John’s Pentecost arrives with less
fanfare than Luke’s but perhaps with greater weight. No rushing wind, no
tongues of fire, no speaking in languages not learned, just Jesus breathing the
Holy Spirit on disciples. If Luke imagines the reversal of the tower of Babel
(where language was confused) John wants us to go back to the very beginning
where the breath of God animated the dust formed in God’s image. The disciples,
formed in the image of Jesus, animated by the Spirit, are to forgive (or not)
and their granting of forgiveness (or withholding) has the final say. That
raises a few questions and we wish Jesus would have said a little more. On what
basis is forgiveness offered or denied? What if I forgive someone who you don’t
or vice versa? Does forgiveness extend beyond the boundaries of the church or
is this only pew to pew coverage? If you’re looking for me to answer my own
questions you’re out of luck. All I will say is that when Peter asked Jesus a
question to quantify the extent of forgiveness Jesus answered with mathematics.
Forgiveness errs on the side of mercy at least 70 x 7 of time.
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