“Your right hand saves me, O Lord.”
This week see continue to hear of the beautiful dialogue between the Gospel – in which Jesus promises to send the Spirit – and the book of Acts where the deeds of the Spirit in the early Church are made manifest. Promise and fruit of the promise in the Gospel and Acts. We, as Christians, are living in the time of the fruit of Christ’s promise, heirs to the promise of the Spirit and heirs to the works of the Spirit that we hear of in Acts. What does today’s readings offer us as heirs of this promise?
St. Paul makes a most remarkable – and seemingly absurd – choice to remain in his jail cell after he and his companions are offered an opportunity for human freedom. If Paul had seized this chance, he would have done nothing wrong, yet Paul chooses to remain. The fruit of this choice to remain is twofold – the physical life of the jailer is sparred, and the spiritual life of the jailer and his whole family is won. The jailer, hardened to Paul and to his message prior to this night, is now won over by Paul’s surprising choice not to run, but to remain. Hardened hearts are opened in this way when they are surprised by others or by God. Paul’s leaving was natural, his remaining was a surprise, and this action caused new life to spring up in the hearts of the those around him.
As heirs to the Spirit working in Paul and promised by Christ, we too are called to act in ways that are surprising in the eyes of the world. In prayer today, where have you been surprised by God’s action or the actions of others toward you which caused you to make a change in your life? Do you hear the Lord inviting you to go and do likewise in response to a difficult situation in your life? This choice might go against our natural human inclinations, but if it is Spirit led, it will have beautiful consequences in our own hearts and perhaps also in the hearts of those around us.