Homily for the 5th Sunday of Easter Year A –
Homily for the 5th Sunday of Easter Year A – Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life by Fr. Gerald Muoka (frgeraldmuoka@yahoo.com).
A priest sent to a new parish asked a little boy in the main street how he could get to his new church. The boy gave him directions. The priest in appreciation thanked him and further said, “If you come to the church on Sunday, I’ll show you the way to Heaven, God the Father’s house.” The boy replied, “No thanks. You don’t even know the way to the church, and you are going to teach me how to go to Heaven?!”
My dear friends, we hear another great ‘I am’ statement of Jesus in today’s Gospel, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). These ‘I am’ statements of Jesus are self-revealing of his divine identity as God the Son, echoing God’s self disclosure to Moses in Exodus, “I am that I am” (Exodus 3:14).
The way, the truth, and life are three most basic concepts in life, especially among the Jewish people. All of life’s goal and pursuit is find the surest way to success, discover the unimate truth about our existence and have a good life here and hereafter. Thomas Akempis wrote, “Without the Way, there is no going. Without the truth, there is no knowing. Without life, there is no living.” In other words, life without Christ is crisis and meaningless.
1. Jesus the Way. Jesus is the surest and safest way to the Father, who is the truth and life. This is because he is God the Son, and also the son of man. As son of God, he represents God in the realm of man, and as son of man, he represents man’s interest in the realm of God so that we can have a stake before God. Jesus’ surest way to the Father is narrow, not broad. It is the way of the cross that exemplifies humility, obedience, self-giving, and service.
2. Jesus the Truth. The biblical concept of the truth used in the Gospel of John does not define the truth as merely a theory or a philosophical concept but a person. The truth is no more and speculation but a revelation. God is the truth revealed in Christ. Hence, all seekers of the truth should go to Jesus, who reveals the whole truth about God. This truth is found in the pages of the scripture, the lamp for the feet, and the light for my path (Psalm 119:105).
3. Jesus the Life. The life spoken of is not mere existence but communion with God. It transcends biological existence to a participation in the very life of God. Hence, living outside God’s presence, fellowship, and communion is a life that is not worth living. Jesus is the life who possesses and gives eternal life. That is why he said, “I came that they may have life and have it in abundance” (John 10:10). To have abundant and eternal life, we must commit to following Jesus.
Take Home Messages
1. Jesus is all you need. Life without Him is crisis and frustrations. He is the way, the truth, and the life.
2. The way of Jesus is narrow, the truth is discovered in the teachings of Jesus in the scripture, and he gives us life through the Eucharist and participation in the life and sacraments of the church.
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