He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire

 

 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 lectionary reading we were given sections from two chapters of St. Matthew's Gospel, chapter 1 and chapter 3.  First we were given St. Matthew's genealogy of Jesus:  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 Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.  Ram 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, Reoboam 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.   Then, the lectionary skipped to chapter 3, where we  begin reading about Christ's public ministry, which starts with the mission of St. John the Baptist:  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. 

 

  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?"  My study Bible explains here that Sadducees were members of the high priestly and landowning class who controlled the temple and the internal political affairs of the Jews.  The Sadducees differed from the Pharisees in that they denied the resurrection of the dead, did not believe in the existence of angels, and had no messianic hope beyond our earthly life.  The Pharisees formed a lay religious movement which was centered on the study of the Law, and strict observance of its regulations  Moreover they developed secondary traditions around the Law, which they scrupulously followed.  They believed in the resurrection of the dead, and also a messianic hope, but they taught that righteousness is found on the strength of one's works according to the Law.  Additionally, my study Bible explains, they believed that the Messiah would be merely a glorious man.  St. John the Baptist's title for them, brood of vipers, will later be used by Jesus (Matthew 12:34; 23:33).  It's an image of their deception and malice, and their being under the influence of Satan.  

 

"Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, . . . "  According to my study Bible, repentance, confession, and baptism lead to fruits worthy of repentance.  That is, a way of life consistent with the Kingdom of God (see Galatians 5:22-25).  My study Bible comments that if a fruitful life doesn't follow, then sacramental acts and spiritual discipline are useless.  So, therefore, in many icons of the Baptism of Christ, an ax is pictured chopping a fruitless tree in accordance with the Baptist's image given in verse 10.

 

 ". . . 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."   This warning that from these stones (in Hebrew 'ebanim) God can raise up children (Hebrew banim) is a play on words.  My study Bible comments that God will not admit fruitless children into His house, but adopts other children from the Gentiles.  

 

"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."  This statement is tied to the Baptist's earlier command to bear fruits worthy of repentance.  My study Bible comments that fire here refers to divine judgment (see Isaiah 33:11; 66:24; Ezekiel 38:22; 39:6; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9).  See also the reference to fire in the following verse.

 

"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."  Christ baptizes in the fire of the Holy Spirit, which my study Bible says is the power and grace of God divinely poured out on all believers at baptism.  It is the same Power and the same Spirit which both enlivens the faithful and destroys the faithless.   Additionally, in the Baptist's culture, a slave would carry the king's sandals.  So, my study Bible explains, John is declaring himself to be even lower than a slave of Jesus.  His inability to carry Christ's sandals also has a second meaning.  To carry another's sandal indicated that one was taking someone else's responsibility (Ruth 4:7).  Here, according to my study Bible, it shows that John could not have carried the responsibility that Christ carries, and that the Law could not redeem the world as Christ has come to do.  

 

"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."  Winnowing is a process that separates grain from the chaff, so as to save the edible grain and toss the inedible chaff.  My study Bible explains that this is a metaphor for the divine judgment, which will separate good from evil.  

 

In last week's lectionary readings, we were given Christ's Farewell Discourse to the disciples.  In Friday's reading, Jesus said to them, "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."  The Helper, in this discourse, is the Holy Spirit.  In today's reading, St. John the Baptist speaks of the Messiah (or Christ) as He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.  Again, my study Bible teaches us that this is the fire of the power and truth of God, yet this same fire is also the fire of judgment.  It is similar to a flame that purifies metals like gold, by burning away the impurities and leaving the pure metal.  It matches St. John's metaphor of the winnowing fan in yet another way, for a winnowing fan uses airflow to separate the lighter chaff from the heavier grain (modern winnowing machines use industrial technology essentially to perform the same task by efficiently blowing air to separate both).  In Greek, the word for Spirit is Πνευμα/Pneuma.  This is the same word used for the Holy Spirit, and the more general word spirit.  It also means breath, or wind.  The same is true for the Hebrew word Ruach.  Jesus likens the Holy Spirit and His effects to the wind when He teaches Nicodemus about Baptism in St. John's Gospel (see John 3:5-8, especially verse 8).  The same fire that purifies gold and burns impurities can be likened to the wind that separates wheat from chaff, as metaphor for the work of the Holy Spirit, whose job it is not only to illumine spiritual truth for those who will accept it, but also to "convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment."  So, we take St. John the Baptist's prophetic words here to indicate what the coming of the Lord means for all the people, including the coming of the Holy Spirit for all, and particularly within Christian Baptism.  Moreover, John's words speak with the prophetic power of the meaning of the coming of the Messiah for all people, in that he speaks eschatologically.  That is, his words indicate the coming of judgment:  "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."  This is a prophecy of "end times," which in the historic mind of the Church began with Christ's Incarnation and will continue until His Second Coming.  Just as Christ indicated in His Farewell Discourse to the disciples at the Last Supper, the coming of Christ is a mission which will initiate also the work of the Holy Spirit, alive like a spiritual fire always working in the world, always testing and purifying, with His power working to reveal truth as well as what needs to be burned away.  Let us remember the power of our Baptism given by Christ, and seek to fulfill its promise with the true fruits of the Spirit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The voice of one crying in the wilderness

