John 4:43-54 Your Son Will Live

Today's Gospel is a beautiful faith story about the royal official whose son is dying and begs Jesus to save the boy.  The man believed and the boy was saved.  As the man came home he is met with servants who tell him the exact hour that the boy began to feel better and it was about the same time that Jesus told the father that the boy would be saved.  The entire household is then comes to believe in and follow Jesus.

Today's readings are in line with the hope from Laetare Sunday.  They express that happiness for is to come.  The child was dead, but now he's brought to new life.  Not only the boy, but the father and all the household are called to a newness of life within Christ.  Isiah tells us today: "Thus says the LORD: Lo, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; The things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind. Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness in what I create;
For I create Jerusalem to be a joy and its people to be a delight" (Is 65:17-19)  God is good.  He creates life, not destroys it. 

What about miracles though?  Everyone seems to want one at some point, not a small one, but a big one.  There is a video of  Archbishop Fulton Sheen, the Robert Barron of his day, where Sheen speaks of going to Lourdes, France and waiting for a miracle, but none occurred.  At least that was what he thought initially.  Miracles come in different forms.  When we ask for God to intervene in our lives, we usually want a particular outcome.  We forgot that God, who sees all, will respond in the way that we need most, even if it is not apparent at first.  For some that starts with an inner healing before it is outwardly manifest.  For others it is a deep forgiveness of ourselves for past wrongs and reconciling with God that can bring us to a newness, a fullness of life.   Through faith God can and does perform many miracles in our lives.

Mark 1: 14-20 Repent and Believe

Jesus comes to us with the call, "This is the time of fulfillment.  The Kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent, and believe in the Gospel."  We are like the barren desert, dry, parched, waiting for the promise of water which will renew us.  Jesus comes today to fulfill that promise.  The Kingdom of God is at hand.  He is the fulfillment of that hope of water come to bring drink to the thirsty.  Real repentance is possible.  If we follow Jesus the Christ, we can become more than we could ever imagine.  That barrenness within us has been filled.  We are filled with a Presence and new life, we become the true Presence for which we were made.  It is not just for the Apostles, but for each of us.  He is calling, "Come after me..." 

Luke 7:18b-23

In today's Gospel we hear that disciples of John the Baptist have been sent to inquire of Jesus if he "is the one that is to come."  It is a curious thing.  People have been mistaking John as the Messiah, but he knew that he was not.  John freely admitted that to his own disciples that he was not the Messiah and sent them to seek the one greater than he.  John, like many others, was awaiting the Messiah.  Jesus never answered the question, but told them to report what they saw: healing of body, mind, and spirit; cleansing of lepers; and giving new life to the dead. "The poor have had the Good News proclaimed to them.  And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me." 

In Jesus' words there is almost a reply to (Isiah 45:21b-25) when the Lord spoke, " Turn to me and be safe, all you ends of the earth, for I am God; there is no other..to me every knee shall bend; every tongue shall swear saying, "Only in the Lord are just deeds and power.  Before him in shame shall come all who vent their anger toward him..."

How amazing to behold these things! to be able to go back to John and tell him what they have seen and that Jesus completes the words of Isiah.  It is incredible.  It is interesting to think too that Jesus doesn't have to reply.  He simply is.  It reminds us of the Old Testament accounts of Moses interacting with God, and being told simply "I am who am."