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When Jesus left the world, it seems he left the lights on.
That light – that power – is the Holy Spirit of
God.
The Holy Spirit animates, inspires and sanctifies us. The
Holy Spirit opens our hearts and minds to help us understand
God’s values and God’s thinking, since there is
a wide gap between man’s thinking and God’s thinking
which logic and reason alone cannot bridge.
When we look back at the accounts in the New Testament, it
is clear that the Holy Spirit played a role in all the milestone
events – at the Annunciation, the Baptism of Jesus and
of course at Pentecost.
Although Jesus is God and has the full powers of God (as
seen at Cana when he turned water into wine), it was part
of God’s plan that the Holy Spirit should play the role
of animator. For that reason, Jesus led a relatively quiet
life as the son of a carpenter for the first thirty years
of his life. It was only after the Holy Spirit came down on
him at the Jordan River in the form of a dove, that Jesus
began his active ministry.
For three years Jesus went about the towns and countryside
ministering to the poor and the sick, all the while giving
bite-size teachings to the apostles. But many of the teachings
of Jesus about the ways of God were not easy to understand,
and harder to follow.
God’s Ways and Man’s Ways
At that time, the Jews were looking for some superhero to
liberate them from their oppressors and they were hoping that
Jesus was going to be that superhero. But as they listened
to his teachings, their hopes turned to puzzlement then disillusionment.
Consider some of the things Jesus taught his followers:
Bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat
you … (Luke 6: 28)
If someone takes your coat, let him have your shirt as well...
(Luke 6: 29)
The first will be last and the last will be first … (Matt
20: 16)
If you want to be great in the kingdom of God you have to
be a servant … (Matt 20: 26)
Forgive your brother seventy times seven ... (Matt 18: 22)
From their point of view, the words and actions of Jesus
did not sound like those of a powerful man. Many of Jesus’
disciples began to waiver.
The last straw came when Jesus told his disciples, “If
you do not eat my Body and drink my blood you cannot have
eternal life, for my body is real food and my blood real drink.”
(John 6: 53 – 55)One by one they turned to leave, until
Jesus asked Peter, “Will you leave as well?” And
Peter answered, “Where else can I go to, Lord!”
Much of the teachings of Jesus run against the grains of
our human nature. But it should not be surprising to us since
the Bible says that God’s ways are not man’s ways.
Our human nature, or the way of the flesh, is incompatible
with God’s ways. That is why we have problems understanding
the way God operates. As Christians, we want to strive to
shed our human nature and take on the Godly nature which is
more powerful and more effective. To achieve this, we have
to constantly challenge ourselves to look beyond the fixed
posts to something beyond.
Many people cannot see beyond the present reality. They see
themselves as victims and “prisoners of fate”. They
become bitter and vengeful and tend to react rather than respond.
It is only with the help of the Holy Spirit that we can understand
that revenge and retribution are the tools of petty and small-minded
people. Forgiveness is the privilege of the strong.
A New Spiritual Order
In the new spiritual order every one lives for the others;
no one will be left behind, no one will be first and no one
will be last (since only Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega).
We will have to turn upside-down our present understanding
of “power”, ”rank”, and “riches”.
Giving will be as pleasurable as receiving. No one will have
to steal and hoard since we will be living in a culture of
self-giving, and everyone is warm, loving, and generous.
But our logic steps in: How can I live the ideals in this
present reality? How can I be kind in this unkind world? How
can I let down my guard when others are on the offensive?
How can I …?
The moment we get into our logical mode thinking, everything
looks hopeless. But operating on the power of the Holy Spirit,
everything becomes possible since with God there is no east
and west; and there is no past and future, only an eternal
present.
Let us invoke the Holy Spirit to transform our hearts and
make out minds more compatible with God’s. After each
line, you may pause to reflect, or you may continue with your
own meditations:
Prayer to the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit, sustain me in the love of God, and make me receptive
to what God has in store for me:
* Heal my hurts and help me forgive the person who hurt me
most …
* Melt the hardness of my heart caused by bitter experiences
...
* Enlarge the capacity of my thinking and help me see what
possibilities I can achieve with love ...
* Open paths in relationships blocked by suspicion and resentment
...
* Help me see Jesus in everyone, especially the weak and
the poor ...
* Help me see Jesus in people who are crude and unkind ...
* In situations of strife and conflict, help me put on the
mind of Jesus and lead me to act with wisdom, understanding
and Christian charity…
* Give me the courage to be different, unfashionable and
unpopular in living out my Christian values …
* And help me be joyful in the face of jealousy and false
accusations ...
Amen |
