The Last Supper
Discourses in the Gospel of John is a personal moment between Jesus
and his disciples. It is the last time he sat with his inner circle
and spoke with them before his Passion. It was an intimate moment
between friends; sort of a final instruction. The disciples were
confused, afraid, and troubled. Jesus, in his humanness, was also
preparing himself for his impending suffering. Through it we too can
encounter that human Jesus which is so necessary to develop our
relationship with him so we can experience a transformation in our
own lives. There is a challenge of sorts presented in the words, “If
you love me, you will keep my commandments.” These commandments
come directly from the Father and are the ones that offer a blueprint
for our own lives. If we truly believe that God is the Father and
Christ is the Son, then we are obligated as Christians to follow them
to the best of our abilities. They become a starting point in our own
journey of faith and dictate how we should conduct ourselves in this
confusing world which sends us mixed messages and proclaims that
nothing is ever black and white.
Life is indeed
hard. There are expectations that we put on ourselves and others that
are set by other people that are sometimes beyond our control. With
all the challenges and obstacles put forth it is very easy to become
lost or confused. That is when bad things can easily happen. To avoid
this, Christ must always be the central focus. Through him our
relationship and understanding can develop in regards to who we truly
are and how important we are in relation to this wonderful creation
around us. We are a part of this creation and a part of God's Divine
Plan. Each one of us are important and have the ability to make a
wonderful difference in this world around us. In fact, we are
commissioned to do so. That is what God wants us to do: live our
lives to its fullest through him and with him; always with the
realization that he is with us.
These
commandments are not to be followed through obligation. They are to
be followed with the Greatest Commandment in mind:
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and
greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your
neighbor as yourself.’All the Law and the Prophets hang on these
two commandments.”
Because God is
speaking through the prophets and Jesus is God, we must reflect on
this constantly. Love is the key to everything. The commandments and
instructions of Jesus should be followed because we want to; not
because we have to. It should be a true reaction to his love. To know
God is to love God. We all have a longing to be loved. We are
communal creatures by nature and our every interaction dictates who
we are and how we behave. Perfection in our lives and true happiness
lies in our ability to love and be loved. This all leads back to the
Creator. We were created because he loves us. We are his children;
members of his Royal Priesthood. With that we are invited to claim
our birthright and react to his call of love. What an opportunity for
us all to be truly happy. Happiness lies in a life with God.
Everything takes on a new meaning. We can reflect back to the Gospel
of John when Andrew and John began to follow Jesus after he was
proclaimed the Lamb of God by John the Baptist. He turned to them
them and said, “What are you looking for?” Christ is asking all
of us that very same question. “What are we looking for?” Are we
to concentrate completely on the material things around us or are we
going to nourish our spirituality through Sacred Scripture and
exercising our faith? We cannot ignore or take for granted that we
are spiritual beings that must continually focus on God through our
actions and our faith life. This is so important to achieve complete
happiness.
This is
something that is oftentimes overlooked as we are face constant and
difficult choices between our faith and the demands of everyday life.
But it must be remembered that each can coexist in complete harmony
with the other. And that is the key. Even the most repetitious and
menial task can be completed with Christ in our heart, mind, and
soul. Through him we are unified with our Father. We are eternally
bound together never to be ripped apart except when we choose to do
so. And when we do so, there can be drastic consequences. You see,
when we sin, we are actually turning away from God. It is a
deliberate act.
There is a
constant theme that I speak about in Prison Ministry: There is no
Recovery without Christ. You can try as hard as you can to do right
and not repeat the actions of the past that have led to
self-destruction, but you will fail if you do not recognize why you
want to do good: for yourself and to be complete by recognizing why
you are here. Because of the love of God. The message is the same for
all of us: recognize God and his love. For he so loved the world that
he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not
perish but might have eternal life. It begins and ends with love.
Through this
recognition of our creator we can then be able to surrender to his
will. All of our troubles and tribulations can be given to him and we
can experience it with him. He will never abandon us. He is always
with us. In the end, everything will be okay. That is when we can
truly feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, the Love
of God in action. We must be susceptible to it in order to receive
it. When we then feel the presence of his love, we will want to feel
it more. This is when God starts to shape us like an earthen vessel
into what he wants us to be. If we resist this, we become hardened
and brittle like dried clay.
We must ask
ourselves: do we want our hearts to be hardened and brittle or do we
want to be nourished by the Living Water of Our Lord Jesus Christ and
slowly be shape and formed by him so that we may experience his
eternal love. The Holy Spirit can indeed move us and lift us up to
the greatest heights. Only if we permit it.
Deacon Tom
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