“Truth and Consequences”

Sunday After Ascension Day

May 24, AD 2009

St. John XV: 26 - XVI 4a

We celebrated the Ascension of our Lord this past Thursday and heard in the Gospel of St. Luke how Jesus told his disciples that He would send the “promise of my Father upon you,” and that they should stay awhile in Jerusalem until they are “endued with power from on high.” This is a clear reference to the coming of the Holy Ghost, which event we celebrate next Sunday. After Jesus spoke these words and blessed the disciples, “He was parted from them and carried up into heaven.” The disciples then did as Jesus requested, returning to Jerusalem from Bethany with “great joy: and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God.” What a turn of events it has been for the disciples. After being witnesses to the betrayal, abandonment, and crucifixion of their Master, they have since seen with their own eyes evidence of Jesus’ resurrection and have even communed with Jesus in the post-resurrection appearances, and now have received promises that fill their hearts with joyous expectation of great things to come.

But we aren’t quite there yet, liturgically speaking, are we? Whitsunday or Pentecost is next Sunday, after all. But maybe we aren’t quite there yet spiritually speaking either. Maybe 2,000 plus years after the Holy Ghost first descended on that gathering of believers and non-believers and made them all speak in many tongues of the “wonderful works of God,” we are more than a bit jaded, complacent, and spiritually flabby. Instead of being in an attitude of constant prayer and thanksgiving, perhaps we’re more likely to catch ourselves constantly complaining. Instead of putting aside all earthly cares to worship God in Spirit and in Truth, we allow difficult personal circumstances to raise up false gods that we prefer to bow down to. Instead of building up the body of Christ with our gifts and talents, we retreat to some lofty, isolated perch where we can safely look down with smug superiority on the many failures of the Church throughout the ages to maintain unity and execute a vision and mission worthy of the name of Jesus. Too many sins committed in God’s name, we say. So we become wary of commitment and afraid of being vulnerable and trusting before our brothers and sisters in Christ. If we even acknowledge our own failures and transgressions, we don’t dare to ask forgiveness of those we’ve hurt because maybe we don’t really want to forgive the trespasses of those who trespassed against us. When we find ourselves in such a spiritual desert, the glass is always half empty, never half full. And let me be the first to confess, I have drunk from such a glass, and wondered why I came away still thirsty.

What are we doing when we get ourselves into such a state but creating our own version of the truth? These personal truths that we build for ourselves are relativistic sandstorms swirling with dysfunction and not well grounded in the reality of ultimate Truth. Not being grounded in ultimate Truth can have dangerous consequences because it allows people like Pontius Pilate to say with glib dismissiveness, “What is Truth?” and move us along with the crowd to do terrible things. Soon we too may be yelling, “Give us Barabbas!”  God forbid! Fortunately for us, God knows the spiritual warfare we are engaged in. He sent Jesus to reveal His plan of salvation for us, and then He sent the Holy Ghost to be our Comforter, our Counselor, our Advocate. These are all English derivatives from the Greek term “Paraclete”, which means “called to the side of.”

At first glance, the lesson given to us today from St. John’s Gospel may not seem too comforting. The words of Jesus are again part of the Farewell Discourses to His disciples prior to His arrest and crucifixion. They point to difficulties and hardships to come for those who bear witness to Jesus. “They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service,” says Jesus. Being killed for the faith is one thing. It is over relatively quickly and a martyr’s reward awaits. But to be thrown out of the synagogue is like a slow, virtual death that in some ways might be harder to take. In those days, it could mean complete ostracism from the community and financial ruin. Jesus wants to give the disciples the whole, unvarnished Truth, not some sentimental, pie in the sky, sugar coated way of easy Grace. The plain truth is, true discipleship is hard because it engages with the Enemy, the forces of evil within and without, and the forces of evil have a tendency to fight all that is pure and holy with vicious tenacity. But the disciples will not be alone in these battles. Jesus tells them they will have the Comforter by their side. Comforter is a good word to use if you bring with it the old English understanding of the word as conveying not just comfort in the usual sense, but also strength. Think of the “fort” embedded in the word itself and you will get the right image to reflect on.

This Comforter is the Spirit of Truth, says Jesus. Because it comes from the Father it is grounded in Ultimate Reality. It is a Reality that points to Jesus also, for it is sent by Jesus from the Father. The procession of the Holy Ghost from the Father and the Son is part of our western version of the Nicene creed. The eastern branch of Christianity split with the western branch under Rome over this phrasing, called the “filioque.” We can leave the details of this first major split of the Church and the formulations of Trinitarian doctrine to another time. What is important to note today is that Jesus is telling his disciples that the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, will testify about Jesus, and that Jesus and everything He has told the disciples from the beginning will also be witnessed to by them, despite persecution. We have the record of this apostolic witness in the New Testament scriptures and Holy Tradition of the Church.

What is the Truth that the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, will reveal to the hearts and minds of mankind? We’ll hear more of the story next week when we celebrate Pentecost, but in just a few verses further in St. John 16, Jesus says this of the Comforter, “And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they believe not on me; of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.”  In other words, the Holy Ghost, the Comforter and Spirit of Truth, will convict the world of its sin and call people to repentance and belief in Jesus Christ. The Holy Ghost will also reveal God’s righteousness through the faith of believers in the One who has ascended out of this world to the Father in heaven. And last, but certainly not least, Jesus Christ’s condemnation and victory over Satan and death is demonstrated. These divine mysteries have been revealed to the disciples first, and conveyed by the Church through the ages by faithful, apostolic, Spirit-mediated ministry down to our present age.

Now that we know the Paraclete, the Spirit of ultimate Truth, is by our side, what mountains could possibly stand in our way? The Truth of the Comforter is the Truth of God and the Truth of Jesus Christ, for the Godhead is One. Jesus told the Truth to his disciples so they would not “be offended”, meaning they would not be made to stumble. We know all too well the consequences of following truth not grounded in the Ultimate Truth of Jesus Christ. We stumble badly, don’t we? But when we open our hearts to the action of the Holy Ghost, the consequences are markedly different. Amazing things happen. There is transformation of our very being. As Jesus told the two followers of John the Baptist in Matthew 11:5, “The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them.” The Holy Ghost helps us internalize our relationship with Jesus Christ and gives us the ability to respond by doing the things we heard St. Peter enumerate in our epistle lesson, so that “God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ.” And when troubles afflict us, we can stand strong in the power of our Triune God through the person of the Comforter, who reminds us of Jesus’ words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven; blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted;…blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” [Matthew 5:3ff]

So let me ask you this: Is the glass half empty or half full for you today? I hope the answer from your heart will be, “Deacon Dave, it’s not a glass at all. The truth is, it’s the cup of the new covenant in Jesus Christ, and it is overflowing with His Spirit of Love for you, for me, and for everyone. Let us share it with all we meet, and to God be the Glory!”

And now unto God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, be ascribed all might, majesty, honor, and dominion, as is most justly due this day, both now and forever, Amen.