I and My Father are one

 

 Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.  And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If you are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me.  But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."

 

- John 10:19–30 

 

In our recent readings, Jesus has been at the Feast of Tabernacles.  This is an eight-day autumn festival which commemorates the time when Israel wandered in the wilderness of Sinai, and dwelt in tents or "tabernacles."  The chief priests and Pharisees have sought unsuccessfully to have Him arrested, and they have also sought to stone Him and failed.  Since then, He has healed a man blind since birth, and the healing was on a Sabbath.  On Saturday, we read the continuation of Christ's dialogue with the religious leaders.  He said,  "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.  To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."  Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.  Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.  All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.  I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.  I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.  But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leave the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them.  The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.  I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.  As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of the fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.  Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.  This command I have received from My Father." 

 Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"  Once again we recall that most often, the use of the term the Jews in John's Gospel is meant to denote the religious leadership.  Here, it's clear that Jesus' truth has sown division (Matthew 10:34-39); we read the controversy He has caused and the conflicting perspectives.  At this backdrop to this autumn festival, and now in this final year of Christ's life, we see the effect He has had on the people as reflected here.  My study Bible notes here that those who respond in faith are not merely impressed by the signs, but perceive the holiness of His words.  

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.   Here, Christ attends another festival.  The Feast of Tabernacles is held in autumn; this is the Feast of Dedication which takes place approximately three months afterward.  This is also known as the "Festival of Lights," also called Hanukkah. It commemorates the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem after the Seleucid King Epiphanes desecrated it in 167 BC (see 1 Macabbees 1 - 4).  At this festival, my study Bible explains, the leaders of Israel's past were commemorated, many of whom were themselves shepherds. 

And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If you are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me."  My study Bible comments that both what Chris told them and the works He had done have already answered the question these religious leaders pose to Him.   For only the Messiah could open the eyes of the blind (no other miracle story of the healing of a person blind from birth occurs in Scripture), or perform these miracles or "signs" that bear witness to Christ.  Similarly, only the Messiah could speak to the hearts of people as Christ does (John 7:46).

"But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."   Christ's words, "As I said to you . . ." gives us the assurance that He is speaking to the same Pharisees He addressed three months earlier at the Feast of Tabernacles (John 10:1-5).   Here as He begins to respond to their question, He reveals Himself as fully God.  To be one together with Father, my study Bible says, means one in nature or essence.  So, Christ is God before all ages, He remains God after the Incarnation, and for all eternity.  Jesus says, "I and My Father are one" -- the plural verb are indicates two distinct Persons, and at the same time confirms a continuous unity.  We will witness the response of the religious leaders in our following reading. 

Jesus today returns to a theme He has continually gone back to already:  His relationship with the Father.  Nothing could be more affirming of their unity than the statement "I and My Father are one."  For this, of course, the religious leaders have already sought to have Him arrested and to stone Him (see John 8:58-59).  But here Jesus speaks of unity with the Father once more in order to emphasize the power of the faith of His sheep, for it's to emphasize that there is nothing anyone can do if the Father wills something be so.  He says,  "But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand."   In the Gospel according to St. Matthew, when St. Peter makes the confession of faith on behalf of all, the same thing is affirmed, but in different words.  In that passage, Simon Peter says, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  And Jesus replies, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."  We first hear from Jesus that it is the Father who has revealed this faith in Christ's identity to Peter, "and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."  That is, the powers of the devil or the evil one cannot prevail against the rock that is found in that faith.  For, just as Christ was surely both fully divine and fully human, there is another type of divine-human connection here that Jesus is pointing out, and that is the Father at work within human beings revealing the Son, and the faith that is born of that.  That divine-human connection of faith, of what is revealed in the human being by the Father, is such a bond that Christ describes it as a rock.  Here in today's reading, Jesus speaks to the religious leaders who wish to be rid of Him, who cannot "hear His words" because they are not His sheep, because they do not hear the Father nor this revelation of the identity of Christ.  Their hearts are far from God, even though they are the chief religious leaders of all of Israel, the custodians of her spiritual history and life.  But they work with the one who opposes God:  Jesus has said to them, "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it" (John 8:44).  This is why they are not of Christ's sheep, they cannot hear the words He says, they cannot understand what He is talking about nor accept it.  But despite all that they do to defeat Him, His ministry, and His followers, they will not prevail, for Jesus and the Father are one, and no one can snatch the sheep from His Father's hand.  For the Father is greater than all, and it is the Father who gives the faithful to Christ.  So, when we ponder this divine-human connection, let us consider how God works among us and has come to us -- not only in the Person of Jesus Christ, both divine and human, but also how the Father continues to reveal faith within and among human beings, and how powerful that true revelation is.  Let us consider how we are so elevated and exalted as to play a part in the redemption and salvation of the cosmos, for God the Father works in us sheep as well.  It is in our humility that grace truly works most powerfully of all.  

