Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Năm Tuần thứ 6 Phục Sinh
Bình thường chúng ta nghĩ rằng, khi Chúa Giêsu Lên Trời, Ngài vào thiên đàng, và Ngài bỏ chúng ta lại ở dưới thế này. Thật sự thì Chúa Giêsu đã rời bỏ thế giới này, nhưng điều đó không có nghĩa là Ngài bỏ rơi chúng ta.
Hôm nay chúng ta mừng kính lễ Chúa lên Trời, và mỗi năm chúng ta nên lợi dụng cớ hội này để suy gẫm vả phản ánh về mối quan hệ của Chúa Giêsu với chúng ta, về sự hiện diện lâu dài của Ngài ỡ giữa chúng ta và ở trong chúng ta.
Khi Chúa Giêsu đã sống lại từ cõi chết, Ngài đã hiện ra với các môn đệ và những người đã tin tưởng và yêu mến Ngài như những người phụ nữ thân tín của Ngài. Mục đích Chúa hiện ra sau khi sống lại trong 40 ngày là để giúp cho các môn để và những người theo Ngài được hiểu rõ là qua cái chết, và sự sống lại Chúa Giêsu, Ngài đã sống lại trong cách sống mới nhưng Ngài vẫn luông ấp ủ mối quan hệ của Ngài với chúng ta, mặc dù bây giờ đã được thể hiện theo một cách mới.
Việc Chúa về Trời cũng là một trong những phần mà Chúa đã hiện ra, đâ là lần cuối cùng và cũng là lúc mà Ngài thiết lập mối quan hệ không phải chỉ với những người đã gặp gỡ Ngài trong cuộc sống trần thế của Ngài, nhưng là với tất cả những người trong mọi lứa tuổi, những người sẽ đến và tin vào Ngài và trong Giáo Hội.
Chúa Giêsu đã sinh ra để làm “Thiên Chúa ở cùng chúng ta” (Immanuel), Ngài sẽ là đấng Immanuel, Thiên Chúa ở cùng chúng ta mãi mãi.
Lạy Chúa Giêsu, Xin ở cùng với chúng tôi trong tất cả và mãi mãi, Xin Chúa mang chúng con đến với niềm vui trong cuộc sống đời đời với Ngài trong sự hiện diện của Chúa Cha muôn đời.
Reflection Thursday Sixth Week of Easter
It is normal to think that, at his Ascension into heaven, Jesus left us. It is true that Jesus left this world but that does not mean that he left us. At the feast of the Ascension each year we have a good opportunity to reflect on Jesus' relationship with us, his enduring presence among us and within us.
When Jesus rose from the dead, he spent forty days appearing to his disciples, those who knew him before his death and believed in him and loved him. The purpose of these appearances was to bring them to understand that though he had died he was alive in a new way and still cherished his relationship with them, though it was now expressed in a new way. His ascension into heaven was part of this series of appearances, the last one and the one which would establish his relationship, not only with those who had seen him in his earthly life but all those throughout the ages who would come to believe in him in the Church. Born to be Immanuel, he would be Immanuel, God-with-us, forever.
Lord Jesus, present with us in all ages, bring us joyfully to eternal life with You in the Father’s presence forever and ever.Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord
Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing with one another what I said, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.” John 16:19–20
Joy often brings clarity, while grief is often accompanied by confusion. When the disciples saw Jesus arrested, tortured, and crucified, their grief led to confusion. They might have wondered, “Was He not the Messiah? Did we not witness His miracles? Did He not speak with divine authority? How could it be that He is now dead?” After the Resurrection, those questions faded as their joy brought clarity.
In a similar way, we face moments of grief and confusion when God’s will seems hidden or His promises delayed. When a perceived misfortune happens, such as a serious illness and hospitalization of a loved one, we feel grief and might experience confusion. If our loved one recovers and returns home, we rejoice and give thanks to God. That thanksgiving is often accompanied by an apparent clarity that God was faithful and brought about the healing through our prayers. Though that might be true, it’s important to understand the effects that grief and joy have on us.
Not every earthly cause of human grief will result in natural joy. Not every loved one recovers. Not every prayer is answered in the way we hope. Similarly, not every experience of the emotion of joy is in response to God’s answer to our prayer. Sometimes joy is simply a natural response to something we desire and have attained.
