Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here

 

The White Angel, 1235, fresco. Mileseva Monastery, Serbia

 Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome brought spices, that they might come and anoint Him.  Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.  And they said among themselves, "Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"  But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away -- for it was very large.  And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.  But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed.  You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He is risen!  He is not here.  See the place where they laid Him.  But go, tell His disciples -- and Peter -- that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you."  So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed.  And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.  

 

Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.  She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept.  And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.  After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country.  And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.   Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.  And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.  He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe:  In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."

 

So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.  And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs.  Amen.  

 

- Mark 16 

 

Yesterday we read that there were also women looking on from afar at the Crucifixion as Christ died, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome, who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.  Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time.  So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.  Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen.  And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.  And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.

 

  Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome brought spices, that they might come and anoint Him.  Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.  And they said among themselves, "Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"  My study Bible explains that because Christ died so close in time to the Sabbath, the burial customs of the Jews could not be completed.  So these faithful women have gone as early as possible in order to complete the rites of burial.  Regarding Mary the mother of James, some patristic commentary teaches that she was the wife of Alphaeus, the this James was one of the Twelve (Luke 6:15).  But the majority hold that this is the Virgin Mary, who was in fact the stepmother of a different James, "the Lord's brother" (see Matthew 13:55; compare to Mark 15:40, 47).  In certain icons of the Myrrhbearing Women the Virgin Mary appears, and in a hymn by St. John of Damascus, it is sung, "The angel cried to the lady full of grace, 'Rejoice, O pure Virgin:  your Son is risen from His three days in the tomb."  Many teach that Salome was the wife of Zebedee, and the other of James and John.  

 

 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away -- for it was very large.  And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.  The stone had been rolled away, my study Bible notes, not to accommodate Christ's exist from the tomb, for in His resurrected body, He needs no such accommodation (John 20:19).  Instead, we're to understand that this was to allow the witnesses -- and ourselves -- to look in and see that the tomb was empty.  

 

 But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed.  You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He is risen!  He is not here.  See the place where they laid Him.  But go, tell His disciples -- and Peter -- that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you."  So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed.  And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.   The messenger (the "young man," an angel) mentions Peter specifically and thus reveals a special care for the one who had denied Christ (see this reading).  My study Bible cites the commentary of Theophylact, who writes that Peter would have said of himself, "I denied the Lord, and therefore am no longer His disciple."  This angel's command is a promise that Peter is forgiven.  That the women said nothing to anyone does not mean that they never said anything -- it means that they kept silent until Jesus appeared to them (see the verses that follow).  

 

 Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.  She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept.  And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.  After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country.  And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.   Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen. My study Bible first tells us that two early manuscripts do not contain these and the following verses as part of St. Mark's Gospel, while nearly all other manuscripts ever discovered have them.  They are canonized Scripture and are considered by the Church to be inspired, authoritative, and genuine.  The text here tells us that Christ appeared in another form to two of the disciples as they walked and went into the country, and that He later appeared to the eleven (see Luke 24:13-43).  Christ's resurrected body transcends not only physical space and time, but appearance as well, according to my study Bible.  He was sometimes recognizable to His disciples, while at other times He was not. 

 

 And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.  He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned."  This is the Great Commission, Christ's final commandment given on earth.  It is to be lived out in the Church until the Lord returns again.  My study Bible comments that to make disciples cannot be done in the strength of human beings, but only in the power of God.  The power of the Resurrection isn't just for Christ Himself, but is given to all believers for Christian life and mission. 

 

"And these signs will follow those who believe:  In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."  To speak with new tongues is the capacity to speak in languages that one has not learned in order to edify others in worship (1 Corinthians 14) and to preach the gospel (Acts 2:1-11).  To take up serpents is a reference primarily to spiritual battle against demons, my study Bible says.  So, therefore, Christ is promising here to deliver believers from the powers of sin.  Moreover, it would include certain physical protection as well.  St. Paul was bitten by a serpent and suffered no harm (Acts 28:3-6), and according to tradition, Barsabas Justus (Acts 1:23) was forced by unbelievers to drink poison and survived.  However, my study Bible adds, while God's grace can protect believers from both physical and spiritual harm, to test god by deliberately committing harmful acts against oneself is a grave sin (Deuteronomy 6:16; Matthew 4:7).

 

 So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.  And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs.  Amen.  This describes what is called the Ascension of Christ, which is celebrated forty days after the Resurrection (Acts 1:3).  My study Bible comments that it fulfills the type given when Elijah ascended in a fiery chariot (2 Kings 2:11), and it marks the completion of Christ's glorification and lordship over all creation.  At the Incarnation, my study Bible explains, Christ brought His divine nature to human nature.  In the mystery of the Ascension, however, He brings human nature to the divine Kingdom.  Christ reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit in His glorified body, revealing His glorified human nature -- indeed, human flesh -- to be worshiped by the whole angelic realm.  At Vespers of Ascension, the Orthodox sing, "The angels were amazed seeing a Man so exalted."  In some icons of the Ascension, Christ's white robes are tinted red to indicate the shedding of His blood for the redemption of the world and the ascent of that life-giving blood into heaven (Isaiah 63:1-3; see also Psalm 24:7-10).  

 

