DAILY GRACE
March 28, 2020, Saturday in the Fourth Week of Lent
Scripture: John 7:40-53
When they heard these words, some in the crowd said, “This is really the prophet.” Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But some asked, “Surely the Messiah does not come from Galilee, does he? Has not the scripture said that the Messiah is descended from David and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?” So there was a division in the crowd because of him. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. Then the temple police went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not arrest him?” The police answered, “Never has anyone spoken like this!” Then the Pharisees replied, “Surely you have not been deceived too, have you? Has any one of the authorities or of the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law—they are accursed.” Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus before, and who was one of them, asked, “Our law does not judge people without first giving them a hearing to find out what they are doing, does it?” They replied, “Surely you are not also from Galilee, are you? Search and you will see that no prophet is to arise from Galilee.” Then each of them went home.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Meditation
“Never has anyone spoken like this!”
Today’s Gospel features two groups of people: those who critiqued Jesus from their own viewpoint, education, past experience, or fear, and those who listened and tried to discover what Jesus was doing.
These are still the two possible ways of approaching Jesus. In fact, these are the two possible ways of approaching the Church, world events, family situations, and other people. I suppose also these are the two ways of approaching the COVID-19 crisis. Those who saw Jesus through their own lenses argued. They were divided because they could only see and hear what their personal viewpoint allowed them to see or hear. If they did not like someone’s viewpoint, they honestly could not see or hear it. All the time they missed Jesus completely, never authentically encountering him.
Those who listened to him, such as the Temple police and Nicodemus, who earlier had come to talk to Jesus by night, observed Jesus. They stated how they felt; they didn’t argue with the others. They were too much in awe to participate in petty, fragmented conversations.
In the third chapter of John’s Gospel, Nicodemus learned that no matter how much he knew as a Pharisee, he had to start over, be born again (or from above), keep silence before an event that would reveal something to him that was larger and greater than his own thoughts and judgments.
This is a tremendous lesson for us today. We have to be wise and connect to sources where we can hear and see more than people’s biases, agendas, or fears. We can lose our time arguing with others about how we each see things, or we can spend our time educating ourselves on the realities before us by going to reliable sources. A most reliable source, at least for viewing things from a long-range perspective, is the Bible and books and spoken-word CDs on Christian spirituality. We can also connect with the Lord directly in the celebration of holy communion and in corporate worship with other members of the family of faith.
Prayer
It is difficult, Lord, to measure the length and breadth of my worldview. All I know is that it is small and cannot contain the mystery of you or your world. Help me in this time of the corona virus to change from analysis paralysis to listening, observing, asking questions, wondering, and contemplating. Amen.
Contemplation
Ask questions. Listen. Pray.