Homily, 5-8-23; Monday of the 5th Week in Easter:
Jesus came to earth and lived among us. After He suffered, died, and rose again, He returned to the Father. And now we await His second coming in glory to take us to be with Him and the Father in Heaven. But today we hear about another coming of Jesus that happens between these two other events. We can call it Jesus’ coming, version 1.5.
This version 1.5 of Jesus coming is much more personal. And unlike His first coming and expected second coming, it will not be a public event meant for everyone. And this intermediate coming also has a requirement for its occurrence. Jesus said: “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.” Jesus tells us that He will come to us and dwell with us, if only we love Him and keep His word. And, as a bonus, He will bring His Father along with Him. What a wonderful and comforting promise.
We need to keep Jesus’ word, which is the word of the Father who sent Him. But how do we know and discern how to keep this word. Well, Jesus also said: “I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name–he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.” Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to guide each one of us when we are obedient and keep the commandments. But in a special way, He sends the Spirit to us collectively as the Church, as the Body of Christ. Through the Church, we receive stable and true guidance to keep us on track. It keeps our tendency for rationalizing our behavior in check, and keeps us true to the faith.
In yesterday’s second reading, we heard Peter refer to Jesus as the cornerstone upon which His Church is built up. He says that for people with faith it is a strong foundation. But for people without faith, it is “A stone that will make people stumble, and a rock that will make them fall.”
All around us we see evidence of our society, our country, our world stumbling and falling due to lack of faith, due to lack of obedience to God’s word. It is no wonder that it is difficult to perceive God in our midst any longer. We must struggle to separate ourselves from the ways of the world so that we don’t stumble and fall as well. Let us look to the Church, built on Jesus as the cornerstone, for guidance on how to keep His word so that we do not go astray by following strange teachings and our own desires.
When we are obedient out of love for Jesus, He and the Father will dwell within you. It will be your strength to endure hardships as the world stumbles and falls around you.