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

 

Christ the Bridegroom

 "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 12:27–36 

 

Yesterday we read that there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast of Passover.  It is now the final week of Jesus' earthly life.  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' soul is troubled, for this hour is the approaching time of His Crucifixion and and death.  My study Bible comments that it is the mark of Christ's humanity to abhor death.  Yet, according to His divine nature, He affirms that for this purpose He has come to this hour.  His divine will is one with the Father's, and He will submit His human will to the same.

 

"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.  It notes that the Son's death completes the purpose of the Father, and it shows His love for all -- thereby glorifying Him.  Effectively, Christ is saying, "Father, lead Me to the Cross."  This is the Lord's divine response to the human prompting to avoid the Cross ("Now My soul is troubled").  The Father's response, according to my study Bible, is a reference to the signs which have already been 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." My study Bible says that although the Father spoke clearly, some people heard indistinct sounds like thunder because they lacked faith.  Those with a little faith heard the words but did not know the source, thinking it to be an angel.  But the disciples knew that the Father Himself had spoken, and it is to them that Jesus says that this voice came "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.  Once again Jesus uses the term lifted up to refer to being hung on the Cross (see also John 3:14-15, 8:28).  Christ's death will bring salvation to all peoples, and at the same tie render judgment on the faithless, and destroying 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, my study Bible says, refers to Christ (John 1:4-9, 8:12).  It notes that there are several facets of meaning to Christ's teaching here.  First, He's indicating that He will soon be completing His public ministry.  Additionally, our lives are very limited.  We have only a short time to repent and believe in Christ before our own deaths.  And finally, the second coming of Christ is but a little while when compared to eternity. 

 

 Father Stephen Freeman, an Orthodox priest who writes a blog called "Glory to God for All Things," has written an interesting commentary on the Crucifixion.  In the Orthodox Church, these first few days of Holy Week are focused on Christ the Bridegroom, the One who will be united to His Bride, the Church.  The icon of the Bridegroom may seem like one that is very counterintuitive to us.  Christ the Bridegroom is also Christ the Prisoner.  This Bridegroom icon is also -- in a way which likely strikes us as strange as well -- the icon of marriage.  Christ's hands are tied; in marriage we are not free to do just as we please, but we enter into a covenant that means mutual sacrifice on the part of both spouses.  We also may suffer with those whom we love, as when a child or other loved one is ill or goes through harm or misfortune.  But Father Stephen's commentary focuses on the Cross as revealing what truly is.  For the Bridegroom is also the Judge.  Christ's parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins focuses on the Bridegroom coming at midnight:  which virgins have filled their lamps with oil in preparation to keep their lamps lit, and which have not. To make sense of this parable, one must understand that the word in Greek for the olive oil that traditionally filled those lamps sounds alike to the word for "mercy."  Thus, to be prepared for our Bridegroom upon His return is to live our lives in the practice of the mercy He teaches us as His disciples, keeping our lamps full, and lit with His light for this world.   We prepare for the coming of our Bridegroom by following His teachings, keeping His word, walking in His light so that we might become sons of light.  For this is what it means to keep our lamps full, to learn to practice His grace and mercy and grow in that discipline with His light, His help.  Father Stephen's commentary on the Bridegroom teaches us that we have all received of Christ's fullness through His life, and judgment is laid bare at the Cross.   Everything is revealed.  For there we accept or we do not accept, we believe or we do not believe, and His life is the revelation of God for us (John 14:9).   It is, after all, in His light that all darkness is dispelled, and life -- and truth -- are revealed for what they are.  May we all become sons (and therefore heirs) of that light.

 

 

 

 

 

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?

 

 

 

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 12:27–36 

 

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 refers to "this hour" -- the time of His death, which He also calls His glorification (in yesterday's reading, above).  He makes it clear to the disciples that He goes willingly to the Cross.  As a human being, His soul is troubled.  My study Bible says it is the mark of humanity to abhor death, which Jesus clearly expresses for us here.  But it is according to His divine nature that He willingly goes to the Cross.  In so doing, He expresses His will to be one with the Father's, and also the priority of submitting one's own will to God's will (Luke 11:2). 