For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them

 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.  Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.  And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.  But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.  So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'   Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  And I was afraid, and went and his your talent in the ground.  Look, there you have what is yours.'  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.  And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

- Matthew 25:14-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus told the parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins:  "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight a cry was heard:  'Behold, the bridegroom is coming!; go out to meet him!'  Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'  But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.'  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.  Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!'  But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.'  Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming."

 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.  Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.  And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.  But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.  So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'   He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  And I was afraid, and went and his your talent in the ground.  Look, there you have what is yours.'  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.  And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"   When we think about this parable, it's important to understand that even one talent (which was a measurement of weight of silver or gold) was a considerable sum of money.  In the parable, it represents the goodness that God has bestowed on each person.  It is through this parable that the word "talent" has come to mean what it means to us today:  a gift or ability.  My study bible says that the amount each receives is based on that person's abilities (Romans 12:4-7).  There is no partiality shown in the ultimate reward, as all are invited to share in the same joy of the lord.   My study bible adds that the wicked and lazy servant could not evade responsibility for ignoring his talent, as idleness (or a sin of omission) is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness.  To bury the talent in the ground, according to commentary by Pope St. Gregory the Great, is to use one's gifts for purely earthly pursuits, and to omit the spiritual.  The bankers are other faithful people to whom one can turn to entrust the use of talents wisely, and to give help and advice.  Since help was available to this man in the Church, there is no excuse.

So what does it mean to use a talent, or a skill, or any of the blessings we have in life?  We assume that all that belongs to us, in any sense, is ultimately a gift from God.  From there, in a sacramental type of life, we return those gifts to God by consecrating them for God's use.  That can happen in prayer when we ask for guidance and direction for our lives.  What should we do?  How do we need to apply ourselves, or use our assets in life?  There are often hidden things we don't expect awaiting our desire to put into use some of the things that we have.  Sometimes a small gesture, like gracing a lovely garden with our care and possibly placing a small statue of Mary, the Mother of God in one corner, can be enough to signal to others a love of God's beauty and grace, and to then feed and inspire others through this gesture of beauty.  We might take any possession, such as a room in our homes, and decorate a simple corner with a few icons of Christ or of saints who are meaningful to us.  These gestures remind us that we can "repurpose" anything in our lives to reflect our faith, to remind us of our spiritual connection to God, and how that is at work through our worldly lives in our devotion.  Of course all kinds of talents can be used in all kinds of ways, whether we might have financial expertise and help our Church with wise expenditures or investments, or we have construction or painting abilities and help to build or repair, or possibly we contribute a singing voice to a choir.  There is no gift from God that cannot be used in service, to make the profit on the talent that the Master our Lord is looking for.  It's important to note that this Master relies on us to do His work in the world, to create the profits and fruitfulness He hopes for.  In that we become more consciously aware that Christ truly works through us -- we don't wait for the God somewhere "out there" to do something; through prayer we connect with our Lord and seek guidance for how to live our lives, and this can also happen through the "bankers" in the parable, those in the Church, be it through prayer with the saints or our fathers, mothers, sisters, and brothers in the Church.  As such this Kingdom truly works in us and among us, for as we know and have been promised, God is within us and so works through us.  There is no limit to what a talent may do or be; from the time of the earliest monastics in the deserts, prayer itself has been understood as something which creates enormous good in the world.  Simply by committing to a daily prayer practice, one creates spiritual wealth that we can't necessarily know or see at work -- but we should be assured of the good that it does, even for those whom we don't know who benefit spiritually through our prayer that we add to the world.  Let us remember, also, that this parable is given within the context of Jesus' teachings about the end times and His Second Coming, and also in the context of the judgment that accompanies His return.  We are to think about the end product of our lives as that which we can look back upon and consider how we contribute spiritually to the world -- how whatever gifts we have might be something that adds to the spiritual treasure which Christ invested in all of us -- and in the world -- through His Incarnation and life in the world.  Any spiritual investment that we make, then, becomes a part of the gospel going out to all the world, and we enter into the work begun by others.  We all enter into others' labors (John 4:38), and continue this great work begun long before we were conceived.  St. Paul writes, "For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees?" (Romans 8:22-24).  We enter into a new creation, with a hope that still burns for a future we don't and cannot see.  And yet, looking to the return of the Master, we invest in His name, we work in His name, we hope for more fruitfulness in His name, and we trust to God's indwelling in us and among our communities.  He entrusts us with this great work in how we use His gifts, so that even the whole of the creation is part of this great work, even a liturgy of creation praising Creator.  Our worst experiences, in this context, become even occasions for fruitfulness, as we repurpose and rededicate whatever we have in life to the service of God.  In this way the world is transformed and is sacrament.  It all depends on how we use the gifts and "talents" we're given, and to what purpose we dedicate our lives for the Master.  All of it is precious in His sight.

