God so Loved the World That He Gave Us His Only Son
Introduction: May the Lord Jesus continue to gift you and may you respond gracefully and gratefully, giving thanks to GOD for opening your eyes of faith.
The readings focus on grace. Grace means “gift.” It is GOD’s gift to us. We are
called to be gracious receivers of GOD’s gift and grateful in our response to GOD’s
gift. This is the Covenant Relationship that GOD desires to have with us. The readings
can speak to us about our covenant relationship with GOD. GOD desires that we grow
in that relationship and live lives proclaiming GOD as the Gracious One Who gifts
us.
Our readings speak
of GOD’s gifting of the Holy People and the People’s need to respond to GOD’s gifts.
The passage from Hebrew scripture, which is used as our First Reading, describes
the Exile in Babylon and their release from Exile. It is GOD Who gifts the Chosen
People with freedom by using a gentile ruler. The psalm describes the importance
of the Babylonian exiles’ remembering how GOD had graced the Holy City of Jerusalem.
In remembering (Hebrew: zikaron), the people pray for and look forward to, the time
when GOD will again grace them with a return to the Holy City. In the Second Reading,
Saint Paul describes the ultimate gift of GOD: eternal life with the Risen Lord
Jesus Christ and His Abba-Father. In the Gospel, we have the often-quoted summary
of the gift of salvation: “GOD so love the world that GOD sent the Only Son, not
to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”
First Reading: 2 Chronicles 36:14-16,19-23
God's wrath and mercy are revealed in the exile and release of his people
Commentary: In the first
readings for Sundays in Lent, we have worked through the promising but tragic
history of Israel, a history of promises by God, broken promises, and fresh
starts by Israel. We have seen this in the stories of the covenant with Noah,
Abraham’s obedient trust, and the commands given to Moses to keep Israel
faithful to the Lord. Now we come to the final disaster, inevitably brought on
by Israel’s repeated failure and infidelity. This whole history of Israel was
composed with the background theme that fidelity brought prosperity and that a
healing punishment was the inevitable consequence of desertion of the Lord. In
this final chapter, the historian looks back at the ultimate disaster of Exile
in Babylon, and the return of a renewed Israel to the Holy City. Even then the
promised blessing of God seemed long delayed. They were an oppressed little
community, huddled around Jerusalem, harassed by their neighbours, and
dominated by one foreign power after another. After some years they did summon
up energy and resources to rebuild the Temple, but they continued to yearn for
the decisive intervention of God which would enable them to serve their Lord in
freedom and total dedication.
Responsorial Psalm 137:1-6
O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember you not!
The plight of the
exiles in Babylon is recalled in Psalm 137. The people lament their plight. They
cannot sing the joyful songs of the LORD when they are not in the presence of GOD
as was manifested in the Temple in Jerusalem. Yet, as they remember the specialness
of Jerusalem and the blessings they once had, they pray that their remembering (zikaron)
will lead to their eventual return not just to Jerusalem, but also to the covenant
relationship that the Temple had signified.
Second Reading: Ephesians 2:4-10
You have been saved through grace
Commentary: The Letter to the
Ephesians is usually considered to be the first commentary and reflection on
Paul rather than from the Apostle’s own hand, reflecting on the salvation won
by Christ. After the record in the first reading of the repeated failures of
Israel, the message, twice repeated, that salvation is by grace alone, is
particularly apt. Grace here means not a substance poured into our souls to
provide some sort of salvific energy but is God's unmerited favour and choice.
It is a personal relationship rather than a material, rather even than a
spiritual gift. God has smiled on each of us and invited us into his
friendship. In the light of this gift of friendship, we are strengthened and
encouraged to serve him, so that this gift of his friendship becomes an ever
stronger and more important element in our lives. God shows us his love and we
respond. So, he shows us even greater love. But the greatest gift of all is his
Son and the salvation, the new life won for us by Christ.
Gospel: John 3:14-21
God sent his Son so that through him the world might be saved
Commentary:
After
Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus comes this reflection on his visit. Is it
Jesus’ reflection or the evangelists? The text does not make it clear.
