In Matthew’s telling, Jesus’ parable of the great banquet takes an odd turn after the influx of late arrivals from the streets and lanes:
“Those servants went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’"
Wow – does correct attire matter that much to this king in Jesus’ story? This part of the story has always puzzled me the most; it seems so unjust. This man didn’t know he was coming to a wedding, right? How could he have been expected to wear a “wedding robe,” whatever that is? And isn’t Jesus the one who said, “Don’t judge a book by its cover?” Actually no… but the sentiment seems about right. Jesus did say we should judge what’s inside a person, not externals. What the heck is going on here?
No one fully knows, of course. Some scholars think there were certain items of clothing people wore to weddings. Here’s what I think it might mean: that even those who didn’t have much advance invitation had the opportunity to turn, to repent, to “clean up,” as it were. Is that what is meant by the “wedding robe?” And this person is just wandering around, clueless, unconscious, unrepentant and unresponsive.
This makes me think of those verses in the scriptures that speak of being “clothed in righteousness,” and
“As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.”
“As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.”
And in Revelation 19:7-8 we have this promise: “...for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready; to her it has been granted to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure — for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.”
What do you feel “clothed in” today? Is it what you want to be wearing? Might you try on another suit, another dress, one that is more like what you want to feel like, how you want to be seen at the banquet? As a prayer exercise today, try playing “dress-up” with God; put on the feelings of the people you’re praying for, or the feelings you’d like to have.
Martin Luther wrote of God’s grace in Christ as the “Great Exchange,” by which Christ took on our filthy beggars’ rags and gives us his royal robes to wear. Christ has clothed us in HIS holiness. He covers even the most shameful parts of us, the parts we think are unlovable. He loves us into love.
In his righteousness, his holiness, his glory, we can stand unashamed, unhidden. We can allow our true selves to be seen, knowing that we are loved beyond measure by the God who made us, redeemed us, and loves us to the end of time. We are princes and princesses – let’s dress like we know it.
10-8-14 - Get Me New Guests!
I find it hard to read this parable of the wedding banquet and not think of half-empty churches. In the story, the King has prepared a beautiful wedding feast for his son and invited all the people who used to come to his house… and now none of them will. Enraged, he says to his servants,
“The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.” Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.”
As Jesus tells the story, given how he’s been talking to the religious leaders, and how he’s been known to interact with the not-good-enough of his society – the lame, the lepers, the extortioners and “loose women” - it seems pretty obvious that that’s who the people found on the streets represent. These people are seemingly found, herded onto the king’s buses and brought back to populate his banquet hall. The servants aren’t choosy – they just bring everybody in.
What would it look like if we sent buses around shelters and parks on Sunday mornings and invited people to come to our feasts? Would we be prepared to deal with strangers, people’s disappointment and addictions, with the chips on their shoulders? Would we be prepared to see them not as wounded strangers but as gifts, with assets and strengths we need in our congregations?
What would it look like if we took church out to them instead of asking them into our buildings? For a time, my congregation did this in a “tougher” section of town. We went from bringing sandwiches and healing prayer to my telling Jesus stories (aka, preaching) on the curb as people sat their in their lawn chairs with their bottles. It was amazing - until gentrification struck and the people who hung out there dispersed, and it all faded away.
The poor and the lame are not the only people God wants at the feast. God also wants the stressed over-achievers, the multi-tasking moms, the doubters and questioners. This parable suggests that God wants everybody at God’s table. Who are we not inviting?
That is today’s suggested spiritual task: make a list of everyone your congregation does not seem to be extending an invitation to.
The ones who are being invited are by and large not coming. Who else are we to invite?
“The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.” Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.”
As Jesus tells the story, given how he’s been talking to the religious leaders, and how he’s been known to interact with the not-good-enough of his society – the lame, the lepers, the extortioners and “loose women” - it seems pretty obvious that that’s who the people found on the streets represent. These people are seemingly found, herded onto the king’s buses and brought back to populate his banquet hall. The servants aren’t choosy – they just bring everybody in.
