of being a part of that kingdom. The statement makes clear that it is persecution for righteousness' sake -- it is righteousness that comes before all things.

Taking all of these statements together, we have a picture of discipleship that is not necessarily easy. It is a road we walk day by day and step by step. The promises are eternal, the rewards extraordinary. The power of this kingdom is in our faith, in how we choose to live our lives, the power with which we understand that righteousness is worth even the price of persecution. The crown of citizenship in this kingdom is one of deep inner peace, a reconciliation with God, a joy in purpose that can't be overestimated, a conviction in the heart of where our loyalty lies. Can we grasp the peace that passes understanding, the peace and joy He offers?

Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men

And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." They immediately left their nets and followed Him. Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.  Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them.  Great multitudes followed Him -- from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

- Matthew 4:18-25

In yesterday's reading, we were told that when He heard John was put into prison, Jesus left Nazareth and went to Galilee to begin His ministry.   He lived in Capernaum, "which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, 'The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.'"  Jesus preached as did John:  "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." They immediately left their nets and followed Him.  My study bible says that these men had already heard the preaching of John the Baptist, and so were prepared to follow Jesus.  Many of Jesus' early disciples were first those of John.  We notice the action here, the scene -- they are casting their nets into the sea.  We take the common work of man, perhaps in a very elemental sense.  Akin to a kind of hunting, they work in the sea and are fishermen, casting their nets for what they can catch.  In this image, Christ will call them to work for the kingdom, turning their worldly skills into nets of faith cast into the world among the people.  He will make them "fishers of men."  Their work will come through His work.

Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.  The first apostles, those "called" by Christ, are Peter and his brother Andrew.  The next are James and John Zebedee.  Peter, James and John will form His "inner circle," and be present with Him in particular times of healing and revelation.  Here, the brothers, along with their father Zebedee, are mending their nets.  We can think of this illustratively, as those who are prepared for the work that will be given them.  My study bible says of these first apostles, "As His disciples, Jesus  chooses men who have not been trained in any sacred school, most of whom are unlearned and illiterate, considered by the various religious groups within Judaism as 'people of the land,' or peasants.  At Pentecost these men will be revealed to be the wisest of all, by the power of the Holy Spirit."

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.  Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them.  Great multitudes followed Him -- from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.  In these few verses is summed up all of Jesus' activity in His ministry.  Matthew teaches us right away of His spreading fame, so that all have heard of Him, from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.  These are lands both of mixed races and religions and the central heart of Judaism.  My study bible notes, "His miracles bear witness to the presence of the Kingdom and serve as an introduction to the Sermon on the Mount."  In the following readings, beginning Monday, we will start reading the Sermon on the Mount.

The revelation of the Kingdom "brought near" happens with Jesus' miracles, or signs, which bear witness to the power of God at work, the Kingdom in the midst of the people, and especially in the person of Jesus.  Even before He begins His great work, His ministry, He selects His earliest disciples:  Peter and Andrew, and James and John Zebedee.  They will become His closest circle.  James and John Zebedee's mother, Salome, will also be known in the Gospels.  These fishers of men begin as relatives and perhaps friends, known to one another.  But in relationship to Christ, all is transformed, used for the growing Kingdom and its revelation in the world.  Fishermen become "fishers of men" -- and these sets of brothers and friends becomes family of Christ by adoption, going out to spread this net of the faith and relationship.  Christ will call all those who seek the will of the His Father and do it "My brother and sister and mother."  The net of faith becomes the net of family by adoption.  In this age of networks, let us consider what it is to be part of a net, a network of Spirit, a relatedness in which we all work, in a spiritual sense, in and through one another, growing the "catch" of faith.  The fish will become a symbol for the early Christians; the letters of the ancient Greek word for fish (IXTHYS) will form an acronym in the Greek for "Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior."  We are His by adoption, we are related by faith, a living net of a "great cloud of witnesses."  Let us think about nets and networks, what it is to be a part of this growing, expanding Kingdom with all the abundance of the fish in the sea, and how the net interweaves to support, to strengthen, to give us the capacity in the Spirit to grow with, through, and from one another.  The prayers of all the faithful become its threads and its weavings, bringing one another to the place we need to be, for His work to be done in us.  It is a great net of light, the light of life in abundance.

The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light

Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee.  And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:

"The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
By way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles:
The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light,
And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death
Light has dawned."

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
- Matthew 4:12-17

In yesterday's reading, Jesus was "thrown" into the wilderness by the Spirit, led there to be tempted.  He fasted for forty days and forty nights.  The tempter came to Him and said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread."  But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" Then the devil took Him to Jerusalem, the pinnacle of the temple, and said, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.  For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge over you," and 'In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"  Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"  Finally, He was shown all the kingdoms of the world, and told, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."  Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. In Matthew's Gospel, we read right away of John's being put into prison.  John is called the Forerunner, the one who heralds this kingdom with his own call for repentance, and his baptism, in preparation for the Lord.  Jesus quite consciously here begins His ministry in Galilee, away from the leadership in Jerusalem.

