Daily Liturgy and Scripture

Jesus is talking about the progression of God’s plan, the coming of the Spirit, and the work that will be done by that Spirit. But the Spirit is not working alone, because the apostles, and those who will follow them, are included in that Spirit work. The Spirit works in people, but Jesus came as a person because humanity remained central to God’s plan.

Jesus as God among us is more than God showing up, it is people learning how to live in the continuing presence of God. Jesus is expressing this with the language of, “abiding,” where we do not merely show up and see God, but walk and live and breathe with God as a constant presence near us.

Jesus lets his disciples in on a very important piece of prophecy: the Spirit is coming. It's unlikely they really understood what he meant and wouldn't fully until they experienced the Spirit moving at Pentecost (spoiler!) but this was amazing inside information. The full Trinity, the God in which we find ourselves immersed today, was God's next big move in the master plan.

Jesus is God. Jesus looks like God, and God looks like Jesus. His life affirms what God looks like in a way that is real and understandable to us, so we need to let go of any vision of God that doesn’t look like Jesus. Even the apostles had a hard time understanding this, but Jesus says it plainly: “I am in the Father, and the Father is in me.” God is a Trinity in motion that includes Jesus, who is our redemption.

Jesus is just about finished turning his disciples’ vision of power upside down, but not quite: taking on the role of a servant and washing their feet is scandalous. This is why Peter tried to stop him. But Jesus, as he said elsewhere, did not come to be served but to serve. This is perfectly shown as the muddy water from his disciples’ feet rolls off his hands.

The story of Paul's conversion is an important one for many reasons. First, because it it a critical part of God's plan to reach the non-Jews. But also, it is a reminder that God's plan is never thwarted, and sometimes God brings people we'd never imagine into his work. The Christians of Paul's day would have feared him, but God made him into a key player for the cause of Christ.

Jesus is finding out what people really believe about him, and the expressions are becoming more dramatic. Mary shows the signs of a devoted follower, lavishing expensive perfume on him. The religious leaders continue to plot his death, and even extend their plans to Lazarus. Jesus has come a long way since the manger, and he has had a profound effect on those around him, both friends and enemies.

Strange that Jesus's enemies were not only powerless to stop God's plan from playing out in Jesus, but also that they strangely played a role in affirming his Lordship. Even Caiaphas, the chief priest who would come to play a leading role in the crucifixion, prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation. While he probably meant that Jesus would die to take the tension of rule under the Romans, Jesus's death certainly accomplished far more than political harmony.

“Jesus wept” may be the shortest verse of the Bible, but there’s a lot wrapped up in that moment. Jesus didn’t weep because he had messed up the healing of Lazarus and let him die, I don’t think. Several times in this passage, he says that things were happening so that those around him would believe, and they were missing the point. They were missing what he was doing because they were distracted with worrying that Jesus himself might be killed, among other things. But Jesus isn’t distracted. He’s focused, and he brings about the resurrection of Lazarus to show that God’s plan is never thwarted, no matter how bad we think things have become.

Jesus pairs his proof of being sent from the Father with his role as shepherd, which is comforting. God did not merely come as a man to distribute helpful advice, but to be among us and live love fully. This is Jesus’s role as a shepherd, and the fact that the God of the universe has come to complete that task is the best news we could receive.