 

 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 Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.  Ram 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, Reoboam 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; 3:1–6 

 

 In our readings from last week, the lectionary gave us the Final Discourse of Jesus, which He gave to the disciples at the Last Supper.  On Saturday, we read His final words in this discourse, just prior to His prayer before going to His arrest and the Cross.  He told the disciples, "A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father."  Then some of His disciples said among themselves, "What is this that He says to us, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'; and 'because I go to the Father'?"  They said therefore, "What is this that He says, 'A little while'?  We do not know what He is saying."  Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, "Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'?  Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.  A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.  Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.  And in that day you will ask Me nothing.  Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.  Until now you have asked nothing in My name.  Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.  These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.  In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have  loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.  I came forth from the Father and have come into the world.  Again, I leave the world and go to the Father."  His disciples said to Him, "See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech!  Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You.  By this we believe that You came forth from God."  Jesus answered them, "Do you now believe?  Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone.  And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.  These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

 

 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.  My study Bible comments that while St. Luke's genealogy runs from Jesus back to Adam (Luke 3:23-38), St. Matthew's list descends from Abraham, with whom was established the Old Covenant of circumcision, to Jesus, who is the author of the New Covenant.  God promised to bless all the tribes of the earth in Abraham (Genesis 12:3; 28:14).  This promise is fulfilled in Abraham's greatest Son, Jesus Christ.

 

 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.  Ram 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.  Traditionally, Jewish genealogical lists included only men.  Here, the mention of women -- Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba -- is unusual.  Each one, according to my study Bible, is either a Gentile or a sinner.  The inclusion of these women, it notes, declares God's graciousness and prefigures the calling of the Gentiles into the Church.  Additionally, it underscores the role of women in God's plan of salvation, and at the same time anticipates the place of the Virgin Mary in that place. 

 

 David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.  Solomon begot Rehoboam, Reoboam 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.   Through his anointing by Samuel, David was made king  (1 Samuel 16:1-13).  Through his psalms, David was revealed as a great prophet.  So, according to my study Bible, David foreshadows both the royal and the prophetic nature of Jesus Christ (Psalm 110). As an adulterer and a murderer, David is also a type for all repentant sinners. 

 

 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.  My study Bible says that Joseph can be named as Jesus' immediate predecessor since Old Testament marriage laws confer hereditary rights on adopted as well as biological sons.  According to the Church Fathers, Mary also was descended from David; and in the phrase Mary, of whom was born Jesus, "of whom" is in a feminine singular case, therefore referring only to Mary.  So, therefore, Jesus is shown to be born of Mary, and not begotten of Joseph.  

 

 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.  Christ's ancestors in St. Matthew's genealogy are arranged in three groups of fourteen generations.  Fourteen is the numerical equivalent of the consonants in the name David, and thereby, my study Bible says, it underlines Jesus' descent from David.  This arrangement also shows the division of the leadership of the Jews, who were under judges until David, under kings until Babylon, and under priests until Christ.  

 

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.'"  The wilderness of Judea is the barren region which descends from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea (map).  The preparation for Christ's ministry began with John the Baptist's call to repent.  My study Bible comments that repentance, which accompanies faith, is a total about-face.  The word in Greek (μετανοια/metanoia) literally means to change one's mind, or more generally, to turn around.  It explains that repentance is a radical change of one's spirit, mind, thought, and heart, a complete reorientation of the whole of one's life.  This is the necessary first step in the way of the LORD.  It is accompanied by the confession of sins and the act of baptism (verse 6), and is followed by a life filled with fruits worthy of this change (verse 8).  

 

 Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. My study explains that John's ascetic life conformed to that of the Jewish sects such as the Essenes, who lived in the wilderness.  Their purpose was to prepare for the coming Kingdom of God.  John's clothing is typical of a prophet, and echoes descriptions of Elijah (2 Kings 1:8).  In the early Church, the monastic movement was patterned after St. John the Baptist's manner of life. 