And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:  "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles:"   We're given several geographical locations here.  What adds to this text is the understanding of the role that the land and its various locations have played throughout the salvation history of the Jews.  To go away from Jerusalem is to go to a place where people will be more receptive to His teachings, away from the established order - which in the past, at least, as we read through Scripture, has strayed from the teachings of God.  Although born in Bethlehem, Nazareth is Jesus' boyhood home.  It is a place even frowned upon in terms of its spiritual status, as Nathanel asks in John's Gospel, "Can anything good come from Nazareth?"  He's setting out on a new path, leaving His home to begin a public ministry.  His headquarters will be at Capernaum, a seaport, in which Peter has a home.  "Galilee of the Gentiles" in the prophecy of Isaiah, tells us about this place in which Jesus has chosen to make His ministry.  My study bible tells a history:  "Many non-Jews lived in this region, which became an Assyrian province in 734 B.C.  By Jesus' time it had a mixed population and was not considered a genuinely Jewish land, even though many non-Jewish residents had converted to Judaism in the Maccabean period.  Even the Jews who inhabited this area were influenced by Greek culture and were considered second-class by the Jews of Judea." 

"The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned."  The prophecy tells us a story of what will unfold through Jesus' ministry.  The darkness is that of not knowing God.  My study bible notes, "To sit in darkness means to be overcome by spiritual ignorance and death."  The great light that will shine is Christ, who will say (again, in John's Gospel), "I am the light of the world."  But that light that shines can be reflected in all sorts of ways, through those whom it illuminates.  Later in Matthew's Gospel, we will read of Jesus' teachings about His disciples and their light.  In the meantime, says my study bible, this prophecy anticipates "the gospel being preached to all after the Resurrection."  Let us also consider John's words in the prologue to his Gospel:  "In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it."  Comprehend, in this case, is a good translation of the original Greek -- it means both to understand and to take something in, to overcome it or encompass it.  Those who wish to receive the light are illumined, while the darkness neither overcomes nor understands.

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."  Jesus echoes John's preaching, with the call to repent.  The kingdom of heaven, or kingdom of God, has drawn near to them.  This is also what He will teach His apostles to preach on their first mission.

Let's consider Jesus' first words of preaching in the context of the prophecy of Isaiah placed here in the Gospel.  To turn from darkness to light is to repent.  Repentance, in the Greek, is metanoia, a word that literally means "change of mind."  Just as the first act, in preparation for ministry, after Jesus' baptism, is to be led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil, so Jesus' ministry becomes a battle for hearts and minds.  It's not a military battle, but a spiritual one.  When we confuse the two, we fail to understand.  To be illuminated, enlightened in this battle, is to share in His life that is the light of men.  The kingdom of heaven that draws near, is at hand, is in Him.  It is in His message, His life, His light.  It is something in which we all may participate, just as light illuminates all that falls on it, and especially whatever it is that can take it in (something of which the darkness is incapable).  To do that, we must "change our minds," turn about and repent -- turn from one way of thinking to another.  This is not an intellectual choice alone, but one of the heart, which encompasses all there is of what makes a human being.  To open your heart to Christ is His eternal call; it is another way of phrasing what He will have to say throughout His ministry.  We open our spiritual eyes and ears in our hearts; it is the heart, in Scripture, that must take in the reality of Christ, even when God's ways are not our ways and God's thoughts are not our thoughts.  We will be given what we are capable of receiving.  Can you open your mind in the heart to receive the light?  Faith, to my mind, is a continual repentance, allowing the light to shine in all the places kept secret from ourselves, healing and reconciling in its wake.  The knower-of-hearts wants to know and be known!

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  And when He had fasted for days and forty nights, afterward he was hungry.  Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread."  But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" 

Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.  For it is written:

'He shall give His angels charge over you,"

and,

'In their hands they shall bear you up,
lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"

Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"  

Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.  And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."  Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

- Matthew 4:1-11

In yesterday's reading, John the Baptist was baptizing in the Jordan.  Jesus came to him from Galilee to be baptized.  John protested that he would not do so:  "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  When Jesus came up from the water, immediately the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.  And suddenly, a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." 

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  The language here is clear:  it is the Spirit that "throws" or hurtles Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted.  My study bible points out that the wilderness is a kind of battleground, a picture of the world -- "at once the abode of demons and a source of divine tranquility and contemplation."  It points out also that no matter what we are called upon to confront in life, we, like Jesus, always have the Spirit with us.

And when He had fasted for days and forty nights, afterward he was hungry.  Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." At the Baptism, the Father's voice proclaimed, "This is My beloved son, in whom I am well pleased."   The first temptation here tests that relationship.  Jesus is tested in terms of how He will use that power and that relationship.  But He has told us in John's Gospel, at the farewell discourse in the Last Supper, that "all things that the Father has are mine."  In this temptation in the wilderness, that is as true as elsewhere.  Jesus will not use His powers except in the will of the Father.

But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'"   This is the answer that proclaims how Jesus will use his own human free will.  His life and ministry will evolve only "by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God."  My study bible points out that this temptation in the wilderness overturns the sin of Adam; Jesus resists his own personal impulse to hunger in order to serve God first, to put God's word first.

Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.  For it is written:  'He shall give His angels charge over you," and,  'In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"  My study bible says that the holy city is Jerusalem.  But the full quality of this reading must be understood in terms of spiritual battle; Jesus is in a mystical arena, and the stakes here are much higher than one man's temptations.  In a sense, in this sort of battle, a spiritual arena is without boundary (therefore He can be taken into Jerusalem, on the pinnacle of the temple).  Hence, in this sort of struggle, which is also the struggle of prayer, boundaries are loosened - spiritual struggle in some sense affects the whole world, and others who will experience the same.  Prayer and such struggle know no boundaries; in our own strengths we give strength to others, and they do the same for us.  Here, the Son's victories are for all of us, for the whole world.

Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"   My study bible puts Satan's temptation this way:  "Will Jesus depend on spectacular signs and self-aggrandizement, or will He humbly submit to persecution, humiliation and death according to the Father's will?"  How will He live out His ministry?   It is, in a sense, a hint that perhaps the devil knows what is coming, what will be placed in the time of darkness in Jesus' way.  But Jesus will not tempt the Father.  He will tell Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!" when Peter insists that He shall not suffer and be killed.  Jesus will rely fully on the Father's will through all that will come to Him in His worldly ministry.

 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.  And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."   In some sense, I suppose we could call this the devil's trump card.  He offers all the world, all "his" territory as "prince of this world," to Christ. 

Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.  Jesus puts Satan firmly in his place.  My study bible points out that this is "a command rather than a rebuke."  Ultimately, each answer to every temptation is the loyalty to the Father.  But the specific temptations Jesus has are things that all of us can understand in our own experiences in life.  They tend to be the worldly human assumptions about what it must be to be "god-like" -- making spectacular signs merely to impress, serving one's own basic desires with power, a materialistic outlook of control and manipulation.  Christ refutes all of this, in order to do it according to the wishes of the Father, whose "thoughts are not our thoughts" and whose "ways are not our ways."  My study bible says, "Jesus refuses to take a road that would lead Him away from the path of suffering and death for the redemption of the world."

Let us think about our temptations in life.  All of face some things similar when we are tempted to live our lives one way or another, or to seek God in finding solutions to our dilemmas, to the ways in which we proceed.  Christ's temptations are for the whole world -- not simply because He is here incarnate "for the life of the world" and "for God so loved the world" but because the battles He faces are also in some sense our battles.  He asks us also to take up His cross, and follow Him.  The temptations to a purely materialistic life, without the spiritual dimension, are all here -- to follow our own impulses in some rather primitive sense, to use whatever power we have to indulge ourselves and our own fantasies or "ego" in the popular sense of that term, to live life as one of seeking power for control and manipulation.  Or, we turn to prayer, to the mystical dimension of life, to the One whose thoughts are not our thoughts and whose ways are not our ways -- and we seek that path, that will, that Way to understanding who and what we are, and how we find our way in relation to the rest of the world.  Life is a spiritual struggle, the world mirrored in this place of the wilderness.  How do we make our choices?  For what do we live, to Whom do we have our loyalty?  In some sense, everything in the world depends upon this choice - for truth or fallacy, for the way to a better life or for the primitive and in a true spiritual sense, the uncivilized.    Let us follow the One who leads us to all truth, and know the Way that is there for us, and eternal.  Like Christ, we may face those temptations alone, only to find once we choose that the angels minister to us.

"This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased"

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.  And John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he allowed Him.  When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.  And suddenly, a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

- Matthew 3:13-17

In yesterday's reading, we read about John the Baptist's popularity as a preacher.  Even the Pharisees and Sadducees were coming to him for baptism.  But John had harsh words for them:  "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' " He warned them about the judgment that is to come, and the One who is to come:   "Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.  Jesus comes from Galilee to begin His ministry.  Essentially what is to happen here becomes the initiation for public ministry, the inauguration of His preaching the Kingdom to the world.

And John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he allowed Him.  To me, this is a mysterious statement.  My study bible says that by making the purification of humanity His own, Jesus would wash away its sin, grant regeneration, and reveal the mystery of the Holy Trinity.  All of these things are accomplished in His baptism.  The Eastern Church teaches that Christ's baptism in effect purifies the waters of the world for baptism of all people.  Gregory of Nyssa wrote:  "Jesus enters the filthy [sinful] waters of the world and when He comes out, brings up [purifies] the entire world with Him."  It's clear here that John recognizes Him.  Jesus' first act is characteristic of Servant and of humility.  "It is fitting" is the word for God's righteous acts.

When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.  And suddenly, a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."  This is the appearance of a Theophany; in effect, a revelation or manifestation of the Holy Trinity.  In the Father's voice, we hear the beginning of all things, spoken into being.  Christ Himself is the Word, as we are taught by the Evangelist John.  And the Holy Spirit appears, "descending like a dove."  Jesus' ministry begins with revelation, manifestation, the appearance of the Trinity.