 In today's reading, the risen Christ gives His final commandment on earth:  "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.  He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned."   At this stage in the reading of the Gospel, we know what these disciples have been through, what their supporters (and relatives, often mothers) have been through.  We know the struggle, the teaching, the campaigning (so to speak) in ministry, and all the things Jesus and they have been through, including the testing and of course the final effort to bring down and to kill Jesus, the attempt to rid themselves of Him by the religious leadership.  We know the manipulation, the false witnesses, the attempts to entrap Him, and we know there is more to come for His disciples.  And it follows, of course, that the same is in store for the Church, as it is even today.  But we need to ponder His words.  What does it mean to believe?  What does it mean to be saved?  And what does it mean to be condemned?  As is often pointed out on this blog, the word translated as "believe" has as its root the word meaning trust in the Greek (πιστις/pistis).  Think what it means not simply to believe as a kind of flat statement to the effect that you will agree with a teaching, but to trust in a Person.  It adds an entirely different dimension to Christ's teaching to understand belief in this way.  We put our trust into Christ for all times, for every moment in our lives, in our doubts and fears, even when we're terrified to go forward, think what it means nevertheless to trust.  This is a deep personal relationship, which extends to complete communities and forms and shapes those communities.  We are baptized into His life, even as we symbolically die in the waters of baptism.  That is a depth that we can't comprehend, but nevertheless, we trust and go forward into what that means, and the experience of that faith.  This is what it is to be saved, that ongoing forward motion of what it means to trust, and to grow in trust, to entrust our depths -- even those we don't know -- to Christ and to the work of the Holy Spirit, and the Church not built by hands.  What does it mean to be condemned?  In St. John's Gospel, we read the words of Jesus to Nicodemus, "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God" (John 3:18-21).  We so often forget that we are all offered salvation, but not all of us is prepared to take up this trust, to return to Christ the love that He offers to us in His saving gospel.  He asks for our trust, but not all are willing to give it -- and we must note that trust is related to truth.  What hides from the light?  What do we want to hide from the light?  To be condemned is not to be condemned by Christ but to fail to take up that salvation that He offers, to return His love for us by loving Him.  Just like the first disciples had work to do to be His followers, let us not forget He's asking us to take up our own cross, and to follow Him.  He doesn't promise it will be free and easy, but that the way is narrow.  We are all invited in.  How many of us will take up His offer?  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do you want to be made well?

 

 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.  In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.  For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.  Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.  When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?"  The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me."  Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk."  And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.  And that day was the Sabbath.  

The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed."  He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"  Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?"  But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place.  

Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.  For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.  But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."  Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.

 

- John 5:1-18 

 

 Now after two days following Christ's reception of the townspeople in Samaria, He departed from there and went to Galilee.  For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.  So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they also had gone to the feast.  So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine.  And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum.  When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.  Then Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe."  The nobleman said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies!"  Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your son lives."  So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way.  And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, "Your son lives!"  Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better.  And they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him."   So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives."  And he himself believed, and his whole household.  This again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.  

 

  After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.   So far in John's Gospel, Jesus has attended one festival, and that was the Passover (see this reading).  According to patristic teaching, this feast is the Old Testament Pentecost, which is also called the Feast of Weeks.  It celebrates the giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai.  The references to the Law of Moses later in this chapter, my study Bible comments, confirm this interpretation.  

 

 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.  In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.  For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.  This double-basin pool, my study Bible explains, was believed to have curative powers.  It has been discovered about 100 yards north of the temple area, near the Sheep Gate.   The water for this high-ground pool flowed from underground springs.  It was used to wash down the sacrificial lambs before they were slain.  My study Bible comments that this pool functions as a type of Christian baptism.  Under the old covenant, a great multitude waited to enter the water for physical healing after an angel touched it [stirred up the water].  These waters were special in that they were a way of participating indirectly in the animal sacrifices of the temple, as the animals were washed in the same water.  But, my study Bible notes, the grace was limited to the first person to enter.  But under the new covenant, baptism is given to all nations as a direct participation in Christ's own sacrificial death (Romans 6:3-6), without the mediation of angels.  Baptism thus grants healing of the soul and the promise of eternal resurrection of the body -- and its grace is inexhaustible.

 

 Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.  My study Bible cites St. John Chrysostom, who teaches that Jesus singled out this man who had waited for thirty-eight years in order to teach us to have perseverance; it's also a judgment against those who lose hope or patience in far lesser troubles lasting a far shorter time.  

When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?"  The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me."  Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk."  And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.  And that day was the Sabbath.   My study Bible comments that Christ's question to this man is relevant for several reasons.  First, it makes public the fact that the sick man kept his faith even in a situation that was seemingly hopeless -- for how could a paralytic ever be first into the water?  Second, Christ draws attention away from the water and focuses it toward the need we have for a man to help us.  He is that Man; and fulfills this human need, as He became Man to heal all.  Finally, not everyone who is ill actually desires healing.  My study Bible notes that sadly, there are some who may prefer to remain infirm in order to have license to complain, to avoid responsibility for their lives, or to continue to provoke the pity of others.  

The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed."  He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"  Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?"  But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place.     John, the author of the Gospel was himself a Jew, as were all of Christ's disciples and Jesus as well.  My study Bible comments on this passage that although the Law itself does not specifically forbid the carrying of burdens on the Sabbath, this is prohibited in Jeremiah 17:21-22, and it is explicitly forbidden in rabbinical teachings.  That Christ is Lord over the Sabbath is made clear by is command ("Take up your bed and walk") and also by the man's obedience as he immediately did so (see also Matthew 12:1-8).  We should note once again that the term the Jews is most often used in John's Gospel to designate the religious leaders in the temple, and not the people.  My study Bible asks us to notice the malice of these leaders.  They focus only on the violation of the Sabbath, asking the man, "Who is the Man who said to you, Take up your bed'?"  -- at the same time, they completely ignore the miraculous healing.  

Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  My study Bible remarks upon the fact that this man was found in the temple.  It shows his great faith, it notes, because this man had gone there directly to thank God for his cure, rather than departing to someone's home or to the marketplace.  Jesus tells the man to "sin no more."  My study Bible comments upon this that while there is a general connection between sin and suffering (Romans 6:23), the connection is not always one-to-one.  The innocent frequently suffer, and often the guilty are spared earthly sufferings (see also John 9:1-3).  Nonetheless, sometimes our sins lead directly to our own suffering in this world.  According to St. John Chrysostom, the latter was the case with this paralytic.  But Christ's warning is that the sins that destroy the soul lead to a far worse result than an affliction of the body, my study Bible says.  The only hope is to flee from sin altogether.  

The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.    This man does not report Jesus to the leaders of the Jews in a malicious way, my study Bible comments, but rather he is a witness to Christ's goodness.  Even though the religious leaders were only interested in the violation of the Sabbath, this healed man give emphasis to the fact that it was Jesus who had made him well, and says nothing to them about carrying his bed. 

For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.  But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."  Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.  Jesus declares God to be My Father, and these religious leaders clearly understand the implication of absolute equality.  As our readings continue, Jesus will give a discourse in the following verses regarding this relationship of Father and Son.  But let us note for now the emphasis on working, and Christ's particular mission in working the work of the Father as well.  

