Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter
Josh Ritter recorded a sad song a few years back called “Best for the Best.” In it, the singer recounts times in his life when bad things happened, and laments “they say the best is for the best, but that’s not what I’ve found.” Today’s readings have a special meaning for us when we’re feeling like Josh Ritter.
In our first reading today, Paul and Silas as busy getting beaten up and thrown in jail. It sounds like a very bad day. So why didn’t Paul and Silas run away when an earthquake gave them the chance?
As we know from Paul’s conversion story, he never met Jesus in the flesh, but only in a vision. But he did receive an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the advocate that Jesus promises to send in today’s gospel. The Spirit “will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and condemnation.” We also know that Jesus loves the whole world and does not desire that anyone should be lost. The jailer, an unbeliever, would have been lost if he had killed himself. He knows that when a jailer looses all the prisoners he’s supposed to be keeping locked up for the Romans, death is just around the corner. Paul and Silas save him by keeping themselves and all the other prisoners from running away, and the jailer knows it. He owes them his life, and with the building in rubble around them, he knows that even in that moment, if they run, he will not be able to stop them.
As followers of Christ, we also want the gift of a saving encounter with Jesus to be everyone’s. The Spirit calls us to regard every blessing and every misfortune as a way of introduction to people who need to hear the gospel, meet Christ, and be saved.
Who in your life needs a release from forces that threaten death in mind, body, or heart? How is God calling you and ‘your whole household’ to be Christ’s saving presence to them? What does God ask of you in your life right now? If you’re not already sure, ask the Spirit. You’ll surely get an answer at just the right time.
- Chris Nieport