What would it look like if we sent buses around shelters and parks on Sunday mornings and invited people to come to our feasts? Would we be prepared to deal with strangers, people’s disappointment and addictions, with the chips on their shoulders? Would we be prepared to see them not as wounded strangers but as gifts, with assets and strengths we need in our congregations?
What would it look like if we took church out to them instead of asking them into our buildings? For a time, my congregation did this in a “tougher” section of town. We went from bringing sandwiches and healing prayer to my telling Jesus stories (aka, preaching) on the curb as people sat their in their lawn chairs with their bottles. It was amazing - until gentrification struck and the people who hung out there dispersed, and it all faded away.
The poor and the lame are not the only people God wants at the feast. God also wants the stressed over-achievers, the multi-tasking moms, the doubters and questioners. This parable suggests that God wants everybody at God’s table. Who are we not inviting?
That is today’s suggested spiritual task: make a list of everyone your congregation does not seem to be extending an invitation to.
The ones who are being invited are by and large not coming. Who else are we to invite?
10-7-14 - No Thanks
I once had a friend who would turn down invitations to do things with me because she’d received other offers she preferred, sometimes even after she’d accepted my invitation. While I admired her honesty, it bothered me that I didn’t to rate very high on her list. Not that I was about to burn down her village or anything…
The invited guests in Jesus’ parable of the wedding banquet have no qualms about turning down the King’s invitation to his feast – in fact, they seem to have no respect for this king whatsoever. The first group just say, “No.” Then the king sends other servants out and says, “'Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.' But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, maltreated them, and killed them."
One to his farm, another to his business. In Luke’s version the excuses are more creative – one just got married and didn’t want to leave his new wife just yet. Who are these people who put God's invitations last?
Well… on any given day, it can be you or me or any one we know. There is no end to other priorities, it seems, when it comes to engaging the spiritual. It has to be on our schedule, and not when there’s anything else we’d rather do, or when the coach has called a soccer practice or the boss a new deadline. Just think of all the reasons people give for not coming to church.
And yet, if you’re reading this today, chances are you have put engaging with God-Life above quite a few other demands on your time. Something about spending time and energy in the presence of God or God’s people, in praise and worship, in acts of mercy and justice, has been compelling enough that you’ve actually said yes to this invitation to the banquet, not once but many times.
What made the difference for you? If we can zero in on that, it may be that we can issue the invitation in a way that more people in our lives can respond to it. That doesn’t have to mean lowest-common-denominator consumer Christianity – some of the highest-commitment faith communities are the most robust. But it does have to be lively, full of life, real, true life. That’s what people are hungry for. What is it about the way we practice our faith that sometimes obscures the life at its heart?
Make a list today of all the reasons you’ve said yes to God’s invitation, and why you stay at God’s table. And if there is a list of excuses you’ve made or continue to make, you might list those too. Look at both lists and see what common threads become apparent. Where in these gifts and obstacles might you find the seeds of an invitation to a friend or acquaintance?
God’s banquet is waiting. In this life, we only experience the feast in parts – but oh, how rich even those morsels can be. Who is God sending you out to invite?
The invited guests in Jesus’ parable of the wedding banquet have no qualms about turning down the King’s invitation to his feast – in fact, they seem to have no respect for this king whatsoever. The first group just say, “No.” Then the king sends other servants out and says, “'Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.' But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, maltreated them, and killed them."
One to his farm, another to his business. In Luke’s version the excuses are more creative – one just got married and didn’t want to leave his new wife just yet. Who are these people who put God's invitations last?
Well… on any given day, it can be you or me or any one we know. There is no end to other priorities, it seems, when it comes to engaging the spiritual. It has to be on our schedule, and not when there’s anything else we’d rather do, or when the coach has called a soccer practice or the boss a new deadline. Just think of all the reasons people give for not coming to church.
