The Way

 "After spending sometime there, he left and traveled from place to place through Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening the disciples.

A certain Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, arrived at Ephesus.  He was an eloquent speaker and an authority on the Scriptures, and he had some knowledge of the way of the LORD.  With great enthusiasm he preached, and taught correctly, about JESUS, although he knew only of John's baptism.  As he began to speak boldly in the synagogue, Priscilla and Aquila heard him; so, they took him home with them and explained to him the way more accurately.  As Apollos wished to go to Achaia, the believers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him.  When he arrived, he greatly strengthened those who, by GOD's grace, had become believers, for he vigorously refuted the Jews, proving from the Scriptures that JESUS is the Messiah." - Acts 18:23-28  

(Paul does not stay in Ephesus, the capital of the province of Asia.  He is in a hurry to return, after two and a half years of mission.  He goes up to Jerusalem and returns to Antioch, which is the first and the main among the churches in the pagan world.  Paul goes there to rest after every journey.  The life of this large community, with years of experience, and the contact with its apostles, helped him to see what the future of the Church would be.

When he leaves again, Paul visits the churches established on his second mission.  This takes him several months, so he will only arrive at Ephesus in 54 A.D.  Meanwhile a church had been established there.

During Paul's absence, Aquila, Priscilla and others resumed the first contacts that he had established in the Jewish community.  An important success: the integration of Apollos who will be one of the most valued missionaries [1 Corinthians 3:6; 4:6; 15:12].  Apollos, we are told, knew something of The Way.  We have already met this term which denoted Christianity: not only a religion, nor only a faith or morale, but all that together and more.  Apollos, like the twelve men mentioned in 19:1-7, had probably been in Palestine when JESUS was already known there.  His teaching had not yet given rise to a movement nor made a stir equal to that resulting from John the Baptist's preaching, which was followed by baptisms and commitments.

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Paul Had Made A Vow

"One night, in a vision, the LORD said to Paul, 'Do not be afraid, but continue speaking and do not be silent, for many people in this city are MINE.  I AM with you, so no one will harm you.'  So, Paul stayed a year and a half in that place, teaching the word of GOD among them.

When Gallio was governor of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the court.  And they accused him, 'This man tries to persuade us to worship GOD in ways that are against the Law.'

Paul was about to speak in his own defense when Gallio said to the Jews, 'If it were a matter of a misdeed or vicious crime, I would have to consider your complaint.  But since this is a quarrel about teachings and divine names that are proper to your own law, see to it yourselves: I refuse to judge such matters.'  And he sent them out of the court.

Then the people seized Sosthenes, a leading man of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the tribunal; but Gallio paid no attention to it.

Paul stayed on with the disciples in Corinth for many days; he then left them and sailed off with Priscilla and Aquila for Syria.  And as he was no longer under a vow he had taken; he shaved his head before sailing from Cenchreae." - Acts 18:9-18  

(A vision: there are not many in this book.  Perhaps Paul was wondering whether it would not be better for him to retire for a time as he had already done and as JESUS had advised in case of persecution [Matthew 10:23].   The devil increases the opposition when someone sets foot on his field: in this center of corruption, grace would triumph.

The Jews brought him before the court.  Here we have a new example of the problems Paul met in the great Roman centers.  Different peoples co-exist, and many conflicts are settled within communities according to their proper laws and customs.  Gallio, the Roman governor, has no wish to be dragged into the jungle of traditions and disputes, especially with the Jews who enjoyed religious privileges within the Roman Empire.

The Jews are furious in seeing the success of Paul that relies on the Word of GOD, that is, on their own sacred books.  They fear that the boldness of the Christians might stir a reaction from the pagans, in which case they, too, would be the victims.

They seized Sosthenes - and beat him.  A sure bet would be that this Sosthenes, a Jew, is the one mentioned in 1 Corinthians 1:1.  Even if he already acted as a prominent member of the Christian group, it is doubtful whether the Jews would have attacked him before the authorities: most probably it was a group of bystanders falling on a well-known Jew.

Paul had made a vow.  He shaved his head as it was said in Numbers 6:5. All that Paul had written to turn converted pagans away from the Jewish Law did not prevent him, a Jew, from feeling at ease with the traditional forms of Jewish piety.  He knew that faith alone saves, but it was his wish to mark with a vow some secret agreement he had made with the LORD.)

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JESUS In Our Midst

"A little while, and you will see ME no more; and then a little while, and you will see ME.

Some of the disciples wondered, 'What does HE mean by, 'A little while, and you will not see ME'?  And why did HE say, 'I go to the FATHER'?' And they said to one another, 'What does HE mean by 'a little while'?  We don't understand.'

JESUS knew that they wanted to question HIM; so, HE said to them, 'You are puzzled because I told you that in a little while you will see ME no more, and then a little while later you will see ME.

Truly, I say to you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices.  You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy." - John 16:16-20 

(JESUS is in our midst, but to be aware of HIS presence requires faith.  HE HIMSELF said: "You will see ME because you live, and I also live [14:19]."  It is not important that we feel HIS presence, what matters is to persevere in HIS ways.  In order to attain mature faith, it is necessary that we be deprived of the consolation of HIS presence for more or less prolonged periods: a little while, and you will see ME no more.