 

 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.  My study Bible remarks that the confession of sins is essential to baptism under both the Old Covenant and the New.  John's baptism, however, is a sign of repentance and the forgiveness of sins only.  It did not confer the power of total regeneration nor adoption as a child of God in the way that Christian baptism does (verse 11).  

 

As we have just passed through Lent and into Easter (or Pascha), it might be time to consider paradox and the role that it plays in our faith.  Holy Week gives us vividly the most striking paradox of all; that is, death and life, rebirth -- the Cross of the Crucifixion and the empty tomb and joyous good news of Resurrection from an angel to Christ's followers.  In today's reading, we begin not simply with Christ's birth, but with His entire genealogy from Abraham, the one whose faith in God was credited to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6).   This beginning gives us a complete focus for the Gospel of Matthew as we enter into readings in this Gospel through the lectionary, a focus on faith and its role in adoption as children of God.  This is a genealogy that links faith to Christ, and gives us a host of ancestors who, by faith, lead us to the Son of God.  My study Bible points out the unusual four women who are included in this genealogy, each one either a Gentile or a sinner.  But each plays the role in the salvation history we must come to understand as faithful.  And without faith, that understanding becomes impossible.  For God's work in the world isn't to our human standards, but rather comes through revelation and our receipt of that reality.  We learn about and come into relationship with God through God's grace and revelation to us.  Without this, how could we understand the paradoxes of life in Christ, of the Cross and of the Resurrection?  That is, that which St. Paul termed "to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness" (1 Corinthians 1:23).  From this long history of beginning and renewal in the genealogy we receive the beginning of Christ's ministry, given to us in the person and ministry of St. John the Baptist.  He comes into the story of salvation at a particular moment in which expectations are high that the Messiah would be coming; this also involves a great deal of false expectation which will play a role in the story of Jesus.  He foreshadows the baptism that is to come, preparing people through repentance, and repeating the words of the prophet Isaiah who came before him.  In this the Gospel gives us yet another parallel lineage that plays its own great role in the story of salvation, that of the prophets.  St. John the Baptist is considered in the Church to be the last and greatest of the Old Testament type prophets, and in yet another paradox, he plays his role in ushering in and preparing for the New Covenant to come.  Just as the voice in the prophecy of Isaiah, his mission and ministry are in the wilderness, and all are coming to him.  He lives in a radical poverty, echoing that of another prophet, Elijah -- the one who was prophesied to return before the Messiah (Malachi 4:5-6).  Jesus Himself will point out that we are also to see John's role as that of Elijah's return in spirit (Matthew 17:12-13).  So today, let us consider the paradox of the old and the new, the extension and renewal of covenant and of the ongoing saving mission of God in the world.  Baptism itself is a model of renewal, death and rebirth, turning from one way and facing another -- making a path straight for the Lord, in the words of Isaiah (Isaiah 40:3).  John's mission is in the wilderness of desert, just as Isaiah's words reflect.  There is the old, and there is renewal, and John's baptism will also be renewed in the Baptism that is to come in the Holy Spirit.  Let us embrace paradox and renewal, the old fulfilled in the new -- and God's always surprising revelation where our understanding isn't adequate without also faith in order to receive it.  In the Revelation, the Lord says, "Behold, I make all things new" (Revelation 21:5); from the Greek, this is better translated, "I am always making all things new."  The paradox of faith is always unfolding for us if we can but accept it, for in this is the lifetime drama of repentance, a continual renewal.  If we can but receive it, Christ's death and renewal is always working within us and in our lives.   We begin with the voice of one crying in the wilderness, which leads to eternal Resurrection, if we can accept with faith.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world

 

 "A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father."  Then some of His disciples said among themselves, "What is this that He says to us, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'; and 'because I go to the Father'?"  They said therefore, "What is this that He says, 'A little while'?  We do not know what He is saying." 

 

Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, "Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'?  Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.  A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.  Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.  And in that day you will ask Me nothing.  Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.  Until now you have asked nothing in My name.  Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.  

 

"These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.  In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have  loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.  I came forth from the Father and have come into the world.  Again, I leave the world and go to the Father."  His disciples said to Him, "See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech!  Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You.  By this we believe that You came forth from God."  Jesus answered them, "Do you now believe?  Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone.  And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.  These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

 

- John 16:16-33 

 

 This week we have been reading through Christ's Farewell Discourse given to the disciples at the Last Supper.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught, "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."

