SERMON/HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 5TH WEEK OF LENT 21ST MARCH 2024

SERMON/HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 5TH WEEK OF LENT 21ST MARCH 2024

Genesis 17:3-9; Ps.105; John 8:51-59

Our covenantal relationship with God

In the first reading, the Lord entered into a covenantal relationship with Abram. He promised to make great, not only Abraham, but also his descendants. This fruit of the covenantal relationship will flow down to Abraham’s descendants because they too will be taught how to keep the tenets of the covenant. The psalmist tell us that the Lord remembers His covenant forever. This speaks of the ever faithfulness of God. The only thing that can break a covenantal relationship involving God is man’s unfaithfulness.

Abraham, our father in faith, remained true to the covenantal relationship all through his life. But this was not the case with his descendants. The Jews misrepresented their connectivity with Abraham, their forefather. On the basis of the covenant the Lord made the Abraham, the Jews saw themselves as the most privilege of all men. They preserved the memory of this heritage, but unfortunately, they did not care about their role in the covenantal relationship. They knew of the promises of God to Abraham’s descendants but didn’t care about remaining faithful to God. So, while they derailed from the way of the Lord, they still claimed salvation on the basis of their biological connectivity with Abraham.

It was this waywardness of theirs that prevented them from grasping the identity of Jesus in the gospel reading. Jesus kept on telling them that if they really lived as children of Abraham, it would not have been difficult for them to understand that something greater than Abraham is in their midst. Indeed, a life of hypocrisy brings about spiritual blindness.

Beloved, the Lord knows that it is not easy for us when we decide to be on His side. He knows we are struggling to be holy each passing day. He knows that we are continually being attracted to all kinds of sins on a daily basis. All that He demands of us is sincerity. Let us be sincere in our struggle; in our worship and in our commitment. Sincerity means that our external religiosity should flow from our deep spirituality. Sincerity negates a double-face Christianity. It is better to talk to God about our struggles and receive strength to stagger on, than to pretend to be what we are not. God is ever ready to fulfil His part of the covenantal relationship with us; it is up to us to sincerely do our part.