GOD’S WORD FOR THE DAY (based on Catholic Liturgical Readings)
DATE: 2ND APRIL 2017
FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT
FIRST READING: Ezekiel 37:12-14
PSALM: Psalm 130: 1-8
SECOND READING: Romans 8:8-11
GOSPEL: John 11:1-45
THEME: WHEN THE LORD DELAYS
There are people who have left the Church because of a trial that came their way unexpectedly. Some too are in the Church but have given up on prayer because heaven appears to be silent in spite of their numerous requests for a divine intervention in a critical situation. However, in matters of faith what appears to be a disappointment is often an appointment to see the glory of God. In Christ, a delay is not a denial but a preparation for a testimony.
Lazarus was loved by the Lord and yet he fell sick – “Lord, he whom you love is ill” (Jn 11:3). The fact that the Lord loves you does not mean there will be no trials in your life.
Jesus arrived in Bethany fours day after the burial of Lazarus. From a purely human perspective, one may say that Jesus delayed. In fact that was the argument of the sympathisers at the funeral – ‘He opened the eyes of the blind man. Could he not have prevented this man’s death?'(Jn. 11:37). “Four days” was considered to be a decisive confirmation of a person’s death. At this moment, bodily decay was in full gear. The case of Lazarus thus appeared to be a hopeless one.
The feeling of hopelessness also characterised the people of Judah during their captivity in Babylon. Like dry bones, they felt that all was lost. The Lord sent a soothing message of consolation to them saying, “I will open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you home into the land of Israel” (Ezek. 37:12).
The faith of Martha in the face of the death of Lazarus is worth emulating when we are faced with a trial – “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. And even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you” (Jn. 11:21-22). Even in death she believed that the Lord was able to do something.
Have you prayed and there is no answer? Has your situation changed from bad to worse? Do not lose faith. Trust that ‘even now’, the Lord can still do something about it. As we declare our faith in the Lord through prayer, the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead and who is at work in us will bring deliverance to all those who find themselves in tomb-like situations. Yes, hold on for your testimony is on the way!
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I believe you are the Resurrection and the Life. There is nothing impossible for you. Speak into my situation and give me a testimony. Amen
Andrews Obeng, svd
DIVINE WORD MISSIONARIES
BIBLICAL PASTORAL MINISTRY
(Ghana Province)
“May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light of the Word and the Spirit of grace. And may the heart of Jesus live in the hearts of all people” (St. Arnold Janssen).