HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 5TH WEEK OF LENT.
THEME: Your father Abraham saw my Day and was glad.
BY: Fr. Deotatious Chikontwe, SMA.
*READINGS OF THE DAY*
Genesis 17:3-9
Psalm 104:4-9
John 8:51-59
*LITURGICAL COLOUR*
PURPLE
*FROM OUR FIRST READING*
In our first reading today, we heard the story of the moment when God made His Covenant with Abram, His servant, whom He had called from the land of his forefathers. Abram obeyed God and followed Him to wherever He had led him to, leaving those comforts he knew and went to a future that was unknown to him. Through Abram, whom God named Abraham as a mark of the Covenant that they had made between them, God made a great people that He had chosen to be His first called people, the Israelites. There were also many other nations that sprang forth from among the descendants of Abraham, and hence, he was known as the ‘father of nations.
RELATED: HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 5TH WEEK OF LENT.
*ABOUT OUR GOSPEL READING*
Todays Gospel reading talks about Jesus identity. This is because in this chapter eight of the gospel of John, Jesus claims four major things about Himself. First, He claims to be the light of the world. Second, He claims that those who accept His teaching are set free. Third, He promises that anyone who keeps His word will never die. Fourth, He takes on the divine name I AM and states that He is older than Abraham. In this last claim He says: “Before Abraham came to be, I Am.” By saying ‘I Am,’ Jesus refers to the proper name of God as “Yahweh” which in Hebrew it means the same, “I Am who Am”. This is the name God identifies Himself to Moses at the burning bush. Jesus is applying the name ‘Yahweh’ to Himself and this shows a clearest assertion of His divine nature. Of course this claim is the supreme and highest claim for by this claim Jesus says that He is of divine origin and that He is of equal with God. His listeners understand what He tries to say perfectly well but they do not accept this claim because it is a blasphemy. Its penalty is death by stoning.
*CONCLUSION*
Let us all therefore embark on a journey of rediscovering our faith in God and our love for Him, filling our hearts and minds with God’s ever wonderful presence and grace. Let us all be like our father in faith, Abraham, the most faithful servant of God, in how he devoted his life to the Lord and followed Him with great trust in everything that He has promised him. May God be with us always and be our Hope, Strength and Inspiration as we continue to follow Him in our lives, walking in the footsteps of Abraham, our father in faith. Amen.
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