Gospel Reflection for the 4th. Sunday of Lent

March 11th. – Nicodemus, come into the light

At the time of Jesus, those in charge of the religious and social laws of the Jewish people were the Scribes and Pharisees. They had reduced belief in God to rules, laws and regulations. Anyone who could not keep these strict rules was not worthy of God and were generally kept out of the synagogue and the Temple. This meant those who were sick in any way, the poor, the widows and tax collectors. According to the Pharisees they were not worthy of God. But these were the very people that Jesus came to be with it. These are the very people to whom Jesus came with the good news that God loved them and that the Kingdom of God belonged to them. Because of this, the Scribes and Pharisees were always looking for a way to undermine Jesus. They even said of him, Look this man even eats with sinners. Jesus in return was never afraid to challenge these religious leaders. He accused them of being hypocrites. He said that they laid burdens upon people’s shoulders but did nothing to help people. They liked to be seen as important and often took the best seats in the synagogue and the Temple. He accused them of saying one thing, but then doing the very opposite.

The person in the gospel today with Jesus is called Nicodemus. He is a Pharisee. He comes to see Jesus at night because he is afraid that someone might seem him talking with Jesus. He would have had a very set and fixed idea of who God was. However, Jesus offers him a very different image of God. He reveals a much bigger sort of God that Nicodemus cannot even begin to imagine. The God of the Pharisees tended to be angry and judgmental. The God that Jesus offers is one who does not judge or condemn. The God of Jesus is God who loves us, who does not punish us, but deeply wants a personal and intimate relationship with us. The God of Jesus is one who does not destroy us but lifts us up.

God loves each of us so much and so deeply that he sent Jesus so that we might have eternal life. God loves us so much and so passionately that he sent Jesus so that we may not be lost, but found. God sent us Jesus so that we will be saved, not condemned. Jesus comes to not only show us how to live but how to life fully in the light.

Being a Christian is not just about following rules and regulations; it is about following a person. It is about following Jesus Christ. Being a disciple of Jesus is not just or even a matter of the head; it is a matter of the heart. God, through the words, actions, life death and resurrection of Jesus offers us the gifts of reconciliation and eternal life. God through the person of Jesus reaches out to each of us; God through Jesus speaks to us. To see Jesus is to see God. To hear Jesus is to hear God. To experience Jesus is to experience God.

Jesus invited Nicodemus out the dark and into the light. As we take another step on our Lenten journey, Jesus does the same for us. We are people of the light, not the darkness. We are a people who are on a journey with Jesus to the cross and crucifixion. As Jesus asks us to walk with him to the cross, he also invites us to share in his resurrection. Through the new life of Easter will be renewed and restored to new life in Jesus. What word or message does Jesus wants to offer you this week?

• Michael Moore OMI