When the Advocate Comes - John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15 - Day of Pentecost

 

John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15 NIV

²⁶ “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. ²⁷ And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.

^4b I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you, ⁵ but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ ⁶ Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. ⁷ But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸ When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹ about sin, because people do not believe in me; ¹⁰ about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; ¹¹ and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.

¹² “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. ¹³ But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. ¹⁵ All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

When the Advocate Comes

We step back this week, from the Prayer of Jesus last week. We step back and again hear the words of Jesus to his disciples. In this passage of scripture, Jesus reassures the disciples and us, with a promise. Yes, a promise. Why would Jesus give us a promise?

Jesus loves us and knows that soon he will depart. Soon, Jesus will be tortured and killed by the very ones he came to save from sin, death and the devil. Jesus knows the agony the disciples will have within and without as they fail him and run, hide, sleep, deny and betray him. Jesus is aware of the fear we will experience. Jesus knows and has compassion. So, as Jesus’ love is so deep, he gives us a promise.

What is this promise? The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has been active all along, from the dawn of creation, before creation and beyond all time. The Holy Spirit has always been present, but as the disciples have lived in the presence of God made flesh, in Jesus, they haven’t needed to understand the presence of the Holy Spirit.

But, here, and now, the Holy Spirit will become really real.  For now, as Jesus leaves this world in flesh, to return to the heavenly realms, Jesus promises the presence of the Holy Spirit. Once again… the promise? Jesus repeats the assertion that the Spirit proceeds from the Father. As disciples, we and they have heard Jesus speak of the Father all along. Jesus is carrying out the mission and purpose of the Father to descend to earth as God in flesh, in Jesus, to do what we could never do for ourselves. That is to save us from ourselves. To save us from our lack of any ability to obey the Law. To save us from our failures, as we fall into sin, each and every day. Only God can do this, and God does this for us and to us in Jesus.

So, Jesus… God in flesh… promises the gift of the Holy Spirit to be with us, to guide us, to gift us and to lead us into eternal life with God.

This gift of Spirit… doesn’t this remind you of Baptism? You see, baptism is not only water. Baptism is an earthly element of water but made alive with God’s Word and by God’s command.

In Matthew 28 Jesus tells us to go and make disciples of ALL nations, baptizing in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  I emphasize here the “All.” That’s an all the includes “All” of us, young, old, all races and types of people… ALL… here means ALL. Baptism is not something that we control, as a gift from God. It is a gift from God that we receive and can do nothing to earn. God gives ALL who come in whatever way, baptism.

Why? So, that we can realize that God gives us forgiveness, freedom from the power of sin and death and salvation to eternal life. Through this gift of baptism, we are given faith and can’t help but to believe.

In Mark 16, we hear Jesus tell us that if we believe and are baptized, we will be saved.

How’s that? How’s this water so powerful? It’s not just water that does this. Once again it is this earthly element of water combined  with God’s Word. This is God’s promise to us. Kind of like Jesus’ promise mentioned in the passage above to the disciples about sending the Holy Spirit to them. God’s Word is what makes the water, life-giving water. This is life-giving water that comes to us by the grace of God, freely and gives new birth through the Holy Spirit.

Titus 3 reminds us that God saves us because of His own mercy for us. God washes us in water and Spirit which he gives to us freely. God pours out his grace upon us and lights a fire within us that is fed by God’s Word within us.

So, as we see in this passage above, as Jesus knows of his upcoming suffering, death, resurrection and ascension… God gives once again. God gives once again, His Holy Spirit. So that as we continue to live in this world of sin and death; we may freely proclaim that sin, death and evil have lost the power to hold us back from God.

Sure, we will continue to sin in this life on earth. But, as we remember, our baptism daily, we can turn our backs to sin and face the love of God through the Word and the Spirit of God given to us each and every day. We are now free from the power of eternal hell and damnation due to our sin, to live with the gifts of the Spirit, in the face of the love of God in Christ Jesus.

And we are free to go out into this world of sin and death and proclaim and tell ALL the people of what God has done for them to bring them to Him eternally, even with sin and death at our backs.

As Romans 6 teaches, we were buried with Jesus by baptism into death so that just like Jesus rose form the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

God has put His Spirit within each of us so that we will live. After all, God knows ALL.

On this day of Pentecost and beyond, feel the fire of the Holy Spirit flame deep within your soul, May the Word made Flesh stoke that fire into a wildfire, and may the breath of the Holy Spirit, fan that flame, so that you can’t help yourself but to proclaim this gift of salvation to ALL the world. And I mean ALL… today… tomorrow… and forever.

I leave you this week with a Chris Tomlin song...

Spirit Fall

God bless you this week and always!

