Acts 1:1-12 (cont.)
And while staying with them he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "you heard from me, for John baptized with water, but before many days you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit . . . But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth." - (4-5, 8)
I think I may revisit these verses in my Pentecost novena, but for now let's just consider the importance of the Holy Spirit and Jesus' ascension.
" . . . if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you." - Jn 16:7b
Since these words are from the Last Supper discourse, some have interpreted this specifically to mean that Jesus must die in order to bestow the Holy Spirit, and I'm not arguing against that. Partly, that argument is based on Jesus' appearance to the apostles in chapter 20 of the same gospel, in which Jesus breathes on them and tells them to receive the Holy Spirit.
But what if the full power of the Holy Spirit was somehow stifled within them until Jesus had returned to the Father? Doesn't this make sense, both in the tradition of Elijah and Elisha and in our own knowledge of how remaining in the presence of our mentors can keep us from fully spreading our own wings? I am not suggesting that God the Holy Spirit is limited in the same way, but that the disciples themselves may have been unable to receive his full power while they were continually comparing themselves to Jesus due to being in his presence.
Whatever the case, Jesus has indicated in several places that the Holy Spirit is another advocate, leading us in all truth and power when Jesus himself is no longer physically around to do so.
No comments:
Post a Comment