The Word Brings Life Eternal by Beth DeCristofaro
When Abram prostrated himself, God spoke to him: "My covenant with you is this: you are to become the father of a host of nations. No longer shall you be called Abram; your name shall be Abraham, for I am making you the father of a host of nations. … God also said to Abraham: "On your part, you and your descendants after you must keep my covenant throughout the ages." (Genesis 17:3-5, 9)
Jesus said to the Jews: "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever keeps my word will never see death." … Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM." (John 8:51, 18)
PIETY
Help me Lord pay attention to your ongoing creation of me, O God. Make me new as I go through each routine day open to your presence, open to your possibilities, open to your Grace. May I stay faithful to your commands and love, displaying even a tiny fraction of the great love you have for me. In my most distracted or difficult times may I be aware of your Eternal Life offered to me. May my day praise you.
STUDY
In the notes to the NAB, Jesus statement to the Jews, which incensed them so greatly that they tried to stone him, is explicated as: “Came to be, I AM: the Greek word used for ‘came to be’ is the one used of all creation in the prologue, while the word used for ‘am’ is the one reserved for the Logos.”[i] John’s language makes clear that Jesus refers to his divinity and to his deep and holy relationship to the God of their ancestors and ours.
However, the Jews were not open to Jesus, not to his message, not to his good works for others, not to his divine presence. They did not even ask questions of him like “What do you mean we won’t see death” or that you somehow “know” Abraham. Their minds were closed. Perhaps This was because he did not fit their preconceived notion of who and what the Messiah would be. Perhaps their hold on power was threatened by the notion that the Messiah should come in their lifetime. Are our minds closed to what he truly offers as well?
St Ignatius points out that we are generally not able or willing to recognize what God could help us be if we trust and give ourselves completely into His hands. God’s grace will form us into what we cannot begin to fathom. Instead we often feel that we are not worthy to what he wills for us. God’s covenant with Abraham made manifest through the birth of Isaac foreshadows this grace for us. God’s shaping grace is embodied by Jesus, God made Man, and enlivened in us through the Holy Spirit. We are offered, if we keep covenant with God, the eternity of grace
ACTION
Pause in this day perhaps setting an alarm, during this the last Thursday of Lent as we approach Holy Week. Ask for the grace to trust myself totally to God's love knowing that I will be called to join Him in Crucifixion and in Resurrection.
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