In the words, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," we are given to understand a sort of completion right at the beginning of Jesus' public ministry.  This is a quotation from two sources:  Psalm 2:7 "You are My Son, today I have begotten You," and Isaiah 42:1 "Behold!  My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One, in whom My soul delights!"  At once the image of Son and Servant are fused, giving us from the beginning the great emphasis of the love of Christ in His ministry, that He is here because God so loved the world.  (Included already, in the words from Isaiah, is the hint of sacrifice and suffering for us that will come.)  The anointing of the Spirit, as in Genesis the Spirit "hovered over the waters," is a revelation of divinity as well, and another kind of inauguration for a renewed, regenerated Creation, full of the Spirit of God.  But "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" gives us an introduction in this revelation.  From the beginning of His mission, there is already a completeness, a sense of what is fitting.  The Father's love is complete in Him.  This reality is eternal.  What is to come will be a revelation for our sake.  Do we value the preciousness of this gift of regeneration and renewal?  "I make all things new," says the enthroned One in Revelation 21.  The renewal of baptism is ever-present to us, revealing God to us, giving us birth and renewal whenever we must "turn again" to God.

Bear fruits worthy of repentance

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

- Matthew 3:7-12

 In yesterday's reading, we read first the genealogy of Jesus from Matthew chapter 1, and then began chapter 3, the ministry of John the Baptist. John was preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  The Gospel tells us that John is the one who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah:  "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:  'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'"   John is preparing the people with a baptism of repentance.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"  John is speaking in the style of many of the Old Testament prophets before him, warning of the judgment of God, the violation of covenant.  His severe criticism of the religious leadership is also in the style of the prophets before him.

"Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."  Again, the imagery and warnings are nothing new in Jewish Scripture.  All is dependent upon God, or YHWH, and not the works of human beings, not on lineage, nor tradition -- but on the individual's response to God, to the covenant that is in the heart.  With God nothing is impossible -- God is able even to raise children to Abraham from the stones.  When John teaches that "every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire," he is again following in the tradition of the great prophets before him.

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."  The One who is to come, who will bring judgment, will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.  The warning is clear, the reason for repentance is here.  The One who is coming, who will inaugurate the kingdom of God, will bring with Him the Spirit and lead into all judgment.  Therefore the time is at hand.

In the tradition of the Scripture and prophets before him, John the Baptist comes preaching a message of repentance, but it is a message of preparation for the awaited One, the Anointed One.  With the Messiah or Christ will also come a baptism of the Spirit, and the fire that tests -- the judgment.  In Israel's history, she has already experienced the warnings of the prophets, the Babylonian exile and return.  John comes in the style of the old prophets, even in the spirit of Elijah whom He resembles.  In yesterday's text, the Evangelist teaches us that it is John the Baptist of whom Isaiah spoke.  This is a warning, a time for change, a call to heed not just the One who is coming, but all the teachings of the past, of the Covenant which must be written on the heart.  It is this type of repentance and awareness for which he comes baptizing, and this kind of warning he is delivering to the leadership.  In all of Israel's history, the tradition is clear, the warning has been heard many times.  The allusions to the wheat and the chaff are teachings from Scripture with which they all must be familiar, particularly the Pharisees.  The allegory of bearing good spiritual fruit has been taught over and over again by the prophets, such as Jeremiah.  Let us remember the long history of salvation, and God's grace working through.  We have all been called to the circumcision of the heart, the repentance from empty works, from hypocrisy.  We are given the grace to have hearts capable of receiving, and turning.  Can we heed his message now?  Let us remember that with the warnings also comes our grace, our consolation, and this is also part of the prophetic tradition.  Isaiah begins his chapter from which the quote about John the Baptist is taken:  "'Comfort, yes, comfort My people,' says God."  The One who is coming will bring with Him the Holy Spirit, also called our Comforter.  The Good News remains the good news, now and always.

Prepare the way of the Lord

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the Son of Abraham:

Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. Judah begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.

David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa. Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah. Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah. Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah. Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon.

And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor. Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud. Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob. And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.

So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.

* * *

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

'Prepare the way of the LORD;

Make His paths straight.'"

Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

- Matthew 1:1-17; Matthew 3:1-6

In today's lectionary reading, we begin reading from the Gospel of Matthew. First, we are given the genealogy of Christ. In Matthew, we begin with Abraham, the father of all Jews. Abraham is the spiritual father for many more. It was he who established the covenant of circumcision with the LORD (Genesis 17). Jesus' genealogy goes through David, royal king and, as my study bible puts it, "prototype of the royal Messiah." Through holy men and kings comes Jesus' descent. Jesus' name means "O Lord, save." My study bible says, "Jesus fulfills the promise and the righteousness of the Jews, bringing those who are faithful and righteous to Himself, God Incarnate. The book of the genealogy reveals the history of God's choice of His servants and the preparation of humanity for His coming." While in the Jewish tradition genealogical lists usually would include only men, here Matthew gives us several women. All are either Gentiles or sinners. In Jesus' lineage, then, we have a sense of the history of humanity -- or more specifically, the ways in which God's graciousness works through humanity. My study bible says, "This passage underscores the role of women in the history of salvation and anticipates the crucial role of Mary." Through holy men and kings, through Gentiles and sinners, Jesus is descended. All, in some way, give us images of the grace of God working through people in this world. The Old Covenant was initiated through Abraham, kept through David (a repentant sinner). Jesus, as Savior, comes to initiate the New Covenant. While there are many fathers of Israel and God's people, the Gospel is specific about Mary: she is the one who gives birth to Jesus.

