God is wonderfully good, we should therefore embrace His will (reading for May 26, 2019 annotated)

Key:

What these scriptures tell us about God

What these scriptures tell us to do

What these scriptures tell us not to do

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Reading 1  Acts 15:1-2, 22-29

Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers,
"Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice,
you cannot be saved."
Because there arose no little dissension and debate
by Paul and Barnabas with them,
it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others
should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders
about this question.

The apostles and elders, in agreement with the whole church,
decided to choose representatives
and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas.
The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas,
and Silas, leaders among the brothers.
This is the letter delivered by them:

"The apostles and the elders, your brothers,
to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia
of Gentile origin: greetings.
Since we have heard that some of our number
who went out without any mandate from us
have upset you with their teachings
and disturbed your peace of mind,
we have with one accord decided to choose representatives
and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So we are sending Judas and Silas
who will also convey this same message by word of mouth:
'It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us
not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities,
namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols,
from blood, from meats of strangled animals,
and from unlawful marriage.
If you keep free of these,
you will be doing what is right.  Farewell.'"

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8

R. (4) O God, let all the nations praise you!
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
R. O God, let all the nations praise you!
May the nations be glad and exult
because you rule the peoples in equity;
the nations on the earth you guide.
R. O God, let all the nations praise you!
May the peoples praise you, O God;may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
R. O God, let all the nations praise you!

Reading 2  Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23

The angel took me in spirit to a great, high mountain
and showed me the holy city Jerusalem
coming down out of heaven from God.
It gleamed with the splendor of God.
Its radiance was like that of a precious stone,
like jasper, clear as crystal.
It had a massive, high wall,

with twelve gates where twelve angels were stationed
and on which names were inscribed,
the names of the twelve tribes of the Israelites.
There were three gates facing east,
three north, three south, and three west.
The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its foundation,
on which were inscribed the twelve names
of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

I saw no temple in the city for its temple is the Lord God almighty and the Lamb. The city had no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gave it light, and its lamp was the Lamb.

Alleluia John 14:23

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord,
and my Father will love him and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel  John 14:23-29

Jesus said to his disciples:
"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.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me.

"I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you.
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."

What the scriptures tell us about God

'It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us

you rule the peoples in equity;

It gleamed with the splendor of God.
Its radiance was like that of a precious stone,
like jasper, clear as crystal.
It had a massive, high wall,
its temple is the Lord God almighty and the Lamb. 

The city had no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gave it light, and its lamp was the Lamb.

my Father will love him and we will come to him.

my Father will love him,
we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you.
Peace I leave with you

my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.
the Father is greater than I.
I have told you this before it happens,
so that when it happens you may believe.

What these scriptures tell us to do

'It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us

May the peoples praise you, O God
may all the peoples praise you!
may all the ends of the earth fear him!
keep my word

keep my word
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
believe.

What these scriptures tell us not to do

upset you with their teachings
and disturbed your peace of mind

What Jesus Said About the Holy Spirit

Matthew 10:19-20

When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; ²⁰for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

Luke 12:11-12

When they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, do not worry about how^[a] you are to defend yourselves or what you are to say; ¹²for the Holy Spirit will teach youat that very hourwhat you ought to say.”

Footnotes:

a.    Luke 12:11 Other ancient authorities add or what

John 14:25-26

“I have said these things to you while I am still with you. ²⁶But the Advocate,^[a] the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach youeverything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. 

Footnotes:

a.    John 14:26 Or Helper

John 16:7-15

Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate^[a]will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸And when he comes, he will prove the world wrongabout^[b] sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹about sin, because they do not believe in me; ¹⁰about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; ¹¹about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.

¹²“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. ¹³When the Spirit of truthcomes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. ¹⁴He will glorify me, becausehe will take what is mine and declare it to you. ¹⁵All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Footnotes:

a.    John 16:7 Or Helper

b.  John 16:8 Or convict the world of

Acts 1:4-5,8

⁴While staying^[a] with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. “This,” he said, “is what you have heard from me; ⁵for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with^[b] the Holy Spiritnot many days from now.”