And yet, if you’re reading this today, chances are you have put engaging with God-Life above quite a few other demands on your time. Something about spending time and energy in the presence of God or God’s people, in praise and worship, in acts of mercy and justice, has been compelling enough that you’ve actually said yes to this invitation to the banquet, not once but many times.
What made the difference for you? If we can zero in on that, it may be that we can issue the invitation in a way that more people in our lives can respond to it. That doesn’t have to mean lowest-common-denominator consumer Christianity – some of the highest-commitment faith communities are the most robust. But it does have to be lively, full of life, real, true life. That’s what people are hungry for. What is it about the way we practice our faith that sometimes obscures the life at its heart?
Make a list today of all the reasons you’ve said yes to God’s invitation, and why you stay at God’s table. And if there is a list of excuses you’ve made or continue to make, you might list those too. Look at both lists and see what common threads become apparent. Where in these gifts and obstacles might you find the seeds of an invitation to a friend or acquaintance?
God’s banquet is waiting. In this life, we only experience the feast in parts – but oh, how rich even those morsels can be. Who is God sending you out to invite?
10-6-14 - Who Loves a Wedding?
A story about a wedding. What a relief after the violence of last week’s parable of the vineyard. Who doesn’t love a wedding? Except that this nice parable about a wedding seems more like a Quentin Tarantino movie, with an enraged host, slaughtered guests and a bewildered party crasher. Granted, this is the way Matthew tells the story, and he seems always to ratchet up the violence. In Luke’s telling it is a lot milder.
It’s not actually a story about a wedding – it’s a story about invitation. An invitation spurned by indifferent guests, and the consequences. It’s a story about a host who won’t take “no” for an answer. The nutshell version:
A king gives a wedding banquet for his son. He sends servants to gather the invited guests, but they won’t come to the feast. He sends other servants with the message that the feast is ready, but these are mocked and given excuses, and then molested and killed. The enraged king retaliates, killing the offenders and burning their city, and then sends his servants out to the streets to invite everyone they find, “both good and bad,” to fill his wedding hall. One, who is not appropriately dressed, gets thrown out. Nice story, huh? (I think Matthew may have embellished the tale in the telling, but who can be sure… It does make a LOT more sense in Luke…)
What is this parable actually about? Like many of Jesus’ parables, it is in part about his claim that the leading religious figures have ignored God’s invitation offered through the prophets and ultimately through Jesus, to come to the feast prepared for them. Since the people of Israel have not been faithful to the Lord their God, God will send representatives to the “highways and byways,” gathering up the good and the bad people his realm – and sort out later who gets to stick around. If the King in Jesus’ story represents God, it’s not the loveliest picture of God – especially the part about killing the would-be guests and burning down their city.
On another level, it is a story about how easy it can be to put aside the claims and gifts of God and lose ourselves in the mundane and the worldly. We’ll explore that aspect more tomorrow.
Today, I suggest you read the story aloud to yourself, and notice where you get snagged. Give it some thought and read it again… what questions arise? What invitations do you hear? What warnings?
It is rather hard to find the Good News in this story – it’s very bad news for the people who have ignored God’s call to be his people, and so-so news for the ones scooped up on the streets, who may get to stay at the feast, or may be tossed into outer darkness. Where is the Good News for you?
