Fourth Sunday of Lent (B)

March 11, 2018

Readings:

First Reading – 2 Chronicles 36: 14-16, 19-23

Psalm 137

Second Reading – Ephesians 2: 4-10

Gospel reading according to John (3: 14-21)

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Homily: Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews

There are many things the Jewish people, during the time of our Lord Jesus Christ, did not understand or have no room to accept even the coming of Jesus as Messiah (Kristus), the anointed one, the cleansing of the Temple, his “new” teaching, his word, and many miracles, etc., for they forgot what the Lord God had said and taught them through his prophets of old or and could not bear to hear Jesus’ word.  Even the leaders and elders (Sanhedrin) in the Temple, and some experts of the Law of Moses had been forgotten them all and/or rather they changed the Law and the Prophets by their own interpretations and of their own interests, of their own teachings, laws and precepts, just to remain in their positions, especially in the Sanhedrin, thus the true teachings of God proclaimed by his prophets were misplaced or not taught to the ordinary and simple Jewish people.  They led astray the sheep of God.  There was darkness hovering around in Israel, especially in Jerusalem.

“Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night,” (John 3: 1-2).  Not all Pharisees were against Jesus.  There were some Pharisees who were open and open minded to accept the teachings, words and sayings of Jesus, like for example Nicodemus, a well-respected Pharisee, a teacher and leader of the Jews, and member of the Sanhedrin, who was interested to Jesus.  It was night and dark when Nicodemus came to meet Jesus.  Why in that dark night Nicodemus wanted to see and talk and listen to Jesus?  Maybe because he was afraid to the other members of the Sanhedrin who hated Jesus very much, especially of what he did in cleansing the Temple last week, their businesses were totally affected and got too much losses.  If they knew and discovered that he met Jesus, he might be expelled in the Sanhedrin.  Or maybe because he was surrounded by false leaders and elders in the Temple and he did not want to be contaminated by their false teachings, laws and precepts; and there was dark cloud covering the whole Israel and Judea, especially in Jerusalem for there was no true shepherd leading to God but rather leading the sheep to ignorance and pit of destruction.  And maybe he went to see Jesus by night to cover and hide himself by the darkness of the night.  He also needed light coming from Jesus to brighten and enlighten by Jesus’ wisdom coming from his Father in heaven. Nicodemus saw something and found it in Jesus, that’s why he was interested to see and talk to him about the things Jesus was proclaiming.  He wanted to be enlightened more. 

Nicodemus might ask question and its meaning to Jesus about what he said in the Temple to the Jews, “. . . in three days I will raise it up’.” (John 2: 19) and about Moses’ “lifting up of the serpent in the desert” (John 3: 14).  Jesus’ response to Nicodemus question is about the love of God, his Father, by offering his Son to be lifted up on the tree of life.  “Jesus said to Nicodemus: ‘Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life’.” (John 3: 14-15).  Jesus brought to mind to Nicodemus what Moses did in the wilderness when the Israelites fought back against God and against Moses because of their stubbornness of heart and head.  God sent serpents to the Israelites and many died when they were bitten by the snakes.  They begged Moses to deliver them from the poisonous and deadly snakes.  Because of God’s mercy and compassion, he said to Moses to make a bronze serpent and hang it on in his rod.  And whoever looked at it is saved.  This event is a prelude of the crucifixion on a pole/wooden cross of our Lord Jesus Christ for the salvation of many peoples, nations, races, languages, cultures, colors, etc. – all of humanity and creatures.   Jesus must be hanging also in a tree of life, like the bronze serpent in the rod, and whoever looks at him and believes to whom they crucified will be saved and may have eternal life.  The reason for this, since time immemorial, is God’s love for us, his people.  God does not change his love toward us before, during, and after; yesterday, today and tomorrow; in the past, to the present, and in the future.

Jesus explained and reminded Nicodemus and we as well about the “lifted up the serpent . . . so must the Son of Man be lifted up.”  Jesus commended, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him” (John 3: 16-17).  God’s love is beyond our human understanding and wisdom.  It cannot be measured.  It is like a deep cistern that’s hard to fathom the love of God that cannot be reached.  We can only say that this love is Jesus, the love of God for us.  What we only need to do is to accept him and believe in him so that we might inherit eternal life God has promised to us from primordial to modern and post-modern men and women, for “Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3: 18).  If we believe in him, he will accept us also as children of his Father; but, if after we knew him we did not believe in him and in his Sonship of God, he will deny us in his Kingdom prepared for us all.

Jesus gave the reason of unbelief in him.  “And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil.  For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed” (John 3: 19-20).  Their evil deeds, thoughts and actions, their evil selves, who are in love of darkness hate the light, for they are enemies of God but lovers of darkness and evil.  The children of darkness whose works are evil and toil and plan in darkness against the children of light are at war in God the Almighty, for they are following the deeds of the devil/of Satan but they are doomed in the Kingdom of Satan.  “But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works might be clearly seen as done in God” (John 3: 21). Jesus who is sent in the world is the light of the world to extinguish darkness, hatred and war and other evil deeds.  He is sent and came into the world as a new day dawn to lighten up the dark corners of the world and to expose evil in it.  We who are children of light must show our good works even at night as in the daylight.  As our light in our path, Jesus who is true Light will lead us to his Father and we can see clearly the way we are walking towards the Kingdom of God.