 

The Prayer - John 17:11b-19 - Seventh Sunday of Easter

 

John 17:11b-19 NIV

^11b Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. ¹² While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

¹³ “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. ¹⁴ I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. ¹⁵ My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. ¹⁶ They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. ¹⁷ Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. ¹⁸ As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹ For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

The Prayer

Once again, this week we hear all the words of Jesus. The words of Jesus as he prays for his disciples. Hear his words and listen carefully to what Jesus has to say in this prayer. This is a time in Jesus’ life just before his agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, his betrayal, his suffering, his denial and abandonment by his disciples. This is a time before the crucifixion and death he was to suffer. Yes, this was a time prior to Jesus’ time in the tomb and the time before his resurrection. This was the time before the resurrected Jesus appears before many witnesses to his new life in God. And this was a time before his ascension from this earth to heaven. But for this moment, Jesus, aware of how mankind is trapped in sin, Jesus, prays for his disciples, who will remain in this world. A world that is influenced by sin, death and evil.  And Jesus prays for joy, protection, and sanctification of his disciples.

This prayer is a contrast of heavenly joy and worldly hatred.  It is a contrast of unity verses the confusion of the hatred of one faction against another faction. Jesus prays for the oneness of mind, purpose, and mission of his disciples in Him and God’s mission of love, forgiveness and salvation.

Yes, even as the disciples are on the cusp of betrayal, denial, abandonment, and sloth, before Jesus’ crucifixion, death, and resurrection; Jesus is loyal to THEM! Jesus is thankful for THEM! Jesus loves THEM! For--- God has given THEM, me, you, and all people, to Jesus! Jesus regards US as His amazing gift from God the Father.

Jesus’ only advantage that He reaps from all of this, is that we are saved through God’s plan of salvation. Wow! His advantage is OUR salvation! What a thought! What a friend we have in Jesus! For sure… without a doubt… rejoice!

What about me and you? What does God desire for us in all of this?

Thank God for all those wonderful people He places in our lives each and every day. Thank God for the friends we are given. Thank God and love all of those placed in your life daily… the ones easy to love and those that are difficult to love. Thank God to be able to tell of God’s wonderful gift of salvation. Thank God for the opportunity to serve and love them each and every day.

As Jesus makes clear in his prayer; we must continue to live in this world. So, we also are called to pray for our friend’s protection, love and salvation. We are to hold together in this world. We are called to feed from the Vine of Life which is Jesus.

Yes, Jesus means for us to live in this world. We are to live in this world although not of this world. We are called to take life in its fullness as a gift from God to use to His glory.

Don’t neglect the “goodness of life in this world.” Rather we are to use life in the here and now to God’s service. Live and use this world to God’s glory… Yet… don’t bow down to this world.

Just in the past couple of months, I have been given awesome displays of God’s glory and power in His creation. I have witnessed a full eclipse of the sun, last night, I witnessed the sky light up in colors of red, white and streaks of green that appeared and disappeared, as energy from the sun interacted with the earth’s ionosphere. Every week I witness amazing sounds and communications as I send morse code and bounce signals off of ionospheric layers to friends near and far. I see flowers bloom, grass grow, trees come to new life. Yes, this world is amazing, and what God has created is a gift to us and a witness to the life that God creates and continues to give to each and all of us.

But there is more in store. As Jesus tells us in this prayer, we are not of this world just as Jesus is not of this world. We are in the world, but God has more in store for us. God has prepared a heavenly home for us to be with Him in eternity.

But that time is not yet. We are to remain here in this world. And, Jesus prays that God will sanctify us by the truth. This “sanctify” is a little bit more than just the usually being set apart as holy. In this “sanctify” we are dedicated and now equipped through the Word (Jesus the Word made flesh) for the service of God. We are called to continue the mission of God, in this world, here and now.

This mission is to witness to all those God gives to us each and every day, of the Truth from the Father. The Truth is Jesus, God’s Son. Jesus is the Truth we are to tell of to counter the evil of hatred and death in this world in which we live.

In this world, we, Jesus’ disciples, are to remain, to go tell, to go save, to go change all that we can change, to point to the love of Jesus. To point to forgiveness and new life in God for all. Yes, in this world, we serve God as Jesus served His life to us and as we serve our lives to our friends in love for God and each other.

Witness to the resurrection of Jesus. Delight in the joy and happiness in God and keep in mind, whoever has the Son--- Jesus--- has life.

Pray for one another as Jesus prays for all of us, that Joy may be complete in the gift of life that God freely gives…. today… tomorrow… and forever.

Thanks be to God!

How could I not but leave you with this song from Hillsong --- “The Lord’s Prayer”

Hillsong --- "The Lord's Prayer"

God bless you as you walk this earth this week with The Friend in Jesus and all the friends God gives to you each and every day.

