AWAITING THE DESCENT OF THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH: A SERMON FOR THE FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER PASCHA

“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13, KJV).

By Bp. Joseph (Ancient Church of the West)

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to St. Valentine's Cathedral in Loveland, Ohio, a vibrant and rejoicing member of the Ancient Church of the West, an important, dynamic, and growing Church proclaiming the unchanging Gospel across the world! We gather this Fourth Sunday after Easter with hearts full of gratitude, beholding the faces of our beloved brothers and sisters, united in the bond of Christ’s love. As the Psalmist sings, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity” (Psalm 133:1, KJV), so we rejoice in the goodness of God, who has founded us upon the rock of faith (Matthew 16:18). In this sacred season, as we await the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, we encourage one another with the knowledge that God’s thoughts toward us are “thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11). Indeed, His plans for each of us, conceived before the foundation of the world, are more numerous than the sands of the sea (Psalm 139:17-18). St. John Chrysostom reminds us, “God’s love for us is boundless, and His providence orders all things for our salvation.”

We stand on the threshold of a great blessing, for in just one week, our Church Conference in Corbin, Kentucky, will draw together our brothers and sisters from across the United States. There, we shall bask in the presence of the Holy Spirit, share the holy sacraments, hear God’s Word preached with power, and know the love and solidarity of our community, as “one body and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling” (Ephesians 4:4). This gathering will be a foretaste of the heavenly banquet, where, as St. Gregory the Theologian writes, “we shall see God face to face, united in the communion of the Trinity.” Today, as we prepare our hearts for this fellowship and for the coming of the Comforter, let us turn to the sacred Scriptures, which reveal the song of salvation, the fire of the Spirit, and the truth that guides us home.

SCRIPTURE

EPISTLE: ST. JAMES 1:17-21

Dearly beloved: Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

THE HOLY GOSPEL: ST. JOHN 16:5-15

At that time, Jesus said unto his disciples: Now I go my way to him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou? But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.

SERMON

Beloved in Christ, on this Fourth Sunday after Easter, we stand bathed in the resplendent light of the Resurrection, our hearts uplifted by the promise of the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, who leads us into the eternal mysteries of God. Our readings today—from Exodus, Acts, James, and the Gospel of John—form a divine symphony, proclaiming God’s unchanging goodness, His mighty deliverance, and the transformative indwelling of His Holy Spirit. They summon us to sing with Moses the song of salvation, to burn with the fire of Pentecost, to receive with meekness the engrafted Word, and to walk in the Spirit’s radiant truth amidst a world shadowed by transience and turmoil. Let us, with the Psalmist, cry, “Teach me thy way, O Lord, and I will walk in thy truth” (Psalm 86:11), as we ponder these sacred texts.

We begin with Exodus 15:1-6, 11-13, where Moses and Israel, delivered from Pharaoh’s chariots, sing, “The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation.” This is no mere historical anthem but a theological revelation of God’s sovereign power and covenantal love. “Thy right hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power,” they proclaim, for God has shattered the enemy and guided His redeemed to His holy habitation. This echoes the Psalmist’s exultation: “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer” (Psalm 18:2). St. Athanasius, in his "On the Incarnation", reflects, “The God who parted the Red Sea is the same who triumphs over death in Christ, revealing His unchanging will to save.” The Red Sea crossing prefigures our baptism, as St. Paul teaches: “All were baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea” (1 Corinthians 10:2). Yet, like Israel, we often falter in the wilderness, tempted to murmur as they did (Exodus 16:2). St. Gregory of Nyssa, in his "Life of Moses", warns, “The soul that lingers in Egypt’s pleasures cannot ascend to God’s mountain.” Will we trust the God who parts seas to lead us through our trials, or will we, like Lot’s wife, look back to what enslaves us (Genesis 19:26)?

This theme of divine guidance ascends in Acts 2:1-4, 14-18, where the Holy Spirit descends at Pentecost, a mighty wind and tongues of fire igniting the apostles with prophetic utterance. Peter declares this as the fulfillment of Joel’s vision: “I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh” (Joel 2:28). St. Gregory the Theologian, in his "Oration on Pentecost", marvels, “The Spirit makes us temples of the living God, divinizing our nature by His indwelling, that we may become partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). This is theosis, the Orthodox mystery whereby, as St. Irenaeus of Lyons affirms, “God became man that man might become god.” The Spirit’s fire recalls Elijah’s altar, consumed by divine flame (1 Kings 18:38), and Ezekiel’s vision of dry bones quickened by God’s breath (Ezekiel 37:1-14). Yet, as St. Basil the Great teaches in "On the Holy Spirit", “The Spirit does not coerce but invites, awaiting our consent.” Do we open our hearts to this fire, or do we, as St. Paul warns, “quench the Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:19) with the cold waters of apathy and distraction?

The Epistle, James 1:17-21, roots us in God’s immutability: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” St. John Chrysostom, in his "Homilies on James", exhorts, “Since God’s gifts are perfect, let us not defile them with wrath or filthiness, but adorn them with meekness.” James urges us to be “swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath,” for human anger cannot work God’s righteousness. This echoes Solomon’s wisdom: “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty” (Proverbs 16:32). The “engrafted word” is the seed of the sower (Matthew 13:3-9), taking root only in humble soil. St. Maximus the Confessor, in his "Centuries on Love", teaches, “The Word of God, when received with humility, deifies the soul, making it a mirror of divine glory.” Are we such mirrors, reflecting Christ’s light, or do we let pride’s thorns choke the Word’s growth?

