Reading
John 14:21-26
21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
22 Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”
23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
Comment
The "Judas, not the Iscariot" mentioned here could be the "Judas Thaddeus" mentioned by the Synoptics (Mt 10:3; Mk 3:18), but some versions of the text report "Judas the Canaanite". His words attest to a triumphalistic vision of the Messiah, but Jesus replies that he will manifest himself spiritually and only to those who believe in him.
Jesus insists on the observance of his commandments (v. 21) and of his word (vv. 23 and 24) in order to receive his love and the manifestation of him. The promise is addressed not only to the apostles but to every believer who remains faithful to the gospel. The revelation is presented by Jesus not as a simple intellectual understanding, but as being made sharers in the very life of God, who will not manifest himself at a distance, as he did with Moses in the burning bush, but will make a home in the soul of every obedient disciple.
The Comforter, the Holy Spirit, received by the believer, awakens the memory of Jesus' teaching and calls for constancy in the commitment to proclaim the Gospel. We find in this passage the second of the five promises of the Holy Spirit that will dot the discourses that Jesus is giving (Jn 14:16-17; 14:26; 15:26; 16:7-11; 16:13-15).
The memory of Jesus' revelation and its accurate understanding will take shape in the Scriptures of the New Testament, as the Spirit will accompany the apostles by testifying with powerful works (Heb 2: 4) the word of the gospel. The memory of Christ in the Church is not a dead letter but it is the Holy Spirit: living memory and living word.
By faith, we find a home in God and God finds a home in us. Sons in the Son, loved by the Father, guided by the Spirit, we can keep and carry God everywhere and at every moment.
Prayer
O Lord, we open the door of our heart to you; come and live among us; so that we can be comforted and become comforters, through your word of salvation. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
