On this Fourth Sunday of Lent, as we draw ever closer to the celebration of Easter and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Only Savior of the world, we hear from the Gospel of Saint John (3:16-21):
For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. Whoever believes in Him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.
Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, God calls us to follow Him to our eternal home, our purpose in life: Heaven. This means that we walk in the light of Christ, so that it may be clearly seen that what we do is done in God. We walk in the light of Christ when we keep His Commandments, summed up in the two great Commandments: love of God and love of neighbor (Matthew 22:36-40). Walking in the light of Christ is not easy, for we’re all guilty of sinning – yet how often do we try to deny our guilt by blaming someone else for something that we have or have not done, or, as Fr. John Dominic Corbett, OP (Magnificat.com), has said, by blaming it on an earlier version of ourselves. Indeed, it is clear why so many of us, when it comes to facing who we are and what we have done, remain in the darkness rather than come to the light – for who could be expected to come to the light if what it reveals is too terrible to see? So in mercy the Light has come to us! It has given us not judgment but rebirth. We look upon the crucified Lord Jesus Christ and we see in God both the forgiveness of our sins and our new identity as His children. He has forgiven us. By His Passion, Death and Resurrection, and His Ascension into Heaven, He has conquered sin and death and wrought for us Life Eternal in Heaven. He requires that we repent, seek His forgiveness, pick up our cross daily and follow Him in faith, hope and love. He loves us. His mercy endures forever. This is Truth. This is Light. May we walk always in the light of Christ.
With peace and prayers in Christ,
Fr. William
Saint Clement Parish 