And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

- John 17:20-26

In recent readings for this week, we have been going through Jesus' High Priestly Prayer, which He prayed at the Last Supper, just prior to the time He would be arrested (beginning with Thursday's reading).  Yesterday, we read that Jesus continued:   "I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."  My study bible says that those who will believe includes the Church in every generation.  All the faithful participate in the life and glory of the Trinity.  It says that Christians enjoy two kinds of unity:  with God and with one another, where the latter is rooted in the former.  As we bear witness through our own capacity to reflect the light of Christ, so "the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."

"Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."   We hear in the prayer Christ's desire that all faithful "may be with Me where I am" so that we may behold His glory from the Father.  My study bible comments that the ultimate goal of Christ's prayer, and even of life itself, is for the love of the Father to dwell in each person.

In this prayer, frequently called the High Priestly Prayer, Jesus prayed first for Himself, then for the apostles, and finally for all those who will come to believe in Him.  We note first the tremendous unity He expresses.  Several times He prays "that they all may be one."  But each time, it is with a particular property of the relationship Christ has with the Father.  First, through the word given first from the Father, which He has given to the apostles and which they in turn will give to the world.  Next, through the glory which the Father has shared with the Son, and in turn the Son shared with His followers.   And finally, a depth of unity through love.  We note, also, how glory, perfection, and love are somehow united in Christ's prayer.  We are meant, in Christ's words here, not simply to participate in His life, but in the fullness of life in the Father as well -- a kind of unity not possible except through God's work in us, through grace and the life of spirit.  It is also at the Last Supper that Jesus teaches the apostles that He will pray to the Father and the Father will send the Spirit:  the One who "will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you . . . and testify of Me" (see John 14:16, 26; 15:26).  In this sense, we know that Father, Son, and Spirit all dwell in us and work within and through us to create a unity that is not possible except through this spiritual reality.  Through it all, there is an expression of deep love that is the true flavor or character of this unity.  Jesus wants us all to be with Him, He wants us all to be one with Him, but most of all He wants us to know the Father's love that He knows, and to be unified through that love.  In that love is, in fact, all the rest of our faith and its work in us.  It is that love that grows us in the spiritual life, in closeness to God, and more deeply toward the glory and the perfection of which He speaks in this prayer.   It is that love, in effect, that reveals to us the possibilities we contain for its expression, through the fruits of the spirit, through growth in humility, compassion, forbearance, and all the rest -- and into a capacity to discard and forego, even sacrifice, whatever it is that stands in the way of that growth.  This is the process into which He consecrates the apostles, and us in turn, which is revealed through this prayer.  It is this process which St. Paul reveals through his letters, when he teaches that "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law (Galatians 5:22-23)."  But, knowing the true reality of Christ's prayer, St. Paul teaches as well that without love, there is nothing else.  In 1 Corinthians 13 St. Paul gives his beautiful sermon left to us on the reality of love, and how love ties all the rest.   St. John, our Evangelist, leaves us a letter in which he teaches that God is love (1 John 4:8).  In all this, there is something of which we can be certain, and that is the power of love as given to us as a gift, and working in us to reveal what love is and does, and teaching us how to dwell and live and to better express and know this love.  The mystical reality Christ teaches in His prayer is the mystical reality of love, which we can learn through faith.  If our childhood is imperfect, if those whom we know are not kind, if strangers do not stand to give us anything that is love, then we have no need to despair -- for love is a gift of God through faith, and we grow in that love and that unity through our faith.  This is the promise of Christ, and it is His prayer, for all of us, none excepted.  The life of Christ -- and of the Trinity -- is ultimately the life of love which contains all else.  As St. Paul says in summing up his chapter on the gift of love:  "And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:13).  These are the gifts we need for our life -- and through faith, and Christ's prayer, no one can take them away.  We are invited in to grow and participate "as one" in this life.  It is an open gift we have simply to receive and enter.  Our mystical union is always open; we just take the first step with faith and especially through prayer when nothing else is available.  Lent is the time for prayer, for making room for this faith to take root and a deeper hold within us, to exercise our capacity to choose for God, and to choose against whatever it is that gets in the way of our faith.  Let us take the time to make that room and let our lives grow in God's love.   As Christ reveals here, the world will not show it to us, but we must engage and grow with Him to learn and to know that love for ourselves.

