Sunday 5th May: Easter 6: John 15 9-17
As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved 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. I have told you these things so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will remain—so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you. This is My command to you: Love one another.
God loves us – Jesus went to great lengths to ensure that his disciples, and all who followed which includes us, know that we are dearly loved by God. And we are asked by Him therefore to love one another – to treat everyone we meet as we ourselves would want to be treated. He doesn’t ask us to like everyone, but to love them. Those from different backgrounds; with different lifestyles; speaking different languages; outcasts from society. We need to accept them all, as God accepts us, whatever we are like, wherever we are in our spiritual life.
Is there anyone in particular you find it difficult to ‘love’? This week ask God’s help in this and let him lead you to a greater understanding of how He sees them, enabling you too to see the positives rather than the negatives.
Sunday 12th May: Easter 7: John 17; 6-19
I have revealed Your name to those You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. Now they know that everything You have given Me comes from You. For I have given them the words You gave Me, and they have received them. …………….I am not asking that You take them out of the world, but that You keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I have also sent them into the world. For them I sanctify Myself, so that they too may be sanctified by the truth.
Jesus knew he wouldn’t always be with the disciples and here he is praying to God on their behalf, asking God to be with them at all times. He knew, and warned them, that life wouldn’t always be easy. They would be challenged, and face real difficulties – as we ourselves do in our own lives – but he prayed that they might know God’s protective love surrounding them at all times.
We cannot always prevent our loved ones -families, friends – from wrong choices on their part, from unexpected sadness or disappointment. But, as Jesus prayed for his disciples. is there someone this week you feel you could and should pray for every day, that they may be surrounded by God’s love in whatever they are facing?
Sunday 29th May: Pentecost: John 15 26-27, 16 4b-15
When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—He will testify about Me. And you also must testify, because you have been with Me from the beginning. …… Now, however, I am going to Him who sent Me; yet none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ Instead, your hearts are filled with sorrow because I have told you these things. But I tell you the truth, it is for your benefit that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And when He comes, He will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 9in regard to sin, because they do not believe in Me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see Me; and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world has been condemned. I still have much to tell you, but you cannot yet bear to hear it. However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come. He will glorify Me by taking from what is Mine and disclosing it to you. Everything that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will take from what is Mine and disclose it to you.
Jesus is trying to tell his disciples about the coming of the Holy Spirit – the ‘spirit of truth’ – when their eyes will be opened and they will understand what Jesus has been teaching them, and what they will then be able to share with the rest of the world. They must have been so bewildered – simple fishermen, who had followed Jesus for three years, sharing his life and responding to his teaching. But they were to face so much more in the future – and this is the “help” they would receive.
Are we always aware of God’s presence in our lives, supporting, loving, helping, loving us? Do we panic when things seem to go wrong? – when in fact the help we crave is already there? Look back and remember this week the times when you know you were helped in the past – and take courage from this for the future.
Sunday 26th May: Trinity Sunday: John 3 1-17
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with him.” Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” “How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time to be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh is born of flesh, but spirit is born of the Spirit. Do not be amazed that I said, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes. You hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked. “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and you do not understand these things? Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, and yet you people do not accept our testimony. I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.
Nicodemus wanted to know more from this amazing preacher whose teaching was so different and challenging to that people were used to hearing. Jesus tries to explain to him that he will be returning to God – that he is in fact part of God. In order for God’s plan to take place, Jesus will have to die and, after three days, rise again, before finally returning to God. This is challenging stuff for us to understand and accept – but we need only cling on to the main truth. God so loves us, he sent Jesus to save us and speak on our behalf.
This week let us thank God for sending Jesus – for being here today with everyone of us wherever we are, whatever we are facing, empowering us to lead the lives he wants us to lead. Thank you God.