Active Revelation

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter 2014

John 14:6-14

Jesus said to Thomas, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him."Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, `Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it."

REFLECTION

""I am the way, and the truth, and the life...If you know me, you will know my Father also."

Want to know what truth is?  Look to Jesus.

Want to know what life is?  Look to Jesus.

Want to know who God is and what he's like?  Look to Jesus.

God reveals himself in many ways; through scripture, through prayer, through nature, through history, through experience and through other people.  But, Jesus is the supreme self-revelation of God, "For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form" (Col. 2:9, NASB).  Jesus taught not only by his words, but also by his actions; and indeed by his very own person. He referred to himself as the Truth and as the Light (Jn 8:12). He showed himself not merely to be speaking God’s words, but to be himself the Living Word of God in human flesh, the Logos who is eternal and uncreated, but who has become man as Jesus of Nazareth in order to make God known to the world.

God's self revelation however, is of no use other than for intellectual, metaphysical gymnastics if it is not put to use; into action.  Orthodoxy without orthopraxis is dull theology. Orthopraxis without orthodoxy is a religion of sentimentality, subjectivism and empty good works.

Today, as we look to Jesus and experience his presence we might ask ourselves:

"What is God telling and teaching me?"

"What is God asking me to pray for?"

And finally, "how am I going to put this into practice?"  The Christian life is not just about a mental agreement with the major tenets of the faith. It’s about a whole new lifestyle.