Today's reading gives us the third sign of seven in John's Gospel.  My study Bible states that it exemplifies the divine power to restore a person to wholeness.  It is interesting to consider this in light of Christ's attitude toward healing which is expressed in today's reading.  Let us note that it gives us pause to think about what wholeness means exactly.  In a modern context we often think of healing in purely material terms.  When we come down with a certain malady, we take the prescribed medicine for it and expect to be cured.  But the truth is that even modern science must recognize there is more to healing than simply physical ailments healed by material medicine.  The level of stress a person is under, for example, is widely understood to influence all kinds of physical ailments, their degree of intensity, and our ability to heal.  This emotional core as one pillar of well-being certainly affects everything else.  Add to that the spiritual element of healing and we start to take in a recipe for wholeness, for surely spiritual well-being is part of the key to emotional health as well.  We cannot really separate any of these components one from the other, when it comes to the wholeness and health of a human being.  Environment plays a role too, as beauty and our capacity to enjoy it certainly plays a role in overall health and healing, and so does our attitude, particularly one that encompasses an active power of gratitude deliberately sought and cultivated.  There are endless ways in which these components of health can influence and be augmented in order to help healing within another dimension of our whole being:  we're not divided into separate pieces, but rather each has some influence upon the other.  But Jesus today ties in healing with the spiritual state of the soul, and in particular our relationship to or participation in sin.  It makes sense if we think of our participation in the life of Christ as participation in God's energies, which is another term for grace.  At the same time, we might consider what kind of energies we participate in when we engage in sinful behavior that cultivates bad habits, addictions, practices that are harmful, isolating, self-destructive, or socially harmful.  This subject is tied to today's reading, for Jesus suggests that this healed paralytic's future well-being is dependent upon his attitude toward sin and his own participation in it.  In many ways, sin is likened in theological or spiritual terms to paralysis.  We're said to be "stuck" in our spiritual path when sin becomes a habit we can't break, similar to addiction.  It becomes an inhibition to spiritual growth and maturity; we cannot progress in terms of our participation in the life Christ desires for us.  Without our own repentance of some kind and on some level, we don't go forward into the well-being Christ has for us, and the next step we might move onto in the journey of our faith.  In this sense of journey, sin sets us back.  An indulgence in a bad habit, such as gossip, can inhibit a better life, a better outlook, progress in terms of spiritual well-being.  Self-destruction is a long, long road with a lot of detours and possible outcomes, none of them taking us to real wholeness, and each a part of that "wide way" Christ warns about in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7:13-14.  Let's note that part of the positive signs of healing of this man in today's reading is his practice of gratitude, that he was found in the temple to thank God for his healing.  It is in this context that Jesus also warns him not to go backward or invite trouble back into his life, by telling him, "Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  Perhaps we should also take into account the notion that by forgetting about God, by indulging again in some sin in that forgetfulness, he will in fact be practicing ingratitude, and losing his spiritual ground he's gained.  If it's true that we reap what we sow, perhaps we all might consider what we sow and how we sow, and what outcomes we want in this spiritual sense that does indeed touch upon all other things in our lives.  Consider also how common it is that we encounter those who face their own ailments with faith and the practice of that faith.  It's not so much about a physical outcome as it is about our spiritual place in which we find ourselves.  Illness can also be a metaphor for spiritual struggle, and a very real place to struggle for faith regardless of material outcome.  If we in the Church recognize the martyrs of periods of persecution for our faith, perhaps we should come to terms also with modern martyrdoms in the often heroic struggle for faith midst the difficulties of illness and suffering of a physical sort.  Spiritual struggle around illness, and even death, in my experience, is a very real and powerful thing.  There is no time in which we forget about God, and how we are to go through the moments of our lives, and the best choices we can make for spiritual well-being through it all -- and even how such choices affect others.  Let us strengthen our spiritual lives at all times, and help others who may be struggling to do so as well.  Perhaps our most important choice is to continue the spiritual struggle midst the setbacks, hurts, and difficulties of life in an imperfect world -- and maybe this is the real crux of our faith.  In this context, the question, "Do you want to be made well?" takes on all kinds of meanings and possible responses.  Let us consider all the ways it might be answered, at all times. 

 

 

 

 

 

Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going

 

 "Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say?  'Father, save Me from this hour'?  But for this purpose I came to this hour.  Father, glorify Your name."  Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."  Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered.  Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him."  Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.  Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.  And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself."  This He said, signifying by what death He would die.  The people answered Him, "We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'?  Who is this Son of Man?"  Then Jesus said to them, "A little while longer the light is with you.  Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.  While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

 

- John 12:27–36a 

 

Yesterday we read that there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the Passover feast.  Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."  Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus.  But Jesus answered them, saying, "The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.  Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.  He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also.  If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor." 

 

 "Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say?  'Father, save Me from this hour'?  But for this purpose I came to this hour."  Jesus is troubled in His human soul; but He is willingly going to His hour, the time of His glorification.  My study Bible comments that it is the mark of humanity to abhor death; but Jesus is without sin and so completely subjects and unites His human will to the Father's will, for this purpose.  My study Bible adds that it shows that each person must submit one's own will to God's will (Luke 11:2).  There is a quotation from Pope St. Gregory the Great:  "The words of weakness are sometimes adopted by the strong in order that the hearts of the weak may be strengthened."

"Father, glorify Your name."  Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."  My study Bible explains that the Father's name is an extension of His Person.  The Son's death, it says, completes the purpose of the Father, and shows His love for all, thus glorifying Him.  Jesus effectively says, "Father, lead Me to the Cross."  This is our Lord's divine response to the human desire to avoid the Cross.  God the Father's response, my study Bible adds, refers to the signs already performed by Christ and to the death and Resurrection to come.  

Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered.  Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him."  Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake."  Although the Father spoke clearly, my study Bible notes, some people heard indistinct sounds like thunder because they lacked faith.  People with a little faith heard the words, but did not know the source, thinking it was an angel.  The disciples knew that the Father had spoken ("This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake").

"Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.  And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself."  This He said, signifying by what death He would die.  Lifted up is a reference to Christ being hung on the Cross (a phrase He has used already; see John 3:14-15; 8:28).  Christ's death will bring salvation to all peoples, and at the same time will render judgment on the faithless and will destroy once for all the power of Satan, the ruler of this world.  

The people answered Him, "We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'?  Who is this Son of Man?"  Then Jesus said to them, "A little while longer the light is with you.  Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.  While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.  The light, as has permeated John's Gospel, refers to Christ (John 1:4-9; 8:12).  My study Bible comments that Christ's teaching here has several facets of meaning.  First, He will be completing His public ministry shortly.  Additionally, our lives are very limited.  We all have but a short time to repent and believe in Christ before death.  Finally, the second coming of Christ is only a little while when compared to eternity.

There is a movie made in 1945 titled I Know Where I'm Going.  It's about a British woman headed off to marriage with a man who's a great captain of industry, a rich man, a great catch.  She thinks she has her life all bundled up in a neat bundle.  But, when she gets to where she is going (an island in Scotland rented by the rich man for the wedding), she meets a local man, down to earth, wise in ways of the sea and his heritage -- and one can figure out the ending, although it still comes as a surprise.  The title (and the title song) is all about how certain we are of our own worldly plans, and how little we know once a much deeper impulse and love makes itself known to us.  That title might well be appropriate for us to consider in light of today's reading, and Christ's very plaintive words regarding the trouble in His soul, but overcome by His love of and loyalty to the Father.  Everything comes down to that love that is inseparable from Christ's identity as Son.  He will glorify His Father's name.  There is no separating Him from the Father, not all the worldly impulses and temptations, not the human fear of death, not His possible concerns over the eventual state of His Church or His disciples.  Everything goes into His love of and trust in the Father.  Everything depends on this, for in that trust and love is the confidence that Christ expresses when He says, "Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.  And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself."  All of salvation depends upon this act, and its fullness comes from the love of the Father and the Son, and Christ's confidence in where He is truly going because of that love.  There is none who would deny Christ's human impulses, His desire to draw away from death that He knows is coming.  But where He is going is a place to which God the Father calls Him, and it is that place that will result in transcendence of death, the defeat of death, and that defeat is a blow for all of us.  It is that defeat of death in which "the judgment of this world" can take place; and even more specifically, that "now the ruler of this world will be cast out."  And this is where Christ is really going.  He has already shown, in His seventh and final sign in John's Gospel, that He, indeed, is the author of life.  But now He will experience human death, and in so doing, He will draw all peoples to Himself.  In the Synoptic Gospels, after Peter makes his confession of faith that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and Jesus then reveals the manner of His death to the disciples, St. Peter tells Jesus that this must not happen.  But Jesus' response to Peter is, "Get behind Me, Satan!" (Matthew 16:23; Mark 8:33; Luke 4:8).  He tells Peter that he's not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.  That is, in a worldly sense, when Peter tries to prevent Christ from this death, he thinks he knows what he's doing and where he's going.  But there is something else to follow, and that is the light of love that defines God, that is God.  It is the life that is in Christ, which is the light of human beings (John 1:4).  It is the way that might not sound good or right to our human, earthly ears, but is the draw of surpassing love and light, the greater outcome that offers things far beyond our vision that we can know now, at such a moment.  In this moment, Jesus says to all, "A little while longer the light is with you.  Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going."  In the darkness that we know still lives in this world, with which we contend who seek to follow the light, what destination or goal sounds good to you?  Have you had the experience of thinking one thing is good, and finding that God changes your life and offers you something else completely different?  Jesus knows where He is going, but He is the light with us.  As He says, he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.  Even when St. Peter thought he was doing a good and loving thing, he wasn't mindful of the things of God.  The light opens up so many possibilities that would not exist without it; Christ's death will save an entire universe and we all know today that He did this for us, and we are loved.  Do we know where we are going?

 

 

 

See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you

 

 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.  In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.  For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.  

Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.  When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?"   The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me."  Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk."  And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.  And that day was the Sabbath.  The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed."  He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"  Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?"  But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place. 

Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.  

For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.  But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."  Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.

 

- John 5:1-18 

 

Yesterday we read that, after remaining two days with the Samaritans, Jesus departed from there and went to Galilee.  For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.  So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they also had gone to the feast. So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine.  And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum.  When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.  Then Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe."  The nobleman said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies!"  So Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your son lives."  So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way.  And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, "Your son lives!"  Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better.  And they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him."  So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives."  And he himself believed, and his whole household.  This again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.  

 

After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  The feast that marks the setting of today's reading is considered to be the Old Testament Pentecost, which is also called the "Feast of Weeks."  It celebrates the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai.  My study Bible says that this understanding is confirmed by the references to the Law of Moses later in this chapter.  

 

  In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.  For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.  This was a double-basin pool, and believed to have curative powers, as the text indicates.  My study Bible reports that this pool has been discovered about 100 yards north of the temple area, near the Sheep Gate.   It is a high-ground pool, and its water came from underground springs.  It was used to wash down the sacrificial lambs prior to them being slain.  My study Bible remarks that the pool functions as a type of Christian baptism.  Under the old covenant, there was a great multitude waiting to enter the water for physical healing after an angel touched it.  These waters are special, it notes, because they were a way of indirect participation in the animal sacrifices of the temple, as the animals were washed in the same water.  But this grace is limited to the first person to enter.  In the new covenant, baptism is given to all nations and as a direct participation in Christ's own sacrificial death (Romans 6:3-6).  This happens also without the mediation of angels.  So, my study Bible concludes, baptism grants healing of the soul and the promise of eternal resurrection of the body -- and its grace is inexhaustible. 

 

 Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years. My study Bible cites St. John Chrysostom's commentary.  St. Chrysostom says that Jesus singled out the man who had waited for thirty-eight years in order to teach us to have perseverance, and as a judgment against those who lose hope or patience in much lesser troubles which last a far shorter time.  