The important point is that the emotions of grief and joy are not good guides to God’s will. Jesus, in His great empathy, showed He was aware of and concerned about the emotional turmoil His Apostles would soon experience. That’s why He told them, “You will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.” He was readying them to navigate the emotions they would soon face. Jesus continues to extend the same fatherly care to us, preparing our hearts to navigate the complexities of life with faith and trust.
If the Apostles understood the value of Jesus’ Crucifixion as we understand it today, they might have had a different emotional experience. Certainly, there would have been deep sorrow as they gazed upon the human suffering of the Son of God. But the clarity they would have had, knowing the infinite riches of grace that were being won through His Passion, would have transformed their human grief into a spiritual sorrow, simultaneously mixed with joy.
By analogy, imagine seeing an incredibly heroic act of courage and selflessness in which someone laid down his life for another. For example, say you were with Saint Maximilian Kolbe when he stepped forward in Auschwitz and offered to die in place of Franciszek Gajowniczek, the father and husband whom the guards chose to die in the starvation chamber. Witnessing such selflessness would likely have brought tears to your eyes but also great inspiration and joy within your spirit. Similarly, if the Apostles knew what we know today about Jesus’ death and Resurrection, they would have had clarity in the face of grief, and joy would have accompanied that grief.
While the Apostles struggled with sorrow and confusion, the Blessed Virgin Mary provides the perfect example of how grace transforms suffering. Given that Mary was full of grace and sinless, her human emotions and thinking were perfectly aligned with God’s will. As she gazed on the horror of her Son’s Passion, she had both sorrow and joy, feeling the pain of Jesus’ sufferings as she rejoiced in the greatest act of love ever seen.
Reflect today on the fluctuations of emotion you have encountered and how those experiences have affected your thinking. Remind yourself that emotions are poor guides to God’s will. Sometimes God calls us to great sacrifice, which results in suffering. Such sacrifice, when seen with clarity, allows joy to coexist with grief. Resolve to look at your life through the lens of Jesus’ Passion, knowing that every sacrifice you make with and in Him is an act of love worth rejoicing over, no matter how difficult the emotional grief that accompanies such sacrifice may be.
My empathetic Lord, You are aware of every emotion I feel, confusion I have, and thought that I ponder. Please purify my emotions and bring clarity to my thoughts so that I am guided by You alone as I experience the sorrows and joys of life. Jesus, I trust in You.
Thursday of the Fifth Week of
Easter
Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.” John 15:9–10
Imagine being loved by someone with a perfect love. Perfect love has no bounds, and experiencing it would be the source of indescribable joy. Now imagine further that the one who loves you is all-powerful and all-knowing. When combined with being all-loving, there is no limit to what such a relationship can do in your life.
Of course, we do not need to only imagine such a love—we can receive that love from God. Jesus’ words are deep, personal, and intimate: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you.” His love for you is not conditional, limited, or selfish. When He says to you, “I love you,” He means it with every power of His divine soul.
Jesus beautifully describes His love for us: “As the Father loves me…” The love the Father has for the Son is so deep, perfect, and all-consuming that we cannot fully comprehend it—even in Heaven. For all eternity, we will gaze with wonder and awe at this shared love and never tire of contemplating it. What’s more, the love between Father and Son is so strong that it cannot be contained within Themselves. Their love overflows in superabundance, pouring out upon us, inviting us to enjoy perfect fulfillment within it.
Jesus’ next words are both an invitation and a command: “Remain in my love.” God’s love for us is far more than an emotion or affectionate concern. His love is a gift of His very Self, drawing us into communion with Him. To “remain” in His love means to live, move, and exist in His presence. Divine love is transforming, enduring, and life-changing. It unites us to the divine Lover and establishes the life-giving communion for which we were made.
After inviting us to remain in His love, Jesus clarifies how we can receive His ongoing and transformative gift: “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in His love.” At first, these words might seem challenging, especially when we consider our fallen nature and tendency toward pride. Yet they only feel burdensome if we misunderstand His commandments.
In order to fully embrace Jesus’ commandments, we need to see them for what they are: expressions of pure love gushing forth from the shared love of the Father and the Son. Note that Jesus doesn’t ask anything of us that He Himself was unwilling to do. His love for the Father was perfect because He kept the Father’s commandments. What did the Father command the Son to do? He commanded Him to love with a selfless, sacrificial love, culminating in laying down His life for us.