He Chooses Me To Be His Friend! - John 15:9-17 - Sixth Sunday of Easter

 

John 15:9-17 NIV

⁹ “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹² My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other.

He Chooses Me To Be His Friend!

This is another week where I look back. I look back and reflect on my studies of last week. I look back and think of what I heard and observed in the sermon, the presence of Jesus at sacrament, and the worship and praise of God together with friends and neighbors. Looking back, yet looking forward in hope and love.

Notice again, all the letters above are in the “red” of Jesus words to his disciples. Words given to them just before Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection. These words, in particular seem to point me to reflect on the resurrection. Words to prepare both the disciples then, and for us today.

Jesus speaks of joy. The joy of self-sacrifice in love for another. Sacrifice doesn’t sound like joy in today’s world. Sacrifice sounds like giving up and giving in. But as we sit and listen to the words of Jesus and see the actions of Jesus self-sacrifice; he ends it all with joy.

Jesus gives full joy. Jesus gives us the free love of the Good News of the Gospel. Jesus freely grants forgiveness and resurrection. Turn your thinking from your own selfish needs and catch the infection of real joy from Jesus. This wonderful infection is free. Accept this infection with joy.

Yes… Joy!

2 Corinthians 4:6 NIV

⁶ For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

Yes! This is real Joy displayed in the face of Christ. Joy that brings light into our hearts and gives free, warm, wonderful Light. Joy that grants us to see the face of our laughing, resurrected, Jesus. Joyful, loving, Jesus! Full of life Jesus! This is resurrection and joy!

This wonderful Joy makes me remember Luther’s Rose…

This is my explanation based on Luther’s original words… (mine is shorter!)

I look to the cross and see death and pain yet salvation.

The cross is centered in my heart of faith.

The cross and heart are enveloped by a rose of JOY caused by faith.

The heart and the rose are surrounded by a blue sky, which is the beginning of the heavenly JOY to come.

Everything, the cross, the heart, the rose and the sky are encompassed by the ring of endless JOY through the gift of grace.

Black cross of death

Red heart of Jesus life giving blood

White rose of all the angels and blessed saints of God

Blue sky of hope

Gold of Jesus, my most precious gift

Thanks be to God!

Jesus freely gives us joy! A joy professed by many disciples throughout time…

1 John 1:4 NIV

⁴ We write this to make our joy complete.

2 John 12 NIV

¹² I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.

3 John 4 NIV

⁴ I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

Yes! Jesus brings joy in sacrifice and resurrection.

As we see in the Gospel lesson, God the Father and God the Son love one another. Sure! But then Jesus loves me, you and all people. How? I’m not like Jesus. I’m dirty and sinful. How does Jesus love me, my neighbor or any of us sinful beings on this planet? Wow! That is hard to do!

Let alone that I may love my neighbor! Hard, hard, hard to do! Impossible?

As I sit and ponder the love of God in Jesus, I see that it is through Jesus love that the impossible becomes possible. As I sit in the glory of Jesus resurrection and forgiveness, I see and turn to Jesus. It’s through Jesus, not me that this love becomes possible for my neighbor. This love of others like Jesus loves me, is possible as Jesus moves in and through me. This love is not something I can force or do with my own effort. No! Jesus’ love flowing through me, from heaven to earth is possible and real, without any of my efforts. It’s not me… It’s the love of Jesus!

This love Jesus commands us to let flow through us to our world…

A love proclaimed once again through Jesus’ disciples.

1 John 3:11 NIV

¹¹ For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.

1 John 3:23 NIV

²³ And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.

1 John 4:21 NIV

²¹ And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

John 13:34 NIV

³⁴ “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

It’s a command. A command that comes through us, from Jesus. A command that bears the JOY of friendship. This friendship is in the loving. It’s not in the being loved. A friendship from Jesus that produces honesty of heart to another. A friendship to see strength and trust in Jesus.

Friends are loyal. And Jesus calls us his friends! Jesus chooses to be our friend.

We are no longer servants… we are friends. Jesus’ friend! Servants serve, and friends share love for one another. As friends we now know, Jesus’ life-giving love for us. Yes, we are friends who go and bear the fruit of love and forgiveness from God. Jesus chooses you and me to be friends into eternity. Everything Jesus has he gives to me, His friend.

Why?

Because Jesus wants his friends to bear the fruit of love to our friends, and to all people. Jesus moving in and through us. Jesus gave his body and his blood to choose me as His friend, to become in me and fill me with His love for me and for all people; that I may bear His fruit of love and forgiveness to all the world.

Yes, Jesus chose me! Jesus chose you. Dirty and sinful as we are; Jesus chooses us anyway! Stinky me! That’s amazing!

Go! Choose to love your stinky brother, sister, neighbor in this world and freely give the gift of love, service, life, Gospel and forgiveness, that Jesus has freely filled you with.

