"He did not say this on his own, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was about to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the dispersed children of God."- John 11: 51-52
 |
| Photo by Pexels.com |
The chief priests and the Pharisees arranged a meeting in order to find out ways to destroy the person of Jesus. They did not see Jesus as a savior of the nation but rather as a threat to the nation. Caiaphas, who was the high priest that year, makes a prophecy that it is better to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed. Jesus was born to die. His death was not an end in itself but one of resurrection. Jesus died not just for the Jewish nation alone, the Scripture makes it very clear that he will gather to himself all the dispersed children of God.
We read in the Gospel of John 10:16 – "I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd." Jesus does not exclude or avoid anyone. He invites all to him. Those who listen to his voice, those who follow his instructions and are willing to obey him, will be saved and not lost.
As we read in the Gospel of John 3:16- "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life." It was already in the divine plan of God the Father that the world might be saved through his Son. This saving act as we all know was a painful one.
As children of God, we are also equally responsible to partake in the mission of Jesus and that is to save all the souls. Just like Jesus it might be a painful mission but with the grace and power from God we can do it. We need to search for the lost one leaving behind the ninety nine. Let us help Jesus in gathering together the dispersed children of God.
Reflection on John 11: 38-57 by Fr. George Joseph SVD
(Listen to podcast here)
No comments:
Post a Comment