And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

- John 17:20-26

In our current readings, Jesus is at the Last Supper.  He has given His Farewell Discourse to the disciples, and now He is praying what is known as the High Priestly Prayer, His prayer to God the Father before He goes to His Crucifixion.  Yesterday we read that Jesus prayed, "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

"I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world."  Jesus prays for those who will believe; that is, the faithful of the future.  My study bible declares that the Church in every generation participates in the life and glory of the Trinity.  It states that Christians enjoy two kinds of unity:  with God and with one another -- with the latter rooted in the former.   Let us make firm note of the love that is the cause of all of this, and all that Christ's declares.  He magnifies that love with His final statement here:  that is desire, moreover, is that those whom the Father has given to Him may be where He is -- so that they may behold the glory given to Him by God the Father who loved Christ before the foundation of the world.  This is the desire to share with us an eternal future and reality beyond what we can know in the world, a completeness of love.

"O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  My study bible tells us that the ultimate goal of Christ's prayer, and even of life itself, is for the love of the Father to dwell in each person.

In Christ's High Priestly Prayer we have an extraordinary testament to love.  In His words we hear the voice of a Son devoted to His loving Father, who wants to share that love with the world -- and wants the world to see that love for themselves.  He declares, "Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world."   These are the words of a Son who deeply loves and reveres His Father, and wants His friends to see all that His Father is going to do for Him, so they will appreciate how loving and great His Father truly is.  We are given not only a picture of unity, and not only a picture of grace, but a view on the tremendous grandeur of God's love, its immense quality, its extraordinary character.  It is the inverse of an uncaring world bent on its own selfishness and isolation and hostility.  Christ not only offers us this tremendous picture of His generous and loving Father, but He wishes for us to share in that love, and He is the link to it.  This is our great gift, one in which we take our own understanding of His love, a love inseparable from who we are through faith.  It is in this love that we take our identity as adopted children and heirs, because we not only may share in it, we may also become more like Him.  This is a love that magnifies its gifts, that adds even more onto whatever it is we are willing and able to accept.  It is a love that rejoices in all circumstances, because there is joy in it at all times -- and it is not a fickle kind of love, nor tinged with selfish and hostile motivations.  It simply is.  More than that, Jesus gives us the ground of our being and of the whole universe.  The hostility and selfishness of the world is aberrant in this picture; it is not "natural" at all that we live in a fallen world.  It is the love of God that is our true natural state, for it is our origin and destination.  It is in that generosity and beauty that we take our joy, and in which we are given our peace which cannot be taken away.  We know we are loved, and we will grow in the experience of that love.

I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me

 Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.  And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me.  But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."

- John 10:19-30

 In our current readings, Jesus has been at the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem.  On the last, great day of that Feast, Jesus preached to the crowds and also disputed with the religious leaders.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus continued:  "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.  To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."  Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.  Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.  All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.  I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.  I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.  But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them.  The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.  I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.  As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.  And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.  Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.  This command I have received from My Father." 

Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"   John is writing of the leadership when he uses the term the Jews.  It is important for us to know that there was a division among them, they are not united in their condemnation of Jesus.  My study bible says that those who respond in faith are not merely impressed by the signs, but perceive the holiness of His words.

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.  And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  The Feast of Dedication took place about three months after the Feast of Tabernacles.  (John's Gospel reports Jesus' time at the Feast of Tabernacles from 7:1-10:21.)   The Feast of Tabernacles is an autumn harvest festival; the Feast of Dedication takes place in winter and is also known as the "Festival of Lights" (also called Hanukka).  It is a commemoration of the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem after the Seleucid King Epiphanes desecrated it in 167 BC (see 1 Maccabees 1-4).  At this festival, Israel's past leaders were commemorated, many of whom were themselves shepherds.   The religious leaders come to Jesus immediately, and demand that He reveal to them if He is the Christ.

Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."  Jesus replies that both what He has told them and the works He has done have already answered their question.  Only the Messiah could open the eyes of the blind or work the miracles that bear witness to His identity.  Likewise, my study bible adds, only the Messiah could speak to the hearts of people as Christ did (7:46; 9:21).  The phrase as I said to you gives us indication that these are the same Pharisees whom Christ had addressed three months earlier at the Feast of Tabernacles (10:1-5).

Jesus sets the example for us:  His revelation of His identity is in the works that He does in His Father's name; they bear witness of Him.  And what He has told them, the words He has said, they also bear witness to His identity.  So He sets the tone for us as His followers, both what we say and what we do should reflect our own identity as followers of Christ.  How do we act in His name?  How do we bear witness to the love of God the Father in our own hearts?   He sets the example so that we should "like Him."  In the Sermon on the Mount, He has told us, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16).  In John's Gospel, on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus has declared, "I am the light of the world.  He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life" (see this reading).  We must think of this light as the great lamps at the Feast of Tabernacles, a great flame.  Flame is easily shared and spread from one place to another.  So through our faith we may carry that flame, that light, from one place to another, as He shares His light with us, just as in Christ lives the bright flame of God -- even the same that guided the Israelites in the dark through the search for the Promised Land.   Our words and works shall bear out that flame in the world as our own identity, as Christ's did.  Our faith is to be lived.  A flame is a bundle of energy, burning, living, at work all the time.  It puts out light, and so our work is to bear this light and express it into the world.  Jesus tells us, "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.  Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house" (Matthew 5:14-15).  How do we let that light shine through us, as He's taught?  There is but one way that makes sense.  We stoke that flame within us so that it becomes all things in us, burning away what we do not need, and illuminating everything around us as it casts it light.  Our flame within is that which unites us with God who is the true light, and it is enhanced and brightened and fed through faith, through prayer and love, all the things that Jesus does and teaches us through the Gospels.  For the earliest hearers of the Gospel, these words were given for this light to shine in a world hostile to His faith.  We, too, may live in a world of great plurality, and the light is also to shine to all, particularly in the form of the fruits of the Spirit:  love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).  Let us remember to let our light shine by feeding this flame, keeping it bright and growing, and also by allowing it to do its work in us.  So shall our identity shine and glorify our Father who is in heaven through words and works -- just as He did.  If we are truly His sheep and know His voice, we follow Him.


 

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me

 Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.  And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me.  But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one." 

- John 10:19-30

In our recent readings, Jesus has been at the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem (beginning in chapter 7, with this reading).  He has had extensive dialogue and confrontation with the leadership.   On the last day of the Feast, they attempted to stone Him.  As He passed from the temple As He passed from the temple,  He met a man blind from birth whose sight He healed.  The leadership questioned both the healed blind man, and later Christ Himself.  In Friday's reading, Jesus spoke again about His identity, and His mission.  In Saturday's reading, He taught, "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.  To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."  Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.  Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.  All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.  I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.   I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.  But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and fleas; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them.  The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.  I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.  As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.  And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.  Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it up again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.  This command I have received from My Father."

Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"   My study bible says here that those who respond in faith to Christ are not merely impressed by the signs, but they perceive the holiness of His words.  John's Gospel opens up our eyes, as well, to the true texture of this movement, and of faith. There are those who respond, and those who do not -- and John reveals also the divisions among the people as well as the leadership.