For HIS disciples this happened for the first time at the moment of HIS death; later they saw HIM risen from the dead.  This will come true for us at the end of time, when we discover the glorious CHRIST whom we have awaited in faith.  No one should feel overconfident about feeling HIS presence, for example, after a conversion.  When everything seems easy, we should not look down on those who find it hard to believe or who have never felt the presence of GOD.  In a little while, perhaps, the LORD will leave us in darkness.

After JESUS rose from the dead, a real companionship would be established between HIM and HIS disciples: HE would speak to them clearly of the FATHER; they would ask in HIS name.)

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The SPIRIT Will Take What Is MINE, And Make It Known To You

"I still have many things to tell you, but you cannot bear them now.  When he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into the whole truth.

He has nothing to say of himself, but he will speak of what he hears, and he will tell you of the things to come.  He will take what is MINE and make it known to you; in doing this, he will glorify ME.  All that the FATHER has is MINE; because of this I have just told you, that the Spirit will take what is MINE and make it known to you." - John 16:12-15 

(The Acts of the Apostles records how the Spirit worked in the first disciples of JESUS.  Before granting miraculous powers, the Spirit gave them joy, peace and mutual love, as well as inner certainty that JESUS had risen and was among them.

The Spirit guides missionaries: he gives them the power to perform miracles; he gives to believers the knowledge of GOD, new capacities for working, healing, serving and shaking up a sinful world.  Throughout history the Spirit would raise up people of faith, martyrs, prophets, and through them transform the world.  In this way the Savior, seemingly defeated, would be justified, and it becomes evident that the loser is Satan, who already has been condemned.  The evil spirit, great director of the worldly show, is displaced and his influence limited.  A new force, which is the Spirit, orients history and guides us towards the total truth.)

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What Is The Path Of Righteousness?

"But now I AM going to the One who sent ME, and none of you asks ME where I AM going; instead, you are overcome with grief, because of what I have said.

Believe ME, it is better for you that I go away, because as long as I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you.  But if I go away, I will send HIM to you, and when HE comes, HE will vindicate the truth before a sinful world; and HE will vindicate the paths of righteousness and justice.

What is the world's sin, in regard to ME?  Disbelief.  What is the path of righteousness?  It is the path I walk, by which I go to the FATHER; and you shall see ME no more.  What is the path of justice?  It is the path on which the prince of this world will always stand condemned." - John 16:5-11  

(Starting from the day of Pentecost, the Spirit began to act in the Church, thus showing that HE was the Spirit of CHRIST.  The unbelieving Jews thought that GOD was with them, but in reality, HIS Spirit did not act among them.  So, it was clear that they had sinned [16:9] for not believing in CHRIST.

What is the path of righteousness?  The righteous One is CHRIST, and the righteous persons are those who believe in HIM without seeing HIM.

The Acts of the Apostles records how the Spirit worked in the first disciples of JESUS.  Before granting miraculous powers, the Spirit gave them joy, peace, and mutual love, as well as inner certainty that JESUS had risen and was among them.

The Spirit guides the missionaries; HE gives them the power to perform miracles; HE gives to believers the knowledge of GOD, new capacities for working, healing, serving and shaking up a sinful world.  Throughout history the Spirit would raise up people of faith, martyrs, prophets, and through them transform the world.  In this way the Savior, seemingly defeated, would be justified; and it becomes evident that the loser is Satan, who already has been condemned [verse 11].  The evil spirit, great director of the worldly show, is displaced and his influence limited.  A new force, which is the Spirit, orients history and guides us towards the total truth.)

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The Spirit Will Come

"From the FATHER, I will send you the Spirit of truth.  When this Helper has come from the FATHER, HE will be MY witness, and you, too, will be MY witnesses, for you have been with ME from the beginning." - John 15:26-27  

(The FATHER, the SON and the HOLY SPIRIT.  In making us children of HIS FATHER, JESUS enables us to discover the intimate mystery of GOD.  In GOD there is communion among the three persons: the FATHER, the SON and their common SPIRIT.

We speak of their common Spirit, because JESUS said both: The FATHER will give you another Helper [14:16] and: The Helper which I will send you [15:26].  Now HE says: HE will take what is MINE and tell it to you: everything that the FATHER has is also MINE [16:15].

"The Spirit" is not a poetic figure:  it is Someone.  This has already been commented on [John 7:37; 14:1].

Starting from the day of Pentecost, the Spirit began to act in the Church, thus showing that HE was the Spirit of CHRIST.  The unbelieving Jews thought that GOD was with them, but in reality, HIS Spirit did not act among them.  So, it was clear that they had sinned [16:9] for not believing in CHRIST.)

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GOD-Love Is The Source Of Love

"My dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from GOD.  Everyone who loves, is born of GOD and knows GOD.

How did the love of GOD appear among us?  GOD sent HIS only Son into this world, that we might have life, through HIM.

