Halfway through Lent, we consider where we are and where we are going
Reflections on the readings for the Fourth Sunday of Lent (March 14, 2021): 2 CHR 36:14-16,19-23; EPH 2:4-10; JN 3:14-21
MISSIO offers “Mission In Scripture” to nurture a missionary heart, providing reflections on the missionary themes in the readings of Sundays, Feast Days and Holy Days.
Almighty God never stops loving His people. And the ultimate proof is that Jesus came to give His life in exchange for ours, to destroy the finality of death and open Heaven as our eternal home. We need to believe in Christ and...
The Scripture selections for this Sunday remind us of the immense care God has always taken of His people, even when we have done nothing to deserve it. The reading from Chronicles tells us that God inspired Cyrus the king of Babylon to allow the Jews who had been held captive there for decades to return to Jerusalem. At the beginning of the Gospel today, Jesus recalls the way Moses followed God’s instruction to raise up a bronze serpent while they were in the desert after leaving Egypt. People who had been bitten by deadly snakes were then healed if they only gazed upon it. Christ goes on to say that it is time for the Son of Man to be lifted up so that those who believe in Him can gain eternal life. Then we hear St. Paul say that this is indeed the truth and that all people are called to accept this Good News. “God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love He had for us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ… raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-7).
Almighty God never stops loving His people. And the ultimate proof is that Jesus came to give His life in exchange for ours, to destroy the finality of death and open Heaven as our eternal home. We need to believe in Christ and to join our lives with His. The good works He expects of us are really His. Only in union with our Redeemer is their value revealed through our relationship with Him and, in turn, with our brothers and sisters. On this Fourth Sunday of Lent also known as Laetare Sunday, we pause in this penitential season to rejoice, for that is the Latin meaning of Laetare. We hear it in the Entrance Antiphon for today: “Rejoice Jerusalem, and all who love her. Be joyful, all who were in mourning; exult and be satisfied at her consoling breast.” Through our faith in the Son of God and the merciful love He shares with us, we have the wonderful opportunity of responding with our love – love revealed in prayer, in word, in action. Rejoice!
Suggested missionary action: We can thank God for His mercy to us by sharing our blessings. We can make a special effort this Lent look after those who struggle materially, emotionally, or spiritually in these difficult times.
Give with heart this Lent. Put resources in the hands of missionaries in the Pope’s missions who are serving the poor and battling COVID-19.