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.  And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  From chapter 7 up until this point, the events unfolded at the Feast of Tabernacles, an eight day autumn harvest festival, which is the Feast of the Coming Kingdom and commemorates the time Israel dwelt in tabernacles (or tents), led by Moses.  Here events begin at the winter festival.  The Feast of Dedication took place approximately three months after the Feast of Tabernacles (7:1-10:21).  It is also known as the "Festival of Lights" (and as Hanukkah).  This festival commemorates the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem after the Seleucid King Epiphanes desecrated it in 167 BC (see 1 Maccabees 1-4).  At this festival, says my study bible, the leaders of Israel's past were commemorated, many of whom were shepherds themselves.

Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me."  Once again members of the religious leadership in Jerusalem surround  Christ and demand to know plainly His identity.  My study bible says that both what Christ told them and the works He had done have already answered their question.  Only the Messiah could open the eyes of the blind (as part of prophesy) or perform the miracles that bear witness to Him.  In addition, only the Messiah could speak to the hearts of people as did Christ (see 7:26, 9:21).

"But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand."  The phrase as I said to you indicates these are the same Pharisees whom Christ addressed at the Feast of Tabernacles three months earlier (10:1-5).  Jesus once again denotes the deeply personal qualities of the Son:  His sheep hear His voice.  He knows them, and they follow Him.  He has come to give life abundantly (see Saturday's reading, above), even eternal life.   And those who are His remain His; through the power of the Father, no one is able to snatch them away.

"I and My Father are one."   Jesus reveals Himself as fully God.  To be one means one in nature or essence.  The plural verb are, my study bible points out, means two distinct Persons, but confirms at the same time a continuous unity. 

Jesus reveals the unity of faith:  it is a unity of persons.  There are the divine Persons of the Trinity, and there are the persons who are the sheep.  The sheep are dependent upon Christ and grow in Him for an abundance of life, even an eternal life.  The Son and Father are two Persons, but one in essence and unity.  John's Gospel gives us a picture of the growth of the understanding of the Church, and the depth of love and relationship given by Christ in His words and teaching.  John also reflects the early Church's experience of the work of the Third Person of the Trinity, God the Holy the Spirit.   We are given deep insights into faith and meaning.  St. Paul speaks also of the unity of faith in the Letter to the Ephesians (see Ephesians 4:11-16), when he speaks of the Church as one body having many members, each with their own part but working as one and growing to the unity of what it means to fully mature spiritually in Christ, the true fullness of personhood.  Each of these teachings gives us insight into the fullness of faith as a unified power, coming from the Father, but bringing growth to each through this depth of relatedness, of love.  We read Christ's words about each sheep.  In Saturday's reading (above), Jesus says of Himself as the good shepherd, that the sheep hear the voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  Those who know Him and respond to His voice are each called by name; that is the true personal identity -- and He leads those who hear Him into the fullness of what that means.  In today's reading, He makes clear His total unity with the Father, and His sharing in the power of the Father to hold and keep each one that is truly His.  No one can break that bond.  Again, in the Letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul says that we are led "till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up i all things into Him who is the head -- Christ" (Ephesians 4:13-15).  John's Gospel lays all the groundwork for this understanding, stating clearly the power of God and the work of the Son, and the relationships between Father and Son, Good Shepherd and sheep.  May we be blessed with that understanding and the fullness of the faith in the knowledge of His love and truth.  That is where we begin for real life and the fullness of that life.

The glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them your name, and will declare it, that the love with which you loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

- John 17:20-26

Since last Monday, we've been reading through Jesus' Farewell Discourse to the apostles.  Starting with this Monday's reading, Jesus began what is known as the High Priestly Prayer, a prayer to the Father at the Last Supper.  Yesterday, we read that He prayed, of the apostles, "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom you gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

"I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me."  Here my study bible says of "those who will believe" that the Church in every generation participates in the life and glory of the Trinity.    It says that Christians enjoy two kinds of unity: with God and with one another, the latter being rooted in the former.  We recall Jesus' words in Monday's reading, that to know God is eternal life.  For "those who believe" to be "one in Us" is to know God, and to know God in a relationship of love.  But let us note, Jesus' great desire is for faith:  "that the world may believe that You sent Me."

