Daily Readings - Sat Mar 24 2018
Ezekiel
21and say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land.22I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms.23They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.24"'My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees.25They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children's children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever.26I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, and I will put my sanctuary among them forever.27My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.28Then the nations will know that I the LORD make Israel holy, when my sanctuary is among them forever.'"
John
45Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.46But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.47Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.48"What are we accomplishing?" they asked. "Here is this man performing many miraculous signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation."49Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, "You know nothing at all!50You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish."51He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation,52and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.53So from that day on they plotted to take his life.54Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the Jews. Instead he withdrew to a region near the desert, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples.55When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover.56They kept looking for Jesus, and as they stood in the temple area they asked one another, "What do you think? Isn't he coming to the Feast at all?"57But the chief priests and Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, he should report it so that they might arrest him.
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter powerful messages of hope, unity, and divine plan. The first reading from Ezekiel 37:21-28 paints a vivid picture of God's promise to restore His people. During the Babylonian exile, Ezekiel's prophecy brought hope to the Israelites, assuring them that God would gather them from their dispersion and establish them as one nation under one king, with an everlasting covenant. This message emphasizes God's faithfulness and His desire for His people's unity and restoration.
The Gospel from John 11:45-57 shifts the scene to the aftermath of Lazarus's resurrection. While many believed in Jesus, others reported to the Pharisees, leading to a council where they decided Jesus must die to save the nation. Caiaphas's prophetic statement highlights the divine plan: Jesus would die not just for the nation but to gather all God's children. This passage underscores the tension between belief and opposition, revealing the deeper divine plan behind Jesus' death, which would fulfill Ezekiel's prophecy by expanding unity to include all God's children.
Reflecting on these readings, we are reminded of the importance of unity and trust in God's plan. Ezekiel's vision of restoration finds its fulfillment in Jesus, who through His sacrifice unites all people. In our daily lives, we are called to embrace this unity, trusting in God's plan even amidst challenges. The moral lesson is clear: unity is a gift from God, and we must strive to maintain it. Just as Jesus sacrificed Himself for our salvation, we are called to live in unity and be willing to make sacrifices for others. Let us draw inspiration from these readings to live in unity and trust, reflecting God's love in our actions and decisions.