Monday, March 30, 2020

30 New Days - Day 13

The 13th  day of a 30 day devotional Bible Study by the Rev. Tracy A. Siegman, Senior Pastor FCC, Covington, KY.  Shared with her gracious permission.

If you read the suggested passage each day, by the end of 30 days you will have read the entire New Testament.

Day 13
30-day reading plan: John 14 – 21

Daily Verse: John 20: 22
And with that he breated on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”

As Jesus prepares for his death, He must prepare His Disciples for His departure. On the last night with His friends, Jesus makes promises to the Disciples. He says He is going to God, but He will prepare a place for them there and return to take them there. He promises that what they ask God in His name will be heard and granted. This section of the Gospel of John is called His farewell discourse.

As He ends His final words to the Disciples, Jesus prays for the Disciples and prays for those of us who will come to believe. His prayer is that we will be a united community by which others will know we are His followers. This unity will be the work of the promised Advocate or Companion who will remind us of Jesus' teachings and continue to teach us. Just as Jesus had promised in Chapter 14, the Resurrected Christ gives the Disciples the Holy Spirit.

We understand God as transcendent, above all, and almighty in Heaven. We understand Jesus as the incarnation or embodiment of God. The Holy Spirit, however, we have trouble understanding. God is imminent or present in the power and work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Divine Presence in and among humanity today. The Spirit is the One who indwells all of humanity and, yet, surrounds us.

Jesus continues to breathe the Holy Spirit in the church among His disciples today. Every time we gather for worship, every time we gather for fellowship, every time we gather for study and prayer, every time we gather for mission, Jesus breaths into us the Holy Spirit as inspiration, energy, comfort, and new life.

Question for reflection:
How do you talk about the Holy Spirit at work in this age?

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