2 May 2016 - he will testify

[ Today's Readings ]

When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father,
the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father,
he will testify to me.

O Holy Spirit, great fire of God, come and testify to us. 

O Advocate, come in the name of the Father and of the Son and remind us of everything Jesus teaches us.

One of them, a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth,
from the city of Thyatira, a worshiper of God, listened,
and the Lord opened her heart to pay attention
to what Paul was saying.

O Comforter, come and open our hearts to pay attention to what Paul is saying, to what John is saying, to what Athanasius is saying, and to what all your teachers are saying.

And you also testify,
because you have been with me from the beginning.

O Counselor, you testify to your people so that they can testify to us. You testify in them to us so that we might testify to others.

Guide us into all truth, O Spirit of truth. In the truth we stand firm, safe against the enemy. In the truth we have the assurance of our heavenly inheritance. You make the truth so real to us that your revelation thereof becomes even now a foretaste of the heavenly banquet.

And so we even ask you, convict us of our sinfulness. Reveal the truth about ourselves as well so that we may turn to you for your cleansing mercy. Show us the shadowy darkness within so that we can open the windows and doors of our souls to the light of your countenance.

I have told you this so that you may not fall away.

Only when you have your way so completely in us can we stand against the persecutions of the world. When you don't have your way there are only two other options. The first is that we hide our light and conceal the truth in order to escape the persecutions in the first place. We quickly become indistinguishable from the world not just on the surface but in our hearts as well. The second is that the persecutions do come and we back down and fall away. But the result, without you, is that we don't have the strength to stand. With you we not only stand but even endure joyfully whatever may come.

I have told you this so that when their hour comes
you may remember that I told you.

You do remind us of the things Jesus tells us, Holy Spirit. You remind us of them so that our hope can be firm and our faith unshakable. Even amidst trial and persecution you give us the strength to rejoice in you.

Let them praise his name in the festive dance,
let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp.
For the LORD loves his people,
and he adorns the lowly with victory.

Is this too joyful when the world hates us and kills us to offer worship to God? No! This is exactly the response you place in our hearts, O Spirit. Help it to fill us.

Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy upon their couches.
Let the high praises of God be in their throats.
This is the glory of all his faithful. Alleluia.