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" The lectionary reading skips over the passages covering the events of Jesus' birth and childhood. John the Baptist heralds the events of Jesus' ministry, preparing the people for the One who is to come. Repentance, says my study bible, always accompanies belief. It is an about-face, a preparation for something new, a new way of being, a new way of thinking. We repent in order to accept. The New Covenant is at hand. Jesus' ministry will inaugurate something new, and the people are prepared for it through John the Baptist. John was a tremendously revered holy figure in his time.

For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; make His paths straight.'" John the Baptist, whom Jesus will call the greatest of the prophets, was "spoken of" by Isaiah. He announces that the kingdom is at hand; he is preparing the way of the Lord, for the true kingdom. The King who is a descendant of kings will bring to us the grace that initiates the new presence of the Kingdom in this world.

Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. John's attire is like that of Elijah. Elijah was the prophet who was expected to return to prepare Israel for the Messiah. John's holiness is evidenced in his ascetic life, living and preaching and baptizing in the wilderness, devoted to the preparation for the kingdom. He compels all to repentance and confession, a baptism of preparation for the Lord. He was an extremely popular figure -- all Jerusalem and Judea come to him out in the wilderness that extends from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea.

Coupled with the genealogy, we get a strange sense of God's work in the world: generation after generation is called once again to pick up the mantle of what it is to bear God's word and work in the world. Each is called upon to do its own part, to pick up again the Covenant and live it. Holy men and kings populate the list, along with Gentiles and sinners, and unusually, several women. Our Lord is born of a woman, according to the Gospels; Joseph is a worldly father but did not beget Jesus. That was reserved for Mary, who, while still unmarried and a young virgin, accepted a role given to her and lived it faithfully. Every generation, as we read through both Old Testament and New, has its own role to play, its own challenges in living out the kingdom as God has taught and as they understand. The Babylonian captivity and exile is also here present in the genealogy, so there is also the image of humanity suffering through the violation of that Covenant. In the images here, we get a sense of how we each as individuals have a role to play in salvation. In Revelation 21, the Evangelist writes: And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God." . . . Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” This is what we think of in today's passage, as the world awaits the Christ in the announcement of John the Baptist, he in whom the spirit of Elijah is returned. We have just passed through Holy Week and Easter, we await the revelation of Pentecost. The Book of Revelation teaches us about what is to come, as well. But the words of the One on the throne remain perpetually true, in the promise of the beginning of the Gospel of Matthew, in the genealogy and renewal of generations in the hope of God and Covenant, in the promise of the child born to Mary, in the work and baptism of John: "Behold, I make all things new." This action is always present, continually with us. In the act of repentance, we each open up and turn to His work, in each generation, in the possibility of any moment. He is the One who saves. His presence and renewing work is always with us.

When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth

"These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble. They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them.

"And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you. But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, 'Where are you going?' But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you."

- John 16:1-15

This week, we have been reading from Jesus' farewell discourse to His Apostles, at the Last Supper. In yesterday's passage, Jesus reminded them of His new commandment: "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you." He said, "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends." Jesus reminded them that He calls them friends; He has revealed Himself and all things He heard from His Father to all of them. And He reminded them again: "These things I command you, that you love one another." Then He warned that if the world hated Him, it would hate them also. And He said, "But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning."

"These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble. They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them." His warnings to them (and to us) are made out of love, so that they know what to expect, what is coming. He will be persecuted, and so will they. Indeed, the reference here is stark: "Whoever kills you will think that he offers God service."

"And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you. But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, 'Where are you going?' But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you." In the beginning, He was with them: He could protect and comfort them. But now, in this farewell discourse, He is explaining that He is leaving them, going away -- but that it is to their advantage that He does so, because the Helper, the Spirit of truth will come to them. They do not even think to ask where He is going, because they are filled with sorrow at His words. My study bible explains rather elaborately about this word, sorrow. It says that sorrow, here, means "extreme grief, leading to a state of severe depression." It explains the history of the Church's belief of the dangers of despondency, a type of sin of the passions. St. John Chrysostom has written, "Great is the tyranny of despondency." It notes, "Even when the world hates true Christians, they must not become despondent but take comfort from the Holy Spirit. The disciples are troubled not only because Jesus is leaving them, but also because of the ongoing struggle between light and darkness, between Jesus and the prince of this world." If we are to understand correctly, then, it would seem that falling into deep despair asks of us faith as the remedy, the comfort of the Comforter, reminding us that we are not alone, even under any circumstances. We recall also the words of St. Paul, which seem to apply here: " Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

"And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged." Speaking of the Spirit of truth, the Comforter or Helper, Jesus continues. And He lays down, here, a role for the Spirit: He will act to bring out the truth, to expose righteousness as well as sin, and to bring judgment on the ruler of this world. It is the response to the Spirit that will prove out these things, the true things of the heart which Christ knows and understands.

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you." Their sorrow is so great that they cannot bear the other "many things" that He has to say to them. But there is a deep promise here. Like all else in this speech, it is made directly to the Apostles, minus Judas who will betray Him; they are the ones who have been with Him from the beginning. But it is also implicitly the promise made to us about the Spirit of truth. His words are worth repeating, so that we understand this promise fully, and think about them: He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you. Just as Christ represented, manifested, the Father in the world, so the role of the Spirit is to represent both Christ and the Father in the world. All three are inseparable; where there is the Spirit, there is Christ and "all things" of the Father. This is our promise. We are not left alone, but will be guided into all truth.

