The Words And The Tune by Kim Reisman

Scripture Focus:

If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you. Soon the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Since I live, you also will live. When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.

John 14:15-17

Mark Twain’s wife did her best to censor the more picturesque flights of her husband’s language. One story says that he cut himself shaving and cursed long and loud. When he stopped, his wife tried to shame him by repeating to him word for word all the profanities he had just uttered. Twain heard her out and then remarked, “You have the words, my dear, but I’m afraid you’ll never master the tune.”

I’ve always chuckled at that story, and it also reminds me of the sorry state of many Christians. Not as it relates to profanity necessarily, but as it relates to our faith. We know the words, but we haven’t mastered the tune. As Christians we’re recipients of the Holy Spirit. A new kind of power, a new kind of action, a new kind of joy filled life is now possible. But it’s not automatic.

It’s a great day in our lives when we discover that the Holy Spirit and the indwelling Christ are one. It’s the witness of Scripture and is clear in the words of Jesus in our passage for this week. Jesus is preparing the disciples for his death. He tells them he is going away; that he is going to prepare a place for them but will come again. He says, “When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” (John 14:3) As he talks about his death, he promises that he won’t leave us alone but will send an Advocate, a Comforter, one to be with us forever. And here is the key. When Jesus promises the gift of the Holy Spirit, he immediately identifies himself with the Spirit. “I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you.” (vs18)

Last week we talked about abiding in Christ, and that’s where the words and the tune come together. Jesus is the revelation of God and the personification of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit who gave us faith to accept Christ as Savior is the Spirit within us as the indwelling Christ. The Spirit is with us now to give us faith and the will to yield ourselves to Jesus as Lord. The Spirit is with us now to produce the “fruit of the Spirit” – the sign of Christ alive within us and our abiding in him. The words and the tune come together, and the tune is joy.

K. Chesterton said, “joy…is the gigantic secret of the Christian.” That’s so true. So many of us have the words but we simply don’t have the tune – or we aren’t living in a way that people can hear the tune. We aren’t abiding in Christ in a way that allows the stream of God’s love and joy to flow to us and through us. And yet, we are promised abundant life, a life of overflowing love and joy. That love and joy is the tune of the Christian life.

My first grandchild will be celebrating his first birthday in October. From the time he was born, I have used his picture as the wallpaper for my phone, updating it as he grows. Every time I use my phone, I see Charlie smiling back at me and my heart is filled with an indescribable joy.

In the months since Charlie was born, I’ve noticed two small, seemingly insignificant changes in my behavior. First, I find myself looking at my phone for no other reason than to see the smiling face of my grandson. I’ve also noticed that when I’m stressed or feeling frustrated, I pull out my phone, see Charlie’s smiling face, and the stress or frustration recedes as a wave of love and joy flow over me.

These experiences remind me of the stream of love and joy that flow to us from God through the power of the indwelling Spirit of Jesus. The love and joy I feel when I look on the face of my grandson mirror in a human way, the love and joy God feels for each of us. Charlie can do nothing for me, he didn’t have to earn my love or do anything to elicit my joy. The same is true with God. We cannot earn God’s love or do anything special to elicit God’s joy. It simply flows to us because of who God is.

Likewise, as we abide in Christ and live in the stream of that love and joy, the words and tune come together. Our joy isn’t dependent on our circumstances or artificially created by material goods or our cultures. Rather, as our roots go deep into the love of Christ, we experience waves of joy, even in the midst of frustration, stress, or hardship.

As you pray and fast this week, I pray that the words and the tune would come together. That the love and joy that flows from God would be yours and would in turn flow outward to others.