Wednesday of 2nd Week of Easter 6th April 2016
“For God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but so that through Him the world might be saved. No one who believes in Him will be judged ; but whoever does not believe is judged already, because that person does not believe in the Name of God’s Only Son.”
It is not easy nowadays to discern between light and darkness, for the distinction between what is light and what is darkness has really become quite unclear.
In the Gospel, we see how Light came into the world in the Person of Jesus, and there is no possible contestation tot he fact that His Works were good one. He paid attention tot he little ones, he healed the sick, chased away demons..
God is very Present in His Word and was compassionate towards weaknesses. God was incarnate in Jesus Christ and His teaching is a message of Hope, a demanding message but one full of Truth.
Nicodemus came to find Jesus at night to ask Him how to have Eternal Life. Jesus listens to Him but Nicodemus will need more time to understand that Jesus speaks to him of a new birth to introduce him into a world of Love come down from above.
The passage from the world ’below’ to the world ’above’ is done through a new birth, which gives faith in God who comes to get us out of darkness.
Still today we are faced with the paradox with which the disciples were confronted : Jesus brings the Good News of reconciliation and peace, but this announcement is not received-it is unknown and rejected.
“No one who believes in Him will be judged ; but whoever does not is judged already, because that person does not believe in the Name of God’s Only Son. And the judgement is this : though the light has come into the world people have preferred darkness to the light because their deeds were evil.”
It is difficult to proclaim ones Christian faith because today we are invited to be discreet, indeed, even silent, for ’it’s not the thing to do’. We who seek rest
in a true faith are lost when faced with a multitude announces of contradictory faith with one another. We are happy to recognise a faith that is a sincere one in the Eternal God and a desire to go off seeking ultimate Truth.
Jesus’ judgement on human freedom concerns us, for we can see how deep our heart in the Light of the Gospel. Only the power of Infinite Love can bring liberation.
Nicodemus will be present at the tomb, and he will understand how Jesus makes the link between Heaven and the world below. Jesus liberates us by His Passion for God sent his son into the world, not to judge the world but to save it.
Risen with Christ, we give our consent to the work of God through Baptism, Jesus comes and saves us from the bottom of darkness.
“And indeed, everyone who does wrong hates the light and avoids it, to prevent his actions from being shown up; but whoever does the truth comes out into the light, so that what he is doing may plainly appear as done in God.”
At the heart of our faith in Jesus, there is His Word which is the Gospel.It is the Good News, as innumerable saints witness, those who believed in Him. With them, we need to say, and to do what we say, so that Christian life be true and doesn’t lose its footing because of numerous counter witnesses which have strewn the history of the Church to justify our bad works, and weakening in this way Christian witnessing.
We grasp how much the demand of religious freedom and freedom of conscience is an element that is constitutive to the dignity of the human person, provided he recognises the Light of Christ.
To the extent that each person is respected in the choice of his conscience, he has a chance to draw close to the Truth which enlightens the world.
Jesus comes into this world, Nicodemus will be there to receive Jesus’ Body at the Cross and to bury him.
To accept Jesus means to enter into an Infinite Confidence, an endless Love, for Jesus is with us.
If we act in Truth and desire the Kingdom with great Love this makes us dwell in the Light of Christ.