John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15 (NRSV)
Read John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15 on biblegateway.com
Verse 26"When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. Verse 27You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning. Verse 4But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them. "I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. Verse 5But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?' Verse 6But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts.
Verse 7Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. Verse 8And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: Verse 9about sin, because they do not believe in me; Verse 10about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; Verse 11about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned. Verse 12"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. Verse 13When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. Verse 14He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. Verse 15All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
Devotion
In my childhood neighborhood there was a style of music occasionally played at celebrations by family members known as son jarocho. Son jarocho has not been taught (until recently) but has primarily been learned as one grows up in a family in which this gift is possessed to be handed down. Only families who live out the “spirit” of son jarocho pass it on to the young ones as a way of life.
Jesus is the holy eternal divine and comes to give holiness, righteousness, mercy, and grace, for this is who Jesus is, and these are the gifts being passed on as we live within the Lord’s family. The family Jesus is forming requires Jesus’ teaching presence to remain among us, and hence Jesus is constantly feeding his faithful children with the eternal presence of the Holy Spirit. The Lord’s family then gathers in the Spirit to continue to share, learn, and give public witness through the leading of the Spirit.
Prayer
Lord of Grace, may our lives be lived in such a way that the legacy our words and deeds we leave behind manifest a life led by your Holy Spirit. Amen.