Wednesday of the Fifth Week in Lent, reflection at daily mass at Mary Gate of Heaven Church
What surprises me most about today's gospel is that the people arguing with Jesus back and forth, aren't his typical adversaries. Jesus is not talking to the Pharisees or Sadducees. He is talking to "people who believe in him." And these people claim that they are children of Abraham, that God is their Father, and that they are free.
Jesus sees a different story. He says to his believers, you claim to be the children of Abraham, but you do not do his works. You claim to be free but you are a slave to your sins. You say that God is your Father but you hate his Son. And worst of all, you wish to kill me.
Jesus is calling on all of us, all of us who believe in him, to double-check ourselves with this little time of Lent we have left. Are we actually who we say we are? Do we walk the walk and not just talk the talk? Jesus wants us to walk in the freedom of the children of God, the freedom that comes with living the gospel and building the kingdom of God and its justice. But so often, we get confused and see not freedom, but the burden of the cross. Living the gospel requires great sacrifice.
Next week is Holy Week, and we celebrate the death of Jesus and the dark times he and his disciples went through. This I think is foreshadowed in the first reading, when the three men are thrown into the firey pit for refusing to worship idols. They are persecuted for boldly standing by their convictions, for being who they claim to be. However, God preserves them from the flames, just as Jesus was raised from the dead. We are called on to live a life of hope and love even in the face of our daily crosses. And if we remain in Jesus' Word, we will be free. And I pray that the freedom that comes with being true children of God can be ours as well.
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