Join hands in the dance of life. Pass into the eternity of Jesus meeting in love, feast and dance. This is Jesus’ resurrection JOY… today…. tomorrow… and forever.

Love one another!

Mark 12:31 NIV

³¹ … ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

Matthew 22:39-40 NIV

³⁹ … ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.

Romans 5:6-10 NIV

⁶ You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

⁹ Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! ¹⁰ For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!

Yes! Jesus chooses me and you to be His friend.

Thanks be to God!

I leave you with this song from Chris Tomlin

Jesus

God bless you this week and always…

Are You A Branch Or A Stick? - John 15:1-8 - Fifth Sunday of Easter

 

John 15:1-8 NIV

15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷ If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

Are You A Branch Or A Stick?

Wow! All the words of Jesus in this passage spoken to his disciples. Look at all that red!

Right now, at this moment, this reflection will be a review rather than a preview to the reading of this text in worship. Why? This week has been a tough one for me. I’ve been sick. And realize how much I need to be fed that sweet sap from the vine both spiritually and physically.  So, let’s jump into this text and what it spoke to me and maybe will speak to you.

In the past Israel was thought of as the grapevine. In this passage, Jesus makes it clear that He is the vine. We also see that God the Father takes the place of the vine grower.

The Vine Grower has the job of pruning the branches. The word used as prune can also mean cleanse. So, keep that in the back of your mind as you read this Gospel passage. When God prunes you or me, we are likewise being cleansed.

And this is where my experience with illness this week, and currently, comes to mind. What I’m going through is something minor comparatively to what happened to the early Christians, but serves as an example to make me both humble and appreciative of all those in the faith before me. In this life we can all expect some pruning. Some times the pruning will appear in the form of any kind of persecution in life. I’m not talking about disease. I’m talking about persecution for acts of love in Christ. We can expect to be talked about, to be ridiculed, and perhaps to be actually tortured for following Jesus and declaring our trust, hope and faith in what God has done for us to spin us around in this world, away from our own selfish desires, to face God and be forgiven.

As we come to God, or even look to the Vine of Jesus, we feed off of the sap that the Vine has drawn from the earth to freely feed us and make us live. Why?

Bearing fruit is the proof of discipleship. The purpose of the branch is to bear the fruit given to us through the feeding of the Vine.  

The Vine does all the work. The Vine draws the sap from the earth, and passes it to the branches. The Vine keeps the branches in place. As the branches are fed from the Vine they grow strong and stay in place. The Vine gives the branches even more than they could ever use.

Without the keeping and care and feeding from the vine; the branch just turns into a stick. No longer a branch, but now a stick. Without the Vine the branch is just another stick falling to the ground to dry up, die and be good for the fire. It’s only the life from the Vine that enables the branch to bear fruit.

In life we tend to forget our need and feeding from the Vine. We think we can make it on our own. The branch can’t produce fruit without the Vine.

As a branch do I think I can live on my own? Do I turn to my own efforts and think that I can live alone? Do I live my life feeding on money, healing, drugs, science, politics, or anything else; thinking that one or all contain the source of life? Do, I trust in my own effort for ALL?

If so, that’s when I need the Vine to turn me around. I need to face the Vine and feed off of the life-giving Word of salvation and life that only the Vine can supply.

As I turn to the Vine for life-giving nourishment in Word and Sacrament, the Vine spins me back around to face the world. Why?

What the Vine wishes to spread is spread through you and me to all the world in which the branch lives. The Vine wants the branch to bear fruit.

Bear no fruit… then be taken away. Dry up. Be a stick. Fall to the ground. Burn in the fire. Bear no fruit, the branch is NOT feeding off of the Vine. The branch is trying to live alone and will dry up and turn into a stick. A selfish stick at that.

Here’s the odd part. Bear fruit? Expect to be pruned. Well, that hurts too. But the pruning makes way for more fruit and continues living off the sweet Word and sap from the Vine.

The branch need not fear the ups and downs of life. The illness, the suffering, the mourning, the on and on and on. It’s not about fearing any of this “stuff.” For the branch feeds from the Vine.

Christ is the Vine that gives life. Depend on the feeding of the Word and Sacrament from the Vine and live. Look! Here is water, sap, and Word. Be baptized with the water and the Word from the Vine. Partake of the sweet sap and wonderful juice of the body and bread the blood and wine from the Vine that gives life eternal.

The Vine gives love to all and through all so that the branch will love and give fruit to all the people of this world in which the branch lives.

May all creation praise God… today… tomorrow… and forever. Bear the fruit of love over and over and over again. After all… it’s free… straight from the Vine!

Thanks be to God!

Listen to this beautiful piece of music from YouTube

You are the vine, we are the branches

God bless you this week and always.