When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?"   The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me."  My study Bible notes that Christ's question is relevant for many reasons.  First, it made public the fact that the sick man kept his faith even in a situation that was seemingly hopeless, for how could a paralytic ever be the first person into the water?  Next, Christ draws attention away from the water and toward the need we have for a man to help us.  This need is fulfilled in Christ Himself, who became a Man to heal all.  Finally, not all people who are ill actually desire healing.  It is a sad statement, but true, that some might prefer to remain infirm for certain things experienced as "benefits."  It gives one license to complain, to avoid responsibility for one's life, or to continue drawing the sympathy of others. 

 

 Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk."  And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.  And that day was the Sabbath.  The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed."  He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"  Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?"  But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place.  My study Bible comments that although the Law itself does not specifically forbid the carrying of burdens on the Sabbath, this is prohibited in Jeremiah 17:21-22, and it is explicitly forbidden in rabbinical teachings.  It notes also that it's made clear that Christ is Lord over the Sabbath by Christ's command ("Take up your bed and walk") and also by the man's obedience.  (See also Matthew 12:1-8.)  As we will see frequently in John's Gospel, the use of the term the Jews here refers to the religious leaders and not to the people in general; all the characters in our reading are Jews, as is the author of the Gospel.  My study Bible asks us to note the malice of these leaders, who focus only on the Sabbath violation, asking the man, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed'?" but they ignore completely his miraculous healing.  

Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.  My study Bible remarks on the fact that this man was found in the temple; it notes that this shows his great faith, as he had gone there directly to thank God for his cure rather than leaving for someone's home or the marketplace.  Jesus admonishes him to sin no more:  my study Bible comments that while there is a general connection between sin and suffering (Romans 6:23), this connection is not always one-to-one, as the innocent frequently suffer, and the guilty are frequently spared earthly sufferings (see also John 9:1-3).  But, nonetheless, there are times when our own sins lead to our own suffering in a worldly sense.  According to St. Chrysostom, this was the case with this man and his paralysis.  Jesus' warning, however, is that the sins that destroy the soul lead to a far worse result than an affliction of the body; our hope is to flee from sin altogether.  Additionally, this man doesn't report Jesus to the leaders of the Jews in a way that is malicious, but rather as a witness to His work.  Although these leaders were only interested in the violation of the Sabbath, this healed man emphasizes that it was Jesus who had made him well, and says nothing about carrying his bed.  

For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.  But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."  Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.  Here my study  Bible comments that when Jesus declares God to be My Father, the Jews (that is, the religious leaders) quite clearly know that this implies absolute equality.  The discourse by Jesus begun here will continue in our following reading.

In today's reading we are given the third of seven signs in John's Gospel; they are signs of the kingdom of God being extraordinarily present in the Person of Jesus Christ.  My study Bible comments that this healing exemplifies the divine power to restore a person to wholeness.  It seems important to note that, once the man is healed of his paralysis, Jesus also teaches him, ""See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  This is a distinct warning.  To avoid sinning is to avoid a "worse thing" to come upon him.  One must pause to wonder why this is so.  We might think, in effect, that the grace of God is something that is given but that also can be taken away.  But Christ's words regarding sin indicate that such a "worse thing" would be due to a kind of spurning of grace.  After all, it is God and God's grace that has made this man well.  To therefore go forward not seeking to avoid sin would be in some sense to spurn and reject God -- even after this great grace of healing has been given to the man.  Therefore, to go forward without the effort to avoid sin would be not to set out on a path of righteousness, or a deeper relationship with God.  God has come to the man, but to go forward and resume a healthy life without seeking to avoid sin would be in a sense throwing away that relationship offered by God.  In this way, a "worse thing" could come upon him, for a deliberate rejection of what we know is good, of grace that has been given to us, will have consequences.  In this sense, we have to see Christ's healing as wholeness, and as making the man whole, for we are not only a material body divorced from soul and spirit, but to be understood as a whole person.  We need to see ourselves as whole in this sense of completeness.  If we divorce the notion of our body from all that we are, we remain a kind of abstract being, not whole and not real.  We ignore the true importance of our bodies as temples of God (1 Corinthians 3:16-17), and thus we lack an understanding of what constitutes our own "wholeness."  So when we think about what it means to be truly "whole" as a person, and to be truly healthy, we cannot exempt our journey toward God, our walk with faith.  For life goes on, even after a healing, and to forget about how we need to live our lives is to forget about what we truly need in life, and what it is that makes us whole -- even what it is to be a whole person.  We go forward and life moves on, and as Jesus indicates here, we always need to consider in what direction we are going.  For this is what gives us real health, and the wholeness of who we are.

 

Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen!

"White Angel" with Holy Myrrhbearers at Christ's Tomb, c. 1235.  Fresco, Mileseva Monastery, Serbia

 Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome brought spices, that they might come and anoint Him.  Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.  And they said among themselves, "Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"  But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away -- for it was very large.  And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.  But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed.  You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He is risen!  He is not here.  See the place where they laid Him.  But go, tell His disciples -- and Peter -- that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you."  So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed.  And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

 

- Mark 16:1-8 

 

Our previously posted reading (from Thursday) described the events of the Las Supper.  In Mark's Gospel, this took place on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they killed the Passover lamb.  On this day, Jesus' disciples said to Him, "Where do You want us to go and prepare, that You may eat the Passover?"  And He sent out two of His disciples and said to them, "Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him.  Wherever he goes in, say to the master of the house, 'The Teacher says, "Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?" ' Then he will show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared; there make ready for us."  So His disciples went out, and came into the city, and found it just as He had said to them; and they prepared the Passover.  In the evening He came with the twelve.  Now as they sat and ate, Jesus said, "Assuredly, I say to you, one of you who eats with Me will betray Me."  And they began to be sorrowful, and to say to Him one by one, "Is it I?"  And another said, "Is it I?"  He answered and said to them, "It is one of the twelve, who dips with Me in the dish.  The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed!  It would have been good for that man if he had never been born." And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, "Take, eat; this is My body."  Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it.  And He said to them, "This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.  Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."

