Daily Gospel Reflection April 21st 2020
Gospel JN 3:7B-15
Jesus
said to Nicodemus:
“‘You must be born from above.’
The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus answered and said to him,
‘How can this happen?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“You are the teacher of Israel and you do not understand this?
Amen, amen, I say to you,
we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen,
but you people do not accept our testimony.
If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe,
how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”
“‘You must be born from above.’
The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus answered and said to him,
‘How can this happen?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“You are the teacher of Israel and you do not understand this?
Amen, amen, I say to you,
we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen,
but you people do not accept our testimony.
If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe,
how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”
Dear Friends and Family,
Maybe it’s because I’m a teacher,
maybe I appreciate Nicodemus’s sincere desire to understand, but I love
Nicodemus. He is trying to truly
understand what Jesus Christ is saying.
Nicodemus is a member of the Sanhedrin, he is a teacher of Israel and he
comes to Jesus for wisdom and understanding.
Nicodemus knows what he is doing is risky, coming to Jesus at night, but
he sees and hears something different in Jesus he can’t let slip by or
ignore. Nicodemus is willing to humble
himself at the foot of the master so that he can grasp what Jesus is all
about. Jesus takes Nicodemus where he is
at. Jesus uses the lessons of the Exodus,
something a teacher of Israel would know, and Jesus uses it to tell Nicodemus
of what is to come. Jesus uses Israel’s
past, to tell Nicodemus of Israel’s future.
A future that involves the sacrifice of Jesus crucified and lifted
up. I’m sure Nicodemus walked home that
night pondering what Jesus told him, not quite sure of what it meant.
Don’t we all feel that way at times? We hear something in scripture or in some
teaching of the Catholic Church and at first glance we just don’t grasp
it. Then we ponder it and look to the
roots of our faith to better understand where we are growing. Then with a humble heart we surrender to the
wisdom and guidance of our God and his Holy Church. Jesus and his Church have a purpose, to lead
all people home to the Father in Heaven.
As we spend time with the Word, as we wrestle with its truth, as we
consider what it means for our lives and our world. We walk in the footsteps of Nicodemus and
become humble students whose lives are changed by Jesus. Let us pray that we will never lose our
desire to grow spiritually, learn from our mistakes, and become more and more
like our teacher and master, Jesus Christ.
Ideas: Fr. Mike Schmitz Sunday Homilies - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXS0cAkuTPpJ6j3eH59WudJhJ4q1tpwH
Divine Mercy
Chaplet -
https://www.thedivinemercy.org/message/devotions/pray-the-chaplet
USCCB Daily
Readings - http://usccb.org/bible/readings
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