Lenten Journey, March 22, 2010

Father of love, source of all blessings, help us to pass from our old life of sin to the new life of grace. Prepare us for the glory of your kingdom.
Jn 8:12-20Jesus spoke to them again, saying,“I am the light of the world.Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness,but will have the light of life.” So the Pharisees said to him,“You testify on your own behalf,so your testimony cannot be verified.”Jesus answered and said to them,“Even if I do testify on my own behalf, my testimony can be verified, because I know where I came from and where I am going.But you do not know where I come from or where I am going.You judge by appearances, but I do not judge anyone.And even if I should judge, my judgment is valid,because I am not alone,but it is I and the Father who sent me.Even in your law it is writtenthat the testimony of two men can be verified.I testify on my behalf and so does the Father who sent me.”So they said to him, “Where is your father?”Jesus answered, “You know neither me nor my Father.If you knew me, you would know my Father also.”He spoke these wordswhile teaching in the treasury in the temple area.But no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.

Jesus chastises the Pharisees for judging based on appearances rather than discerning the truth. They see a man, but Jesus knows that He is the Son of God. He can verify that truth but they cannot, and they are unable to accept His statement that He is the light of the world as the truth that it is. The Pharisees quibble about the veracity of the statements but miss the big picture – Jesus is telling them of His divinity. How often do we judge by physical appearances and not by the underlying content of another’s character? How true is our trust in the Lord? And so our prayer today is to ask for the grace to trust, to let go of fear, to follow the tiny voice inside us that always pulls us toward God.

God of love, We know that you are the source of all that is good and graced in our lives. Help us to move from the life of sin to which we so often cling, into the new life of grace you offer us. You know what we need to prepare for your kingdom. Bless us with those gifts. Amen