 

  Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome brought spices, that they might come and anoint Him.  Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.  My study Bible comments that, because Christ died so close in time to the Sabbath, the burial customs of the Jews could not be completed.  So, these faithful women (who had followed and supported His ministry even from Galilee; see Luke 8:1-3) went as early as possible to complete the rites of burial.  Another note tells us that in patristic literature, some teach that Mary the mother of James was the wife of Alphaeus, and this James was one of the Twelve (Luke 6:15).  But the majority hold that this Mary is the Virgin Mary, as she was the stepmother of another James, who is called "the Lord's brother" in Matthew 13:55; compare with Mark 15:40, 47.  Also, my study Bible says that many teach that Salome was the wife of Zebedee, the mother of James and John.  

And they said among themselves, "Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"  But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away -- for it was very large.  My study Bible comments that the stone had been rolled away not to make way for the Lord's exit from the tomb, for in His resurrected body, He needed no such accommodation (John 20:19).   Instead, this stone was rolled away to allow the witnesses -- and us -- to look in and see that the tomb was empty.  

And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.  But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed.  You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He is risen!  He is not here.  See the place where they laid Him.  But go, tell His disciples -- and Peter -- that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you."  The specific mention of Peter, my study Bible says, reveals a special care for the one who had denied Christ.   My study Bible quotes Theophylact, who comments that Peter would have said of himself, "I denied the Lord, and therefore am no longer His disciple.  The angel's command is a promise that Peter is forgiven.  

So they went out quickly and fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed.  And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.  My study Bible explains that they said nothing to anyone doesn't mean these women never said anything, but rather that they kept silent until Jesus appeared to them (verses 9-11, which follow today's reading).

Here is a wonderful paradox to contemplate:  the greatest news ever given to humankind is given to these women who come to the tomb:  "He is risen!"  And there is even more powerful news for these women who have followed and supported Christ's ministry, only to see Him crucified:  "He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you."   But how do we see these women responding?  Do they leap and rejoice at this greatest of good news?  No, they respond with fear.  In fact, they are so afraid that they say absolutely nothing to anyone.  They trembled and were amazed, and they were afraid.  The Gospels truly reveal to us much more about human nature than we're usually prepared to accept.  In this time of myriad upon myriad of stories available through all forms of media at all times present to us, we still might find this response entirely paradoxical and unpredictable.  The stories we tell one another do not necessarily reflect the reality of human nature -- and the human-divine encounter -- that we're shown in the Gospels.  We would do well to pay attention to this, for it helps us to understand ourselves and our limitations, and additionally the struggle for faith as a lifelong journey.  In the Old Testament, there are a series of what we could call "landmark" encounters with God of one form or another.  There is the stunning story of Moses at the Burning Bush, and in that fire of God's energy, there is God's voice, and God even naming God's name, "I AM" (Exodus 3:14).   As this article points out, for the earliest centuries of Christianity (and for Eastern Christianity in general), these encounters with God are encounters with Christ the Lord, the One who became Incarnate for us, who was given a form that human beings could see, the Logos.  But in this story of the Resurrection, the encounter of these women with the angel gives us a dimension of an encounter with God that we perhaps have either forgotten, or watered down, or discounted for various reasons in the modern world.  That would be related to a healthy "fear" of the Lord (Proverbs 1:7), and the meaning of the word "awe" as in "awesome" (Merriam-Webster definition).  Of course this great good news is entirely unexpected, but also perhaps unfathomable -- even though Jesus prophesied His rising after three days many times.  But an encounter with the risen Lord, as many descriptions in the Gospels emphasize, is one of real "otherness," for want of a better word.  It is something so far outside of our experience and expectations that a natural response is fear, because there is what we might call a boundary-less unknown made present to us.  We cannot define the "ends" of God; we don't know where God ends and begins, and we can't circumscribe or classify all aspects of this real aspect of God.  This is why, so often, Eastern theology in particular will describe God more in negative terms (what we know God is not) than positive ones (what God is).  (This is called Apophatic as opposed to Cataphatic theology).  In other words, we can speak more authoritatively as to what God is not, than to what God is.  The message of the angel is so disconcerting because these women have no idea what to expect of this God -- the Lord who has risen and will meet them in Galilee.  And as we ponder the meanings of Easter and Resurrection, we should consider for ourselves how much there is to this risen Lord that we know nothing about -- for God the Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, is beyond our capacity to fully know, describe, or define.  And yet everything we know of Christ the Lord has been an act of love for us, to encounter us, to even become one of us.  And after the Resurrection, we also have Christ in the Eucharist, even to the point of becoming a part of us on levels we can't determine.  It would take evolution and blossoming of the Church to know what expression all of this would take in the world, the expansion of the communion of saints, the uncountable things that have their root in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ, and in the Resurrection -- and all of that is unfolding still.  But for these women, who knew Him so well, who had followed Him and supported His ministry even from Galilee, the angel's words open up an encounter too far outside of experience to be anything but stunning, frightening, to the point of making them tremble and stay silent.  We might be better off to understand that in some ways this is the proper response to God, because it takes into account the vastness and unlimited quality of God, which we forget about all too often.  The shocking nature of the angel's words reminds us that God remains unpredictable and surprising, the ultimate "wild" thing we can't control nor fully define.  And yet, we are to worship with awe, and be grateful for the gifts we've been given, and all that may yet come.

See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you

 

 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.  In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.  For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.  

 

Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.  When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?"  The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up but while I am coming, another steps down before me."  Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk."  And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.  And that day was the Sabbath.  The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed."  He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"  Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?"  But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place.  Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.  

 

For this reason, the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.  But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."  Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.

 

- John 5:1–18 

 

Yesterday we read that after spending two days among the Samaritans (see readings from Thursday, Friday, and Saturday),  He departed from there and went to Galilee.  For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they also had gone to the feast.  So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine.  And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum.  When he hard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.  Then Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe."  The nobleman said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies!"  Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your son lives."  So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way.  And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, "Your son lives!"  Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better.  And they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him."  So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives."  And he himself believed, and his whole household.  This again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.   

