Fourth Week of Lent
13th March 2024 (Wednesday)
Psalter: Week 4
Reading of the Day
First Reading: Isaiah 49:8-15
Thus says the Lord: “In a time of favour I have answered you; in a day of salvation I have helped you; I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people, to establish the land, to apportion the desolate heritages, saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’ to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.’ They shall feed along the ways; on all bare heights shall be their pasture; they shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them, for he who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them. And I will make all my mountains a road, and my highways shall be raised up. Behold, these shall come from afar, and behold, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Syene.” Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the Lord has comforted his people and will have compassion on his afflicted. But Sion said, “The Lord has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.”
Psalm 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18 (R. 8a)
R/. The Lord is kind and full of compassion.
Verse Before The Gospel
V/. Glory and praise to you, O Christ
R/. Glory and praise to you, O Christ
V/.. I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord; everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.
R/. Glory and praise to you, O Christ.
Gospel : John 5:17-30
At that time: Jesus answered the Jews, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honour the Son, just as they honour the Father. Whoever does not honour the Son does not honour the Father who sent him. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life.
Daily Gospel Reflection
Highlight: Love never forgets and ignores!
Guidelines: The first duty of any true love is the recognition of the love of the other. If we really love God, then our first duty is to be deeply aware of His love for us
1. Often we hear so much about love. But at the same time, there is a great lack of love. Love is misunderstood, falsified, and abused. That is why we find so much egoism, animosity and aggression even in the name of love. This only shows that love is not rightly understood and exercised.
2. In such a context, today’s word of God gives us the best sample of true love. God’s love is the best and truest love. God Himself is the greatest lover. In Him, we find the true love, its features, its functions, and its effects.
3. In the first reading from the prophet Isaiah, God compares Himself to a mother and us to His nursing children. Just as a mother can never forget her nursing child, God too can never forget us. His love surpasses even this: even if a mother may forget, He will never forget us.
4. His love never ceases and so He never ceases to work for us. This is the very mission of God, to constantly manifest His love in manifold ways. He gives His own life to us; liberates us from our imprisonments; brings us to light from our darkness; quenches our hunger and thirst; guides and leads us in the right paths; and comforts the afflicted.
5. God wants to show and shower this abundant love upon us directly and concretely. For this, He has sent His only Son, Jesus Christ. Thereby, Jesus is the embodiment of the Father’s love and its living vehicle and channel. Through Jesus, God powerfully testifies to His caring and guiding love.
6. All that Jesus is and does is rooted in His inseparable communion with the Father. His mission becomes unfailing obedience and loyalty to do the Father’s will. As the Father loves the Son, He empowers the Son with His own life, light, and power to give life, to guide and empower and to judge and reward eternal life. Similarly, as the Son loves the Father, he is united with Him and does ever His will.
Practice: True love is passionate, selfless, and committed. It is testified in concrete actions. God shows His love in a ceaseless outpour of His grace and works of benevolence. How do we show our love for God?