Let us consider the work of the Holy Spirit in the world. Certainly we count that the Holy Spirit has worked through the Church, and continues to do so. The Spirit works in our lives, active and powerful. His promise is real, it is for us, for all of us. The ways in which the Spirit works are too mysterious for us to count, to recall them all in some sort of formula, but we know where the Spirit has been. It is in John's Gospel, in chapter 3, that we read Jesus' words about the Spirit: "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." Let us consider all the saints of history, the "great cloud of witnesses" as St. Paul has put it. How has the Spirit worked in each of them? Saints are not necessarily what we would call "perfect people." No, they are instead people who have been transformed, brought to greater and deeper persona in the image of Christ, in the things that are of the Father. They are those "called out" of this world, and brought into focus and light from the Father, who empowers, personifies, magnifies and challenges through Christ and the Spirit's work in the world, and relationship to us. God calls them to be who they are, rather than simply "fitting in." Paul Evdokimov has written, "Holiness is nothing but an unquenchable thirst, the intensity of the desire for God. . . . The saints are souls of longing."

Let us once again consider the words of St. Paul. We are here to run the race, and to finish it, and not give up. The Spirit will prove out and illuminate all things. It will guide us in the Way, and teach us where we are wrong, how we need to change. Let us work together with our Helper, in His name, so that we too will fight that good fight of faith, finish the course given us to race -- and know that we are not alone.

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you

"This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. These things I command you, that you love one another.

"If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, 'They hated Me without a cause.' But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning."

- John 15:12-27

We continue with the Eastertide readings in John's Gospel. Jesus is giving His farewell discourse to the Apostles at the Last Supper, teaching them all the things they will need to know and remember after His Passion and Crucifixion.

"This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you." This is a repetition of what Jesus has already told them at the beginning of this discourse, just after telling them that one of them would betray Him (see John 13:34-35). We must assume that it is a repetition for emphasis. But there is also more; He will explain further His love.

"Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you." He is the One who calls us His friends, and He explains to them why and how they are His friends. He leaves with them His new commandment, and He has taught of the Comforter, He has taught that He will manifest Himself to them, but not to the world. He has said, "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me." He has shared all with them, He will lay His life down for them. My study bible says, "Friendship is higher than servanthood. A servant obeys his master out of fear; a friend is a servant who obeys out of love."

"You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. These things I command you, that you love one another." He is entrusting them with His mission for them, as friends. He is investing Himself fully in them, so that the fruit they bear will not be passing but eternal. Beyond all this, He promises that whatever they ask the Father in His name should be given. But all of it is tied up in this friendship that obeys His commandments, a friendship of love -- and bound in the command that they love one another. It is, in effect, a Commission of love. I think that if we do not understand love, then we will never understand Christ. Perhaps to come to know Christ is also to learn love.

"If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." Here is the great contrast, between the ways of the world and the ways of Christ's love. He has set them apart, taken them out of the world, as holiness is something different from "the world" and the ways of the world. As Christians, as those who seek to know and to do His love, we can expect persecution from that which does not understand this Way.

"Remember the word that I said to you, 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me." Here is a paradox: the world doesn't know its Creator. A "worldly" way of thinking is outside of the connection to this love, to this Way. He promises, in this sense, persecution. A servant is not greater his master. He has led the way so that we may understand, and follow Him. The world will not understand this Way of love, because it does not know the Father who sent Him.

"If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, 'They hated Me without a cause.'" Here is another powerful teaching: because He has revealed the Father among them, their sin remains. There is no ignorance here, but true rejection. A gift has been offered, revealed, made manifest. To reject this gift, this grace, is to bear responsibility for that rejection.

"But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning." And here is the great promise again, of the Helper, the Paraclete, in the Greek. John calls Him the Spirit of truth. He is also called Comforter, Advocate, Counselor. Parakletos, in the Greek, is one who comes close when you call, an advocate or advisor -- one who helps with discernment, especially of a legal understanding. Mingled with Christ's love, we must come to understand His justice and truth; all are inseparable. Jesus has promised that He wills that their fruit should remain; the Advocate or Paraclete is tied in to that which remains -- to testimony that is true and will stand the test of justice, that will remain standing. The truth to which which they will testify will remain -- and will be helped through the work of the Spirit of truth, the Paraclete.

Jesus' promises here are directly made to His Apostles: "You have been with me from the beginning." But they are also made implicitly for us, to us. We have the Helper, who will help us to discernment, to truth (as the Spirit of truth). And the implication is also that the Helper will guide us into His love and the fulfillment of His commandments. Over and over again in this farewell discourse, Jesus repeats for emphasis what are His commandments, and what is His new commandment that He leaves with us: that we love one another. As He has loved us, so we must love one another. How often do we live up to that? How often do we fail? If there is anything more to understand in this commandment, it is that love and truth and judgment are all wrapped up in one another. In God's love and God's law and God's truth they are inseparable. We will show that we are His by the love we show to one another. How powerful is that?

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

"I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. A little while and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself in him." Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?" Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.

"These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me. But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do . Arise, let us go from here."