If we want to receive God’s love and share in its perfection, we too must love—just as the Father loves the Son, the Son loves the Father, and they both love us. Like Jesus, we must become an unconditional gift of self for others. This is the nature of true love.
By becoming an unconditional gift of self, we do not become anyone’s savior; rather, we allow the one true Savior to touch others through us. True love is divine. It does not originate within us but flows from God to us and through us. If we attempt to keep that love to ourselves, it is extinguished.
Reflect today on the perfect love within the Most Holy Trinity. Hear Jesus invite you to share in that perfect love on the condition that you become an instrument of it for others. This is His commandment: “Love one another as I love you” (John 15:12). Only in this way will we share in the perfect joy God desires to bestow upon us for all eternity.
My loving Lord, Your love is perfect, all-consuming, and transforming. Your invitation to remain in Your love is an invitation to share in Your very life, the life You share with the Father and Holy Spirit. I accept Your invitation, dear Lord, and vow to keep Your commandments so as to become an instrument of Your love for others. Jesus, I trust in You.
Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter 2025
1. Controversy in the Early Church: The mission of Paul and Barnabas to the Gentiles was not without controversy. It seems that John Mark left the mission due to his disagreement with Paul about the Gentile converts not having to follow all of the Laws of Moses. And even Barnabas, it seems, had his doubts (see Galatians 2:13). The controversy was noted early on in the Acts of the Apostles, when Peter returned to Jerusalem after baptizing the Gentile Cornelius and his family. Peter was criticized, not for baptizing Cornelius, but for eating with someone who was uncircumcised. And so, there was a debated question. Some, like Paul, held that the Gentile converts did not need to be circumcised; others, who were called “the circumcision party,” held that they did. When Peter arrived in Antioch (Galatians 2:11), he began to eat with the Gentiles. But when people, sent by James the Lesser, came from Jerusalem to Antioch, Peter started to separate himself from the Gentile Converts. “With that the controversy burst into flame, threatening the unity and very identity of the new Christian movement” (Gray and Cavins, Walking with God, 296).
Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter
So some of his disciples said to one another, “What does this mean that he is saying to us, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me,’ and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” So they said, “What is this ‘little while’ of which he speaks? We do not know what he means.” John 16:17–18
How about you? Do you know what Jesus means? Or do you find that you are confused by what He said just like these disciples were? Though pride may tempt you to claim that you fully understand all that Jesus taught, the humble and honest truth is that you are probably very much like these disciples in their confusion. And that is not necessarily a bad place to be.
First, the confusion of these disciples shows they took Jesus seriously. They were not indifferent. They cared, were interested, wanted to understand, and must have had some level of faith in Jesus. Otherwise, they would have ignored Him. But they didn’t. They listened, tried to understand, discussed His teaching, thought about His words and humbly concluded that they didn’t understand.
Jesus is not critical of their confusion. He sees that they are trying and that they have some level of faith. And even though these disciples are confused, Jesus continues to speak to them in figures of speech rather than directly and clearly. One of the reasons that Jesus speaks in figurative language is because the message that He is teaching is profound and deep. It’s not something that can be quickly and easily understood and mastered. The mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven are so deep, vast, profound and mystical that the only way to begin to understand them is to first have faith. Faith does not mean you fully understand everything. Faith is a supernatural gift by which you come to believe without fully seeing and understanding. The certainty comes from God, not from your own reasoning ability. But faith always leads to deeper understanding. Therefore, as these disciples professed their faith, they also came to understand. And even though Jesus speaks in this figurative way, these disciples ultimately made the choice to believe. Later in this chapter they conclude, “Now we realize that you know everything and that you do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this we believe that you came from God” (John 16:30).
Reflect, today, upon whether you struggle at all with indifference toward the mysteries of life. If so, commit yourself to be more like these disciples who intentionally grappled with all that Jesus spoke. Do not be afraid to admit your confusion and to place that confusion before our Lord. Strive to have the gift of faith and allow that spark of faith to become the pathway for your deeper understanding of the many mysteries of life.
My mysterious Lord, You and all the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven are so deep and profound that no one will ever fully comprehend their depth, breadth and beauty. Please open my mind, dear Lord, to a deeper understanding of You so that I may profess my faith in You and in all that You have chosen to reveal. I do believe, my God. Help my unbelief. Jesus, I trust in You.