 

  "A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father."  Then some of His disciples said among themselves, "What is this that He says to us, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'; and 'because I go to the Father'?"  They said therefore, "What is this that He says, 'A little while'?  We do not know what He is saying."  My study Bible comments that the first little while refers to Christ's arrest, death, and burial.  The second is Christ's time in the tomb until His Resurrection. 

 

 "Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, "Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'?  Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.  A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.  Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.  And in that day you will ask Me nothing.  Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.  Until now you have asked nothing in My name.  Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full."  My study Bible explains that no longer remembers doesn't imply the faithful are to forget the Passion and Cross of Christ, any more than a woman "forgets" labor.  Instead, we are to see these sufferings in light of the victory of the Resurrection, and this victory transfigures our perception of sufferings.  Christ's victory allows us to rejoice in anguish because of the infinitely greater good that comes from it (Romans 5:3-5; Philippians 3:10).  

 

 "These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father."  The time when Christ would speak plainly about the Father, according to my study Bible, was during the 40 days following the Resurrection (Acts 1:3).  

 

"In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have  loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.  I came forth from the Father and have come into the world.  Again, I leave the world and go to the Father."  His disciples said to Him, "See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech!  Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You.  By this we believe that You came forth from God."  Jesus answered them, "Do you now believe?  Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone.  And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.  These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."  My study Bible notes that we know prayer is offered in the name of God the Father, for Christ taught us to pray that way (Matthew 6:9), and He Himself prayed to the Father (John 11:41; 12:28; 17:1).  In Christ, we have direct access to the Father, and so therefore we pray in the name of the Son as well (John 14:13-14).  

 

It's very significant that my study Bible points out Christ's meaning here as indicating that we see His suffering in light of the Resurrection -- and all the good things that came out of it as well.  This can't be underestimated in terms of its impact on the whole of our faith, and yet also in each of our individual lives.  For Christ's Resurrection is not just His alone.  His Resurrection is also something in which we may participate, for when we have our faith, we have faith in Resurrection as ongoing reality and something which we may also experience in our own lives.  Christ stepped into the world filled with sin and evil things, including intense suffering.  He came to be with us as one of us; He did not look upon us from afar and stand aloof to our suffering, but came down into it, like a baptism.  According to my study Bible, Jesus called His Passion and death a baptism because He was completely immersed in it, yet it cleansed the world (Matthew 20:22-23).  In this light, we again consider the words in today's reading, in which Jesus teaches that the suffering His disciples will endure while experiencing the shattering and shocking events of His Passion and death will only be properly received and understood through the light of the Resurrection, and the joy that is to come "in a little while" later on.  In this instruction, Jesus gives the example of a woman in labor.  No one forgets the pain, but that pain is understood and perceived in the light of the joy of birth.  Christ's death and Resurrection are equally important for us, and must be taken together.  We do not forget suffering -- and that includes all those who follow Christ and suffer in the world, particularly because of their faith -- but neither do we receive or understand that suffering without the Resurrection.  In this is truly our faith, and the instruction for how we go through life, and even through the tragedies and terrible experiences that may befall us.  For while the light of the Resurrection may not change the facts of the suffering, including the pain and even loss, Resurrection brings with it its own changed circumstances and new realities.  This is the heart of faith, and why we do not despair.  We don't know what door God opens to us when we meet suffering with trust and faith in Him, even when we experience loss of things dear to us.  In Christ's case, His disciples would lose their beloved Teacher Jesus.  But Resurrection would defeat death for the world, and send the Holy Spirit to all who may be baptized into the Church and find the faith and truth therein.  And in this is joy, as Jesus says here in today's reading.  This is not an intangible joy, but one that is measured through our own experience of meeting difficulties in the experience of the faith that shows us how to walk through them.  My mother experienced dementia and Alzheimer's, and it was with no shortage of difficulty.  But we became closer through her illness, and I was able to offer her love and care.  Moreover, in her own growth, despite -- and maybe even because of -- her illness, she was able to find faith in Christ, a depth in bond of love at her Church, and meaning in the Bible she had not found before.  These are simply a small handful of the good things that came out of meeting her illness in the faith of Christ and the power of Resurrection that is at work for us when we pray.  Jesus says in today's reading, "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."  When we have tribulation, let us remember that He has overcome the world, and extends that resurrection power and strength to us to walk us through our own, and find the redemption of Resurrection. 

 

 

 

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 through Christ's Farewell Discourse, which was given to the disciples at the Last Supper.  Unlike the Synoptic Gospels, which tell of the manner in which the Eucharist was instituted, John's Gospel gives us the meaning behind Christ's ministry and the institution of the Eucharist, the substance of communion.  Yesterday we read that Jesus said, "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 to 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." 