The Gospel, John 16:5-15, unveils the mission of the Comforter. Jesus, preparing His sorrowing disciples, declares, “It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you.” The Spirit will reprove the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, guiding us into all truth. St. Cyril of Alexandria, in his "Commentary on John", explains, “The Spirit glorifies Christ, taking what is His and declaring it to us, that we may be united to the Father’s will.” This is the Trinitarian dance: the Spirit proceeds from the Father, rests in the Son, and draws us into divine communion (John 17:21). St. Augustine, in his "Tractates on John", adds, “The Spirit is the bond of love between Father and Son, and in Him we are bound to God.” As Isaiah promised, “Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it” (Isaiah 30:21), so the Spirit guides us, not as a tyrant, but as a shepherd (Psalm 23:1).

Theologically, this reveals the Spirit’s role in the "economia" - the divine plan of salvation. The Spirit, as St. Symeon the New Theologian writes, “is the light that illumines the heart, the fire that purifies the soul, the breath that vivifies the body.” He is not a mere force but the third Person of the Trinity, coequal and consubstantial with Father and Son. The Nicene Creed confesses Him as “the Lord and Giver of life,” who spoke by the prophets and now speaks in us. This is why Pentecost is not a one-time event but an ongoing reality, as St. Seraphim of Sarov teaches: “The aim of the Christian life is the acquisition of the Holy Spirit.” The Spirit reproves sin, not to condemn, but to call us to repentance (Luke 15:7); He reveals righteousness, not as legalism, but as participation in Christ’s life (Philippians 3:9); He declares judgment, not as destruction, but as the defeat of the “prince of this world” (Colossians 2:15). Thus, the Spirit’s guidance is our deification, our ascent to God.

Let us draw illustrations from world literature to illumine these truths. In Dante’s "Divine Comedy", the pilgrim ascends through Purgatory, guided by Virgil’s reason and Beatrice’s divine love, toward the Empyrean. Yet it is God’s unseen grace, like the Spirit, that propels him. Dante writes, “My wings were not enough for such a flight, save that my mind was smitten by a flash, and to its final aim my will was brought” (Paradiso XXXIII). So the Spirit lifts us beyond our frail capacities, as Habakkuk was borne by an angel (Daniel 14:36, LXX). Or consider Dostoevsky’s "The Brothers Karamazov", where Elder Zosima teaches that “the Spirit of God blows where it wills,” transforming even the hardest hearts. Alyosha, like the apostles at Pentecost, becomes a vessel of divine love, guided by the Spirit’s quiet whisper. Or think of Milton’s "Paradise Lost", where the Spirit “broods” over creation’s chaos (Book I), as He now broods over our souls, bringing order to our inner turmoil.

Yet, how do we live this mystery? The world tempts us to despair, as it did Job: “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and are spent without hope” (Job 7:6). But the Spirit, as St. Basil teaches, “renews us in the image of God, restoring what sin has marred.” We are called to sing with Moses, not merely in joy but in trust, as Habakkuk sang, “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, though the fig tree shall not blossom” (Habakkuk 3:17-18). We are to burn with Pentecost’s fire, not as a spectacle, but as St. Paul urges: “Be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord” (Romans 12:11). We are to receive the Word with meekness, as Mary did, saying, “Be it unto me according to thy word” (Luke 1:38). And we are to follow the Spirit’s truth, praying without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17), loving our neighbor (Mark 12:31), and bearing our cross (Luke 9:23).

This call is urgent, for we live in a world that, as St. John of Damascus notes, “lies in the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19). Yet the Spirit equips us, as He did David against Goliath (1 Samuel 17:45), to overcome by faith. St. Gregory Palamas, in his "Homilies", declares, “The Spirit makes us sons of God, crying ‘Abba, Father’ in our hearts” (Romans 8:15). This adoption is our strength, our song, our salvation. Let us, then, be vigilant, as the wise virgins with lamps burning (Matthew 25:1-13), awaiting the Bridegroom’s call.

We conclude with the Rev. George Herbert’s "Whitsunday", from "The Temple", a poem that captures the Spirit’s transformative grace:

Listen sweet Dove unto my song,

And spread thy golden wings in me;

Hatching my tender heart so long,

Till it get wing, and flie away with thee.

Such glorious gifts thou didst bestow,

That th’ earth did like a heav’n appeare;

The starres were coming down to know

If they might mend their wages, and serve here.

The sunne, which once did shine alone,

Hung down his head, and wisht for night,

But since thy light and he are one,

He is content to share with thee his light.

Fr. Herbert’s imagery of the Spirit as a dove hatching our hearts mirrors Pentecost’s fire and the Gospel’s promise. Let us invite this Dove to brood over us, that we may soar to God’s eternal habitation.

COLLECT

Let us pray...

O Almighty and Everlasting God, who by thy Holy Spirit dost guide thy people into all truth, pouring forth thy gifts upon all flesh: grant us, we beseech thee, to sing with thy redeemed the song of salvation, to receive with meekness thy life-giving Word, and to walk in the light of thy unchanging goodness; that, being transformed by thy divine fire and united to thy Son, we may ever glorify thee in our lives, through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.