Throughout the gospel of John, people come to Jesus and judge themselves by
their reactions to Jesus. The Father judges no one but has given all judgment
to the Son. In his turn, the Son does not judge, but we judge ourselves by our
reaction to him. So, at the wedding at Cana, the disciples believe in him and
see his glory. In the Temple, the Jews refuse belief and are condemned. Then
comes Nicodemus in secret and fear. He is sitting on the fence, afraid of the
Pharisees, but by the time of the burial he has decided for Jesus. After
Nicodemus comes the Samaritan woman, cheeky and unbelieving at first, but won
over by Jesus’ playful persistence. And so on the Jews on one side, the man healed
at the Pool of Bethzatha on the other; the Jews on one side, the man blind from
birth on the other. The decision is ours too: when confronted by Jesus do we
come to the light that our deeds may be known, or do we shun the light?
Reflection: Do you know the
healing power of Christ's redeeming love and victory which he won for us on the
cross? The Old Testament prophets never ceased to speak of God's faithfulness
and compassion towards those who would turn away from sin and return to God
with repentant hearts, trust, and obedience (2 Chronicles 36:15). When Jesus
spoke to Nicodemus, he prophesied that his death on the cross would bring
healing and forgiveness and a "new birth in the Spirit" (John 3:3)
and eternal life (John 3:15).
The
"lifting up" of the Son of Man
Jesus
explained to Nicodemus that the "Son of Man" must be "lifted
up" to bring the power and authority of God's kingdom to bear on the
earth. The title, "Son of Man," came from the prophet Daniel who
describes a vision he received of the Anointed Messiah King who was sent from
heaven to rule over the earth (Daniel 7:13-14). Traditionally when kings began
to reign, they were literally "lifted up" and enthroned above the
people. Jesus explains to Nicodemus that he will be recognized as the Anointed
King when he is "lifted up" on the cross at Calvary. Jesus died for
his claim to be the only begotten Son sent by the Father in heaven to redeem,
heal, and reconcile his people with God.
Jesus points to a
key prophetic sign that Moses performed in the wilderness right after the
people of Israel were afflicted with poisonous serpents. Scripture tells us
that many people died in the wilderness because of their sin of rebellion
towards Moses and God. Through Moses' intervention, God showed mercy to the
people and instructed Moses to "make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole;
and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live"(Numbers 21:8).
This miraculous sign was meant to foreshadow and point to the saving work which
Jesus would perform to bring healing and salvation to the world.
Cyril of
Alexandria (376-444 AD), an early church father, explains the spiritual meaning
of the bronze serpent and how it points to the saving work of Jesus Christ:
"This story
is a type of the whole mystery of the incarnation. For the serpent signifies
bitter and deadly sin, which was devouring the whole race on the earth...
biting the Soul of man and infusing it with the venom of wickedness. And there
is no way that we could have escaped being conquered by it, except by the
relief that comes only from heaven. The Word of God then was made in the
likeness of sinful flesh, 'that he might condemn sin in the flesh' [Romans
8:3], as it is written. In this way, he becomes the Giver of unending salvation
to those who comprehend the divine doctrines and gaze on him with steadfast
faith. But the serpent, being fixed upon a lofty base, signifies that Christ
was manifested by his passion on the cross so that none could fail to see
him." (COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 2.1)
The
cross defeats sin and death
The
bronze serpent which Moses lifted up in the wilderness points to the cross of
Christ which defeats sin and death and obtains everlasting life for those who
believe in Jesus Christ. The result of Jesus "being lifted up on the
cross" and his rising from the dead, and his exaltation and ascension to
the Father's right hand in heaven, is our "new birth in the Spirit"
and adoption as sons and daughters of God. God not only frees us from our sins
and pardons us, he also fills us with his own divine life through the gift and
working of his Spirit who dwells within us.
The Holy Spirit
gives us spiritual power and gifts, especially the seven-fold gifts of wisdom
and understanding, right judgment and courage, knowledge and reverence for God
and his ways, and a holy fear in God's presence (Isaiah 11), to enable us to
live in his strength as sons and daughters of God. Do you thirst for the new
life that God offers you through the transforming power of his Holy Spirit?