 

  "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."  Here Christ elaborates on His warnings to the disciples of what is to come when He is no longer with them in the flesh, as Incarnate Jesus.  My study Bible explains that sorrow, in Christ's use here, means "extreme grief leading to despondency or despair," which is a sinful passion.  It quotes St. John Chrysostom, who comments, "Great is the tyranny of despondency."  Moreover, it adds that this sin is constantly referred to in the writings of the Desert Fathers.  When the world persecutes the believer or when God seems to be absent, Christians are called to fight against this despondency, taking comfort from the presence of the Holy Spirit (the theme of verses 5-15).  

 

 "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.  "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."  Once again, we recall that the word in Greek translated here as Helper is Παρακλητος/Parakletos, sometimes rendered in English as Paraclete.  It literally indicates one who comes by one's side when called, as in participating in one's defense at trial.  This title also means "Comforter," "Counselor," and "Advocate."  My study Bible notes on this passage that through the illumination brought by the Holy Spirit, the world will be convicted; that is, it will be proven wrong.  It will be convicted concerning first of all its sin, of which the ultimate is denying Jesus Christ.  Furthermore, of righteousness, which it failed to accept from Christ with faith and thanksgiving.  And finally judgment, for all who reject Christ, according to my study Bible, will receive the same penalty that Satan, the ruler of this world, has already received (see Matthew 25:41).

 

 "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."  My study Bible explains that because the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, and because this Spirit abides in the Church, the Church is the guardian of all truth.  

 

 My study Bible comments that because the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, and because this Spirit abides in the Church, the Church is the guardian of all truth.  While over the centuries, the Church has contended with many heresies, many sects, and many divisions, this comment may make some wonder how it is that the Church can be the guardian of all truth.  But the Church exists as the institution founded by Christ and built, in a particular respect, by the Holy Spirit.  The Church also contains within it the whole of the "great cloud of witnesses" referred to by St. Paul (Hebrews 12:1).  That is, all the saints and the angels, those who have come before us, and in the sense in which the Church is an eternal spiritual construction, those who will come afterwards.  The Church is also a kind of divine-human construction.  While the Spirit is active in the Church, the Church also relies upon human beings in its ranks.  That is true at every level, from the highest to the lowest in authority, from parishioners to priests and pastors and bishops and hierarchs.  In other words, in this divine-human effort, we are also fallible human beings who are capable of making errors and mistaking the ways in which we come to know and understand the truth of the Spirit.  Nonetheless, despite this and our own capacity for problems, the Church remains the repository of truth; as my study Bible puts it, the guardian of all truth.  For everything is there that we need to find when we seek Christ, and desire to come to know God and our place in God's salvific plan for creation.  In St. Matthew's Gospel, when Jesus begins speaking in parables about the kingdom of heaven, He gives three that are particularly pertinent to this topic (Matthew 13:44-52).  First He speaks of the kingdom of heaven as being like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid, and for joy he sells all that he has and buys the field.  Second, Jesus teaches that the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, having found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.  Finally, Jesus teaches that the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea.  Here we come close to our understanding of the Church and the working of the Holy Spirit in it, for this dragnet is cast out and gathers some of "every kind."  But when it was full, the good was gathered into vessels and the bad thrown away.  This is a parable of judgment at the end of the age -- that which Christ speaks of in today's reading when He reveals the work of the Holy Spirit in the world, and the Spirits active and ongoing mission, which convicts the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment, and at the same time guides the faithful into all truth, and glorifies Christ.  Finally, Jesus ends this teaching in parables by saying, "Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old."  And this treasure out of which every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven brings out things new and old is the Church.  This is the image of the repository of the Church as guardian of all truth -- a treasure to be cherished, upheld, lived, and grown into so that by its fruit it glorifies Father, Son, and Spirit.  Those who wish simply to use that treasure for their own gain or purpose will incur judgment, as will those who refuse to honor or receive its value.  That includes, as Jesus says in today's reading, "the ruler of this world," also called the father of lies (John 8:44).  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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 to 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 

 

 This week we are reading through what is known as Christ's Farewell Discourse given at the Last Supper.  Yesterday we read that Jesus said to His disciples, "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.  As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

 

  "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."  This is the second time that Jesus has iterated this "new commandment" for His disciples (see John 13:34).  My study Bible comments that many religions and philosophies teach people to love one another.  What makes this commandment new is the measure required of our love:  we are told to love as Christ has loved us.  In the following verses He explains what this depth of love means, that He will lay down His life for His friends.  Moreover, at the Cross He will lay down His life even for His enemies.  