Bình thường chúng ta nghĩ rằng, khi Chúa Giêsu Lên Trời, Ngài vào thiên đàng, và Ngài bỏ chúng ta lại ở dưới thế này. Thật sự thì Chúa Giêsu đã rời bỏ thế giới này, nhưng điều đó không có nghĩa là Ngài bỏ rơi chúng ta.
Hôm nay chúng ta mừng kính lễ Chúa lên Trời, và mỗi năm chúng ta nên lợi dụng cớ hội này để suy gẫm vả phản ánh về mối quan hệ của Chúa Giêsu với chúng ta, về sự hiện diện lâu dài của Ngài ỡ giữa chúng ta và ở trong chúng ta.
Khi Chúa Giêsu đã sống lại từ cõi chết, Ngài đã hiện ra với các môn đệ và những người đã tin tưởng và yêu mến Ngài như những người phụ nữ thân tín của Ngài. Mục đích Chúa hiện ra sau khi sống lại trong 40 ngày là để giúp cho các môn để và những người theo Ngài được hiểu rõ là qua cái chết, và sự sống lại Chúa Giêsu, Ngài đã sống lại trong cách sống mới nhưng Ngài vẫn luông ấp ủ mối quan hệ của Ngài với chúng ta, mặc dù bây giờ đã được thể hiện theo một cách mới.
Việc Chúa về Trời cũng là một trong những phần mà Chúa đã hiện ra, đâ là lần cuối cùng và cũng là lúc mà Ngài thiết lập mối quan hệ không phải chỉ với những người đã gặp gỡ Ngài trong cuộc sống trần thế của Ngài, nhưng là với tất cả những người trong mọi lứa tuổi, những người sẽ đến và tin vào Ngài và trong Giáo Hội.
Chúa Giêsu đã sinh ra để làm “Thiên Chúa ở cùng chúng ta” (Immanuel), Ngài sẽ là đấng Immanuel, Thiên Chúa ở cùng chúng ta mãi mãi.
Lạy Chúa Giêsu, Xin ở cùng với chúng tôi trong tất cả và mãi mãi, Xin Chúa mang chúng con đến với niềm vui trong cuộc sống đời đời với Ngài trong sự hiện diện của Chúa Cha muôn đời.
It is normal to think that, at his Ascension into heaven, Jesus left us. It is true that Jesus left this world but that does not mean that he left us. At the feast of the Ascension each year we have a good opportunity to reflect on Jesus' relationship with us, his enduring presence among us and within us.
When Jesus rose from the dead, he spent forty days appearing to his disciples, those who knew him before his death and believed in him and loved him. The purpose of these appearances was to bring them to understand that though he had died he was alive in a new way and still cherished his relationship with them, though it was now expressed in a new way. His ascension into heaven was part of this series of appearances, the last one and the one which would establish his relationship, not only with those who had seen him in his earthly life but all those throughout the ages who would come to believe in him in the Church. Born to be Immanuel, he would be Immanuel, God-with-us, forever.
Lord Jesus, present with us in all ages, bring us joyfully to eternal life with You in the Father’s presence forever and ever.Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord
Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing with one another what I said, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.” John 16:19–20
Joy often brings clarity, while grief is often accompanied by confusion. When the disciples saw Jesus arrested, tortured, and crucified, their grief led to confusion. They might have wondered, “Was He not the Messiah? Did we not witness His miracles? Did He not speak with divine authority? How could it be that He is now dead?” After the Resurrection, those questions faded as their joy brought clarity.
In a similar way, we face moments of grief and confusion when God’s will seems hidden or His promises delayed. When a perceived misfortune happens, such as a serious illness and hospitalization of a loved one, we feel grief and might experience confusion. If our loved one recovers and returns home, we rejoice and give thanks to God. That thanksgiving is often accompanied by an apparent clarity that God was faithful and brought about the healing through our prayers. Though that might be true, it’s important to understand the effects that grief and joy have on us.
Not every earthly cause of human grief will result in natural joy. Not every loved one recovers. Not every prayer is answered in the way we hope. Similarly, not every experience of the emotion of joy is in response to God’s answer to our prayer. Sometimes joy is simply a natural response to something we desire and have attained.
