Easter 6

Easter 6 (john 14:15-21 “I will not leave you orphaned.”
Eternal Love transforms mortal life.

Our heavenly Father directed the archangel Gabriel to instruct Mary to name her son Jesus, savior. That is the name by which we know the co-eternal Son. The Father knows the son by a much older and profound name: The Beloved.

Jesus is the fullness of the Beloved in human flesh. He came to restore what humanity lost.

In the original choice to separate from God, humanity aspired to power. That original choice produces an original sin, a broken and lost human nature that cannot and will not act in its own highest and best self interest.

As that original sin entered into the world of cause and affect , it produced many terrible consequences. One of those consequences is the experience of rejection and abandonment.

The process that leads to isolation begins with Original sin. Original sin produces the will to power. The will to power seeks to dominate life, other people, even God. The Bible records the personal stories of hundreds of people over the course of a thousand years who experienced this terrible distortion in life.

The desire to dominate is the desperate desire to over come separation though condemnation and conquest. It cannot accomplish its goal. It can only achieve greater levels of separation, distortion and disintegration.

The bargain lost souls make with the world is dominance and submission. If you submit to my will then I will affirm your value and take care of you. If you refuse to submit to my will then I will condemn you and abandon you.

Much of human created religion is based on this bargain. Most religion relies on a structure of rewards and punishments that states: if you obey God then God will (and must) give you what you want. However, if you disobey God, then God will punish you with pain and suffering and death.

Jesus wanted his disciples to know and understand that he did not come into the world to assert his will to power to dominate any one. There is no condemnation in Jesus Christ because there is no condemnation in God.

God just doesn’t have love. God is love: holy unconditional love.

Jesus tells his disciples that love is the solid rock foundation of life. If we have love it is the love that will motivate us to follow Jesus Christ and to keep his commandments.

Note that Jesus does not use the language of rewards and punishment. He does not endorse a religion of dominance and submission. He does not say: if you obey the laws then I will love you and reward you. He says: as you are in my love you follow the way of life I offer. As you are in love you find the passionate desire to keep the law.

Jesus then assures his disciples, and us, that his Ascension into heaven is not abandonment. There is no abandonment in divine love.

The orphan is left alone to question why. Why did they leave me? Why did they abandon me? Original separation from God produces further experiences of separation in broken relationships among families, friends, neighbors and nations. The will to power seeks to overcome the pain of separation through force.

No wonder Jesus took the time to reassure his disciples that he would never leave us or forsake us. His ascension into heaven is not abandonment. He sends us another Helper. That other Helper is the co-eternal third person of the Trinity: the Holy Spirit.

Jesus assures us that he brings no condemnation from the Father. He brings acceptance, life, truth and unconditional love. He came to earth to give us these things as a gift. It is as we receive the gift that we experience a new life and a new way of living. It is as we receive the gift that we experience the transformation of our thoughts, desires and will.

The Bible is very clear that no one by their own will can keep the Law. Life is not about law or the human will to power. Life is about steadfast holy unconditional love. Jesus is very clear that people don’t need more law. We need more love.

How do we know that Jesus makes a difference in our lives? How can we discern where we still live from the place of original separation? Jesus tells us: if you love me you will keep my commandments. It is not about obedience or disobedience. It is not about dominance and submission. We keep the commandments as we immerse our selves in the divine love of God in Jesus Christ.

We keep the commandments as we hold the commandments in conscious intent to live the new life of grace by faith. We keep the commandments as we set the intention to make our relationship with Jesus Christ the first priority in our lives. We keep the commandments as we choose to suspend judgment and give other people the benefit of the doubt by asking others: how may I help? We keep the commandments as we offer our selves and souls and bodies to the Holy Spirit to be transformed into living chalices of grace.

It is our responsibility to make the choices in life that expand love. All choices either expand love or further distort love into fear, self will and pride.
God does not expect us to do this alone. In fact, our Heavenly Father sends the Holy Spirit, the Helper, to transform us into living temples of love and holiness. We have access to the same Divine Presence and Power that filled Jesus and formed his life.

Eternal Love transforms mortal life. That love is not just a feeling or even a principle. It is a person: Jesus Christ. Jesus assures us: I am with you always. I will never leave you or forsake you. I will not leave you orphaned, abandoned, rejected or alone. Claim the promise. Live the promise. Make a real choice to transform in the real presence of the promise.