The Gospel of John 14:23-29
Jesus said to Judas (not Iscariot), “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine but is from the Father who sent me.
“I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, `I am going away, and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe.”
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The Gospel of John 5:1-9
After Jesus healed the son of the official in Capernaum, there was a festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool, called in Hebrew Beth-zatha, which has five porticoes. In these lay many invalids– blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be made well?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; and while I am making my way, someone else steps down ahead of me.” Jesus said to him, “Stand up, take your mat and walk.” At once the man was made well, and he took up his mat and began to walk. Now that day was a sabbath.
Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, You have promised that if we love You and keep Your word, You and the Father will make Your home with us. Fill my heart with Your presence, that I may walk in obedience and love. Send Your Holy Spirit to teach me and remind me of Your truth. Let Your peace, not as the world gives, but as You give, calm my troubled heart. Help me to trust in Your promises and rejoice in Your eternal plan. Amen.
We have a choice of Gospel readings this Sunday Both Gospel readings for the Sixth Sunday of Easter effectively reflect the Easter message of new life, transformation, and divine peace. The Gospel of John 14:23-29 highlights Jesus’ assurance that His followers will receive the Holy Spirit. This connects directly to Easter’s promise that Christ’s resurrection is not just a past event but an ongoing reality: one that empowers believers with divine peace and presence. It reminds us that Easter is not only about Christ rising but also about His continued guidance in our lives.
The passage is also part of John’s “Farewell Discourse Jesus has with his disciples after the Last Supper. This Gospel conversation is the climax of Jesus’ teaching in John’s Gospel. In the immediate context for this passage, Jesus has been comforting the disciples by telling them that, while he is leaving them, he will send the Holy Spirit to be with them. He says: Here we see that the divine presence Jesus promised is to be accomplished through the coming of the Holy Spirit. The manifestation of the Spirit will reinforce Jesus’ message in the hearts and minds of the disciples and inspire them to even greater acts of love and The biblical idea of peace is grounded in the Hebrew word, ‘shalom.’ Shalom is more than an absence of strife or conflict. In fact, one of the indicators for Christ’s shalom, is the way it sustains us in the middle of conflict and strife.
Shalom indicates completion, wholeness, a time in the future when everything is made right and put into God’s intended balance for Creation. Christ’s peace brings this hope for wholeness into the present. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Christ’s peace is not just some future hope, it’s something we can experience now. So while the peace that Jesus gives is eternal, in contrast to the temporary nature of any peace we might find in the world, we don’t have to wait for Christ’s peace to become real to us. Eternity begins this moment.
Christ’s peace is the kind of peace we feel inside even when the world around us is falling apart. Christ’s peace is peace of mind, peace in our conscience, peace with our fellow believers, peace with our bosses and coworkers, peace with our environment and peace with our world. Jesus gives us this peace freely, without expecting anything in return except for the hope that when we are changed by this peace, we might pass it on to others.
But it is so easy to get stuck in an endless cycle of looking for peace in all the wrong places, constantly striving for the kind of peace the world gives us. We think if people would just stop arguing and start listening to one another, there could be peace. If we could just be satisfied with what we have instead of trying to consume more and more, we would find peace.
Maybe if governments would just do their jobs, and people would stop taking advantage of others’ weaknesses, if the rich would stop building their fortunes on the backs of the poor and people would take responsibility for the harm they cause, maybe then there could be some hope of peace in the world. Maybe then our hearts could stop being troubled, and we could stop being afraid. Maybe then we could stop worrying, and our collective blood pressure would get under control. Maybe then there could be peace. and compassion.
The Gospel of John 5:1-9 captures the theme of renewal, as Jesus heals the man at the pool of Bethesda, demonstrating His power to restore brokenness. Just as Christ’s resurrection brings hope to the world, this story echoes Easter’s central truth: through Jesus, new life is possible—physically, spiritually, and eternally.
Both passages emphasize the lasting impact of the resurrection, showing that Jesus not only rose from the dead but continues to heal, guide, and bring peace. There is a point in this Gospel, sometimes, we sit and sit and sit, waiting for something magical to happen. The angel never appears, the water never stirs, and we are just as broken and just as powerless today as we were yesterday. Asclepius, that false god, has let us down again. Then Jesus reaches out to us, and our waiting is over, and our healing begins. And THIS is the sign, the point I believe Jesus is making: Jesus brings life, while everything else just brings waiting.
Peace, I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.
Let us Pray: We lift up our prayers for those in need as many that were marginalized have become more so through the lack of empathy and the understanding of what it means to LOVE your fellow man. This we ask in your name to guide the hearts of those in power to understand the needs. This we pray in your name. Amen.
Reflections by Bob 