The important point is that the emotions of grief and joy are not good guides to God’s will. Jesus, in His great empathy, showed He was aware of and concerned about the emotional turmoil His Apostles would soon experience. That’s why He told them, “You will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.” He was readying them to navigate the emotions they would soon face. Jesus continues to extend the same fatherly care to us, preparing our hearts to navigate the complexities of life with faith and trust.
If the Apostles understood the value of Jesus’ Crucifixion as we understand it today, they might have had a different emotional experience. Certainly, there would have been deep sorrow as they gazed upon the human suffering of the Son of God. But the clarity they would have had, knowing the infinite riches of grace that were being won through His Passion, would have transformed their human grief into a spiritual sorrow, simultaneously mixed with joy.
By analogy, imagine seeing an incredibly heroic act of courage and selflessness in which someone laid down his life for another. For example, say you were with Saint Maximilian Kolbe when he stepped forward in Auschwitz and offered to die in place of Franciszek Gajowniczek, the father and husband whom the guards chose to die in the starvation chamber. Witnessing such selflessness would likely have brought tears to your eyes but also great inspiration and joy within your spirit. Similarly, if the Apostles knew what we know today about Jesus’ death and Resurrection, they would have had clarity in the face of grief, and joy would have accompanied that grief.
While the Apostles struggled with sorrow and confusion, the Blessed Virgin Mary provides the perfect example of how grace transforms suffering. Given that Mary was full of grace and sinless, her human emotions and thinking were perfectly aligned with God’s will. As she gazed on the horror of her Son’s Passion, she had both sorrow and joy, feeling the pain of Jesus’ sufferings as she rejoiced in the greatest act of love ever seen.
Reflect today on the fluctuations of emotion you have encountered and how those experiences have affected your thinking. Remind yourself that emotions are poor guides to God’s will. Sometimes God calls us to great sacrifice, which results in suffering. Such sacrifice, when seen with clarity, allows joy to coexist with grief. Resolve to look at your life through the lens of Jesus’ Passion, knowing that every sacrifice you make with and in Him is an act of love worth rejoicing over, no matter how difficult the emotional grief that accompanies such sacrifice may be.
My empathetic Lord, You are aware of every emotion I feel, confusion I have, and thought that I ponder. Please purify my emotions and bring clarity to my thoughts so that I am guided by You alone as I experience the sorrows and joys of life. Jesus, I trust in You.
Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.” John 15:9–10
Imagine being loved by someone with a perfect love. Perfect love has no bounds, and experiencing it would be the source of indescribable joy. Now imagine further that the one who loves you is all-powerful and all-knowing. When combined with being all-loving, there is no limit to what such a relationship can do in your life.
Of course, we do not need to only imagine such a love—we can receive that love from God. Jesus’ words are deep, personal, and intimate: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you.” His love for you is not conditional, limited, or selfish. When He says to you, “I love you,” He means it with every power of His divine soul.
Jesus beautifully describes His love for us: “As the Father loves me…” The love the Father has for the Son is so deep, perfect, and all-consuming that we cannot fully comprehend it—even in Heaven. For all eternity, we will gaze with wonder and awe at this shared love and never tire of contemplating it. What’s more, the love between Father and Son is so strong that it cannot be contained within Themselves. Their love overflows in superabundance, pouring out upon us, inviting us to enjoy perfect fulfillment within it.
Jesus’ next words are both an invitation and a command: “Remain in my love.” God’s love for us is far more than an emotion or affectionate concern. His love is a gift of His very Self, drawing us into communion with Him. To “remain” in His love means to live, move, and exist in His presence. Divine love is transforming, enduring, and life-changing. It unites us to the divine Lover and establishes the life-giving communion for which we were made.
After inviting us to remain in His love, Jesus clarifies how we can receive His ongoing and transformative gift: “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in His love.” At first, these words might seem challenging, especially when we consider our fallen nature and tendency toward pride. Yet they only feel burdensome if we misunderstand His commandments.
In order to fully embrace Jesus’ commandments, we need to see them for what they are: expressions of pure love gushing forth from the shared love of the Father and the Son. Note that Jesus doesn’t ask anything of us that He Himself was unwilling to do. His love for the Father was perfect because He kept the Father’s commandments. What did the Father command the Son to do? He commanded Him to love with a selfless, sacrificial love, culminating in laying down His life for us.