 

  After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.  In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.  For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.  This pool was a double-basin pool which was believed to have curative powers.  My study Bible says that this pool has been discovered about 100 yards north of the temple area, near the Sheep Gate.  It notes that the water for this high-ground pool came from underground springs, and it was used to wash down the sacrificial lambs before they were slain.  Moreover, my study Bible comments, this pool functions as a type of Christian baptism, reflecting meanings which transition from the old to the new covenant.  Under the old, a great multitude waited to enter the water for physical healing after an angel touched it.  These waters, it explains, were special because they were a way of indirectly participating in the animal sacrifices of the temple, as the animals were washed in the same water.  But the grace was limited in this case to only the first person to enter.  But under the new covenant, baptism is given to all nations, and it is a direct participation in the sacrificial death of Christ (Romans 6:3-6), without the mediation of angels.  Baptism, my study Bible comments, therefore grants healing of the soul and the promise of eternal resurrection of the body -- and moreover, its grace is inexhaustible.  We recall Christ's words to the Samaritan woman, from Thursday's reading, "But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."

 

 Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.  My study Bible cites St. John Chrysostom, who comments here that Jesus singled out the man who had waited for thirty-eight years so that we are taught to have perseverance.  Additionally it is a type of judgment against those who lose hope or patience in much lesser troubles lasting a far shorter time. 

When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?"  The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up but while I am coming, another steps down before me."  My study Bible says that Christ's question is relevant for several reasons.  First, it made public the fact that the sick man kept his faith although in a situation that was seemingly hopeless. How could a paralytic ever be the first into the water?  Second, Christ draws attention away from the water, and toward the concept that we need a man to help us.  Of course, it is Christ who fulfills this need, as He became a Man in order to heal all people.  Finally, not all those who are ill actually desire healing.  This is linked to a psychological preference to remain infirm in order to be free to complain, to avoid responsibility for their lives, or to continue to stimulate pity in others.

And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked.  And that day was the Sabbath.  The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed."  He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"  Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?"  We remember that in John's Gospel, the majority of the use of the term the Jews is used like a political term, to designate the leadership (Jesus and all the others in this story are also Jews, as well as John the author of the Gospel).  My study Bible comments here that although the Law itself doesn't specifically forbid the carrying of burdens on the Sabbath, it is prohibited in Jeremiah 17:21-22, and also explicitly forbidden in rabbinical teachings.  It notes that the understanding that Christ is Lord over the Sabbath becomes clear in His command to the man ("Rise, take up your bed and walk"), and then by the man's obedience to Him.  We may also observe the malice in these leaders, who focus only on the violation of the Sabbath, by asking, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed'?" and ignoring completely the healing of this man who'd suffered for such a long time.  

 

 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."   My study Bible notes that this healed man is found in the temple, emphasizing that it shows his great faith.  He had gone there directly to thank God for his cure rather than leaving for someone's home or the marketplace.  Jesus tells him, "Sin no more."  My study Bible comments on this that as there is a general connection between sin and suffering (Romans 6:23), this connection is, however, not always one-to-one.  Clearly, the innocent often suffer, and the guilty are often spared from earthly sufferings (see also John 9:1-3).  But nonetheless, sometimes our sins do lead directly to our own worldly suffering.  According to St. Chrysostom, such was the case with the paralytic.  Jesus' warning, however, is that the sins that destroy the soul lead to a far worse result than an affliction of the body, my study Bible notes.  Our only hope is fleeing from sin.

The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.  My study Bible explains that the man doesn't report Jesus to the religious leaders of the Jews in a malicious way, but rather he is witness to Christ's goodness.  Although these leaders were only interested in the violation of the Sabbath, this healed man emphasizes that it was Jesus who had made him well, and said nothing about carrying his bed.  

For this reason, the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.  But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."  Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.  My study Bible says that when Jesus declares God to be My Father, these religious leaders clearly understand that it implies absolute equality.  In the following reading, Jesus will continue to express this unity.

 

Jesus says to the healed former paralytic, "See, you have been made well.  Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."  At first glance, it might appear that Jesus is Himself issuing a threat to this man, as some kind of punishment or retribution.  But with God, this is not the case.  It is similar to John's teaching to Nicodemus:  "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."  The explanation here is not that one is offered a punishment for refusal of Christ.  But it is communion with Christ that confers the healing and the grace and the redemption.  Therefore to run from this communion, to refuse it, or to participate in that which runs counter to it and is against it, is to reject the grace, healing, and redemption offered by Christ.  When we're talking about our faith, it is important to understand the impact and power of communion, of participation in the life of Christ.  Whatever it is that cuts us off from that communion works against the dividends of faith.  We have a great grace working for us, and we are given much mercy so long as we are capable of repentance, redemption, of seeking out God.  But our own refusal jeopardizes that capacity, and works to blind us to the ways God would have us go toward God and receive that light.  If we observe the effects of Christ's presence in the Gospels -- and particularly in the progression of events in John's Gospel -- we will notice that while those who are in some way healed or redeemed by Christ continue moving more deeply into faith and communion with Him, as the same story progresses the religious leaders who refuse Him and wish to condemn Him only draw further away, even as they draw themselves into more deeply blindly sinful and corrupt behavior in condemning One whom they know to be innocent.  When we are warned about the effects of sin, it's not for punishment but for our protection and good, like a parent warning a child about touching a hot stove.  The healing in today's reading constitutes the third sign of seven given in John's Gospel.  My study Bible claims that this sign exemplifies the divine power to restore a person to wholeness.  According to patristic sources, this feast which Jesus is attending is the Old Testament Pentecost (also called the "Feast of Weeks") which celebrated the giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai.  Later references in this chapter to the Law of Moses affirm this interpretation.  So let us think about the "law" of participation and communion.  We are to understand that whatever breaks or harms this relationship also does harm to our capacity to receive God's grace and healing power.  In the thoughts of the Church, our very lives are dependent upon God; therefore to jeopardize our deeper or closer faith is to jeopardize the life in abundance we're promised, and all the things that might mean.  Let us pay attention to the law of God's love.

 

 

Out of Egypt I called My Son

 

 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

    "A voice was heard in Ramah,

    Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,

    Rachel weeping for her children,

    Refusing to be comforted, 

    Because they are no more."

 

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  But when he hard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

- Matthew 2:13-23 

 

Yesterday we read that after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:  'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"  Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.  And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way. 

