Sixth Sunday of Easter

 

Jesus answered and said to him, “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 that the Father will send in my name—he 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.   John 14: 24-29

Today we celebrate the Sixth Sunday of Easter. During this special season we are invited to focus our attention on the Risen Lord and the hope that He has brought upon all Christians, the hope of everlasting life and true happiness with God. It is a time for us to rediscover our faith in Him and for us to return to our roots.

The Lord welcomes us all to follow Him, to be His disciples and followers. He calls us all to walk in His path, and He has taught us how to do so, through what we have heard in our Gospel passage today. In His own words, He said that we ought to keep His words and teachings and accept His truth wholeheartedly. That is what He expected us to do with our lives, as Christians, as His disciples and followers, and as His beloved people. All of us have to remain firm in following His path and not be easily distracted by the many temptations and pressures of the world and keep our focus on Him and not on other things.

There is a story of a young boy who saw a caterpillar struggling to break out of its chrysalis.  In an attempt to free the caterpillar, the boy went and got a knife and ever so carefully cut the chrysalis open.  The caterpillar did not live, and the boy was disheartened.  The caterpillar did not survive as it needed the struggle to free itself from the chrysalis to live.  In many ways the same is true of our faith.  We need to struggle for it to grow and strengthen. Like the caterpillar our faith continues to growth throughout our lives.

Let us do our best to inspire others to follow the Lord and to believe in Him, instead of pushing them away from Him by our arrogance, pride, or self-righteousness. Instead, let us show the path to the Lord by sharing His love and compassion, His mercy and grace by our actions, at all times. May God bless us all and our every action, for His greater glory, now and always, forevermore.