“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him; you know him, for he dwells with you, and will be in you. “I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world will see me no more, but you will see me; because I live, you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. He who has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me; and he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” Jesus answered him, “If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
Keeping the Lord’s commandments is the prerequisite for living in God’s love and, at the same time, showing our love for Him. It is the fundamental condition for developing a true relationship with God. Therefore, the call to conversion marks the beginning of a sincere journey with Him. This applies at all times, and whoever seeks to relativise the Lord’s commandments separates himself from God’s love and runs the risk of seducing others to do the same.
Today, the Lord promises His own the Holy Spirit, which He Himself will ask the Father for them. The Spirit of Truth will remain with the faithful forever, reminding them of what Jesus said and did. And not only will He remind them, but He will always give them the strength to recognise and do God’s will.
But only those who want to hear the voice of God will receive it and perceive its whispers, while the world does not recognise the presence of the Spirit. In fact, it cannot recognise Him because it does not walk in God’s way and often resists His call. It listens to other voices that prevent it from meeting God and shut it off from Him. This world often presents itself as a substitute for God: its pleasures, its fleeting goals and all sorts of distractions from what really matters. In this way it deceives and imprisons people.
The world apart from God becomes the enemy of the soul, especially when a person decides to follow Jesus and begins to live a spiritual life. If the Christian is not aware of this enmity, and consequently does not renounce the spirit of the world and treats it too lightly, his path of followership will become heavy, unconvincing and superficial. He may even spoil his spiritual life after a good start.
Precisely here the Holy Spirit promised by Jesus becomes an irreplaceable and reliable guide, who stays with us and leads us ever closer to God through His presence. He urges us to deal with the world in such a way that it cannot influence us and lead us away from the way with God. Therefore, we must learn to listen attentively to His instructions.
In this way, Jesus does not abandon His own orphans, because the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, whom He sends us, remains with us in His immeasurable faithfulness.
Faced with His imminent departure, the Lord assures His disciples that He and the Father will come to dwell in the hearts of His faithful, those who keep His Word. What a comforting and important message, then and now! Even in times of extreme tribulation – whether it was being thrown out of the synagogues, or persecution and not being able to openly confess the Christian faith – the Lord has everything in store for His own, whatever the situation.
If the faithful were deprived of outward worship and the beautiful temples were occupied by foreign powers, they would still have unrestricted access to their inner sanctuary. Even if they are threatened with imprisonment and marginalisation for their faith, the temple that the Lord has built within will remain open, and God will continue to comfort with His presence those who suffer persecution for His sake.
The Lord always insists on love. Indeed, this is the great theme of the work of redemption, which shines forth in many ways in word and deed. Our Father has no other intention than to shower us with all His love as His children. What love Jesus has for us, to endure so much hardship and to walk the path of suffering laid out for Him on our behalf! What love the Father has for us to send us His beloved Son! And what love the Holy Spirit has for us to put all this into the depths of our hearts!
