Trong bào đọc thứ Nhất hôm nay, chúng ta nhận thấy Tiên tri-Jeremiah không phải là một tiên tri có được cuốc sống hạnh phúc, vui vẻ và thích thú với sứ vụ của mình. Ngay từ lúv đầu, ông đã miễn cưỡng cuộc sống và sứ mệnh Tiên Tri mà Chúa đã gọi ông. Bởi vì ông đã liên tục bị chống đối, và hơn thế nữa, những người cầm quyền những người có thế lưc Do Thái thời bấy giờ đã cố gắng tìm cách để ám hại và giết ông ta Vì thế cuộc đời Tiên Tri của ông chẳng có gì để đáng thích thú và vui mừng, và thậm chí một vài lần ông đã, chán chường, bất mẵn và muốn tránh né cái sứ vụ thiêng liêng này , nhưng Thánh Thần của Thiên Chúa ở nơi ông ấy đã thục dẩy ông không thể bỏ cuộc được. Trong những than vãn đau khổ về những âm mưu của dân Israel nổi dậy để chống đối ông và đe doạ về sự sống của ông ta, ông đã tái khẳng định niềm tin của ông vào Thiên Chúa. Nếu như ,một mình ông, với sức con người chắc chắn ông ta sẽ không thể hoàn thành những nhiệm vụ mà Thiên Chúa đã giao phó cho ông ta, nhưng có Thiên Chúa, mọi sự đều hoàn tất hoàn chỉnh. Không có gì mà Thiên Chúa không làm được. Chúng ta nên nhớ điều này khi chúng ta cảm thấy chán chường và thất vọng, đặc biệt là những khi chúng ta đang làm công việc của Thiên Chúa. Vì đó không phải vấn đề riêng của chúng ta; Nhưng tất cả các vấn đề đó là vấn đề chung của Thiên Chúa.
Hình Ảnh và sự hiện diện của Chúa Giêsu trong mỗi người chúng ta như thế nào với những ân sủng Ngài mang đến cho mỗi người chúng ta? Những gì khác biệt Ngài đã thực hiện trong cuộc sống của chúng ta và những người chung quanh?.Chúng ta không thể “phát hiện ra” hay phân tích được Chúa Giêsu, Nhưng chúng ta chỉ có thể chấp nhận và cảm nghiệm được Ngài mà thôi.
Lạy Chúa, Xin ban cho chúng con có lòng tin vững chãi vào Chúa và được sống trong tình yêu vô biên của Ngài. .
Jeremiah was not a happy or joyful prophet. He was reluctant from the start, and as his ministry unfolded, we can see why. He was constantly opposed — and more than that, those in power actually tried to have him killed. There was not much cause for rejoicing, and he even tried to quit a couple of times, but the Spirit of God in him would not leave him in peace. In his lament about the plot against his life, he reaffirmed his trust in God. Alone he could not accomplish his mission, but with God all things were possible. We should remember this when we feel discouraged, especially when we are doing God’s work. It’s not about us; it’s all about God.
Jesus met the same sort of resistance in his ministry. It must have been discouraging and disheartening to face such unbelief and hardheartedness — and he would probably feel the same way today about the attitudes of many Christians. He challenged people to look at his record — the things that he was doing, which only God could do — and then make their decision. We can examine our own lives and those of others: do they bear the marks of Jesus and his compassionate power?
What sort of presence has Jesus graced us with? What difference has He made? Jesus cannot be ‘figured out’ or analyzed; He can only be accepted and experienced. Lord, deepen my trust in You.
Today’s Gospel takes place on the last and greatest day of the Feast of Tabernacles, also known as the Feast of Booths. This annual celebration was one of three major feasts when many Jews made a pilgrimage to the Temple. For seven days, they lived in temporary shelters—booths—as a reminder of God’s providence and protection during their forty years of wandering in the wilderness. It was also a time to give thanks for the year’s harvest, recognizing God’s ongoing provision.
The eighth day, following the seven days of Sukkot, was known as Shemini Atzeret, a solemn assembly focused on prayers, especially for rain for the coming year’s crops—another acknowledgment of dependence on God. It was likely during this festival that “Jesus stood up and exclaimed, ‘Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink’” (John 7:37). That exclamation comes just prior to today’s Gospel, which shows the varied responses of the people who heard Jesus’ words.
The context of the Feast of Tabernacles and its religious meaning are crucial to understanding the significance of Jesus’ declaration. One of the central rituals of Sukkot was the daily water-drawing ceremony in which water from the Pool of Siloam was carried to the Temple and poured out before the altar. This act symbolized thanksgiving for God’s provision of water during the Israelites’ time in the wilderness and a prayer for rain for the crops. It also evoked messianic hope, recalling prophetic visions of spiritual renewal when living water would flow from the Temple: “I saw water flowing out from under the threshold of the temple” (cf. Ezekiel 47:1–12) and “fresh water will flow from Jerusalem” (Zechariah 14:8).
