Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Jer. 11:18-20 | Ps. 7:2-3, 9-12 | Jn. 7:40-53
The Israelites refuse to turn to God, so Jeremiah tells them that God has rejected them. Likewise the Pharisees, Scribes and Sanhedrin reject Jesus. They are considered the educated; and, since they know Scripture, they know that the Messiah will not come from Nazareth. Only those who are uneducated or have become caught in the grandeur of Jesus’ words could believe that Jesus is the Messiah. This is an easy way to dismiss any movements of their hearts which might be tempted to follow Jesus. How often this occurs today. Many are tempted to dismiss those who bring Christ’s words to others simply because the person does not come from the right area or has little or no education. Christ invites us to have simple hearts that are open to and willing to hear God’s call to conversion.
Spend time with Christ. Try to be with Him as He is criticized by the officials. Ask Christ for the grace to listen to Him and for the courage to follow Him despite the criticism of others.