 

"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.  It says that the Son's death completes the purpose of the Father, and shows His love for all -- thus glorifying Him.  Effectively, Christ is saying, "Father, lead Me to the Cross," and it is Christ's divine response to the human prompting to avoid it.  God the Father's response refers to the signs which have already been 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."  My study Bible says that, although the Father spoke clearly, some people heard indistinct sounds like thunder because they lacked faith.  Those with a little faith heard the words but did not know the source, thinking it was an angel.  But the disciples knew that the Father Himself 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.  My study Bible explains that lifted up is a reference to Christ being hung on the Cross.  It is an expression He has used before as well -- see John 3:14-15; 8:28.  This death will bring salvation to all peoples, my study Bible says, and at the same time render judgment on the faithless and destroying 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 is a reference to Christ, as used consistently in John's Gospel (John 1:4-9; 8:12).  My study Bible states that Christ's teaching here has several facets of meaning.  In the first place, Jesus will be completing His public ministry soon.  Moreover, our lives are very limited; we have but a short time to repent and believe in Christ before death.  And finally, the second coming of Christ is but a little while when it is compared to all eternity.  

There is so much in today's reading that it is hard to pick one thing to write about.  Possibly we can begin with what Jesus says in the "ending" verses for today's reading, when He speaks of Himself as the light.  Jesus says to the people, "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."  In John's Gospel, we know that He is addressing the religious leaders when it uses the terms "the Jews," as this is meant as a type of political label.  When Jesus addresses the disciples, the text also makes that clear.  Here, we're told, He is addressing the people.  In Greek, this word is ὄχλος/ochlos.  It means crowd or throng, a multitude.  So the indication here is for all of the people who are attending the Passover.  These words, exhorting the people to walk while you have the light, and telling them that it is but a little while longer that the light is with you, are clearly meant as attempts to save them, to gather them as the Good Shepherd before His death on the Cross.  Jesus tells them, "Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you."  This word in Greek, translated as "overtake," is the same word translated as "comprehend" in the Prologue to John's Gospel, when we're told, "And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it" (John 1:5).  He is setting out for them the clear path, about which He's preached all along, that He is in the world to offer guidance, for all those who would become His sheep.  This image He sets out for us here is one of extreme contrast, and that is significant, for darkness is not something that is gentle and lowly in heart; it is painful and enslaving.  The light He offers us is Himself, as the door, and as the path, the way.  Finally, He says, "While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  And there we encounter a promise, something that has to do with the opening of a mystery.  How may human beings become sons of light?    Jesus is offering a kind of "preview" of what is to come, and is speaking about taking on characteristics of the light by walking in the light.  He is speaking of the coming of the Holy Spirit and the grace that is to come, of the "much fruit" that will be produced by His going to the Cross.  (See yesterday's reading, above, in which He said, "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 is contrasting the way of darkness, which is broad and wide, with the way of light, of the Good Shepherd, who offers His life for the sheep, because He follows the command of His Father (John 10:11-18).  Let us for now consider what this means, as we go through Holy Week, and delve into the transformational way of the Cross, and this light He offers to us, so that we may become sons of light by walking the path He illumines.

 

 

 

 

 

While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light

 

 "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 12:27-36 

 

Yesterday we read that there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the 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 loaves 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."  My study Bible points out that here Christ reveals His human will, the natural human response to His impending Passion.  But nonetheless, He aligns Himself with the will of the Father, even as He is fully human as fully divine.  

 

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

 

 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."  Although the Father spoke clearly, those who stood by heard indistinct sounds like thunder.  My study Bible comments that this is because they lacked faith.  Those with a little faith heard the words but did not know the source, thinking it was an angel.  The disciples knew the Father Himself had spoken, as indicated in Jesus' response, "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 Jesus being hung on the Cross (see also John 3:14-15; 8:28).  My study Bible notes that this death will bring salvation to all peoples, while at the same time rendering judgment on the faithless and destroying 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 Gospel has referred to Christ as the light (John 1:4-9), and Christ has referred to Himself as the light (John 8:12).  My study Bible says that His teaching here has many facets of meaning.  First, He will shortly be completing His public ministry.  Moreover, our own lives are very limited; we have only a short time to repent and to believe in Christ before death.  Finally, the second coming of Christ is but a little while compared to eternity. 

