April 28, 2010
Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter
The word of God continued to spread and grow. Acts 12:24
I came into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness. And if anyone hears my words and does not observe them, I do not condemn him, for I did not come to condemn the world but to save the world. John 12:46-47
Piety
May God be gracious to us and bless us; may God's face shine upon us.
So shall your rule be known upon the earth, your saving power among all the nations.
May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you!
May the nations be glad and shout for joy; for you govern the peoples justly, you guide the nations upon the earth. Selah
May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you!
The earth has yielded its harvest; God, our God, blesses us.
May God bless us still; that the ends of the earth may revere our God. Psalm 67:2-8
Study
One of the beautiful aspects of the Gospel according to St. John is how central themes are established at the outset and reinforced through repetition throughout the book.
Jesus’ speech today to the disciples gathered at for the Passover Seder reinforces those central themes and puts the words into the mouth of God, not just the descriptions of the evangelist. Recall the opening words of chapter one:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:1-5
Jesus is the light shining in the darkness for his friends as well as for us. He reminds us in today’s reading that he came into the world as the light for the human race. He wants everyone who believes to come out of the dark. Bad things happen throughout John’s Gospel at night and goodness comes with the rising of the morning sun. Nicodemus first turns to Jesus at night so he would not be seen. However, in the end, faith brings Nicodemus into the light to help bury the body after Jesus dies on the cross. When the disciples are crossing the Sea of Tiberius at night, a violent storm tosses them around and they fear death until Jesus comes to them across the water.
In addition, the reading today also reinforces the lessons Jesus taught to Nicodemus in that midnight session – lessons which have become the most quoted passage in the Bible:
“…and just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. John 3:14-18
Action
Jesus is not here to condemn the world but to save it through his actions. Our belief, our faith makes possible the good works which must be performed to bring the Kingdom of God to fruition here on earth. “Whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.”
Although it may become increasingly easy to recognize these lessons as they resonate from the Good News, putting them into action is difficult. Whether it is by trying to mend a disagreement among family members, witnessing to the Gospel in society on the tough issues of life (such as war, euthanasia, abortion and more), welcoming the stranger, loving our enemies, or consistently following all Catholic Social Teachings, Jesus did not promise anywhere that these tasks would be easy.
It is easy to be judgmental. We are presented with numerous opportunities to judge others and judge the world. However, we are asked to imitate Christ, who did not come to judge the world but to save it through his faith put into action. What Jesus-lessons are the hardest for you to put into action?
