5th Friday of Lent (March 27). In Jesus’ name

Prepare to Listen.  You are the light of the world.
 
Prayerfully Read John 16:16-24
16“A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.”  17Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me,’ and ‘because I am going to the Father’?”  18They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’?  We do not know what he is talking about.”  19Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’?  20Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy.  21When a woman is in labor, she has pain because her hour has come.  But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world.  22So you have pain now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.  23On that day you will ask nothing of me.  Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.  24Until now you have not asked for anything in my name.  Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
 
Prayerfully Wonder
“A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.”  Which is it?  We’re not surprised the disciples complained, “We do not know what he is talking about.”  Jesus saw their confusion and patiently explained.
 
“You will no longer see me” was for them, not us.  Jesus was about to be arrested and crucified.  They would experience his loss.  Jesus warned them it would be painful, comparable to the pain of a woman in labor.  But, once a healthy baby arrives, her suffering turns to joy.  So too would they know joy because, in a little while they would see him again.  Whatever he meant, the rejoicing they’d experience wouldn’t be transient, but permanent.  He promised, “no one will take your joy from you.”
 
In a little while, they would see him again.  He didn’t only mean in his post-resurrection appearances, nor one day, in a distant future when he returned.  This is a seeing that we too can experience now because it’s about the promise of a permanent relationship, “the continued experience of his presence in the Christian,” through the indwelling of his Spirit. [1]  We see him with spiritual sight.
 
“On that day you will ask nothing of me.”  That’s for us too.  Because of his death and resurrection, a new order came into being, one in which direct access to the Father is possible.  We can ask anything in Jesus’ name.  In my name means our asking aligns with all that the name of Jesus stands for.  It’s not license for greed.  “Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.”  It’s an amazing privilege, and also an awesome responsibility.
 
What do you think it means for you to ask in Jesus’ name?
 
Prayerfully Respond
Sometimes, Lord your words are confusing.  Help me live with them so that I come to a deeper understanding of you and live more faithfully.  Amen.
 
Live obediently.  Ask in Jesus’ name.
[1] Brodie, Thomas L.  The Gospel According to John.  New York, NY: Oxford University Press.  1993, p. 500.