Father Harry's Sermon – Sunday 6th March 2005

Just a couple of thoughts on our readings. The first reading there is an absolute gem in that reading. Where the Lord says to the Great Samuel: "Get your gear together; fill your horn with oil and go". He sends him to Bethlehem to anoint a new king. They'd already got a king, a lousy king, Saul, not the king that God wanted. And so he sends his great prophet Samuel to Jesse in Bethlehem. Jesse has 9 or 10 sons. They are paraded one by one before the great Samuel. The first one comes in, a great hulking brute, Eliab. Samuel thinks that is the one, and God says oh no it isn't the one far from it. Take no notice of his appearance or his height for I have rejected him. God does not see as man sees. Man looks at appearances but God looks at the heart. There is a lot to think about there, isnt there. Anyway that is one thing I'll comment on. The Gospel I'll remind you is John's Gospel, chapter 9, the whole of it this morning. It's well worth reading over it yourself this week, talking to our Lord about that Gospel passage. As long as the day lasts I must carry out the work of the one who sent me, the night will soon be here when no-one can work. As long as I am in the world I am the light of the world. Johns Gospel, night, darkness, evil. Night in particular is the time of testing, the contest between evil and Christ for control of the world. Jesus says to his disciples, in teaching us to pray, pray that you do not be put to the test, as he was put to the test on Good Friday. On Maundy Thursday night, John says in his account of that last supper with his disciples that Judas left during the meal, he went out to betray Jesus. Well the comment John makes in his Gospel is that night had fallen. In all our lives we are challenged in different ways. The most important basic thing is the challenge that Jesus throw down to his disciples, and that is if you want to be a disciple you must take up your cross. There is no other way, take up your cross and follow me if you will be my disciple. I used to think that meant putting up with Arthritis and all the rest of it, but I have changed my mind of late, the most important part is we are drawn into the test with Jesus, and that test is the contest between evil and evils control of the world and Gods love for the world. That is the cross where we live out now in our age that tremendous test that Jesus underwent and if we want to enjoy the victory of life, eternal life and his resurrection, then we've got to play our part.
Just one quick thing on the man born blind, Last week, if you remember it was the Samaritan woman in the Gospel, where Jesus went hunting her, really. All that business about, I'll give you a drink of water and all that followed. Where in fact Jesus turned the conversation upside down, went onto another level altogether and she came to believe in him. The Samaritan woman, and not only her, but the villagers in the place where she came from. They came to believe, and become disciples, and this man who couldn't see from birth. Can you imagine that, he'd never seen anything? He comes into contact with Jesus. Jesus spits on the ground, makes a sort of mud paste and puts it on his eyes, and off you go to Siloam the pool in Jerusalem, wash, you will be alright. He does that. There is no time really to go into the reaction to what Jesus did, the power of God made manifest in Jesus in giving that man sight. He not only gave him sight, he gave him eternal life, to see things Gods way. Going back to the first reading on Samuel and the lessons that he learned. In shorthand we call that faith, that is what he gave to that man, Faith. Just as he hunted the samaritan woman for her faith, he does the same here with this man.
One little bit we can easily overlook in the Gospel, is that Jesus heard we had driven him (that man) away. Jesus went looking for him, when he found him that is where the challenge came. Do you believe in the Son of man? The man asks who is he? Jesus doesn't say it is me. He says you are looking at him. That is one of the most magic phrases in the whole of the scripture. You are looking at him. He's never seen anything upto a couple of hours before, ever, now he is looking at the light of the world. If you jump ahead then, that looking at Jesus - remember, was said on another occasion in the Gospel, how can you say shows the Father, to see me is to see the Father - you are looking at him. He says that to each one of us in Mass this morning. He is the one who has given us faith, faith that began our faith journey way back at the font and that journey will end when we are looking at the Father face to face. That is the end of the journey. We'll see God as he is and you and me will be like God.
There is a tremendous amount to think about and pray about in the Gospel this morning, so I commend it to you this week. Were getting serious now. Fourth week in Lent and were getting serious because were getting nearer, as we said in the opening prayer, to the celebration of the death and the rising of Jesus, which is ours it isn't just Jesus.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

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