"And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."  Here is again an iteration of the same statement, but this time focusing on the glory shared between Father and Son and also with those of faith.  This glory works "so that they may be one just as We are one" -- and so "that the world may know that You have sent Me."  And we get the more explicit meaning of being one:  that the Father has "loved them as You have loved Me."

"Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world."  Here is the depth of prayer for "one-ness" (and a third iteration) -- that we the sheep of the Good Shepherd may be with Him even as He is seated at the right hand of the Father, in His glory.  In so beholding this glory, we may understand a depth of love that is beyond any love we know, a love that is and has been "before the foundation of the world."   This is our goal, our real home.

"O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them your name, and will declare it, that the love with which you loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  My study bible says here that the ultimate goal of Christ's prayer, and indeed of life itself, is for the love of the Father to dwell in each person.

This is perhaps the most profound expression of love in the Gospels.  That is, Jesus declares that love is being one with God, and that He wants this not only in terms of the relationship that He already has with the Father, but that we who believe the Father has sent Christ the Son may also be one with Father and Son.  And there is more:  that we may share in and behold the glory which the Father shares with the Son, even as He is Lord and seated at the right hand of the Father.  The apostles have been given a glimpse of this glory at the Transfiguration, which we read of in the Synoptic Gospels.  But here Jesus gives a new dimension to glory, that it is shared between Father and Son, but also that Christ's desire is that we also may see it and know it.  This is a kind of invitation that is monumental, because what it does is invite human beings into a kind of grand participation in something so far beyond us that we can't grasp what it means unless we are able to behold it.  And this glory is all connected with love.  Glory is the very value and goodness of God.  Christ seems to be saying that His prayer is that we know how the Father loves Him, and has loved Him before the foundation of all the world, so that we, too, may share in and live in this love.  Oneness becomes a oneness of love and even of glory, in the sense that He desires that we be with Him, even as He is Lord, not "only" Jesus of Nazareth.  Overall the message of oneness, which as we've looked closely now appears here three times as explicitly stated in Jesus' prayer to the Father, becomes the fullness of love such as we've not known it.  His prayer is that we may know it and share in it, that faith or belief comes in the depth of such love, the awareness of it and our participation in it.  Jesus is about to go to the Cross, but His will here is for not only His close disciples, the Twelve who are with Him (with one sad exception who will be lost), but also for those who will believe through the word of these apostles to be one with Him and the Father, one in love, and and in beholding the full glory the Father shares with the Son.  This is the reality of the message.  And while the words may seem so far beyond us as to be only or exclusively "other-worldly" -- Jesus speaks of the full glory of His role as Son and also Lord -- I would rather say they are timeless.  Eternal life as it is iterated and reiterated especially in this particular gospel doesn't only mean a life after our worldly life, but a life that is not limited by anything:  not by time, not by death, not by space.  The Kingdom exists in us even as we are in the world "but not of it."  His glory we can get some glimpses of and is shared with us, the love that is from before the foundation of the world is something that also dwells in us, that we can come to learn and grow into throughout the life of faith, the oneness is something we are to be a part of in the here and now, to the best capacity we have to do so.  We see this glory manifest in human beings, particular in those we call saints.  And we also have the promise of the Spirit, which will be sent by the Father, the One who will lead us into all truth, and teach us and live with us so that we may come to truly "know" the Father, the Son, and the Spirit.  We are somehow without time on this journey and there are no limits to this love and the "knowing" which we will continue to grow into.  That is the path, the way, the journey.  It isn't an invitation to wear rose-colored glasses, to live in a world without evil in it, but it's an invitation to know God, and know the love of God, and God's glory to the best extent we can, even as we live in the world that is imperfect.  Let's look more closely at this prayer.  Jesus prays, "And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."   He has given us His glory that we may be one just as He and the Father are one -- and that we may be made perfect in one.   Oneness, glory, perfection, and love.  These are the keys to faith, and the keys to spreading this Kingdom into the world.  It is living in this love, with this glory, and growing in knowledge and oneness that brings light into the world and shines the Kingdom into a place that is far from perfect.  So, can we be these people He prays about?   Can we live as He asks us?  Without faith, I'd say, it's impossible.  And without the love of God in which we share, a growing "knowing" of God in which we are able to participate, and even without the glory of God which is given even to us, I don't think it's meant to work at all.  We must seek to be a part of all these things and hope for them and expect for them to be a part of our daily lives, even as we live in a world that disappoints and fears and tears down the possibilities of this love.  It's our way to bear His life into the world, and His truth.  So we, too, can follow in His prayer, which connects us to it all, "that the love with which you loved Me may be in them, and I in them."   Today's reading has the fullness of love and what it means, the most profound message of the Bible.  These are the promises we count on.

