Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: John 8: 12-20

Jesus 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 written
that 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 words
while teaching in the treasury in the temple area.
But no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Throughout this week, the Gospels will paint a picture of Jesus in very tense discussions with the religious leaders of Israel. 

Though he claims to be the Son of God, or the “light of the world” as he says in today’s Gospel, the scribes and Pharisees are convinced that he’s a heretic – a crazy imposter who needs to be put to death because of his blasphemous claims.

This tension between Jesus and the religious leaders of his day takes a dramatic turn on Sunday when he enters Jerusalem for a final time, clashing with the scribes and Pharisees who will put him to death.

Interestingly enough, Jesus knows what will happen. He knows that his claims of being God’s Son will lead to his death.

How does he do it? How does he not retreat in fear or change his mind?

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He knows that he will rise again. 

In the meantime, he finds the strength he needs by praying to his Father, who alone can comfort him in these incredibly tense moments.

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How many of us, like Jesus, have faced a difficult or uncertain future?

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In these moments the Lord invites us to turn to him for comfort. He’s been there. He’ll always give us the strength we need to move forward in our lives – one day, one step at a time.

As he tells us plainly, “Come to me, all you who are heavy burdened and I will give you rest. For my yoke is easy and my burden light.” 

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Image credits: (1) Bill Osborne Studios (2) Paolo Veronese, Finding in the Temple (3) LDS Scripture of the Day

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Gospel: John 8: 1-11

Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area,
and all the people started coming to him,
and he sat down and taught them.
Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman
who had been caught in adultery
and made her stand in the middle.
They said to him,
“Teacher, this woman was caught
in the very act of committing adultery.
Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.
So what do you say?”
They said this to test him,
so that they could have some charge to bring against him.
Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.
But when they continued asking him,
he straightened up and said to them,
“Let the one among you who is without sin
be the first to throw a stone at her.”
Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.
And in response, they went away one by one,
beginning with the elders.
So he was left alone with the woman before him.
Then Jesus straightened up and said to her,
“Woman, where are they?
Has no one condemned you?”
She replied, “No one, sir.”
Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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The slap heard around the world.

I’m sure many of us saw a replay this week of what happened when Will Smith confronted Chris Rock on stage at the Oscars. 

It was a humiliating moment for each of them in different ways. 

Perhaps Will Smith described the incident best when, 45 minutes later, he returned to the stage to receive the award for Best Actor, his very first – and perhaps his last – Oscar.

In his speech, he said tearfully, “At your highest moment, be careful. That’s when the devil comes for you.”

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Smith is right – the devil can strike us at our highest high … or at lowest low. 

That’s what the devil does – he pits us against each other; he divides and humiliates us; he leads us to make decisions we later regret.

Can I think of a time when I also found that to be true?

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We see the same divisive dynamics unfolding in today’s Gospel: deceit, humiliation, and regret. People pitted against each other.

A woman is caught in the act of adultery and dragged before Jesus, surrounded by seething men bearing stones. They’re eager to put her to death, but they want to pressure Jesus into making the call.

It’s a harrowing scene. 

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Instead of entering into an unwinnable debate, Jesus simply bends down and begins to write on the ground with his finger.

What’s he writing?

Some scholars suggest Jesus was buying time; he’s doodling in the dust to collect his thoughts. Most say he was writing an account of the scribes and Pharisees’ own sins. 

Jesus uses this woman’s humiliating situation as a mirror, reminding the scribes and Pharisees that they, too, are guilty of sin. They, too, are in need of God’s forgiveness.

But instead of taking the opportunity to repent, they close their eyes in frustration, drop their stones, and wander off, plotting another scheme to trap Jesus, with the ultimate goal of putting him to death.

As we celebrate Palm Sunday next week, we will see their evil plans come to fruition.

So, the devil continues to wreak havoc in their hearts, pitting the scribes and Pharisees against their neighbors and even against God himself.

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How many of us are left wondering, “What happened to this woman’s partner? Where was he when all of this was happening? Why didn’t the scribes and Pharisees drag him into the temple area, too?” He was just as guilty.

Meanwhile, the compassion of Christ is revealed. “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? … Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.”

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Over the years, popular culture has embraced a phrase from today’s Gospel – “Let the one without sin cast the first stone.” 

And, by extension, “Only God can judge me.”

While these are both true, we must take those lines with a grain of salt, considering the entire context.

Yes, this woman is forgiven. But Christ also says to her: 

“Go, and sin no more.” Meaning, don’t go back to where you were; don’t continue the conversation with that man; don’t make another decision you’ll later regret.

Keep the devil at bay.

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Like this woman, in what ways is the Lord extending his forgiveness, while also calling me to reform my life? 

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The devil can strike at our highest high … at our lowest low… or really any day in between. Sadly, many saw this truth unfolding on live television.

But when the devil rears his ugly head, we turn to Jesus, who says, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more.”

With God’s grace, all things are possible.

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Image credits: (1) NPR (2) The Ministry of Jesus (3) blog.peacebewithu.com

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Gospel: John 5: 17-30

Jesus answered the Jews:
“My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.”
For this reason they tried all the more to kill him,
because he not only broke the sabbath
but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.

Jesus answered and said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own,
but only what he sees the Father doing;
for what he does, the Son will do also.
For the Father loves the Son
and shows him everything that he himself does,
and he will show him greater works than these,
so that you may be amazed.
For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life,
so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.
Nor does the Father judge anyone,
but he has given all judgment to the Son,
so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.
Whoever does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent him.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word
and believes in the one who sent me
has eternal life and will not come to condemnation,
but has passed from death to life.
Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here
when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,
and those who hear will live.
For just as the Father has life in himself,
so also he gave to the Son the possession of life in himself.
And he gave him power to exercise judgment,
because he is the Son of Man.
Do not be amazed at this,
because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs
will hear his voice and will come out,
those who have done good deeds
to the resurrection of life,
but those who have done wicked deeds
to the resurrection of condemnation.

“I cannot do anything on my own;
I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just,
because I do not seek my own will
but the will of the one who sent me.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Perhaps the most famous love story in literary history is William Shakespeare’s, Romeo and Juliet.

You may remember the famous balcony scene when Juliet gazes down upon Romeo and says, “Romeo, the more I give to you, the more I seem to have.”

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Juliet learned to see the world through Romeo’s eyes.

She dreamt her lover’s dreams and sought to please her lover’s needs, because the happier Romeo was, the happier Juliet became.

The more she gave, the more she had.

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Jesus is describing a similar relationship to his Father in today’s Gospel.

“I do not seek my own will,” he says, “but the will of the one who sent me.” 

The more Jesus does his Father’s will, the happier he becomes.

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The same is true for us.

The more we give ourselves to God, the happier we become.

I wonder, what might it look like for me to give even more of myself to God today?

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Image credits: (1) Hungryfaces (2) AZQuotes (3) QuoteFancy