In today’s Gospel we hear from the Jews the question, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense?”
Even though Jesus does not answer that question directly in the Gospel, we know that the answer is “never”. God has revealed Himself to us through His Son, Jesus Christ and, like He says in the Gospel, it is through His works that we know He is the Savior. Within the context of the Easter season, we know that Christ’s greatest witness to Himself is His Passion, Death, and Resurrection. He tells the Jews, “The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me”. Since we know that He was sent by the Father for the forgiveness of sins we also know that we, His sheep, are given eternal life through that work of sacrifice, forgiveness, and grace.
I think that all of that is easy to say: “We know Christ is our Savior because He showed us in the Resurrection”; “We are His sheep, we ought to follow His commands”; “The works Christ did during His ministry on earth also bear witness to the Truth that He is the Savior of the world, the Son of the Living God”. What gets difficult is living it without questioning the Truth. I think the biggest question I ask (and I doubt I’m the only one) is how. How did the Father send His only Son? How did Christ’s death on the Cross purchase for us the rewards of eternal life? How do you live a life following the voice of the Lord? How do you even know for certain that it’s the voice of the Lord you are following. There’s only one answer to all these questions: faith.
Unlike the Jews we hear of in the Gospel, we must have faith that Christ is the Savior. Rather than looking at His works and wondering how or why, what we must do is entrust ourselves, in faith, to the God who loves us unconditionally. It is only through acceptance of the mystery of God’s love that we are able to fully enter into His love and will eventually be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
As we continue to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ, may our faith in the person of Jesus Christ continue to grow and may we humbly allow the Love of the Father to envelop every part of our being.
Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!
Dakota currently lives in Denver, CO and teaches English Language Development and Spanish to high schoolers. She is married to the love of her life, Ralph. In her spare time, she reads, goes to breweries, and watches baseball. Dakota’s favorite saints are St. John Paul II (how could it not be?) and St. José Luis Sánchez del Río. She is passionate about her faith and considers herself blessed at any opportunity to share that faith with others. Check out more of her writing at https://dakotaleonard16.blogspot.com.
Feature Image Credit: Luis Ca, https://www.cathopic.com/photo/6677-vitral-cristo-resucitado
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