Pentecost
John 14: 23-31
Jesus replied, “He who truly loves me reveals my Spirit, and my Father will love him and we will come to him and prepare with him a dwelling in the everlasting [an eternal dwelling]. He who does not love me cannot reveal my Spirit. And the spirit power of the word that you hear is not from me; it is the speaking of the Father who sent me.
I have said this to you while I am still with you. But he who is called down, the health-bringing Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you everything and will awaken within you all that I have said to you.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid [have no fear].
You have heard how I said to you, ‘I am going away, and yet I am coming to you’. If you loved me you would rejoice because I am going to the Father[ly Ground of the World], for the Father is mightier than I am.
I have told you now before it happens, so that when it happens you may find trust. I no longer have much to say to you, for soon the prince of this world is coming. Yet over me, he has no power.
But the world shall see in this how I love the Father [Ground of the World] and how I act in accordance with the Father’s purpose, as it was entrusted to me. Arise, let us go on from here. [let us be on our way.]
Pentecost
Whit-Tuesday, June 7, 2017
John 14: 23-31
The state of the world is troubling. We are learning that the outer world cannot give us the sense of safety and protection it once did. The very cultural ground on which we base our lives seems to be shifting. We often lack a sense of peace.
Perhaps this is because we are looking for peace in the wrong places. In the Act of Consecration, the Communion service, we hear Christ say, 'I stand at peace with the world.' Astonishing! How can He, when so much seems so wrong? This is because He does not derive His peace from the state of the world itself. He derives it from His union with the Father's love. He has united Himself, His will and purpose, with the Father's will for the karma of the world.
The Father's will for the whole world is larger and far more complex than we can even begin to imagine. But we can trust that He has our best interests at heart. We can quell our sense of fear and anxiety by realizing that we will be given what we need in order to cope with what comes. We can remain open to the lessons by not expecting to have everything go the way our little ego wants. We can receive Christ's peace because we know that the decision has already been made about the prince of this world. (John 16:11)