It’s not actually a story about a wedding – it’s a story about invitation. An invitation spurned by indifferent guests, and the consequences. It’s a story about a host who won’t take “no” for an answer. The nutshell version:
A king gives a wedding banquet for his son. He sends servants to gather the invited guests, but they won’t come to the feast. He sends other servants with the message that the feast is ready, but these are mocked and given excuses, and then molested and killed. The enraged king retaliates, killing the offenders and burning their city, and then sends his servants out to the streets to invite everyone they find, “both good and bad,” to fill his wedding hall. One, who is not appropriately dressed, gets thrown out. Nice story, huh? (I think Matthew may have embellished the tale in the telling, but who can be sure… It does make a LOT more sense in Luke…)
What is this parable actually about? Like many of Jesus’ parables, it is in part about his claim that the leading religious figures have ignored God’s invitation offered through the prophets and ultimately through Jesus, to come to the feast prepared for them. Since the people of Israel have not been faithful to the Lord their God, God will send representatives to the “highways and byways,” gathering up the good and the bad people his realm – and sort out later who gets to stick around. If the King in Jesus’ story represents God, it’s not the loveliest picture of God – especially the part about killing the would-be guests and burning down their city.
On another level, it is a story about how easy it can be to put aside the claims and gifts of God and lose ourselves in the mundane and the worldly. We’ll explore that aspect more tomorrow.
Today, I suggest you read the story aloud to yourself, and notice where you get snagged. Give it some thought and read it again… what questions arise? What invitations do you hear? What warnings?
It is rather hard to find the Good News in this story – it’s very bad news for the people who have ignored God’s call to be his people, and so-so news for the ones scooped up on the streets, who may get to stay at the feast, or may be tossed into outer darkness. Where is the Good News for you?
10-3-14 - Fruits of the Kingdom
As we read the Gospels and even the book of Acts, it seems clear that neither Jesus nor his followers had any intention of starting a new religious system. They were trying to reform the tradition they’d inherited, a temple- based Judaism that had become leadership-heavy and legalistic. But from what Jesus says in his interpretation of this parable, it does seem clear that he expected the reform to involve a total change of leadership and operation: “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.”
So, what exactly are the “fruits of the Kingdom?”
We can glean what Jesus meant by the way he taught and the way he interacted with people. Chief among the fruits is repentance – that seems to be where we start in our relationship with God, by seeing ourselves honestly and clearly and finding out that God loves us as we are – and too much to leave us that way.
So repentance is related to another prime Kingdom fruit - healing.
Generosity seems to be a big fruit of the kingdom - an ability to loosen our grip on what is “ours” and share with all as any have need. We can really only do this when we truly love our neighbors as ourselves.
So we’d have to put love of neighbor as self on that list, and from that flow all kinds of other fruits.
A desire for justice and peace-making are fruits of the Kingdom, and a commitment to community in the Body of Christ.
What would you add to this list? What fruits do you see most often in your life? What do you wish you saw more of, in yourself and in the church around you?
If the Kingdom has been entrusted to us, are we helping to bring forth good fruit, transformed lives and a transformed world? I think that’s what Jesus had in mind…
So, what exactly are the “fruits of the Kingdom?”
We can glean what Jesus meant by the way he taught and the way he interacted with people. Chief among the fruits is repentance – that seems to be where we start in our relationship with God, by seeing ourselves honestly and clearly and finding out that God loves us as we are – and too much to leave us that way.
So repentance is related to another prime Kingdom fruit - healing.
Generosity seems to be a big fruit of the kingdom - an ability to loosen our grip on what is “ours” and share with all as any have need. We can really only do this when we truly love our neighbors as ourselves.
So we’d have to put love of neighbor as self on that list, and from that flow all kinds of other fruits.
A desire for justice and peace-making are fruits of the Kingdom, and a commitment to community in the Body of Christ.
What would you add to this list? What fruits do you see most often in your life? What do you wish you saw more of, in yourself and in the church around you?
If the Kingdom has been entrusted to us, are we helping to bring forth good fruit, transformed lives and a transformed world? I think that’s what Jesus had in mind…
10-2-14 - Gotcha
There is a pattern in these parables Jesus told his “frenemies,” the scribes and Pharisees: story, question, gotcha. Jesus would set up a situation of obvious injustice and then ask how they would resolve it. They would give an answer that, once they realized who represented them in the parable, indicted them. It’s amazing how often they fell for it.