Jesus calls Himself light, and speaks of our journey through life as walking in the world.  It is His light we need to make sure we are on the right path, making the good choices of God.  He has called Himself the light of the world (John 8:12).  If we believe in the light, He says, we may become sons of light.  That is, children of light.   So, we may ask ourselves again, more deeply as the Gospel moves along toward Christ's Passion, what does it mean to be children of light, to be faithful to Christ?  Here Jesus clearly ties together faith and being.  What we put our faith and trust into, we bear likeness to, and we may become more so by walking in the light -- living according to this faith.  This is not a promise of some sort of fairy tale life, nor a promise of self-aggrandizement in some sense.  What it is, is a promise that we might have spiritual truth revealed to us and integrated into our way of being in the world, a sense of what it is to become more like Him and to follow God's judgment and discernment for our lives.  We seek His light in order to become the kind of people who seek His prudent counsel, who understand the purpose and meaning of sacrifice, and who do not fool themselves either about the nature of His light nor of the world.  In chapter 11, we were told that Caiaphas, in his role as high priest that year, advocated to the Council that they put Christ to death.  He said it this way:  "You know nothing at all, nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should perish."  But we understand these words to be inadvertent prophecy, and fulfilling the role of high priest in so doing, because they teach us about Christ's mission and work, although as a man, Caiaphas meant something quite different.  (Jesus 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.")  Christ's death would have the effect of gathering together Jews and Gentiles in one faith, and this is the power of His sacrifice, and fulfillment of the Father's will.  At the same time, it is a defeat of the enemy, whose final weapon is death (1 Corinthians 15:26).  What we might come to understand for ourselves, as Jesus speaks of the light, and of walking in the light, is that the sacrifices we might be called to make will be in some sense also serving this higher purpose of Christ's calling, of serving the light and becoming more "like Him," becoming, in effect, His children.  We are to understand, as we've frequently commented on the life of the Cross, that He calls us to exchange one life for another, an "earthly" life for one suffused with this kind of light, the light of spiritual reality and an understanding of discernment and higher purpose.  This is not a formula for instant gratification and happiness, but it is one of belonging to something transcendent and meaningful, one that teaches us about love and the emptiness of serving only materialism, a way of life that sees nothing of deep value and cannot recognize its own darkness.  Christ's light is one that illumines the way to discernment, to find a true worth and meaning in a world of competing interests, ruthless violence, and endless manipulation.  This is the light that shines in the darkness, the light of the world.  What side would you choose?  Whose light would you bear into the world?  Who do you choose to guide you? In 1 Corinthians 15:35-49, St. Paul speaks of glory, of the difference between the life of the Resurrection, and the various types of glory we might observe.  Here in today's passage, we are asked to ponder what type of glory we might want for ourselves, for there is the "glory" of the world and what it admires and envies and elevates especially through our media and public relations and all the means of the powerful, and then there is the glory of the light of Christ.  We might well want both, but so often we are asked instead to choose.  Whose light will draw you forward with love and truth?

 

 

 

 

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 12:27-36

In our present readings, Jesus is at His third and final Passover festival in Jerusalem.  Yesterday we read that there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the 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 tells those who listen, and all the rest of us, that My soul is troubled.  His human soul -- the full psychological reality of being truly a human being -- means that He has a natural abhorrence of death.  But the ultimate guide for Christ is His divinity and His union with God the Father; and so, in this hour He affirms for those who hear that for this purpose I came to this hour.   The lives of the first apostles confirm that this was understood to be leadership for all the rest of us, for whom faith in Christ and the unity in that love of God would become the ultimate loyalty, the fullness of life.

"Father, glorify Your name."  My study bible tells us that the Father's name is an extension of His Person.  The Son's death completes the purpose of the Father, and it shows His love for all, and therefore glorifies Him.  Regardless of His natural human instinct, Christ is in effect saying to the Father that He should be led to the Cross.  My study bible calls this the Lord's divine response to the human prompting to avoid the Cross.

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."  The Father's response refers to the signs which Jesus has already performed, and also to His death and Resurrection to come.  Although the Father spoke clearly, my study bible says, some people heard indistinct sounds like thunder because they lacked faith.  It notes that those with a little faith heard the words but did not know the source, believing that it was an angel.   But the disciples knew that the Father had spoken, as Jesus indicates by saying, 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?"   Lifted up is Christ's reference to being hung on the Cross, as we have already read in 3:14 and 8:28.  My study bible notes that this death will bring salvation to all peoples, and at the same time it will render judgment on those who lack faith.  Once and for all it will destroy the power of Satan, the ruler of this world.

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.  Yet again, Jesus refers to Himself as the light (see 1:4-9; 8:12).  My study bible says that His teaching in these verses has several facets of meaning.  He indicates that He will shortly be completing His public ministry.  Moreover, our lives are quite limited.  That is, we have a short time to repent and believe in Christ before our own deaths.  And more -- the second coming of Christ is but a little while when compared to eternity.

