Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Genesis 3: 7-9

When Abram prostrated himself, God spoke to him:
“My covenant with you is this:
you are to become the father of a host of nations.
No longer shall you be called Abram;
your name shall be Abraham,
for I am making you the father of a host of nations.
I will render you exceedingly fertile;
I will make nations of you;
kings shall stem from you.
I will maintain my covenant with you
and your descendants after you
throughout the ages as an everlasting pact,
to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
I will give to you
and to your descendants after you
the land in which you are now staying,
the whole land of Canaan, as a permanent possession;
and I will be their God.”

God also said to Abraham:
“On your part, you and your descendants after you
must keep my covenant throughout the ages.”

The Word of the Lord.

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We believe in the God of the impossible. Throughout scripture, the Lord works wonders, making us believe that anything can happen.

In our first reading, for example, the Lord promises Abraham that he will make him a father of nations, whose descendants shall be as numberless as the stars. 

While that sounds amazing, there’s one problem the Lord must solve first: Abraham’s one-hundred years old…and his wife, Sara, is ninety. Making matters worse, she’s barren.

When God tells Abraham not to worry – that Sara will indeed conceive – Abraham literally breaks out in laughter. It just seems too impossible.

But, again, we believe in a God who does the impossible.

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Sara not only conceives her first-born son, Isaac (whose name means “laughter” in Hebrew, recalling Abraham’s doubt), Abraham also became the father to a “host of nations.”

Today, more than half the world – nearly four billion people – consider Abraham their father in faith. 

That’s four-billion proofs of a promise kept.

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We call upon the same God today.

Whether we’re in need of something great – like our physical health to return, the promise of a child, or a new door to open – or something small like enough grace to be patient with others, the same God who changed Abraham’s life can change ours.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock,” Jesus says. “If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me” (Revelation 3:20).

Unlike Abraham, who laughed at God’s promise, may we accept them in faith. 

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Image credits: (1) Rivers Church (2) All Saints North Epping (3) Slide Player

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Gospel: John 8: 21-30

Jesus said to the Pharisees:
“I am going away and you will look for me,
but you will die in your sin.
Where I am going you cannot come.”
So the Jews said,
“He is not going to kill himself, is he,
because he said, ‘Where I am going you cannot come’?”
He said to them, “You belong to what is below,
I belong to what is above.
You belong to this world,
but I do not belong to this world.
That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.
For if you do not believe that I AM,
you will die in your sins.”
So they said to him, “Who are you?”
Jesus said to them, “What I told you from the beginning.
I have much to say about you in condemnation.
But the one who sent me is true,
and what I heard from him I tell the world.”
They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father.
So Jesus said to them,
“When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM,
and that I do nothing on my own,
but I say only what the Father taught me.
The one who sent me is with me.
He has not left me alone,
because I always do what is pleasing to him.”
Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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“You will die in your sins.”

That’s a grim promise. 

But Jesus is reading the hearts of the men standing before him. They do not see Jesus as “the way” to God; as “the way” to happiness; or as “the way” to anything good.

Rather, they see Jesus as “in” the way.

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Jesus is “in” the way of their religion.

He’s “in” the way of their egos.

He’s “in” the way of their convenient lifestyles.

He’s upsetting their plans, flipping tables, and turning their belief system upside down, while dining with tax collectors, forgiving sinners, and breaking the Sabbath.

He’s an obstacle that needs to be removed from their path – a path that cannot lead to God – which is why they will, “die in their sins.”

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Christians, on the other hand, never see Jesus as “in” the way of anything; rather, he’s “the” way to life in abundance. As it’s written in the Psalms, “Your Word is a lamp for my steps and a light for my path.”

The more we discern His will, the happier we become.

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Still, everyone must decide for themselves who Jesus is.

“The” way … or, “in” the way.

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May our actions speak for themselves.

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Image credits: (1) Church Leaders (2) StevenGoodwinBlog, WordPress (3) PosterMyWall

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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