The
proof of God's love for us
How
do we know, beyond a doubt, that God truly loves us and wants us to be united
with him forever? For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that
whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
God proved his love for us by giving us the best he had to offer - his only
begotten Son who freely gave himself as an offering to God for our sake and as
the atoning sacrifice for our sin and the sin of the world.
This passage
tells us of the great breadth and width of God's love. Not an excluding love
for just a few or for a single nation, but a redemptive love that embraces the
whole world, and a personal love for each and every individual whom God has
created. God is a loving Father who cannot rest until his wandering children
have returned home to him. Saint Augustine says God loves each one of us as if
there were only one of us to love. God gives us the freedom to choose whom and
what we will love.
Jesus shows us
the paradox of love and judgment. We can love the darkness of sin and unbelief,
or we can love the light of God's truth, beauty, and goodness. If our love is
guided by what is true, good, and beautiful then we will choose for God and
love him above all else. What we love shows what we prefer. Do you love God
above all else? Do you give him first place in your life, in your thoughts,
decisions, and actions?
Lord Jesus
Christ, your death brought life for us. May your love consume and transform my
life so that I may desire you above all else. Help me to love what you love, to
desire what you desire, and to reject what you reject.
Daily
Quote from the Early Church Fathers: He descended so that we might ascend, by
Hilary of Poitiers, 315-367 A.D.
"God, who
loved the world, gave his only begotten Son as a manifest token of his love. If
the evidence of his love is this, that he bestowed a creature on creatures,
gave a worldly being on the world's behalf, granted one raised up from nothing
for the redemption of objects equally raised up from nothing, such a cheap and
petty sacrifice is a poor assurance of his favour toward us. Gifts of price are
the evidence of affection: the greatness of the surrender is evidence of the
greatness of the love. God, who loved the world, gave no adopted son but his
own, his only begotten [Son]. Here is personal interest, true sonship, and
sincerity, not creation, or adoption, or pretence. Here is the proof of his
love and affection, that he gave his own, his only begotten Son." (excerpt
from ON THE TRINITY 6.40.27)
GOD IS RICH
“God is rich in
mercy; because of His great love for us, He brought us to life with Christ when
we were dead in sin. By this favour you were saved.” —Ephesians 2:4-5
Today is
traditionally called “Laetare Sunday.” “Laetare” means “rejoice,” for Lent is
half over and Easter is only three weeks away. We rejoice not because we don’t
have to fast for much longer but because God has already done marvelous works
this Lent, and this is only the beginning.
What are you
expecting for Holy Week and the Easter season? Do you expect a fifty-day Sunday
for the Easter season? No matter how high your hopes, the Lord will do more
than you could ever ask or imagine (Eph 3:20). “Is it possible that He Who did
not spare His own Son but handed Him over for the sake of us all will not grant
us all things besides?” (Rm 8:32)
After God loved
the world so much that He gave His only Son (Jn 3:16), we can only
underestimate the love, grace, and glory God has in store for us (1 Cor 2:9).
He “gave us a place in the heavens, that in the ages to come He might display
the great wealth of His favor” (Eph 2:6-7). We are so small and closed in on
ourselves. God is so great and lavish in His love. How can the ocean of God’s
love be poured into the thimble of our selfishness? “Open wide your hearts!” (2
Cor 6:13)
Prayer: Father, I’m sorry I’ve been too self-centered
to receive Your love. I repent. Do anything You want to open wide my heart.
“Whoever, therefore, among you belongs to any part of His people, let him go
up, and may his God be with him!” —2 Chr 36:23. “Give thanks to the Lord, for
He is good, for His kindness endures forever” (Ps 106:1).
The personal
action for today: In the past, what did “grace” mean to me? Have I come to a new understanding
and experience of “grace”? When have I experienced the graciousness of GOD? How
have I responded to that graciousness? How can I live a more “graceful” and “grateful”
life, demonstrating my awareness of GOD’s gifts to me? What can I do to help others
come to a greater appreciation of GOD’s grace in their lives?