This is love: not that we loved GOD, but that, HE first loved us and sent HIS Son, as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." - 1 John 4:7-10  

(Here we have the beginning of the third part of the letter:  GOD-Love is the source of love and faith.

GOD is love.  The supreme revelation, characteristic of the Christian faith.  Other religions know of a GOD who is good and compassionate: no other religion has known that the dynamism of love moves the entire creation and that its source lies in GOD-Love. 

In this beautiful text John insists on the inseparability of love of GOD and love of our neighbor.  We all know this, but sometimes we might wonder why it is so.  John gives us the paramount reason; love comes from GOD.  If we can love GOD, it is because GOD loved us first; if we love each other, it is because GOD's love extends among us.

John also links love of GOD and faith in GOD: a true Christian believer is somebody who begins by "believing in GOD's love, and that GOD is love.

HE first loved us: through HIS eternal predestination [Ephesians 1:4], the sending of HIS Son and through HIS sacrifice [Romans 5:8].  If we are authentically loving, we never feel superior nor that we have merits, as do those who boast of their good works.  We simply realize that the love of GOD works through us.

The lives of those who dedicate themselves lovingly to serving the abandoned, the sick, the elderly, and those no longer useful to society are justified and so are the lives of those who withdraw from ordinary life to dedicate themselves more totally to a more intimate love of GOD.)

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The Hostile World

"If the world hates you, remember that the world hated ME before you.  This would not be so if you belonged to the world, because the world loves its own.  But you are not of the world since I have chosen you from the world; because of this the world hates you.

Remember what I told you: the servant is not greater than his master; if they persecuted ME, they would persecute you, too.  If they kept MY word, they keep yours as well.  All this they will do to you for the sake of MY name because they do not know the ONE who sent ME." - John 15:18-21  

(In spite of JESUS' having returned to HIS FATHER to initiate a more effective and universal presence among humankind, Satan continues to act with the power he has usurped.  The hatred of those who belong to Satan is directed against the believers and the Church.  Such helpers of Satan are called in John's Gospel: the world.

Believers are destined to be hated by the world.  It often happens that when a person begins to live in a more Christian and responsible way, she meets with opposition and hatred from her own family.  No one knows what has aroused the hatred, but the devil does, who moves everything to discourage us.

Even in the Church we find those who are of the world and believe that they are serving GOD when they persecute the true disciples of CHRIST.  Some who identify themselves with what they consider "the interests of the Church" can even persecute, and at times with malice, those who are Gospel-minded.  In reality they know neither JESUS nor HIS FATHER.

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The Resurrection Of JESUS Is A Fact

"Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, of the Good News that I preached to you and which you received and on which you stand firm.  By that Gospel you are saved, provided that you hold to it as I preached it.  Otherwise, you will have believed in vain.

In the first place, I have passed on to you what I myself received: that CHRIST died for our sins, as Scripture says; that HE was buried; that HE was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures; that HE appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve.  Afterwards HE appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters together; most of them are still alive, although some have already gone to rest.  Then HE appeared to James and after that to all the apostles.  And last of all, HE appeared to the most despicable of them, this is to me." - 1 Corinthians 15:1-8  

(Have we heard the response to a last question of the Corinthians?  Many Greeks thought that at death the immortal soul leaves the body and remains alone.  Was it admitted to the paradise of souls?  Did it come to the great reservoir of souls already gone or who were to return, forgetting all the past lived on earth?  Others held [as do a good number of Christians today], that all ends with death: see 1 Thessalonians 5:13.  Paul will therefore remind the Corinthians that faith in the resurrection is at the heart of the Christian message.

I remind you of the gospel.  Here certainly we may speak of Good News, for death as something unknown is and always has been the great burden of human life [Sirach 40:1].

I have passed onto you.  Paul will not recall a tale, or a "myth," these stories full of wisdom that abounded with the Greeks.  They bared an order in the world, a meaning of life, but were only stories.  Today certain people speak of the resurrection in the same way.  They say: "It matters little what took place, the gospels are not directly interested in what happened to JESUS, for them it was important that strange events would give courage to the disciples and the hope of another life."  Paul says precisely the contrary: the resurrection of JESUS is a fact.)

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As The FATHER Has Loved ME, So I Have Loved You.

"As the FATHER has loved ME, so I have loved you.  Remain in MY love!  You will remain in MY love if you keep MY commandments, just as I have kept MY FATHER's commandments and remain in HIS love.

I have told you all this, that MY own joy may be in you, and your joy may be complete." - John 15:9-11 

(After making it clear that we depend totally on HIM, JESUS repeats HIS commandment of love.  There is a necessary order in building the Christian life.

If from the start we say: We should love our neighbor because this is the only commandment, we will achieve nothing; because each one understands love in his own way, while not having as yet interiorized the thinking of CHRIST.  Moreover, we need to receive from the source of all love the ability to love selflessly.  CHRIST asks us to first share HIS thinking: that is what the expression, keep MY commandments means.  Thus, we become HIS friends, knowing HIM as a person who loves us and acts in us.  Later we will produce the authentic fruit of love, whose source is CHRIST.)

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