Lenten Weekday
By Lorenz S. Centino, Jr.
John 8: 31 - 42
31 Jesus then said to the Jews who had believed in him, "If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples,
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."
33 They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham, and have never been in bondage to any one. How is it that you say, `You will be made free'?"
34 Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, every one who commits sin is a slave to sin.
35 The slave does not continue in the house for ever; the son continues for ever.
36 So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.
37 I know that you are descendants of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me, because my word finds no place in you.
38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father."
39 They answered him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do what Abraham did,
40 but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God; this is not what Abraham did.
41 You do what your father did." They said to him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God."
42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I proceeded and came forth from God; I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.
PERSONAL REFLECTIONS:
A BLESSED WEDNESDAY TO ALL!!!
FREEDOM is a big issue for everyone. All over the world we find people clamoring for freedom. Violence is even resorted to as a means just to gain the freedom long been sought. Civil wars in many countries are going on for freedom’s sake. Freedom is something that is basic for a meaningful human existence, or, to be more accurate, harmonious co-existence. However, the irony of it all, many have tried and continue to gain their freedom through some hostile means.
At the personal level, everyone wants to be free. No one wants to be controlled, coerced or restricted. No one wants to be enslaved. Everybody wants to be free. However, it is this longing and exercise of freedom that oftentimes causes troubles, chaos, and enslavement. The thirst for freedom in many situations becomes an occasion for enslavement and infringement of the freedom of others. By wanting to be free, the freedom of others is being violated, and to some even denied.
In the Gospel today Jesus declares that he brings the TRUTH that will sets us FREE! To be free therefore is to abide by this truth. It is very clear, however, that the truth Jesus is talking about is connected with his WORD. He said so clearly that “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the TRUTH will make you free.” Jesus is very direct and specific in claiming that we will only KNOW the truth if we will abide by his WORD. And the truth Jesus would like us to realize is that we are all SLAVES of SIN and it is for this that Jesus came to free us from this enslavement that brings us all to eternal condemnation. Jesus comes to FREE us all from SIN. This is the TRUTH! If we will believe on this truth, we will be set free. Jesus declared this truth to the Jews who do not know the bondage and freedom he is talking about by saying, "Truly, truly, I say to you, every one who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not continue in the house for ever; the son continues for ever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.” To be free requires that we BELIEVE in the Son sent by the Father.
Jesus challenged the Jews who consider God as their Father saying, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I proceeded and came forth from God; I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.” Jesus, as the Son, declares that if we consider God as our Father, then we must accept and believe in him for he comes from the Father. To accept the TRUTH of Jesus, which is acceptance of his WORD, is to ABIDE by his teaching. If we abide by his teachings, we also abide by the One who sent him. Following Jesus is abiding by the WILL of the Father in heaven. This is the truth that will give us true freedom. Therefore, this freedom is not attained through violent and hostile means. This freedom is achieved through FRIENDSHIP with the Son sent by the Father. It is by becoming a DISCIPLE that we will come to know the truth that sets us free. Abiding by the word of Jesus, we abide also by the WILL of GOD. If we want to be free, the Gospel today strongly challenges us to SURRENDER ourselves to Jesus and WALK the TALK of Jesus in our daily lives.
No comments:
Post a Comment