The transforming encounter

FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT
March 21, 2021

The reality of the cross and its agony is becoming more and more imminent. Jesus is troubled by what is revealed to Him. Yet, He would not be swayed to choose otherwise because of the glory in the lot marked out for Him. The cross was only a part to His glory. In order to attain that glory, though, He had to first of all, like a grain of wheat, fall to the ground and die. These past weeks of Lent have been opportunities for us to fall to the ground and die in order to live. All the readings have been a constant invitation to a new way of life, to allow our old selves to die in order for a new one, cast in the image of the son of man, to live. Having crossed the mid-point of the season, the church looks forward in hope to the glories of the risen Lord. The prophet Ezekiel, in the first reading speaks of a new covenant, different from the old. In that new covenant, God’s laws and ordnances shall be written upon the hearts of His people. All, from the least to the greatest, shall know the Lord. As we journey toward the peak of the paschal festivities, we must each ask ourselves: Are we ready for the transforming encounter? Are we ready for that new covenant with Him? Are we ready to share in that glory with Him? For the sake of the glory, Jesus was willing to forsake everything else. Are we ready to forsake those sins that have continued to create a barrier between us and God? This is a decision-making moment. Through this whole season, the grace of God has been poured upon us in abundance. We must not allow that grace to be in vain. God is once again appealing to us as He appealed to the chosen people through his servant Moses, in the following words: “I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse: therefore choose life, so that you and your descendants may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19). Amen.