Wednesday of the Fourth Week
Today we read multiple accounts of the Lord’s mercy, forgiveness and compassion for all. In the first reading we read, “…Come out!,…Show yourselves!” The Lord is offering comfort to all of His people, including those who have fallen short of God’s will and have found themselves as prisoners of the law. The responsorial psalm repeats, “The Lord is gracious and merciful”, echoing the Lord’s forgiveness which raises the fallen to Him and reminds us that no one is to be denied of the Lord.
This notion that our Lord continues to forgive those who have fallen short leads me to a specific part of the Gospel passage. Jesus is expressing the “Rule of Love” over the “Rule of Law”. He is being criticized for performing a miracle on the sabbath, a day dedicated to rest, but assures the people that what He does has been done by the Father. The line that sticks out to me the most is, “Whoever does not honor the Son, does not honor the Father who sent him.”
If we deny Christ and his action/will, or deny others of the compassion of Christ, we are not living as God intended. Jesus alone can judge, with compassion for those who seek Him, as is the will of the Father who sent him. We must remember that human law is not always in accordance with the will of God and that His Love for us triumphs over the evils and failures we endure. If we remember to seek God in our daily lives, and to live as Christ taught us to live, leaving judgement for him, we will see more clearly the mercy, forgiveness, and compassion he promises.
Ryan Hay, ’19, MOVE
First Reading: Isaiah 49:8-15
Psalm 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18
Gospel: John 5:17-30