If we want to receive God’s love and share in its perfection, we too must love—just as the Father loves the Son, the Son loves the Father, and they both love us. Like Jesus, we must become an unconditional gift of self for others. This is the nature of true love.
By becoming an unconditional gift of self, we do not become anyone’s savior; rather, we allow the one true Savior to touch others through us. True love is divine. It does not originate within us but flows from God to us and through us. If we attempt to keep that love to ourselves, it is extinguished.
Reflect today on the perfect love within the Most Holy Trinity. Hear Jesus invite you to share in that perfect love on the condition that you become an instrument of it for others. This is His commandment: “Love one another as I love you” (John 15:12). Only in this way will we share in the perfect joy God desires to bestow upon us for all eternity.
My loving Lord, Your love is perfect, all-consuming, and transforming. Your invitation to remain in Your love is an invitation to share in Your very life, the life You share with the Father and Holy Spirit. I accept Your invitation, dear Lord, and vow to keep Your commandments so as to become an instrument of Your love for others. Jesus, I trust in You.
1. Controversy in the Early Church: The mission of Paul and Barnabas to the Gentiles was not without controversy. It seems that John Mark left the mission due to his disagreement with Paul about the Gentile converts not having to follow all of the Laws of Moses. And even Barnabas, it seems, had his doubts (see Galatians 2:13). The controversy was noted early on in the Acts of the Apostles, when Peter returned to Jerusalem after baptizing the Gentile Cornelius and his family. Peter was criticized, not for baptizing Cornelius, but for eating with someone who was uncircumcised. And so, there was a debated question. Some, like Paul, held that the Gentile converts did not need to be circumcised; others, who were called “the circumcision party,” held that they did. When Peter arrived in Antioch (Galatians 2:11), he began to eat with the Gentiles. But when people, sent by James the Lesser, came from Jerusalem to Antioch, Peter started to separate himself from the Gentile Converts. “With that the controversy burst into flame, threatening the unity and very identity of the new Christian movement” (Gray and Cavins, Walking with God, 296).
So some of his disciples said to one another, “What does this mean that he is saying to us, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me,’ and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” So they said, “What is this ‘little while’ of which he speaks? We do not know what he means.” John 16:17–18
How about you? Do you know what Jesus means? Or do you find that you are confused by what He said just like these disciples were? Though pride may tempt you to claim that you fully understand all that Jesus taught, the humble and honest truth is that you are probably very much like these disciples in their confusion. And that is not necessarily a bad place to be.
First, the confusion of these disciples shows they took Jesus seriously. They were not indifferent. They cared, were interested, wanted to understand, and must have had some level of faith in Jesus. Otherwise, they would have ignored Him. But they didn’t. They listened, tried to understand, discussed His teaching, thought about His words and humbly concluded that they didn’t understand.
Jesus is not critical of their confusion. He sees that they are trying and that they have some level of faith. And even though these disciples are confused, Jesus continues to speak to them in figures of speech rather than directly and clearly. One of the reasons that Jesus speaks in figurative language is because the message that He is teaching is profound and deep. It’s not something that can be quickly and easily understood and mastered. The mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven are so deep, vast, profound and mystical that the only way to begin to understand them is to first have faith. Faith does not mean you fully understand everything. Faith is a supernatural gift by which you come to believe without fully seeing and understanding. The certainty comes from God, not from your own reasoning ability. But faith always leads to deeper understanding. Therefore, as these disciples professed their faith, they also came to understand. And even though Jesus speaks in this figurative way, these disciples ultimately made the choice to believe. Later in this chapter they conclude, “Now we realize that you know everything and that you do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this we believe that you came from God” (John 16:30).
Reflect, today, upon whether you struggle at all with indifference toward the mysteries of life. If so, commit yourself to be more like these disciples who intentionally grappled with all that Jesus spoke. Do not be afraid to admit your confusion and to place that confusion before our Lord. Strive to have the gift of faith and allow that spark of faith to become the pathway for your deeper understanding of the many mysteries of life.
My mysterious Lord, You and all the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven are so deep and profound that no one will ever fully comprehend their depth, breadth and beauty. Please open my mind, dear Lord, to a deeper understanding of You so that I may profess my faith in You and in all that You have chosen to reveal. I do believe, my God. Help my unbelief. Jesus, I trust in You.
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