Reading 1
Jer 18:1-6
This word came to Jeremiah from the LORD:
Rise up, be off to the potter's house;
there I will give you my message.
I went down to the potter's house and there he was,
working at the wheel.
Whenever the object of clay which he was making
turned out badly in his hand,
he tried again,
making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased.
Then the word of the LORD came to me:
Can I not do to you, house of Israel,
as this potter has done? says the LORD.
Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter,
so are you in my hand, house of Israel.
Gospel
Jn 11:19-27
Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary
to comfort them about their brother [Lazarus, who had died].
When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,
she went to meet him;
but Mary sat at home.
Martha said to Jesus,
"Lord, if you had been here,
my brother would not have died.
But even now I know that whatever you ask of God,
God will give you."
Jesus said to her,
"Your brother will rise."
Martha said to him,
"I know he will rise,
in the resurrection on the last day."
Jesus told her,
"I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,
and anyone who lives and believes in me will never die.
Do you believe this?"
She said to him, "Yes, Lord.
I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,
the one who is coming into the world."
Meditation: John 11:19-27
St. Martha
I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God. (John 11:27)
Wait a minute! Is this the same Martha who complained to Jesus that her sister Mary had left her to do all the hard work? How could Martha now make such a bold proclamation of faith in Jesus? We can only conclude that she took Jesus’ words seriously—both his words about Mary having chosen the better part and his words just now about his being the resurrection and the life. Instead of spending all her time being worried and upset about “many things,” she began to learn how to sit at Jesus’ feet and let his words sink into her heart.
Undoubtedly, Martha was growing in her faith. Taking more time to listen to Jesus, Martha must have been moved by his parables and his explanations of who he was and what he had come to do. How else could she have known that God would do whatever Jesus asked of him? How else could she have made such a statement of faith in the midst of her grief over Lazarus’ death?
We all have a bit of Martha in us. We can get worried and anxious about many things. But if Martha can change, so can we! All it takes is the decision to set aside time for Jesus every day. He’ll take care of the rest. Over time he will convince us of his love. He will begin to change our attitudes. He’ll even give us a deeper sense of mission and purpose for our lives!
It’s quite amazing when you think about it. Martha went from being anxious and agitated at a simple dinner party to being able to handle something as upsetting as a death in the family—even to the point of letting this event stretch her faith in Jesus. This is the kind of change that God wants to do in all of us. It can happen to you! Today in prayer, recall one or two recent situations in which you felt the Lord inviting you to a deeper trust in him. Then join Martha in her proclamation of faith. Celebrate the Messiah, who has come to raise all of us from death to life!
“Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the resurrection and the life. Thank you for coming into the world to give us your peace!”
No comments:
Post a Comment