17 March 2021
John 5:17-30
When reading the Gospel of John, I always feel I am being called to reflect on my life, especially in a spiritual sense. That perhaps my spiritual life is not where it needs to be, and now is the time to get uncomfortable and grow. Well, this is exactly what today’s Gospel reading is requiring each of us to do: read, reflect, get uncomfortable, and act. What better time to do this than in the season of Lent?
When Jesus heals a man on the sabbath and stirs such an uproar causing his adversaries to want to kill him, I want to tiptoe away quietly, unheard and unseen, and hide my head in the sand. Why would Jesus do such a thing? Why not adhere to the laws of the land and come back tomorrow?
Jesus tells us why, “My Father is at work until now, so I am at work” (Jn 5:17). It is unfathomable to think that God has worked unceasingly since creation for the well-being of each of us, but Jesus tells us this is true. Creation is not yet finished, there is still so much work to be done. God will never abandon us. In the messiness of the world, a messiness that we in fact created ourselves, we have a perfect example of God’s continuous work and mercy in the gift of His only Son.
We are being called to pull our heads out of the sand, to abandon fear, and to be like Christ in today’s gospel. This life on earth is not to be spent doing our own bidding but to do God’s will, as Jesus proclaims, “I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me” (Jn 5:30).
Amanda Costello
Meditation
Lord, Sometimes I want to shy away from doing your will. Help me to live out your calling in my life boldly.
