Here’s the idea: I’m preaching on this text Sunday, April 27, but would love some feedback of how it speaks to you, what questions it raises, what ideas it affirms or denies. If I get the time, I’ll put up a wiki draft of the sermon early next week.

Read in the context of Eastertide, these following verses from John assure us that God still advocates for us, even–indeed, because of–the crucifixion and resurrection. It’s a short text, but intense:

John 14:15-21

¹⁵“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. ¹⁶And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you for ever. ¹⁷This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.

¹⁸“I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. ¹⁹In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. ²⁰On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. ²¹They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

Points for consideration:

• First off, I’ll need to find a way online to investigate the Greek, because verse 15 brings up some tricky questions. Is it, “If you love me then you will keep my commandments” or “If you love me please show your love by keeping my commandments” or “If you truly love me, you will keep my commandments or else.” ? I don’t have my Greek Bible or books here, so I’d love some help out there. (Verse 21 has the same sticky situation.)
• Though verse 17 and it’s exclusivity could be read to be a bit snooty, I think it’s actually really spiffy in that it says that those who know Jesus can see the Spirit moving in ways that others can’t. There’s a danger in crazy Christians saying “Look at hurricane Katrina, that means God hates gays” but there’s also a freedom, “Look at that person helping that one, I can see Holy Spirit moving right there.”
• If we interpret the “on that day” in verse 18 to be the resurrection, then now, today, Jesus is in the Father, we are in Jesus, and Jesus is in us. What in the world does that mean? I always get a bit thrown by people who say, “Jesus is in my heart” because I don’t know what that means. It’s sometimes said with such a certainty and arrogance that I get put off by the tone. I mean, I believe it…Jesus is “in my heart” too, but I’m one who seeks words to express it clearly. And I’m leery of Jesus being on one’s heart, but never affecting one’s actions towards others. If Jesus is in your heart, but your hands are creating greenhouse gases that will lead to the death of thousands of the poor who have Jesus in their hearts too, I’m a bit skeptical that’s what Jesus had in mind.

So jump on in. With this new blog look, the comment button is at the top of this post. Considering the elderly congregation at the evening service at which the sermon will be preached, bullet two stands out for me. But what about you?

UPDATE: FOR FULL TEXT OF MY SERMON, AND OPPORTUNITY TO EDIT IT GO HERE.

image by Gabrielle Nowicki