So it is here. Jesus tells the story of the vineyard and the wicked tenants, and then asks, “’Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?’ They said to him, ‘He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.’”
“Gotcha,” Jesus says – “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’? Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.”
God is going to take the leadership away from you, he says, and give it to others, outsiders, outcasts, outliers, who will produce the fruit at harvest time, the fruit of repentance, the fruit of good works, the fruit of worship. Jesus uses an image from Psalm 118:22, of a stone, once rejected as unsuitable, now become the cornerstone of a new building. This theme is oft- repeated in salvation history, as God chooses unlikely candidates on which to build his community, like Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David. And we see it fulfilled in Jesus.
Jesus takes this familiar verse and turns it against the leaders:
"The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”
At this, the Pharisees and scribes realize he’s been talking about them, and the gloves are off. They begin to actively seek his arrest, but are afraid to offend the crowds, who see Jesus as a prophet. They might have taken what Jesus said to heart and examined their leadership, or welcomed the “unworthy’ to become full members of the religious community. But they are stuck in their own pride and self-righteousness.
In prayer today, let’s remember leaders, religious or secular, who seem stuck or blind to the big picture. Let’s pray especially for those leaders whom we don’t trust – they need God’s blessing the most. And let’s pray for those who appear to be on the outside, whom we don’t want to welcome in.
It seems to be a principle that as soon as we start to think we’re insiders, God upsets the apple cart and invites outsiders to our party, challenging our notions of what should be. We may as well try to get there first, and invite those outliers in ourselves. Or better yet, go out and join them, so we can be invited in.
So it is here. Jesus tells the story of the vineyard and the wicked tenants, and then asks, “’Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?’ They said to him, ‘He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.’”
“Gotcha,” Jesus says – “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’? Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.”
God is going to take the leadership away from you, he says, and give it to others, outsiders, outcasts, outliers, who will produce the fruit at harvest time, the fruit of repentance, the fruit of good works, the fruit of worship. Jesus uses an image from Psalm 118:22, of a stone, once rejected as unsuitable, now become the cornerstone of a new building. This theme is oft- repeated in salvation history, as God chooses unlikely candidates on which to build his community, like Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David. And we see it fulfilled in Jesus.
Jesus takes this familiar verse and turns it against the leaders:
"The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”
At this, the Pharisees and scribes realize he’s been talking about them, and the gloves are off. They begin to actively seek his arrest, but are afraid to offend the crowds, who see Jesus as a prophet. They might have taken what Jesus said to heart and examined their leadership, or welcomed the “unworthy’ to become full members of the religious community. But they are stuck in their own pride and self-righteousness.
In prayer today, let’s remember leaders, religious or secular, who seem stuck or blind to the big picture. Let’s pray especially for those leaders whom we don’t trust – they need God’s blessing the most. And let’s pray for those who appear to be on the outside, whom we don’t want to welcome in.
It seems to be a principle that as soon as we start to think we’re insiders, God upsets the apple cart and invites outsiders to our party, challenging our notions of what should be. We may as well try to get there first, and invite those outliers in ourselves. Or better yet, go out and join them, so we can be invited in.
10-1-14 - The Son
Many religious traditions revere one or more figures who received a revelation from which that tradition flowed. Some have prophets, some gurus, some gods or goddesses, some martyrs. The Christian tradition goes further, claiming that, in addition to prophetic and angelic messengers, God sent his own son to set people free from the consequences of sin and death.
If an important person sends her daughter or son to represent her, it means a little more than if their aide or staffer shows up. A daughter or son is more like that person, carrying her very DNA. The claim that Jesus of Nazareth was not only a good and holy man chosen by God as Messiah, but actually the incarnated son of God is a pretty big claim, one Christians have been trying to defend ever since.
