Reflection on the Holy Gospel according to John 14:15-21

^“15 If you love me you will keep my commandments. ¹⁶ I shall ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete to be with you forever, ¹⁷ the Spirit of truth whom the world can never accept since it neither sees nor knows him; but you know him, because he is with you, he is in you. ¹⁸ I shall not leave you orphans; I shall come to you. ¹⁹ In a short time the world will no longer see me; but you will see that I live and you also will live. ²⁰ On that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you. ²¹ Whoever holds to my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me; and whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I shall love him and reveal myself to him.”

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Jesus the only begotten Son of The Almighty God is the living covenant between God His Father and all of mankind. To listen to The Word of God in the Holy Gospels is to be taught by Jesus Himself. The teaching of Our Lord draws us to eternal life. It is a model by which those who have become saints have transformed their lives and have born witness to their exemplary faith. Therefore the commandments of Jesus are not a matter of choice for the faithful. His commandments lead us to truth. The sanctity of this truth is armored by the precious blood of The Lamb of God. This therefore is the only way a soul can find its way to its eternal well being, in the company of all that has been created to worship God in holiness.

Even though Christ gave us His commandments, by obedience to which He assures us fellowship with His Father and Spirit, He knows the nature of our created being. That nature has been disfigured by disobedience, which led to the compelling Original Sin. Therefore, The Lord’s never drying fountain of mercy guarantees the constant companionship of the comforting Paraclete (Gr. παράκλητος, Lat. Paracletus), who counsels us, advocates for us and helps us to live by those commandments of God through the incarnate Christ. This Paraclete is the Spirit of Truth. The complexity and yet the simplicity of the Holy Spirit is favourable only to those who long to listen to the voice of The Lord. Thus the Book of Proverbs 3: 1-2 says, “My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commandments in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity.”

The promise of the Holy Spirit by Christ Jesus is the promise of The Father Himself. It is the Father who sends His Son to us and it is The Father who promises to care for us even when His Son momentarily has to depart from the world. The Father who is in heaven is our Father who has carved us on the palm of His hand. Such a loving Father, one who is beyond any human understanding of Paternal love, unlike that of human fathers, is bound by his Holy will and His very nature of being our creator, to protect, care and comfort us – His children, with love and mercy.

Christ speaks to each one of us in unique ways, that is because His plans for each one of us is unique and has no replica in another’s life.  An infilling of the Holy Spirit within the human person is like the adorning of Yahweh’s holy temple by King Solomon, with the finest of Gold and rare jewels. It is the willingness of allowing holiness to engulf every space and void within the Holy of Holies. It is like the commissioning of the finest and exclusive artisan to create a unique throne for the enthronement of The Most High God, within the temple which is the human person. Such an infilling fortifies the will of a person and constantly guards it from being contaminated by concupiscence, temptation, corruption, pride, hypocrisy and sin.

Through discerning the will of God with the assistance of The Paraclete, we allow Jesus to reveal himself to us in ways He has already planned for each one of us, in ways exclusive to every single person. Directing the human will to the obedience of The Word of God – through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, therefore is conformity to the command of Christ – “Love God and love Thy neighbor as Thyself.”