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Vocation Meditation -
4th Sunday of Lent, 2009
Jesus said to Nicodemus: "Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave up His only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."
"Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. The one who believes in Him is not condemned already, for not having believed in the name of the only Son of God."
"And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who believe hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God."
Jesus is the Saviour of the world. He became the Sign of our Salvation. All those who fix their gaze on Him and believe will have eternal life. There are two great phrases here which are at the core of Jesus' words: belief in Him and eternal life.
What would believing in Jesus mean?
It means believing that God is our loving Father as Jesus taught us. It means believing that Jesus is the true Son of God and therefore, He alone can tell us the absolute truth about God and about life. It means believing in the power of His Words and responding to them with an unswerving and unconditional obedience.
Eternal life is the life of God that envelops one's relationship with peace. Having it, one is at peace with God, with oneself and with others, is at peace with the earth and with life around him. Eternal life also begets in one works of peace.
All these are possible to us because God has loved the world so much, He gave us Jesus, His Son. Jesus now becomes the standard for quality living and loving. He also becomes the judgment to the world. Those who react in hostility to Jesus and to those He loves have loved the darkness. Those who, believing in Him and walk in His ways, walk in the light. They bask in the light of God, becoming signs of His love in the world. By our response to the appeals of God in Christ, we stand revealed and our souls laid bare.
Vocation Challenge:
God wants me to accept Jesus with unswerving and unconditional faith.
How do I stand before the appeals of God to walk in the light and embrace the ways of peace?
Dear God,
You invite all those you called to walk in the light. Let not the shadow of darkness weaken my faith. Lift up your Son as I journey through life. With my gaze fixed on Him, may my vocation flourish that I may reap the fruits of eternal life. Amen.
For the full Gospel reading for this Sunday, visit the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops site.