Christ is willing to give up His entire life.  How can this be?  Why would the God of all creation be willing to give up life?  This One "without [whom] nothing was made that was made" (1:3) is the very creator of life.   He is in the world, in fact, to save human life.  We know of His encounters with individuals, like the Samaritan woman (John 4) -- not a man and not a Jew -- and yet His individual time was spent with her, His revelation of His identity is first made to her.  Christ has confirmed that to Him, each human life is precious, and that He loves each of us.  God's love for us will never end, and will never turn away.  But it is we who turn away from God.  In Christ's willing sacrifice, He is giving us an image of ourselves and what we do.  It is we who turn away our own lives from His life-giving love.  It is who we choose to reject His joy, and His peace for ourselves.  In today's reading, Jesus gives a warning to everyone, to all of us:  "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."  We have the light with us; the Church gives us this message.  While we are all human beings and capable of error, including the human beings who make up the Church, we accept that the truth of the Holy Spirit and the message of Christ comes to us through His words and the work of God which is active and with us and among us.  Christ goes willingly to His sacrifice simply for this, to teach us that salvation has a process and a way, and that He is the light that guides us.  Let us walk while we have the light by believing in the light, so that we know where we are going, and that we may become sons of light.  In the darkness is death.   God gives us the gift of will, and offers us His choice and His love.

While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light

"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

In yesterday's reading, Jesus has come to Jerusalem in the Triumphal Entry. In the first words we are given to His followers after that, He predicts His death. He says, "The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified." It is His time. This is the beginning of Passion Week. See Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. Jesus tells us, "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." My study bible says that this verse gives a glimpse of the Gethsemane experience of Jesus (Matt. 26:36-46). We have already been told by John the Evangelist that "Jesus wept" at the grief of His friends when Lazarus was dead. We understand Him to be as fully human as we are, with all of our emotional life.

"Father, glorify Your name." Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again." My study bible notes, "The Father's name is an extension of His Person. The Son worked for the glory of the Father, and His death is now to be offered up to complete that purpose (v. 27) and to show the Father's love for all people. The divine voice gives assurance that the death of Jesus is not humiliation but glorification through the fulfillment of God's plan for the redemption of the world."

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." This is not the first time, of course, such a voice has been heard. In the stories of Jesus' baptism, we hear of this voice. John the Evangelist will also repeat many times in the Revelation that he heard heavenly voices that sounded like thunder. It is another type of Epiphany (as was the baptism); it is a revelation of God for the sake of the followers who are with him.

"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. My study bible notes here: "Lifted up (v. 32, see also 3:14, 15; 8:28): a reference to the lifting up of Christ on the Cross, which is His glorification and will lead to the salvation of the human race. At the same time this event is a judgment (v. 31) on the unbelieving world of darkness and the abolition of the power of the ruler of this world, Satan." My study bible continues with the following (referring to an Eastern hymn): "We live in a state of tension between the victory won (see 1 John 2:13) and that yet to be won (see 1 John 5:4,5). In a vespers hymn for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross we sing, 'Lifted high upon the Cross, O Master, with Yourself You have raised up Adam and the whole of fallen nature. Therefore, exalting Your undefiled Cross, O You who love mankind, we ask You for Your strength from above, crying: O God Most High, in Your mercy save those who honor the sacred light-giving and divine Exaltation of Your Cross.' " Ironically, we were told that the high priest Caiaphas stated, in his prophetic capacity, that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for that nation only, but also that He would gather together in one the children of God who were scattered abroad. Jesus repeats this prophecy, "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself." Today we understand that it is the instrument of this "lifting up" itself, the means of His crucifixion, that serves as a uniting symbol to "draw all peoples to Myself." The judgment is Jesus' rejection as Creator, by the effects of evil, of the "ruler of this world." It is the response to the work of God in the world that creates judgment.

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. My study bible notes here, "The theme of Jesus as the light receives renewed emphasis. The crowd wants to know the identity of the Son of Man. But Jesus challenges them to come to the light while there is still time to become children of light. Christ is 'light from Light' (Nicene Creed). In union with Him, we partake of His light, becoming children of light (v. 36)."

Of course it is John the Evangelist who has also given us these images of Christ as the light that has come into the world. He has also given us Jesus' own words referring to Himself as the light of the world. Here, Jesus teaches us once again about becoming "like God" by adoption, of becoming sons of light. As we know, He has already quoted (to the leadership of the temple) from Psalm 82: "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods."'?" When we walk in His light, we, too, becomes "sons of light." His light is the life of the world, we are taught. Repeatedly in this Gospel, we are given to understand the notions of life and light in Christ. What does it mean to be permeated by that light, to become a part of that light? This is something that knows no limits in us; it reaches to all of our depth and breadth and height, and down into everything that it means to be a human being. As we take this walk, and continue to follow that light, to "abide in His words," we may find ourselves more and more deeply permeated by that light. It will illumine all of our dark corners, it will ask us to change at depths we didn't understand that we had. It will take us all in, and while "the darkness did not comprehend it," the light will certainly comprehend the darkness. This is part of the sacrifice and change He asks of us (see yesterday's reading). As we become children of that light, we are asked to change, and it permeates us more and more deeply. This is life, abundantly.