20250410 JESUS IS THE FULFILLMENT OF GOD’S COVENANT
10 April 2025, Thursday, 5th Week of Lent
First reading | Genesis 17:3-9 |
Abraham, the father of a multitude of nations
Abram bowed to the ground and God said this to him, ‘Here now is my covenant with you: you shall become the father of a multitude of nations. You shall no longer be called Abram; your name shall be Abraham, for I make you father of a multitude of nations. I will make you most fruitful. I will make you into nations, and your issue shall be kings. I will establish my Covenant between myself and you, and your descendants after you, generation after generation, a Covenant in perpetuity, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. I will give to you and to your descendants after you the land you are living in, the whole land of Canaan, to own in perpetuity, and I will be your God.
‘You on your part shall maintain my Covenant, yourself and your descendants after you, generation after generation.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 104(105):4-9 |
The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
Consider the Lord and his strength;
constantly seek his face.
Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, the judgements he spoke.
The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
O children of Abraham, his servant,
O sons of the Jacob he chose.
He, the Lord, is our God:
his judgements prevail in all the earth.
The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
He remembers his covenant for ever,
his promise for a thousand generations,
the covenant he made with Abraham,
the oath he swore to Isaac.
The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Jn6:63,68 |
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you have the message of eternal life.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Or: | Ps94:8 |
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Harden not your hearts today,
but listen to the voice of the Lord.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Gospel | John 8:51-59 |
Your father Abraham saw my Day and was glad
Jesus said to the Jews:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
whoever keeps my word
will never see death.’
The Jews said, ‘Now we know for certain that you are possessed. Abraham is dead, and the prophets are dead, and yet you say, “Whoever keeps my word will never know the taste of death.” Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? The prophets are dead too. Who are you claiming to be?’ Jesus answered:
‘If I were to seek my own glory
that would be no glory at all;
my glory is conferred by the Father,
by the one of whom you say, “He is our God”
although you do not know him.
But I know him,
and if I were to say: I do not know him,
I should be a liar, as you are liars yourselves.
But I do know him, and I faithfully keep his word.
Your father Abraham rejoiced
to think that he would see my Day;
he saw it and was glad.’
The Jews then said, ‘You are not fifty yet, and you have seen Abraham!’ Jesus replied:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
before Abraham ever was,
I Am.’
At this they picked up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself and left the Temple.
JESUS IS THE FULFILLMENT OF GOD’S COVENANT
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [GN 17:3-9; PS 105:4-9; JN 8:51-59 ]
As we come nearer to Holy Week, the identity of Jesus is brought to the fore. Until now, the Jews still did not know Him. The truth is that Jesus is the Son of God. He is identified with the Father. But they were still not sure of His origin and identity. The scripture readings today serve to show that Jesus is the One that was promised to Abraham. He would be the one to fulfil the promise made to Abraham, the Father of Israel.
In the first reading, God made a covenant with Abraham. He promised that Abraham would “become the father of a multitude of nations.” And not only that, He would make him into nations and his children would be kings. He would give him and his children the land of Canaan in perpetuity. How could that be possible when until then Abraham had no children? Faith is the prerequisite, and that was all that Abraham had. He believed in God’s promises to him. In faith, he journeyed afar to Canaan, and in faith he believed that God would fulfil His promises even though he had completely no idea how it would be possible And he never gave up faith in God even though he never occupied Canaan in his lifetime, except for a piece of land he bought there. It would be almost a thousand years before Israel became a nation with a true king in the person of King David.
