Tuesday
of the Sixth Week of Easter
(Acts
16:22-34; John 16:5-11)
Today’s
gospel passage is not easily grasped. It
deals with the Holy Spirit’s role as an advocate-prosecutor. The Spirit helps the disciples, as all
Christians, in discerning right from wrong and by providing the will power to do
what is right. Also, the Spirit acts
like a prosecutor who convicts the world of doing the contrary.
The world should
be seen as those who do not accept Jesus as the Son of God. Although Jesus’ primary opponents have been “the
Jews,” they alone have not rejected God’s love.
In the Gospel the Jews collaborate with the Romans forming an axis of
believers and non-believers (in God) to execute Jesus.
First, the
Spirit convicts the world of its fundamental sin of not believing in
Jesus. After seeing Jesus perform
miraculous deeds, including restoring life to the dead, the world still refuses
to believe him. Second, the Spirit
establishes righteousness by raising Jesus from the dead and returning him to
the Father. Finally, Jesus’ death and
resurrection condemns the works of Satan, the world’s leader.
In the
passage Jesus consoles his disciples – including us – not to worry and
encourages them to believe in Christ. It
shows that despite the apparent victory of the world, Christ has triumphed and is
leading his faithful to eternal life.
