3rd April 2020
Friday of the 5th week of Lent
For today’s Gospel reading click the link below
Mass Readings
Meditation: Why were the religious leaders so upset with Jesus that they wanted to kill him? They charged him with blasphemy because he claimed to be the Son of God and he made himself equal with God. The law of Moses laid down the death penalty for such a crime: “He who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him” (Leviticus 24:16). As they were picking up stones to hurl at Jesus, he met their attack with three arguments. The many good works that he did, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, and feeding the hungry, demonstrated that his power and marvelous deeds obviously came from God.
I am
the Son of God
Jesus then defended his right to call himself the Son of God with a quote from
Psalm 82:6 (“I say, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of
you”). Jesus argued that if Scripture can speak like that of humans, why
should he not speak of himself like that? Jesus then made two claims: He
was consecrated by the Father for a special task and he
was sent into the world to carry out his Father’s mission
(John 10:36). The scriptural understanding of consecration is to make
holy for God – to be given over as a free-will offering and sacrifice
for God.
Consecrated
and sent to do the Father’s works
Jesus made himself a sin-offering for us, to ransom us from condemnation and
slavery to sin. He spoke of his Father consecrating him for this mission of
salvation (John 10:36). Jesus challenged his opponents to accept his
works if they could not accept his words. One can argue
with words, but deeds are beyond argument. Jesus is the perfect teacher in that
he does not base his claims on what he says but on what he does. The word of
God is life and power for those who believe and accept it as God’s word for us.
Jesus shows us the way to walk the path of truth and holiness. And he anoints
us with his power to live the Gospel with joy and to be his witnesses in the
world. Are you a doer of God’s word, or a forgetful hearer only?
“Write upon my heart, O Lord, the lessons of your holy word, and grant that I may be a doer of your word, and not a forgetful hearer only.”
Psalm 18:2-6
2 The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my
rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my
stronghold.
3 I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved
from my enemies.
4 The cords of death encompassed me, the torrents of perdition assailed me;
5 the cords of Sheol entangled me, the snares of death confronted me.
6 In my distress I called upon the LORD; to
my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to
him reached his ears.
A Daily Quote for Lent: The sacrifice of Christ, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
“Even though the man Christ Jesus, in the form of God together with the Father with whom He is one God, accepts our sacrifice, nonetheless He has chosen in the form of a servant to be the sacrifice rather than to accept it. Therefore, He is the priest Himself Who presents the offering, and He Himself is what is offered.” (excerpt from City of God, 10,20)
copyright (c) 2020 Servants of the Word, source: www.dailyscripture.net, author Don Schwager