God’s covenant was fulfilled during the time of King David. But later kings were not faithful to Yahweh and so the kingdom was eventually split between the North and the South, and they were occupied by foreign powers. But God’s covenant, as the Lord assured Abraham, would be a Covenant in perpetuity. This was renewed with King David when he wanted to build a house for God. Instead, God directed the prophet Nathan to tell David, “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me; your throne shall be established forever.” (2 Sm 7:12-14)
So who could be this king that would secure the throne of David forever? It was not the kings after him because all of them died and most of them were either weak or evil and unfaithful to the Covenant. They sold out Israel to the foreign armies. Only Jesus would qualify to be that King who could fulfil the Covenant that God promised to David. He is that son of David who would establish the kingdom forever. In Him, God could fulfil His promise to Abraham as the psalmist says, “He remembers his covenant forever, his promise for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac.” Jesus would be the priest-king as prophesied in Psalm 110. “The Lord says to my lord, ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool. The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind. You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. The Lord is at your right hand; he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.” (Ps 110:1,4,5)
Within this context, we can appreciate the conversation Jesus had with the Jews about His relationship with Abraham. It was the people who brought up the topic of Abraham when Jesus only wanted to underscore that keeping His word is the way to life. It was an implicit claim that His word is truth and life. It was tantamount to the claim that He had the divine message. Refuting Jesus’ claim, they highlighted the fact that His claim was ridiculous because they said that “Abraham is dead, and the prophets are dead, and yet you say, ‘Whoever keeps my word will never know the taste of death.'” In making this claim, the Jews recognized that Jesus was claiming to be more than Abraham, the Father of Israel. Hence, they challenged Him, saying, “Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? The prophets are dead too. Who are you claiming to be?'”
Indeed, they suspected that Jesus was claiming to be something more. He was claiming to have pre-existed even Abraham. “Your father Abraham rejoiced to think that he would see my Day; he saw it and was glad.’ The Jews then said, ‘You are not fifty yet, and you have seen Abraham!'” Jesus was alluding to the fact that He was to be the one that would fulfil Abraham’s dream and realize fully the covenant God swore with him. He was the one destined to save Israel and truly all the nations in the world.
And He could do that only if He came from God. That was why, Jesus said “If I were to seek my own glory that would be no glory at all; my glory is conferred by the Father, by the one whom you say, “He is our God” although you do not know him.” The use of the word, “glory” must not be reduced to earthly glory, like fame and honour. Rather, when Jesus used the word, “glory”, He was referring to the majesty of God. We see this especially in John’s gospel when at the Prologue, he spoke of Jesus’ glory. “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” (Jn 1:14) Then, at the end of Jesus’ mission on earth, before He ascended to the Father, again, He prayed, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.” “Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. (Jn 1:24)
The glory that Jesus was referring to would be given to Him at His death and resurrection. By His death, He would glorify the Father by doing His will. By His resurrection, the Father will glorify His Son. So both the Father and the Son are glorified in each other. Hence, Jesus could claim with confidence when He said, “But I know him, and if I were to say: I do not know him, I should be a liar, as you are liars yourselves. But I do know him, and I faithfully keep his word.” Jesus, in keeping His Word, showed that He is one with the Father. He shares the mind and heart of the Father. Consequently, listening and obeying Jesus is to be one with the Father. For this reason, Jesus was not ashamed to say that “before Abraham ever was, I Am.” Jesus was God from all eternity and even before He came into this world, He existed before Abraham.
The question that is asked of us today is, whether we belong to the side of Jesus or Satan. If we do not accept Jesus and His word, then we are on the side of Satan. It shows that we do not understand Him since we reject His message. Earlier on, Jesus had already made it clear that to reject Him is to reject His Father. “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now I am here. I did not come on my own, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot accept my word. You are from your father the devil, and you choose to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (Jn 8:42-44)
The irony is that the Jews, although denying that they were liars, showed themselves to be so by being murderers as they sought to kill Jesus. When Jesus identified Himself as the “I am”, they knew that He was claiming divinity and hence, “they picked up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself and left the Temple.” We on our part must therefore show ourselves to be sons and daughters of the Father by accepting His Son and His word. We must not behave contrary to what God is asking of us through Jesus whilst claiming to be God’s sons and daughters. Otherwise, we too could be considered “murderers” because we give cause for people to lose faith in God and in Christ by of our bad examples. So let us respond to God’s word in and through Jesus by glorifying them with our lives, through words and deeds.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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