 

"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 to 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."  My study Bible comments that friendship is higher than servanthood.  It says that servants obey their masters out of fear or a sense of duty; friends obey out of love and an internal desire to do what is good and right.  Abraham was called a "friend of God" (James 2:23) because he obeyed God out of the belief of his heart.  The disciples, and truly all the saints, are honored as friends of Christ because they freely obey His commandments out of love.  Those who have this spirit of loving obedience, my study Bible adds, are open to receive and understand the revelations of the Father (Matthew 16:17).

 

 "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.'"  My study Bible explains here that the term world is used in several distinct ways in Scripture.  In some cases, it refers to everything that is glorious, beautiful, and redeemable in God's creation (John 3:16).  Other times, it's a reference to that which is finite in contrast to that which is eternal (John 11:9; 18:36).  Yet other times, as here, this term indicates everything that is in rebellion against God (see also John 8:23).  Additionally, my study Bible comments that the rebellion of the world against God reveals several things.  First, while union with Christ brings love, truth, and peace, it also brings persecution -- because the world hates love and truth (see also John 16:33).  Secondly, the world hated Christ.  So therefore, it will hate all those who try to be Christ-like (verse 20).  Moreover, the world hates Christ because it neither knows nor desires to know the Father, as Jesus indicates here (verses 21-24).  Hatred for Jesus Christ is irrational and unreasonable, for Christ brings love and mercy.  Therefore, Christ is hated without a cause (verse 25).

 

 "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."   My study Bible comments that with respect to God's working salvation in the world, the Son sends the Holy Spirit from the Father alone.  In other words, the Holy Spirit receives His eternal existence only from the Father.  In conformity with Christ's words, the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed confesses belief "in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father."  While the Son is begotten of the Father alone, the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father alone; in other words, the source or Fountainhead of both Persons is the Father. 

 

 St. John's Gospel is often called the Gospel of Love.  This passage is one of those that make it clear why it is called this way.  Many commentaries reflect that while the Synoptic Gospels teach us about the manner in which the Eucharist was instituted, St. John's Gospel gives us the reasons and meaning behind it.  Moreover, according to Biblical Studies professor Dr. Eugenia Constantinou, there is further good reason to understand St. John's Gospel in this way, as it also testifies to the particularly close relationship he had with Jesus.  He is referred to as the "Beloved Disciple" or "the disciple whom Jesus loved" (John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20); Christ even commits the care of His Mother, the Theotokos, to the care of St. John when He was dying on the Cross.  St. John then took her into his own home (John 19:27).  This dimension of their deep friendship -- while Christ loved all of His disciples -- perhaps put St. John in the most advantageous position to teach us about Christ's love, and the deep nature of the love of God.  So important is our understanding of this reality of the nature of God and of our faith that St. Paul himself has written one of the greatest testimonies to it that we have.  This is found in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13.  So essential is love to our faith that, according to St. Paul, it surpasses all other gifts.  Indeed, he claims that having any other spiritual gift, but without love, renders that gift nothing.  Even among the greatest virtues of our faith, the greatest is love:  "And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:13).  All of these things confirm Christ's words as found here in St. John's Gospel.  He will indeed go on to lay down His life for His friends, even for His enemies, as my study Bible tells us, and for all who have been and were to come, for the whole of the Creation.  Christ's words in today's reading confirm for us this basis of love for all of us who would be faithful to Him, for all of the communion -- from Father to Son and Holy Spirit, and in turn to us and to all of Creation -- is based in love.  Like St. Paul, we can say, "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing" (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).  Let us also consider that when we go to our churches, when we profess to be Christian, without love we have no real basis in our faith.  Additionally, Jesus also promises us tribulation in the world, but it is His love that guides us through the evils we may encounter and endure, just as He did.  He invites us into that spiritual battle, and our part in it is His love, and His life teaches us that truth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Abide in Me, and I in you

 

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.  

 

 "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

 

- John 15:1–11 

 

This week, we are reading through Christ's Final Discourse at the Last Supper.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus told the disciples, "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  A little while longer 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 to 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."

 

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."  My study Bible explains that the vine is a symbol of Israel (Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 2:21).  In contrast to disobedient and unfruitful Israel, it says, our Lord calls Himself the true vine, which together with the branches constitutes a new and fruitful people of God:  the Church.   At the Divine Liturgy of the Orthodox Church, the bishop prays that the Lord will visit and confirm the vineyard, the local body of Christ, which He planted with His own right hand (Psalm 80:15-16).  Moreover, to abide in this vine is to abide in Christ and His Church.  My study Bible adds that this image of the vine and the branches shows several things.  First, that our union with Christ is intimate and real.  Second, that life flows from the vine to the branches -- to abide in Christ is dynamic and vitalizing.  Finally, the fruit we bear is both good works and mission (John 15:16; 17:18).  