I and My Father are one

Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?" Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch. Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one."

- John 10:19-30

After the healing of the man blind from birth, who was told to wash his eyes in the pool of Siloam, Jesus has been in discussion with the leadership in the temple. The healing of the blind man was the sixth of seven signs in the Gospel of John (see I am the light of the world and For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind). In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught the leadership again about His own identity, this time calling Himself the Good Shepherd. He said that His sheep know His voice, and the one who does not enter by the door, but by some other way, is a thief and a robber. "But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." His sheep, He said, do not know the voice of strangers. But the leadership failed to understand His illustration. He began again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture." He told them, "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep." Moreover, He said, "I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd." Jesus told them that He will lay down His life, and take it up again, for the sheep -- that this is a command of His Father.

Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?" Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?" Importantly, John tells us here that there is a division among the leadership. Not all of them are united in seeking to persecute Jesus. We remember also the example of Nicodemus, who defended Jesus' legal rights, and who also was taught privately by Him. When John's Gospel uses the term "the Jews" it is to refer to the leadership at the temple, not the whole of the Jewish people. Almost all the people in the Gospel (with few notable exceptions), believers and non-believers alike, are Jews. Clearly however, as the recent readings have told us, this controversy and division about Jesus also extends among the people.

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch. The previous events, over the past many readings (starting with this one) took place around the Feast of Tabernacles, an autumn festival. This is now approximately three months later. My study bible says, "The occasion of Christ's presence in Jerusalem is again a religious festival, the Feast of Dedication (Hannukah), the festival of lights. This Feast commemorates the rededication of the temple to the God of Israel after the Seleucid king, Antiochus Epiphanes, desecrated the temple in 167 B.C. The leaders of Israel's past are commemorated, many of whom were literal shepherds." Many of the events that take place at the temple are described by John as being in one part of the temple or another. Perhaps it is useful to understand the magnificence and splendor, as well as the huge size of the renovated temple. It was an architectural wonder at the time of Jesus, one of the tremendous building projects of Herod the Great.

Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you." The leadership demand to know what has already been told to them. Jesus begins to repeat His answers, from the previous reading. He is the shepherd of the sheep. Here, he gives witnesses for them. The works or signs of the Gospel bear witness to His relationship to the Father; they are done in the name of the Father, and bear witness (are "signs") to God the Father's presence, and hence the relationship of the Son.

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one." Those who are His sheep will be kept with Him, they abide in Him, finding pasture -- and He will keep them with Himself eternally. This is all in the power of the Father's hand, through the power of the Father, which nothing can undo. There is no greater power than the Father. Further, He and the Father are one.

Let us consider relationship again from this reading. The power comes, ultimately, from the Father, rests with the Father, in the hand of the Father -- and nothing can break this power. But it is not only the Father in this circle. So "giving" is this power, that Father and Son are one. And the relationship extends further. It extends to the sheep. The sheep, who abide in Christ, will be promised eternal life, because nothing and no one can snatch them from the hand of the Father, given to the Son in full and equal measure, and extended thereby to relationship with the sheep. When Peter makes his confession of faith, Jesus has said, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." Ultimately this circle of faith extends from the Father through the Son and to and through all of us, and back again. By the Father's hand, God's presence -- in Jesus' signs and even in us, nothing can break this circle of faith. That is, nothing but our own free will to embrace that faith within ourselves or not. Of that mystery of faith, I can say nothing, only that it is evident that we are given the power to choose. So, for today, the question becomes, how do you embrace that faith, that power of God that is working through this relationship? Are you aware of the tremendous presence that is with you and within you? This bond is unbreakable. Through all things, through the darkness of the world, the sheep hear the voice of the Shepherd. He and the Father are one. With this cross, there is always a way forward through the darkness, into the certainty of that sheepfold. What is the way for you today? The answers may surprise and lead where we don't expect, but it is the power and hand of God the Father working through all. Can you allow for this strength in your life?