Some believed He was “the Prophet” or “the Christ.” Others doubted, knowing Jesus was from Nazareth, and the Messiah was expected to come from Bethlehem. This shows that many were unaware that Jesus was born in Bethlehem and was a descendant of David’s line.
This Feast of Tabernacles occurred about six months before the Feast of Passover, when Jesus would be arrested and crucified. In the intervening months, the controversy surrounding Him deepened as the religious leaders continued plotting, while Jesus performed more miracles and delivered urgent teachings about the need to believe in Him as the Messiah. In some ways, the Feast of Tabernacles marked the beginning of the end.
Reflect today on the controversy Jesus sparked at the Feast of Tabernacles. Each of us must choose a side. There is no room for middle ground. Either Jesus is the Messiah, and we must follow Him wholeheartedly, or He is not. There is no place for complacency or mediocrity. Jesus is the Living Water, the one and only source of divine provision. Stand with Him and be counted among those who boldly proclaim Him as the Christ of God, so that He may provide for you, just as He sustained the Israelites during their forty years in the desert.
My providential Lord, You and You alone are the source of Living Water that refreshes and renews my soul. Only in You do I find eternal salvation, for You are the Messiah and Christ of God. Please give me courage and wisdom so that I will trust You and rely upon Your ongoing providence in my life. Jesus, I do trust in You.
Instead, you sent your Son to redeem us, to lift the ancient curse, and to restore us as your children.
Encountering the Word of God
1. The Christ is from David’s Family: During the week-long Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus began to teach in the Temple area. There, he demonstrated a deep knowledge of Scripture without having attended a rabbinic school in Jerusalem. He also addressed the concern of the people that he worked on the Sabbath to cure a paralytic (John 5:1-18). During his teaching, the people began to wonder whether Jesus was the Prophet-like-Moses or the Messiah (the Christ). One issue was that for Jesus to be the Messiah, he had to come from David’s family and be born in Bethlehem as prophesied in Micah 5:1. The Gospel of John indicates that the crowds were seemingly ignorant of the circumstances of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem as well as his Davidic lineage. This is something we know from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. John alludes to this but also teaches that Jesus has a divine and eternal origin. Jesus, the Son of David born in Bethlehem, is the Word of God, eternally begotten of the Father, who became flesh in the fullness of time (John 1:1-18).
gift today and the joy that springs from love.
Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent 2023
The guards answered, “Never before has anyone spoken like this man.” So, the Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed.” John 7:46–49
Hopefully the Pharisees mentioned above went through a deep interior conversion before they died. If they did not, then their day of particular judgment would have been shocking and frightening to them. The greatest act of love ever known was God becoming one of us, being conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, growing up in the household of Saint Joseph, and eventually beginning His public ministry by which the saving truth of the Gospel was proclaimed so that all may come to know God and be saved. And it was of this act of perfect love given to us by God that the Pharisees attacked and called those who believed in it “deceived” and “accursed.”
Though the Pharisees do not offer us much by way of inspiration, they do provide us with many lessons. In the passage above, the Pharisees model for us one of the most common tactics of the evil one. In his spiritual classic, The Spiritual Exercises, Saint Ignatius of Loyola explains that when a person is moving from a life of sin to a life of holiness, the evil one will attack in various ways. He will try to unsettle you and cause an undue anxiety about serving God, he will try to sadden you with an unexplained sorrow, put obstacles in your way of virtue causing you to feel overwhelmed and think you are too weak to live a good Christian life of virtue, and he will tempt you to lose your peace of heart by doubting God’s love or His action in your life. It seems clear that this attack by the Pharisees also has these goals.
Again, though this may not appear “inspiring,” it is very useful to understand. The Pharisees were vicious in their attacks, not only to Jesus but also upon anyone who began to believe in Jesus. They said to the guards who were impressed by Jesus, “Have you also been deceived?” This was clearly the evil one at work through them trying to intimidate the guards and anyone who dared believe in Jesus.
But understanding the tactics of the evil one and his messengers is of great value, because it helps us reject the lies and deceptions spewed out at us. Sometimes these lies come from individuals and are directed directly at us, and sometimes the lies are more universal, coming through the media, the culture and even the government, at times.
Reflect, today, upon the distasteful and bitter words of these Pharisees. But do so to help yourself understand the tactics the evil one often takes as you seek greater holiness in life. Be assured that the closer you get to God, the more you will be attacked. But do not be afraid. Identify any personal, social, cultural or even governmental attack for what it is. Have confidence and do not be deterred as you seek to follow Christ more completely every day.
My divine Judge of all, at the end of time, You will establish Your permanent Kingdom of truth and justice. You will reign over all and will bestow Your mercy and justice on all. May I live fully in Your truth and never be deterred by the attacks and lies of the evil one. Give me courage and strength, dear Lord, as I always trust in You. Jesus, I do trust in You.
