20260505 LOVE AND UNION WITH THE FATHER BRINGS TRUE PEACE
5 May 2026, Tuesday, 5th Week of Easter
First reading | Acts 14:19-28 |
They gave an account of how God had opened the door of faith to the pagans
Some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium, and turned the people against the apostles. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the town, thinking he was dead. The disciples came crowding round him but, as they did so, he stood up and went back to the town. The next day he and Barnabas went off to Derbe.
Having preached the Good News in that town and made a considerable number of disciples, they went back through Lystra and Iconium to Antioch. They put fresh heart into the disciples, encouraging them to persevere in the faith. ‘We all have to experience many hardships’ they said ‘before we enter the kingdom of God.’ In each of these churches they appointed elders, and with prayer and fasting they commended them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.
They passed through Pisidia and reached Pamphylia. Then after proclaiming the word at Perga they went down to Attalia and from there sailed for Antioch, where they had originally been commended to the grace of God for the work they had now completed.
On their arrival they assembled the church and gave an account of all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the pagans. They stayed there with the disciples for some time.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 144(145):10-13a,21 |
Your friends, O Lord, shall make known the glorious splendour of your reign.
or
Alleluia!
All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,
and your friends shall repeat their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your reign
and declare your might, O God,
to make known to men your mighty deeds
and the glorious splendour of your reign.
Your friends, O Lord, shall make known the glorious splendour of your reign.
or
Alleluia!
Yours is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule lasts from age to age.
Your friends, O Lord, shall make known the glorious splendour of your reign.
or
Alleluia!
Let me speak the praise of the Lord,
let all mankind bless his holy name
for ever, for ages unending.
Your friends, O Lord, shall make known the glorious splendour of your reign.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Lk24:46,26 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
It was ordained that the Christ should suffer
and rise from the dead,
and so enter into his glory.
Alleluia!
Gospel | John 14:27-31 |
A peace the world cannot give is my gift to you
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you,
a peace the world cannot give,
this is my gift to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
You heard me say: I am going away, and shall return.
If you loved me you would have been glad to know that I am going to the Father,
for the Father is greater than I.
I have told you this now before it happens,
so that when it does happen you may believe.
I shall not talk with you any longer,
because the prince of this world is on his way.
He has no power over me,
but the world must be brought to know
that I love the Father
and that I am doing exactly what the Father told me.’
LOVE AND UNION WITH THE FATHER BRINGS TRUE PEACE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 14:19-28; PS 145:10-13,21; JOHN 14:27-31]
In the Gospel, the disciples were worried and disturbed because Jesus told them that He was returning to the Father. This was understandable because Jesus had revealed to them earlier that He was returning to the Father. And just before this revelation, Jesus foretold that one of His apostles would be betray Him and that even Peter would deny Him three times before the cock crowed. If Peter, as the leader of the apostles, could fail in his commitment to the Lord, what more would it be for the rest? Hence, we can see why they were troubled and worried.
And so it is for us too. Many of us are troubled and worried over our life, health, job, family, and especially the future of our children. We are worried whether we will be able to sustain our family financially and whether our children will be doing well in their studies, in their relationships, and in their faith life. So all of us are burdened with worries, and particularly so if one of our loved ones is terminally ill. And if that family member is the pillar of the house supporting the family, it becomes even more unsettling as to whether we can continue our lives without him or her around. Sometimes, we do not want to let them go, even when they are very sick and elderly. We want to cling to them – if not for material support, then at least for emotional support.
In such situations, the Lord promises us peace. However, this peace is not the peace of the world. “Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you, a peace the world cannot give, this is my gift to you.” The gift of peace is what we all desire, but mostly our understanding of peace is defined by what the world thinks peace is all about. For many, peace means no activity, no challenges, no disturbances, no disagreements, no difficulties, no trials, no wars, no hostility, and no troubles. Peace is thought to be living in a world where we can live our life without any friction and have all we need without effort on our part. In other words, it is a peace that comes from physical and emotional comfort. But the peace that the Lord offers us is different from that of the world.
