Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 8, 51-59
Jesus said to the Jews:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever keeps my word will never see death.”
So the Jews said to him,
“Now we are sure that you are possessed.
Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say,
‘Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.’
Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died?
Or the prophets, who died?
Who do you make yourself out to be?”
Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is worth nothing;
but it is my Father who glorifies me,
of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’
You do not know him, but I know him.
And if I should say that I do not know him,
I would be like you a liar.
But I do know him and I keep his word.
Abraham your father rejoiced to see my day;
he saw it and was glad.”
So the Jews said to him,
“You are not yet fifty years old and you have seen Abraham?”
Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you,
before Abraham came to be, I AM.”
So they picked up stones to throw at him;
but Jesus hid and went out of the temple area.
God is life
1. Not dying. When one believes, life changes, not because you won’t go through sufferings and pains, because Christ never said that he is an insurance against distress and grief. But you learn to see life in a different way, so situations that may seem final or a threat to your way of living, are seen as an opportunity that will be a turning point in your life. It’s not that the problems disappear, not at all, but what changes is the way you see them and the way you consider the function they have in your life.
2. I know him. Knowledge is fundamental in our life; no one loves what they don’t know, that is the point. Do you know God? How can you love him and follow him if you don’t? I believe that many of us claim to know God, but maybe we reduce that knowledge to a certain sentimentality about God. There are times when we think we know God when, deep down, real knowledge of God is a lifelong process.
3. Rejoiced. Joy is something that determines the culmination of a process. Joy is the product of full knowledge and full love. We all like to feel loved, but this feeling of being loved is the beginning of a process that may involve breakups, situations of burden and pain. But that’s part of the path to full love. I remember when in my youth I had a fight with my girlfriend at that time. I was devastated, and my sister told me, “don’t worry, reconciliations will come, and they are great”. I learned that when you love it doesn’t mean that there won’t be fights or disagreements, the issue is how you face them and try to overcome them. Look for what gives you joy.
Always remember that something good is on the way!
God bless you and guard you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