- John 14:18-31

We continue with the Eastertide readings, this week from the Gospel of John. In this part of the Gospel, Jesus is giving His discourse to the Apostles after the Last Supper meal, before His Passion.

"I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. A little while and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you." Jesus has been telling His disciples what is to come, but it is all still quite a mystery to them. He has told them of His betrayal. He has taught them a new commandment, that they must love one another as He has loved them. He has predicted Peter's three-time denial. He has taught them about the Comforter, the Helper, the Spirit of truth, who is to come. Here, He promises they are not left alone. While the world will not see Him, they will. And His promise is of greater, deeper relationship in love. "At that day" they will know that He is in the Father, they in Him, and He in them. We must understand the promise of the deepening of the bonds of love and trust, and what that teaches us about the One whom we worship, the God who became human. His promise is for us all, and exists and lives for us today. My study bible says, "At that day refers to the Resurrection of Jesus followed by the Ascension and the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, all of which, working together, make the fullness of divine life available to all believers."

"He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself in him." John is the Evangelist of love, and here in these words, Jesus teaches us more deeply about love, and about His relationship with us. It is intermingled with the Father, inseparable from the Trinity. Included in this relationship of love are commandments, teachings, ways to live our lives even in this world, messages of the heart. In another passage of this farewell discourse, previous to today's, Jesus has taught: "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34-35). His commandments of love continue in our lives; through His promise of the Helper, we are to live in that love, in those commandments, and deepen our relationship. It is a continuation of the previous promise of a new commandment; He will show Himself to us, He will manifest Himself in us. All are interrelated, inseparable. The commands of truth and love are inseparable from His Person, from the Father and Spirit, and we in relationship with all.

Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?" Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me." Here is the deeper promise of love. In Revelation 3:20, the Evangelist will write: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me." These passages from John's Gospel teach us about the difference between those who will open that door, and those who will not. The promise is in truth, and love -- and in the loving willingness to follow His teachings, His commands, His words, in which the Father speaks.

"These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." Here is the promise, of the Divine at work to bring us to remembrance, to help us to understand, to pattern our lives in His manifestation to us -- and in relationship to the Father and Spirit as well. We have help for all of it. Christ's death on the Cross is not a loss but a victory; one that will send us into a deepening of faith, of love, and relationship to Creator, in all new ways and levels, a tremendous gift of mercy and love. How many of us wish to hear?

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I." The peace that Christ gives to us is in this relationship, of love and commandment, of teaching and manifestation, of relationship with Father, Son and Spirit, and in the great gift of the Helper who will come to our aid and assistance, and help us so that He may dwell with us. In this is the peace He gives, not as the world gives. He gives us Himself, and Father, and Spirit. We dwell in His commands and the reconciliation of that peace. "Peace" was a customary Jewish word of both greeting and farewell. "Peace and grace" will become the greeting of Christians. All indicate love and relationship, truth and discipleship -- inseparable one from another. His promise of discipleship is a living one, of active love within us, active relationship with us. It is one that promises growth, maturity, a lifetime of deepening grace and transformation, if we allow Him in. In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught, "In my Father's house, there are many mansions." The word translated "mansion" is also a word for "room," a single dwelling. It is also the root of the word for "monastery." It is the same word Jesus uses above for home, when He says that He and the Father will come to him and make Our home with him. It is a promise of uniqueness, of growth, of a place prepared for us if we are but willing to follow, to learn, to truly love in this peace He promises. This peace is a reconciliation, not as the world gives, but in the relationship He promises. It may, in fact, be at odds with the world, and the place the world would seem to offer for us. In the saints, in the holy of Scripture Old and New, we find the uniqueness of the God-given personality, those who are draw identity from this relationship.

"And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me. But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do . Arise, let us go from here." Jesus is preparing them for what is to come, and He is prepared to face what is to come. He will set the example of following the commandments of God, even unto death. He contrasts the place the "ruler of this world" would offer -- the ruler who has nothing in Him -- with that of the Father. Jesus will walk through this time of darkness with the Father, at the Father's command. His pace to the Cross is not at the behest of the ruler of this world, but is in fact a heroic victory in the love of the Father.

A very wise spiritual director and psychologist has taught me that often, it's not what we do that makes the difference in our lives, but why we do it. The same action may mean two different things in two different people, or even at different times in our own lives. If it is motivated by fear, it may be entirely unhealthy, both psychologically and spiritually. But if motivated by love, it may then be entirely healthy, and indicate positive growth, both psychologically and spiritually. We could consider, by way of example, the aspect of setting boundaries in life, necessary for spiritual and psychological health. But if erected out of fear, it may hide us from the things we may need to face in truth and deal with. So it is with the Cross. Jesus' teaching here is ultimately one of love. It is the great archetype we have of love. He goes to the Cross not as the world has prepared it, not as the world will see it nor the "ruler of the world" planned, but as loving Son of loving Father, "for God so loved the world." It is, in fact, the greatest facing of truth, the conquering of the illusion of death, of despair, of abandonment. While the "ruler of this world" may see killing and death as final, an elimination of that which Christ brings to the world, in reality the Cross gives us the victory of Pentecost, the coming of the Spirit, the presence of the Trinity to those who desire this discipleship in love. Christ gives us the great transcendence that all may talk about, but that He lived, for us. Let us never forget that when we take up His cross to follow Him, we ask for the greatest power that can define truth from falsehood, that can show us the way to our true place prepared for us in love, to who we really are and to what really matters. "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." In the times of choice in our lives, let us remember His courage, His word, His truth to us. He shares it all. It is our most precious gift.

