HOMILY LENT WEEK 04 03 – Year II
Faith, Identity and Eternal Life Now
(Is 49:8-15; Ps 145; Jn 5:16-30)
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Moses and Jesus were golfing one day. It turns out that Jesus is a great fan of Tiger Woods. Every time he made a good shot, Jesus would exclaim “Wow – just like Tiger Woods!” and every time me made a poor shot, Jesus would complain, “Oh, if only I could shoot like Tiger Woods.” This went on and on to the point that Moses was getting a bit tired of it all. Then Jesus hit a ball over a pond of water into the rough. Moses asked him if he should part the waters for him to get his ball. Jesus replied no, he would walk over and get it himself, and proceeded to walk on the water towards his ball. Another golfer came along, noticed Jesus walking on the water, and asked Moses, “Who does that guy think he is, Jesus Christ?” Moses replied, “No, Tiger Woods!”
The readings today invite us to believe in Jesus, do the Father’s will, and enjoy eternal life.
The humorous story above plays with the identity of Jesus. More seriously, the image of God and identity of Jesus continues to be a challenge for many people today. Psalm 145 provides us with one of the more complete descriptions of God in the Old Testament, a God who is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love. In short, God’s compassion is over all that God has made.
In the first reading, the great prophet Isaiah alludes to a day when someone will fulfill the covenant God made with God’s people; will liberate those in darkness; bring life to those struggling to survive, transform suffering and deprivation into abundance and compassion. He ends with the beautiful image of God as a mother who will never forget a nursing child or a baby within her womb. All this presages the incident in the synagogue at Nazareth in which Jesus proclaimed that these prophecies of Isaiah were being fulfilled.
In the Gospel of John, we see Jesus, the covenantal and suffering servant at work, healing a paralyzed man as Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus is one with the Father, doing only the will of the Father. He is the key to entering the kingdom of God – those who believe he was sent by the Father and do his will, as he did the will of the Father, will actually already experience that same eternal life Jesus shares with the Father, and not be subject to judgement. That is because they are already living in the kingdom of heaven here on earth, and have passed from death to life. This is amazing grace, grace that brings us even now the very life of God within us.
A little story may illustrate how God works invisibly in our lives. A pastor visited a parishioner who had stopped going to church. Suspecting the reason for the visit, the man welcomed the pastor in and they sat by the fire watching the burning embers wordlessly for some minutes. Then the pastor took the tongs, took out an ember, and set it aside while the man watched. Eventually the ember stopped burning and turned cold. Still not a word was spoken. Then, just before leaving, the pastor took the tongs and placed the ember back in with the burning logs, and it ignited immediately and continued burning. The man thanked the pastor for the visit, and especially for the fiery sermon, and said he would be back in church the following Sunday.
The Eucharist is a covenant meal around a table of word and sacrament laden with God’s compassion and love. May our celebration today deepen our faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior, empower us to do his will, and enliven within us the eternal life that Jesus alone can give us.
