Gospel JN 14:27-31A
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
You heard me tell you,
‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’
If you loved me,
you would rejoice that I am going to the Father;
for the Father is greater than I.
And now I have told you this before it happens,
so that when it happens you may believe.
I will no longer speak much with you,
for the ruler of the world is coming.
He has no power over me,
but the world must know that I love the Father
and that I do just as the Father has commanded me.”
Reflection:
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.”
The peace that “the world gives” is a transitory peace; it comes and goes. If I am in turmoil because of an argument with someone and we settle our differences, then I am at peace. But, only until the next disagreement.
The peace that comes from knowing and trusting in Christ is a deeper peace, one that no matter what takes place in my daily life, I need not worry because all is well with God.
“If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father.”
The loss of a loved one is, of course, always an occasion for sadness which comes from being separated from that person. But, even in our sadness, there can be rejoicing for the one we loved because they have returned to Our Father, who loves them above all others. I think of the recent death of my brother Smokey as the return to heaven of a long-lost child returning to his or her mother and father. Oh, what joy!
“The ruler of the world is coming. He has no power over me.”
Satan, the ruler of the world, had no power over Jesus Christ. But, he was able to negatively influence the Pharisees, Scribes and Sanhedrin so that they convinced Pontius Pilate to crucify Jesus.
But, as clever as Satan may be, he is not able to outsmart God who can always turn a wrong action into something good.
“He (Satan) has no power over me, but the world must know that I love the Father and that I do just as the Father has commanded me.”
Although innocent, Jesus, through his unwavering love, loyalty and obedience to God our Father, accepted and embraced his own crucifixion in the confidence that God would raise him again. This was His sign to us, his followers, that our faith in God is justified.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies, it bears much fruit. “