Why does it matter that we consider Jesus the fully human, fully divine Son of God? Incarnation is a gift for all kinds of reasons, an indication of how far God is willing to go to bridge the gap to humankind. But it is in his sacrifice on the cross that the son-ship of Jesus perhaps matters most. As the sacrifice to end the whole bloody system of sacrifice, God offers the ultimate victim. As a friend once said, trying to explain the Cross – “You can’t get a bigger sacrificial victim than the Son of God.”
We can leave for another day the discussion of whether Jesus had to die and how his sacrifice set us free… traditional Christian doctrine says he did and it does. Each of us must find our way into that mystery. For today, let’s explore a smaller mystery – that in this parable, this very Son of God tells a story about a fictional son who is to be beaten and killed by those who charged with nurturing the harvest with which they’d been entrusted. Once again, Jesus is predicting his own death – and charging his listeners with murder. If they hadn’t already wanted to kill him, now they surely did.
In Jesus’ story, the wicked tenants seize the son, throw him out of the vineyard and kill him. So Jesus was cast out by the temple leadership who ultimately could not swallow his claims of divinity – or his growing influence. They told themselves they were just getting rid of yet another trouble-maker, not the Son of God. And yet Jesus’ son-ship remained a fact they had to deal with – even more after his death.
How does Jesus’ “son-ship” affect your faith?
Do you feel closer to God through knowing Jesus, however imperfectly we may know him in this life?
These are questions worth exploring as we live into a relationship with God through the Son whom we first meet in Jesus of Nazareth. They are worth exploring in prayer – we can say simply, “Jesus, I want to know God more fully. Let me see you," and see what unfolds.
How does knowing Jesus help us draw nearer the mystery of God? Jesus told his followers that if they’d seen him, they’d seen the Father. The best way to find out is to invite the Holy Spirit to dwell with us. It is the Spirit who brings us the presence of Christ, every time.
If an important person sends her daughter or son to represent her, it means a little more than if their aide or staffer shows up. A daughter or son is more like that person, carrying her very DNA. The claim that Jesus of Nazareth was not only a good and holy man chosen by God as Messiah, but actually the incarnated son of God is a pretty big claim, one Christians have been trying to defend ever since.
Why does it matter that we consider Jesus the fully human, fully divine Son of God? Incarnation is a gift for all kinds of reasons, an indication of how far God is willing to go to bridge the gap to humankind. But it is in his sacrifice on the cross that the son-ship of Jesus perhaps matters most. As the sacrifice to end the whole bloody system of sacrifice, God offers the ultimate victim. As a friend once said, trying to explain the Cross – “You can’t get a bigger sacrificial victim than the Son of God.”
We can leave for another day the discussion of whether Jesus had to die and how his sacrifice set us free… traditional Christian doctrine says he did and it does. Each of us must find our way into that mystery. For today, let’s explore a smaller mystery – that in this parable, this very Son of God tells a story about a fictional son who is to be beaten and killed by those who charged with nurturing the harvest with which they’d been entrusted. Once again, Jesus is predicting his own death – and charging his listeners with murder. If they hadn’t already wanted to kill him, now they surely did.
In Jesus’ story, the wicked tenants seize the son, throw him out of the vineyard and kill him. So Jesus was cast out by the temple leadership who ultimately could not swallow his claims of divinity – or his growing influence. They told themselves they were just getting rid of yet another trouble-maker, not the Son of God. And yet Jesus’ son-ship remained a fact they had to deal with – even more after his death.
How does Jesus’ “son-ship” affect your faith?
Do you feel closer to God through knowing Jesus, however imperfectly we may know him in this life?
These are questions worth exploring as we live into a relationship with God through the Son whom we first meet in Jesus of Nazareth. They are worth exploring in prayer – we can say simply, “Jesus, I want to know God more fully. Let me see you," and see what unfolds.
How does knowing Jesus help us draw nearer the mystery of God? Jesus told his followers that if they’d seen him, they’d seen the Father. The best way to find out is to invite the Holy Spirit to dwell with us. It is the Spirit who brings us the presence of Christ, every time.
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