The peace of Christ is altogether different and is not dependent on situations or external factors. It is the peace that Jesus offered to the timid disciples hiding in the Upper Room after His death – the peace that the Risen Christ uttered when He met His disciples. It is the peace that the angels sang about at His birth. So, what is this peace? It is not the absence of war, of hostilities from enemies, of struggles, of pain and of departure. Rather it is the assurance that we are safe in the hands of God; that we have a clear conscience in what we do and say, and most of all, it is a peace within us that remains unshaken by the turmoil outside of us. It is a peace that comes from love, generosity, justice and friendship. It is a peace of calmness and confidence that comes from our union with God and our faith in Him and His plan for us.
The peace that Jesus offers us is a peace that is grounded in God, and not in circumstances, especially external factors. Truly, Jesus manifested this peace and calmness in Himself when He was facing His end. The farewell discourse that Jesus gave to His disciples showed that He was in charge of His own life, even though He knew what was ahead of Him: “I shall not talk with you any longer, because the prince of this world is on his way. He has no power over me, but the world must be brought to know that I love the Father and that I am doing exactly what the Father told me.” Rather than being cowed or unsettled, He was preparing the disciples to be ready to face the troubles of the world. He wanted the disciples to be ready to share His suffering in leading others to the fullness of life. But what was even more important was that they would do it with peace, calmness, courage, and confidence.
How then do we maintain our peace in the midst of the storms? This is why the Lord said to the disciples, “Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. You heard me say: I am going away, and shall return. If you loved me you would have been glad to know that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.” There are a few things to take note.
Firstly, do we love Jesus? Fear comes about when we lack faith in God and, in this instance, faith in Christ. It is a denial of His love, His presence, goodness, and power. When we experience fear, it means that we have not known God enough, and so we lack trust that He will be there for us. As St John says, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us.” (1 Jn 4:18f) We fear someone whom we do not know, and this is because we do not know the person’s heart, their love for us, or their ability to protect us. Only those who allow the love of God and our Lord to grow in their hearts can be healed of their fears and receive the inheritance of Jesus’ peace, which the world cannot give.
Secondly, do we love Jesus more than ourselves? The reason for the disciples’ fear was that they did not love Jesus more than themselves. If we love Jesus and know that He loves us unconditionally, then we will be able to surrender our lives to Him regardless of the situation. This explains why Jesus said to them, “If you loved me you would have been glad to know that I am going to the Father.” They have not yet arrived at the true meaning of love. They thought they loved Him, but in fact, they loved themselves more.
This is so true in most human relationships. Often, when we speak of love for someone, the reality is that our love has conditions. That means we love the person not for their own sake, but for ourselves, which is why we place conditions on that love. We want the person to satisfy our insecurities and fulfil our desires and dreams. But this is not love in the truest and purest form. This is why insecure love breeds fear, as it is focused on self and conditions rather than on God. If the disciples truly loved the Lord, then they should have been happy He was returning to the Father, for that was the joy and fulfilment of Jesus. When we love someone unconditionally, we share their joy and their aspirations, and we want what is best for him or for her. This is why focusing on Jesus and loving Him is central to finding peace in our lives.
Thirdly, this peace comes from the assurance that He will return and take us with Him. “You heard me say: I am going away, and shall return.” Earlier on, Jesus explained what this meant: “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also.” (Jn 14:2-4) The knowledge that we will not lose Jesus or our loved ones forever gives us peace. Being confident that He is just going away for a while and coming back to take us with Him should give us great peace and joy. In other words, we will never lose Jesus’ presence.
Finally, this peace comes from sharing Jesus’ own relationship with His Father. What ultimately brings joy is the fact that we will share in His love for His Father. This is what Jesus means when He says that He will bring us to His Father’s house. In other words, it means that we will share in His own intimacy with the Father – an identity that is in communion with the Father. He said, “I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.” In saying this, Jesus reveals the Father as the origin and source of His being. But this does not mean that Jesus is lesser than God the Father. In terms of hierarchy, it remains true that the Father is the origin and source of divine life. In terms of equality, because Jesus shares the same substance of the being of the Father, He is equally God as well. This perfect union between hierarchy and equality is different from that of the world, where the two are often seen as incongruent. This is why true and lasting peace can only be found in our relationship with Jesus, who brings us into relationship with the Father in the Spirit. As the Lord said, “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.” (Jn 14:23) This is the peace and joy that Paul and his companions had in their missionary journeys, in spite of persecution.
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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