|
Readings for the Sixth Sunday of Easter
Acts 8:5-8, 14-17
1 Peter 3:15-18
John 14:15-21
In today's first reading, after accepting the call to proclaim the Good News, Philip does some amazing things and positively affects people's lives. In the second reading Peter asks his readers to sanctify Christ as Lord of their hearts in order to endure the sufferings that lie ahead. Finally, in the gospel Jesus tells his disciples, "If you love me you must follow my commandments."
In the great commandment of the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus says we are to love God with all our heart, mind, and soul; and to love our neighbor as ourselves. After the resurrection, Jesus asks Peter three times, "Do you love me?" and three times Peter responds, "Yes Lord, I love you." Jesus responds, "Feed my sheep." (Jn 21:15-17).
The opening line in today's gospel seems to ask all Christians, do we love Jesus? It implies that we know him and have experienced him somewhere or somehow in our lives. So we face the same dilemma as the disciples after the crucifixion, how do we show that we love him? John tells us by keeping his commandments.
So what are the commandments of Jesus? I think a good place to start is with the greatest and number one commandment to love God, our neighbor, and ourselves. Loving God and loving Jesus is sometimes hard to understand. Loving a God that we can not see, touch, or smell leaves us open to a lot of misconceptions. In the first letter of John, John tells us that if we say we love God whom we can not see and hate our brother whom we can, then we are liars (1 Jn 4:20).
Therefore the commandment of Jesus is that we are to love others as they are. That does not mean that we do not acknowledge their faults, but it does mean that we are to love them anyway. This does not mean that we allow others to abuse us, because we are also to love ourselves.
In loving ourselves, we are not to love only our virtues, or love what we would like others to see us as being. But we are also to love ourselves as we truly are, even in our sinfulness. At the last supper Peter assured Jesus that he would be loyal to Jesus even if it meant death, but when it came time for Peter to speak up on Jesus' behalf, Peter denied him. Peter never forgot that about himself and never hid it.
The same must be for us. It is through our faults that we develop compassion and become humble. It is through our own faults that we can accept faults in others. It is through our own faults that we learn to forgive others as we have learned to be forgiven.
As we grow in our ability to love others, to love ourselves, and experience and love God, we can follow the command to Peter that we feed, tend, and take care of those in our care. By doing these things we can be sure to show that we really do love Jesus. We can become like Phillip and touch people's lives. And like 1 Peter sanctify Christ as Lord of our hearts.
If we love Jesus and follow his commandments, what do we get? First we get the Spirit of truth and that no matter what we face in the world, we will not be abandoned by the Spirit. Second, we will be loved by God in a special way. Sure God loved us so much that he sent his only son (Jn 3:16). But we will experience it somehow. Finally, Jesus will love us and reveal himself to us (Jn 14:16-21). To have Jesus reveal himself to us seems like a pretty good deal.
Jim Fogarty is a member of Ascension parish council and ministers to young people in gangs throughout the Chicagoland area.
| 
