Our Knowledge Of Christ

 OUR KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST

We cannot love Jesus unless we know him. Since we are invited to love him as a living Person and not simply admire him as a great hero of the past, we must know him as a living Person. Somehow we must meet him and establish that kind of relationship in which we gradually enter into his mind, share his thoughts and acquire his outlook. We can do this in the Church. It is a mistake to see the Ascension as the complete withdrawal of Christ as man from this world. If we do so, we misunderstand the Resurrection and the sending of the Spirit which resulted from it. Christ is still present. But to grasp this we need to see something of his relation to the Spirit.

   From the beginning in the womb of Mary the human nature of Christ was filled with the Holy Spirit. It was in the power of the Spirit that Jesus carried out the work given him to do by his heavenly Father. This possession of the Spirit meant the communication to Christ's manhood of that plenitude of saving gifts which was to bring about the perfect accomplishment if his task, his own glorification and the salvation of the human race. But until the work of Christ was finished the spirit in him was tied. It was not given in unrestricted abundance. The reason is that in God's plan the spirit is given only as the outcome of Christ's work. Christ is the Saviour. He must first reconcile men to God and then the Spirit, the gift of salvation par excellence, will be given to them. Before this there were but imperfect anticipations of the gift to come. The barrier between man and God was broken through at the crucifixion and the spirit of God was released upon us. The first effect of his power was the glorification of Christ. And by his resurrection Christ became a life-giving Spirit, that is, he was so penetrated with the Spirit as to become the unfailing source of the Spirit for all men. When his glorification was completed by his Ascension and his exaltation to the right hand of God, he was able to send the Spirit upon his apostles at Pentecost. Since then, the Spirit has streamed forth from him into his Church and into men who accept his offer of salvation.

   Every grace we receive comes to us from Spirit, and from the Spirit through Christ. The graces we receive are so many outpouring of that fullness which is already found in Christ. Good day