Lenten Reflections: Week Five

Hello Engin FCG,
As we approach the last stretch before we celebrate the rising of our Lord, and the conquering of good over evil, let us take a look at the Gospel passage once again and reflect on it. Do remember to go for the sacrament of reconciliation before Easter! =)
-Shimon

John 12:20-33

And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. And Jesus answered them, saying, the hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour. Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spoke to him. Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes. Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. This he said, signifying what death he should die.

Drawing From Life’s Experience

“Once upon a time, a stream was working itself across the country, experiencing little difficulty for it simply ran around the rocks and through the mountains and forests. Then one day, it arrived at a desert. Just as it had crossed every other barrier, the stream tried to cross this one, but it found that as fast as it ran into the sand, its waters disappeared. After many, many attempts it became very discouraged. It appeared that there was no way it could continue the journey.

Then a whisper came in the wind. “If you stay the way you are, you cannot cross the sands, you cannot become more than a quagmire. To go further, you will have to lose yourself.”

“But if I lose myself,” the stream cried, “I will never know what I am supposed to be.”

“Quite the contrary,” said the voice, “if you lose yourself, you will become more than you ever dreamed you could be.” So the stream surrendered to the dying sun. and the clouds into which it was formed were carried by the raging wind for many miles. Once it cross the desert, the stream poured down from the skies, fresh and clean, and full of the energy that comes from the storms.”

Meeting God in the Word

The re-creation of the stream in the story is symbolic to the re-creation of God’s covenant that we find in the reading from Jeremiah. The essence of the new covenant is God’s promise to change the heart. ‘I will put my law within them and I will write it on their hearts’ (31:33). Yet in order for this to happen, we must surrender ourselves to the will of God. Our patient and ever-faithful God waits until our minds and hearts are still enough to recognise God’s diving presence that has always been with us. Only when we act as faithful disciples and fully surrender ourselves unto God will we discover God’s law written upon our hearts. The desire to become disciples of Christ really flows out of this humble recognition of the abiding presence of God in our lives.

In the Gospel, Jesus uses the parable of the grin of wheat to explain that if we choose to shy away from the call of Christ to follow Him, we only live for ourselves, we remain in a sense a single grain. Whereas by giving ourselves totally over to the call of Christ, we actually broaden the meaning of our lives by becoming concerned for others. In other words our lives become fruitful.

Jesus lived solely to do His Father’s will which is why He flatly refuses to seek any help, human or divine, to prolong his earthly life beyond His Father’s plan for Him. The voice from heaven confirms that this decision is indeed God’s will and that for Jesus, the faithful servant of God, death and glorification are indeed two sides of the same coin.

Reflection Question

To really know God, we must be willing to sit quietly in the presence of God’s Word listening humbly. What prevents us from spending some prayerful time in silence meditating on the Word of God?

Through this Lenten journey have we learnt to joyfully recognise and embrace the cross as the key to a more fulfilling life?

Lord, my heart is filled with longing. I cannot find peace. I live in the shadow of sin and death. Will I descent into the darkness unfulfilled and without hope? Will my life slip away in silence and despair? O God, help us to listen to your Son Jesus, help us to place our life in His hands that we may see our life as beautiful and come into the peace that You promise us. We make this prayer in Jesus’ name. Amen.