I am with you always, even to the end of the age

Christ Pantocrator - St. Catherine's Monastery, Mt. Sinai (6th century)

Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

- Matthew 28:16-20

After Easter (in the West and some Orthodox churches -- for the Eastern Orthodox, Easter is this Sunday), the lectionary will vary, giving us readings from different Gospels, until we begin Matthew's Gospel in the fourth week of April. Today's reading focuses on Jesus' last appearance in Matthew's Gospel.

Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. In the verses before this, an angel appeared to Mary Magdalene and "the other Mary" at the tomb. We are told, "His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow." But the angel answered and said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you." My study bible points out that these two women are "the first witnesses to most amazing event in all history: the empty tomb, the first evidence of the Resurrection." The verses continue, And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, "Rejoice!" Let us observe the risen Christ's first word to His disciples: "Rejoice!" It is the greeting also of Gabriel to Mary, the Mother of Jesus, in the Annunciation -- when he announces to her the great news that she will bear this Child. In the Greek, it literally means, "be joyful." It is a common greeting in Greek, but, as my study bible notes, "here filled with great blessing." The passage continues: So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me." In today's reading, the disciples are gathered in this place, in Galilee, home of His boyhood and their early ministry -- a place filled with both Jews and Gentiles (Greek speakers), the "whole world." They are eleven because they are missing Jesus' betrayer, Judas.

When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. In John's Gospel, we are given the verses that tell us of Thomas, and his need to see Jesus' body, the evidence of the Crucifixion. Jesus told Him, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” Thomas responded, "My Lord and my God!” Jesus replied, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth." This is the statement of what is called in the East, Christ Pantocrator, the Resurrected Jesus who holds all power, is Almighty. My study bible says, "This is the terminology of exaltation and glorification. It manifests the power of His Resurrection, and the authority to bring human beings back to life." It is the statement of Christ Almighty, with all authority and power, the resurrected Christ who has completed His great mission of the Incarnation. It is this Christ who is with us, whose saving power we draw from in prayer and worship, in all the sacraments of the Church, in the faith which we place in His grace and presence and power. In this statement is also His promise to us. He teaches us who He is, and what we worship, the One in whom we place our trust in prayer and faith and love and hope.

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. Finally, they are given the Great Commission, to make disciples of all the nations. My study bible says, "If we observe this context for the Lord's command to make disciples of all the nations and to baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, we see that making disciples cannot be done in the strength of man, but only in the power of God. The reality of the Resurrection refers not only to its historicity, apostolic witness, and necessity for faith, but also to its power in our Christian life and mission. The resurrected Son of God, living in us and energizing us, makes possible the salvation of all." Discipleship depends on this power, the power of the Resurrected Christ, the one who promises He is with us always. The Church depends on this, is made from this, the true Body of Christ. There is another note which I will quote for its exploration of Jesus' words here: "By saying He is with you always, Jesus means His Resurrection is neither of the past, nor of the future. It is always present in our lives through the Holy Spirit. We know Him directly, here and now, in the present, as our Savior and our Friend. To the end of the age does not by any means imply that we are to be separated from Him after that great consummation. He is with us now, and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen." Jesus' promise is with us forever, in each and every single moment of our lives. It is the promise of the risen Christ, the Almighty, the One who has completed His successful mission as incarnate man on earth -- the One who has been through all that we go through of betrayal, of hurt, of faith, of love and hope. The One who is with us. In the icon above, we note the two sides of His face (click it to enlarge): He is the One who has suffered with us, as human, and the One who is also divine. This beautiful icon, from the sixth century, is one of the earliest Christian images known to us. Its power remains.

The great drama of Passion Week unfolds to the appearances of Christ to the scattered and demoralized Apostles. He appears first to the women at the tomb; Mary Magdalene will be called Apostle to the Apostles. She will give the good news of the Resurrection to the rest of them. We are all somehow on that mountaintop in Galilee, in the place where we may encounter the Risen Christ. We may present to Him our hopes, our fears, our doubts, and at the same time He invests in us His Great Commission. He promises to us His power, and the power of the Trinity, Father, Son and Spirit. They are with us always. How does this power work in your life? We remember that with God, all things are possible. The risen Christ is not only the God in heaven, but the Lord of all things, all authority in heaven and on earth. He is the God who has also been human, who has been and is "with us." He is the One given to us "for God so loved the world." Can we grasp this tremendous Gift? Do we understand His promise to be always with us -- even to the end of the age? Let us rest in His promise. Let His Resurrection fill our lives, even to every moment of our lives. Let us invest our faith, and hope and love and remember His teaching. He is the God for all of us, in which there is neither Jew nor Greek, but rather all the nations. Christ's I AM here ("I am with you always") recalls who He truly is, the I AM of the burning bush, the Almighty of Moses and all the stories of the Old Testament. But there is one twist to this "I AM" -- in the Greek, here, "with you" is inserted between the I and the AM. He is with us always. Let us never forget His love.