 

  "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  My study Bible comments here that one cannot love God and refuse God's commandments.  To love God is to keep His commandments (John 14:15).  

 

Christ's words in today's reading convey to us the depth of relationship in meanings of love, communion, and covenant.  The image of the vine, branches, and vinedresser conveys to us the depth of communion between Christ and His followers, and that this also includes God the Father.  As vinedresser the Father prunes those branches which do not bear fruit, for the health of the whole and so that the vine may be even more fruitful.  In the sense of this image, Jesus teaches, "Abide in Me, and I in you."  To abide is to "stay," in the sense of residing somewhere, staying in a particular shelter or home.  Jesus says, "He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."  Thus, He conveys to us that unless we make our home with Him, and He in us, we do not bear the fruits God looks for.  No branch can bear fruit off of its vine, and so it is with us.  Without the vine, a branch simply withers.  "By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."  The spiritual fruit we bear by abiding in Him, and He in us, glorifies the Father, and declares that we are Christ's disciples.  Finally, what Christ offers to all of us is a communion of love:  "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love."  We are to remain in that love as a shelter, an abode, a place to dwell.  Finally, here is covenant, the bond that doesn't break and is inseparable:  "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love."  Here is love, loyalty, and even duty.  So long as we keep in this love and follow what He teaches we abide in this communion.  We are to live to the fullest this life that produces spiritual fruit, keeping in His love, following what He teaches us.  This is an active love and a dynamic communion.  It is a covenant of love, a bond that goes all ways, between Father, Son, and the faithful, where faithful means being true to what we are taught, how we are guided, faithful to the One who loved us first (1 John 4:19).  Finally, here is the joy that surprises in the midst of the world:  "These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  We are not created to "be our own boss," so to speak, but we are created to bloom and to bear fruit, to grow in as healthy a way as possible.  And for us to understand the fulfillment of our own creation, we need Christ to guide, and the love of the Father, and the help of the Holy Spirit.  In this way, we fulfill the purpose for which we are created -- and that is the source of joy.  For so many people, "duty" may be seen as an oppressive word, but a duty borne of love is not coerced nor compelled; it is voluntary.  This is loyalty, and desire.  Often we imagine -- in the midst of a taxing circumstance -- that if only we had nothing to do, we could be happy.  But the truth is, human beings do not become happy by being idle; our joy comes by fulfilling a deeper purpose, and most particularly in living that love in this communion Christ describes.  It is the heart and life of our very soul that forms this communion, and the one in which Christ asks us to abide -- for there we will find our surprising joy.  If we think about it, we may come to understand that even in the midst of tribulation, in the midst of a difficult and troublesome world full of worries and hardships, we may still have this joy when we follow what He teaches, and abide in His life.  Let us learn to find this joy, in all circumstances.  Let us seek Him and stay where He teaches us to be.  

 

 

 

I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you

 

 "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  

 

"A little while longer 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 to 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 

 

This week the lectionary gives us Christ's Farewell Discourse to the disciples at the Last Supper.  Yesterday we read that Jesus taught, "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.  And where I go you know, and the way you know."  Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?"  Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.  If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him."  Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us."  Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?  He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?  Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?  The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.  Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.  And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.   If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. If you love Me, keep My commandments.  And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you."

 

  "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you."  Here is Christ's assurance of His continued presence to His disciples, especially in the presence of the Spirit of truth, which He has just assured them is the Helper who will be sent from the Father.

 

 "A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also."  My study Bible explains that the brief separation of Jesus from the disciples at His death will lead to a deeper mystical union after the Resurrection and to the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.  

 

"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 to 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."  That day is a reference to Pentecost (Acts 2).  My study Bible cites St. John Chrysostom, who comments that it is "the power of the Holy Spirit that taught them all things." 

 

  "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."  Once again, we review that the Helper is the Holy Spirit.  The word Helper is translated from the Greek Παρακλητος/Paracletos, often rendered Paraclete.  This title literally means "One who comes to one's side when called" indicating someone assisting in defense at trial.  The title can also mean "Comforter," "Counselor," and "Advocate."  My study Bible comments that we have confidence in the apostle's doctrine (Acts 2:42) because the Holy Spirit is their Teacher.  He brings to remembrance not only Christ's words, but also their meaning.  It adds that we have confidence in the Church because the Holy Spirit is our Instructor as well from Pentecost until today, leading us into all truth (John 16:13).  St. Irenaeus is quoted, who comments, "Where the Church is, there is the Holy Spirit and the fullness of grace."

