John 8:21–30
Jesus said to the Jews, “I am going away, and you will search for me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.” Then the Jews said, “Is he going to kill himself? Is that what he means by saying, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” He said to them, “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins, for you will die in your sins unless you believe that I am he.” They said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Why do I speak to you at all? I have much to say about you and much to condemn; but the one who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.” They did not understand that he was speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own, but I speak these things as the Father instructed me. And the one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what is pleasing to him.” As he was saying these things, many believed in him.
REFLECTIONS:
I think Jesus is urging his disciples and the Jews to think of him spiritually. If they cannot see God in him then they will not get it. The gospel writer John and his community had a very high Christology and focused on worshipping the risen Lord. When I pray I don’t imagine Jesus. I have made friends with Holy Spirit over the years. Most of my prayers end in “the name of Jesus” but I see him as a means to the Spirit. His teachings inform my understanding of my faith, but the Spirit and I wrestle with those ideas together. Peace to you, Keith
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