***

⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnessesin Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 

Footnotes:

a.    Acts 1:4 Or eating

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b.  Acts 1:5 Or by

Being in, but not of, the world

John 15:18-16:4

“If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹If you belonged to the world,the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world—therefore the world hates you. ²⁰Remember the word that I said to you, ‘Servants are not greater than their master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also. ²¹But they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. ²²If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. ²³Whoever hates me hates my Father also. ²⁴If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not have sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. ²⁵It was to fulfill the word that is written in their law, ‘They hated me without a cause.’

²⁶“When the Advocatecomes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. ²⁷You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.

16 “I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling. ²They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God. ³And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me. ⁴But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them.

John 17:11-19

And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your namethat you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. ¹²While I was with them, I protected them in your namethatyou have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost so that the scripture might be fulfilled. ¹³But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves. ¹⁴I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. ¹⁵I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.¹⁶They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. ¹⁷Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. ¹⁸As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth.

Malachi 3:13-4:3

You have spoken harsh words against me, says the Lord. Yet you say, “How have we spoken against you?” ¹⁴You have said, “It is vain to serve God. What do we profit by keeping his command or by going about as mourners before the Lord of hosts? ¹⁵Now we count the arrogant happy; evildoers not only prosper, but when they put God to the test they escape.”

¹⁶Then those who revered the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord took note and listened, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who revered the Lord and thought on his name. ¹⁷They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, my special possession on the day when I act, and I will spare them as parents spare their children who serve them. ¹⁸Then once more you shall see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.

4See, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. ²But for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. ³And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.

Romans 8:31-39

What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? ³²He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? ³³Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. ³⁵Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶As it is written,

“For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.”

³⁷No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

John 15:1-17 annotated—What this scripture tells us to do

Key

What this scripture tells us to do

Commentary

Hyperlink to other resources

John 15:1-17

 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. ²He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunesto make it bear more fruit. ³You have already been cleansedby the word that I have spoken to you. ⁴Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide In me. ⁵I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸My Father is glorified by this, that youbear much fruit and become my disciples. ⁹As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. ¹⁰If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love  just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.  ¹¹I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.

¹²“This is my commandment, that you love  one another as I have loved  you. ¹³No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command you.  ¹⁵I do not call you servantsany longer, because the servantdoes not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends,  because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. ¹⁶You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit,  fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. ¹⁷I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.

What does Jesus tell us to do here?

1. “Abide” in Him. The underlying Greek tells us to endure, persist, not fall away from Him. That meaning is reinforced by the context of this instruction. Jesus had just delivered disturbing news and He knew His disciples were entering into a very trying time; He wants His disciples to stay on track in spite of what’s coming. The instruction Jesus gives here is similar to that given in Sirach 2, Sirach 4:11-19, and Sirach 6:18-31. Jesus is telling us to cling to, not abandon, Him.     

2. “[A]sk” God for help in knowing and doing His will and for the things (emotional, material, relational) He wants us to do so. This instruction parallels that given in Sirach 2:17; Sirach 4:12, and James 1:5.    

3. Strive to “‘bear’ ‘much’ ‘fruit.’”  The Greek words used here connote intentional effort to bring forth a good result. Jesus is calling for focused effort to achieve good, good for and from Him. And given that He is instructing us to bear “much” fruit, this implies that such effort is not a one time or sometimes thing, but that it is an ongoing focus of our lives. 

4. “’[B]ecome’ my ‘disciples.’”  To intentionally progress toward learning and living Jesus’ teachings and taking on His nature/ways. 

5. “[A]bide in my ‘love.’” To remember, accept, rely on Jesus’ affection and concern for us, the fact that He views us as His “friends.”

6. “‘[K]eep’ my ‘commandments.’”  To revere and conscientiously seek to live out Jesus’ instructions, teachings, commands. 

7. “[L]ove one another as I have loved you.” To prefer, have affection for, regard the welfare of, come to, serve, bless, strive to be with each other. The importance of this is instruction reinforced by the context in which it is given. The disciples were entering into a very harrowing time; they would need all the mutual support they could get in order to get through it and get done all that Jesus intended.  

8. “[L]ay down’ one’s ‘life’ for one’s ‘friends.’” To intentionally and thoughtfully subordinate our desires, wishes, interests to those of the folks God has placed us in fellowship with.

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