the holy spirit, unity, and the pope
“Jesus replied, ‘Blest are you, Simon son of Jonah! No mere man has revealed this to you, but My heavenly Father.’ ” —Matthew 16:17
The Lord wants to return and take us with Him to heaven in perfect, eternal love (see 1 Thes 4:16-17). First, however, He wants all to believe in Him and be saved (see 1 Tm 2:4). The world will believe in Jesus when Jesus’ disciples are one (Jn 17:21). We become one through the Holy Spirit (see 1 Cor 12:13). The Holy Spirit works through the bishops, the successors of the apostles, to make us one. The Holy Spirit works through the Pope, the successor of St. Peter, to make sure the bishops are united with each other and can thereby serve the unity of the Church.
History confirms that the Holy Spirit gives us unity through the bishops and the Pope. Those Christian groups that have tried to do without the bishops and the Pope have splintered into thousands of factions. Without the chair of Peter, that is, the authority of the Pope, they inevitably lack the unity in the Spirit necessary for the Church to complete its work of world evangelization and preparation for Christ’s final coming. It is more clear today than ever that on the rock of Peter, Jesus has chosen to build His Church (Mt 16:18). Live and love accordingly.
Prayer: Father, send the Holy Spirit to lead me to die to myself and be united with You and Your Church.
Promise: “I will entrust to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you declare bound on earth shall be bound in heaven; whatever you declare loosed on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” —Mt 16:19
Praise: “The Holy Spirit descended upon all who were listening to Peter’s message” (Acts 10:44).
Reference: (This Lent, to help share God’s Word, consider listening to, downloading or ordering our Bible Teachers Series on our website. Our eight CD series starts with CD 5A-1 or our four DVD series starts with DVD 5A.)
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