 

"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."   Peace was the customary Jewish word of both greeting and farewell, my study Bible comments.  It says that perfect peace is brought by Christ, who reconciles humanity to God (Ephesians 2:14).  Peace is also part of the traditional greeting of Christians to one another (Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:3).  The greeting "Peace be to all" is offered many times during the liturgical services of the Church.  

 

 "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."  My study Bible explains that when Jesus says, "My Father is greater than I" it does not mean that the Father is greater in nature or in essence, for the Father and the Son share one divine nature.  Neither does this indicate that the Son is created, for the Son is begotten from all eternity ("In the beginning was the Word" - John 1:1).  Instead, Jesus is indicating that the Father, as the Fountainhead of the Trinity, is the eternal cause of the Son.  

 

 "And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe."  Before it comes is a reference to Christ's Passion.  This Farewell Discourse at the Last Supper takes place just prior to Christ's betrayal and arrest.  My study Bible comments that telling these events beforehand strengthened the faith of the disciples.  

 

"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."  The ruler of this world is the devil; my study Bible explains that the devil dominates the realm of those who do not love Christ or keep His commandments.  Moreover, my study Bible adds Jesus says that the devil "has nothing in Me" because there can be no compromise between Christ or His followers and the devil.  Christ became Man, but He was never stained with sin.  

 

"Arise, let us go from here."  My study Bible says that Christ takes His disciples to another room or location to complete His discourse in order to gain their undivided attention.  In the commentary of St. John Chrysostom, it is suggested that their current location was susceptible to intrusions, and the disciples were likely to be distracted from fear.  Therefore we may conclude that Christ is taking them to a more private place in order to further instruct them and continue His discourse.

 

 Today's passage begins with this statement by Jesus to His disciples:    "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you."  He is going away, and He is reassuring them that they will not be left alone.  He will return to them.  This statement is profound in all of its implications of the reality that is to come, and in what it teaches us about transitions and changes in life, and God's terms for the transformation of life in God's spiritual purview.   What this means is that the substance of Christ's teachings to them about what is to come -- after what will transpire at His Passion, death, and Resurrection -- exists within these words.  "I will not leave you orphans" tells us once again, in yet another form, of the relationship between Christ and those who are His disciples.  It is that of a family.  In this case, Christ speaks of Himself as Father to all of them, and by extension to all of His disciples, to those faithful who will come into the world, up until the present day, and into the future for as long as the Church exists, and until His final return at the Second Coming.  "Orphans" speak to us of those who are fatherless, without protection, grieving, comfortless, vulnerable, and abandoned.  It conjures for us, as it is meant to in Christ's compassion, the greatest fears of human beings, for He indeed understands the hearts and minds of His followers found in these His disciples, and all those to come.  Christ speaks of abandonment and the pain of loss in this world that we know.  But the comfort comes in that He says He will not leave them this way, and adds with commitment, "I will come to you."  The whole of His discourse, as we have read until now, is all about the ways in which He will return to them, He will come to them.  He will come in the sending of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, the Comforter and Helper.  That is, the One who will come to our sides when we call, and perhaps more to the point, the One "whom the Father will send in My name," the One who "will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you."  Christ will be present to them -- and to us in the Holy Spirit, and in so many ways described here.  He, the Holy Spirit, is the One who will bring Christ's presence to us in all the ways we need Him to be with us, to guide us and teach us, to show us His way (in His name), and who can bring all things to remembrance that Christ has said, to teach us meaning and purpose and even application in our own lives.  Jesus tells them, "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."  This is a solemn promise, a commitment, a covenant that those who love Him -- which is shown by keeping His commandments, His words, has a depth of communion with both Christ and the Father.  The Holy Spirit makes all of this possible through the functions Jesus names here in this passage.  Moreover, Jesus teaches them, and us, "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."  This is the promise in Him that He will not leave them or us parentless; He will come to us, albeit in ways different from His work and ministry as the human Jesus, Christ Incarnate.  But in His communion with us, in all the ways He will be present to us and with us, he gives us His peace.  And what He can give is given as no one else can give, as the world cannot give.  This is a peace found in our souls and spirits, in the depth of this relationship that becomes a part of us, in our communion with Him.  As we read further in His discourse, Jesus will be giving us more fullness in terms of the meaning of that communion.  Let us continue to read in the spirit of the peace He gives, and the confidence of our trust in the One who does not leave us orphans, but comes to us through so many ways.