Reflection for April 6, Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent: John 8:31-42

Gospel: John 8:31-42

Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.  

A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son always remains. So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free. I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you. I tell you what I have seen in the Father’s presence; then do what you have heard from the Father.” 

They answered and said to him, “Our father is Abraham.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works of Abraham. But now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God; Abraham did not do this. You are doing the works of your father!” So they said to him, “We were not born of fornication. We have one Father, God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and am here; I did not come on my own, but he sent me.”

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Reflection:

What would happen to us if we decide to faithfully follow Jesus? Jesus will set us free from all forms of worldliness. He will open our minds about the deeper truths of life and our faith. He will make us appreciate that our life in this world is just a bridge that we must pass through for us to go to His kingdom.  

But there’s a condition for us to have this enlightenment. We must always choose to remain in the company of Jesus. We should not believe the many lies of the devil no matter how attractive and tempting his lies are. 

However, why is it that many are still choosing this world over Jesus? They do so for the simple reason that they are more comfortable with the material and sinful offerings of this world. They do so because they’ve not allowed the teachings of Jesus to take root in their hearts.   Until they get sick or they encounter a crucial event in their lives which would now force them to look for God.  

Let us not wait for that crucial moment to come before we choose to become faithful to Jesus. Let us do it now while we are still healthy and in complete control of our health and mental faculties. 

Let us therefore decide to embrace Jesus now and leave behind our sinfulness while we have the luxury of time. Let us not wait for tomorrow for tomorrow may be too late already. – Marino J. Dasmarinas