You Know Me
"Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us;
he sets himself against our doings,
Reproaches us for transgressions of the law
and charges us with violations of our training.
He professes to have knowledge of God
and styles himself a child of the LORD.
To us he is the censure of our thoughts;
merely to see him is a hardship for us,
Because his life is not like that of others,
and different are his ways. Wisdom 2:12-15
he sets himself against our doings,
Reproaches us for transgressions of the law
and charges us with violations of our training.
He professes to have knowledge of God
and styles himself a child of the LORD.
To us he is the censure of our thoughts;
merely to see him is a hardship for us,
Because his life is not like that of others,
and different are his ways. Wisdom 2:12-15
So, Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, “You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own,
but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. John 7:28-29
but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. John 7:28-29
Piety
May today there be peace within you.
May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received and pass on the love that has been given to you.
May you be content knowing you are a child of God.
Let His presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love. It is there for each and every one of us. Amen.
Study
How clever we think we are when we trust ourselves and not God…when we put our faith in human knowledge, not piety and love?
Today, the readings make us ponder the prophecy of the suffering of the Just One in the story from Wisdom or the pending suffering in the Gospel of John.
Throughout Lent, we have learned that God knows what is in our hearts and our minds. However, today, the sin of pride that man commits tries to assume that men can do the reverse – to know what is in God’s mind and heart. The relationship between Father and Son is being tested by the people who do not know how strong the bond is between them. Yet, despite these human tests, Jesus survived to fight another day. Jesus now knows that the authorities have been instructed to arrest him and he escapes arrest and lives to fight for and die for us on another day.
The irony of the prophecy is that people think that if they dole out a harsh sentence to the Just One, then “God will take care of him (or her).” How little we understood about that sentence.
In the direct prophecy revealed in the Book of Wisdom, we can overhear the wicked people plotting to kill the Messiah. But their plans are foiled because they did not know the inner thoughts of God or the power of holiness that protected the Son of God.
In the Gospel from John, the plot against Jesus thickens. The authorities are planning to arrest Jesus so he travels in secret and challenges them to their face. Once again, human knowledge shows all its shortcomings. In a clever play on words, Jesus is not ready to “go up” because his time is not yet here. (“You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast because my time has not yet been fulfilled." John 7:8). We can read into this that it is not (yet) time for Jesus to go up on the cross in the Crucifixion nor to return to us via the Resurrection on the third day nor to return to heaven in his final Ascension.
Too often, we put misguided trust in our seemingly clever ways like we are some kind of spiritual Boy Scout who can find our way in the dark night of the soul with only a book of wet matches and a compass stuck in the wrong direction. Sooner or later, we may come to realize that we do not know God’s ways.
Action
Jesus challenges us today with the assertion: “You Know Me!” But do we really know Jesus? Do we know ourselves?
Can we recognize our weaknesses? Can we put a name on them? Pride? Envy? Sloth? Can we neutralize their effects with a piety, study, and action (a recompense of holiness)?
What do you think it would be like to truly match wits with Jesus when he is at his best in the temple, not when he is humbly accepting punishment for our sins during the Passion?
Are you willing to let everyone see your weakness so you can be saved? Are you willing to accept the cross of suffering in order to become a true follower, a true brother or sister of Christ?
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