 

  Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."    My study Bible notes here that Egypt is the place where Israel once took refuge, as Joseph of the Old Testament once saved God's people by bringing them to Egypt (Genesis 39-47).  Now, in a similar sense, Christ's stepfather Joseph finds safety for the Savior in Egypt.  It is likely, my study Bible adds, that the gifts of the magi paid for this journey (see yesterday's reading, above).  

When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."  This quotation is from Hosea 11:1, and it refers first to Israel being brought out of captivity.  In the Old Testament, my study Bible explains, "son" can refer to the whole nation of Israel.  Here, it says, Jesus fulfills this calling as the true Son of God by coming out of Egypt.

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  In another manifestation of Jesus as true Son embodying Israel, my study Bible suggests that the cruelty of Herod was prefigured by Pharaoh.  In an attempt to destroy the power of Israel, Pharaoh commanded the death of all the newborn Jewish boys (Exodus 1:16, 22).  

Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more."  The prophet Jeremiah recorded the people of Israel being led away to exile (Jeremiah 31:15).  On their way to captivity, the people passed Ramah, which was near Bethlehem, where Jacob's wife Rachel was buried.  In Jeremiah's prophecy, he envisioned Rachel, even from the grave, moved with compassion for the fate that had fallen to her descendants.  Here once again Rachel is weeping for her children, which shows that the saints in heaven have awareness and compassion for those who live on earth.  My study Bible tells us that these slaughtered children are known to the Church as saints and martyrs, and called the Holy Innocents.  It notes that as Rachel was told that her children would return from exile in Babylon (Jeremiah 31:16-17), so Jesus will return from His exile in Egypt. 

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  My study Bible cites historical records which tell us that Herod the Great died in 4 BC.  The date of Christ's birth on the AD (Anno Domini, Latin for "year of the Lord") calendar is based is off by four years.   

But when he hard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."  In AD 6, Augustus Caesar banished Archelaus for his cruelty.  This cruelty was revealed to Joseph as a warning, so they went to Nazareth.  Nazareth is in the province of Galilee, which was governed by another son of Herod the Great.  He is Herod Antipas, who would rule Galilee throughout Jesus' lifetime (see Luke 3:1).  Its not clear precisely which prophesy is referred to here.  My study Bible says that it has been taken as a reference to the rod (neser in Hebrew) in Isaiah 11:1, and to the Nazirite (Hebrew Nazir) of Judges 13:5.  It is also possible that Matthew may have been alludin gto passages in which the Messiah was despised, since Nazareth did not have a good reputation (John 1:46). 

 

 As today is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross across many Christian denominations, perhaps it is a good idea to tie in today's reading with the feast.  The feast itself commemorates the finding of the Cross in Jerusalem by St. Helen, the mother of Emperor Constantine.   For Constantine, the Cross became a symbol of Victory, as given to him in a vision.  But in today's reading, we have a sense of the Cross shadowing Christ's life right from the very beginning, and characterizing the life of His parents who are responsible for Him even when He is still a newborn infant.  From the time He is born, there are those who seek His life.  The Cross that overshadows today's text is the cross of the enemies of God, and those who take on the characteristics of the spiritual enemies of Christ.  St. Paul writes, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12).  In today's reading, the Cross appears in the guise of persecution that starts with Herod the Great, and those rulers like him who are known for their particular cruelty; for even in a time of ruthless rulers, such was Herod the Great's reputation, as was Archelaus after him, about whom we also read in today's gospel reading.  This young family must flee to Egypt, even as the wise men in yesterday's reading were warned to flee King Herod.  Eventually, even after Herod's death, Joseph, Mary, and Jesus cannot return to Judea (wherein lies Bethlehem where Jesus was born), but go instead to Galilee and the town of Nazareth.  In these actions of persecution, my study Bible has written, we also see Israel itself, having once taken refuge and then fleeing Egypt in its history, giving birth to the story of Moses and the people who struggled to return to the land promised to Abraham.   But on this day of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, it seems that it would be remiss if we did not understand the characteristic persecution of Christians in the light of the Cross.  For Christ comes into the world -- even as an infant -- as One sent against the "principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."  He is sent to us as One who is meant to free us from the bondage and influence of such, and His means will be the very Cross itself, the culminating instrument of His persecution and the injustice done to Him.  If we think this is paradoxical, then we are on the right track.  For, as God works in the world, we can only begin to grasp such work as paradox.  The greatest instrument of persecution and death, when touched by Christ, becomes the symbol of our victory, our resurrection, our sharing in Christ's victory over death itself.  And in this, we must come to see the persecutions that work in a way no demonic force, nor those who would be aligned with the methods of the demonic, be capable of grasping.  Those who sought to persecute Christ became known for their cruelties and injustice -- and even the beautiful temple as rebuilt and expanded by Herod would be left without one stone standing upon another within one generation.  Christ's upbringing in an overlooked small town of not much significance in Galilee became a haven of protection so that He could grow to begin His ministry at thirty years of age.  These persecutions and their eventual outcomes -- even of protecting Christ through exile and repatriation away from Judea -- teach us about the power of God and how it works even through our hardships, and there we come again to the Cross, the symbol of our victory in Christ.  In thinking about the threats to Christ and to His family, the care of His guardian Joseph, and of His mother Mary, we should consider the story it tells us about our own times of suffering or difficulty for the sake of our faith.  For the Cross would come to work as a trap for those "rulers of the darkness" and "spiritual hosts of wickedness," for in Christ's humility they could not recognize His power nor the justice that would prevail against them.  We can see today those who ally with the qualities of those powers of wickedness, who believe they gain through ruthlessness and torture, whose faith is not in the strength of God but in material power and tools of manipulation, whose crimes may be hidden for a time but come to light.  For in holding to the Cross of Christ we also work to strengthen and build His work in this world, His kingdom in this world, and that is the purpose for which He was sent.  We are able to participate in His life, and even the work of what He would make the "life-giving" Cross, through God's power at work in the world, through His life, death, and Resurrection.  When we observe the persecutions in His life, and still today in the world, let us not forget where we come from, how we got here, and what we really call the victory of the Cross.   There will be times in our own lives when we find ourselves in a necessary exile, or enduring persecution for our faith in one form or another.  But we look to the Cross, for we know its purpose and its victory in Him.