20260318 CHRIST IS GOD’S COVENANT TO THE PEOPLE
18 March 2026, Wednesday, 4th Week of Lent
First reading | Isaiah 49:8-15 |
On the day of salvation I will help you
Thus says the Lord:
At the favourable time I will answer you,
on the day of salvation I will help you.
(I have formed you and have appointed you
as covenant of the people.)
I will restore the land
and assign you the estates that lie waste.
I will say to the prisoners, ‘Come out’,
to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’
On every roadway they will graze,
and each bare height shall be their pasture.
They will never hunger or thirst,
scorching wind and sun shall never plague them;
for he who pities them will lead them
and guide them to springs of water.
I will make a highway of all the mountains,
and the high roads shall be banked up.
Some are on their way from afar,
others from the north and the west,
others from the land of Sinim.
Shout for joy, you heavens; exult, you earth!
You mountains, break into happy cries!
For the Lord consoles his people
and takes pity on those who are afflicted.
For Zion was saying, ‘The Lord has abandoned me,
the Lord has forgotten me.’
Does a woman forget her baby at the breast,
or fail to cherish the son of her womb?
Yet even if these forget,
I will never forget you.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 144(145):8-9,13b-14,17-18 |
The Lord is kind and full of compassion.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
How good is the Lord to all,
compassionate to all his creatures.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion.
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and loving in all his deeds.
The Lord supports all who fall
and raises all who are bowed down.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion.
The Lord is just in all his ways
and loving in all his deeds.
He is close to all who call him,
who call on him from their hearts.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion.
Gospel Acclamation | Jn3:16 |
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son:
everyone who believes in him has eternal life.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Or: | Jn11:25, 26 |
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;
whoever believes in me will never die.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Gospel | John 5:17-30 |
The dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and all who hear it will live
Jesus said to the Jews, ‘My Father goes on working, and so do I.’ But that only made them even more intent on killing him, because, not content with breaking the sabbath, he spoke of God as his own Father, and so made himself God’s equal.
To this accusation Jesus replied:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
the Son can do nothing by himself;
he can do only what he sees the Father doing:
and whatever the Father does the Son does too.
For the Father loves the Son
and shows him everything he does himself,
and he will show him even greater things than these,
works that will astonish you.
Thus, as the Father raises the dead and gives them life,
so the Son gives life to anyone he chooses;
for the Father judges no one;
he has entrusted all judgement to the Son,
so that all may honour the Son
as they honour the Father.
Whoever refuses honour to the Son
refuses honour to the Father who sent him.
I tell you most solemnly,
whoever listens to my words,
and believes in the one who sent me,
has eternal life;
without being brought to judgement
he has passed from death to life.
I tell you most solemnly,
the hour will come – in fact it is here already –
when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,
and all who hear it will live.
For the Father, who is the source of life,
has made the Son the source of life;
and, because he is the Son of Man,
has appointed him supreme judge.
Do not be surprised at this,
for the hour is coming when the dead will leave their graves
at the sound of his voice:
those who did good will rise again to life;
and those who did evil, to condemnation.
I can do nothing by myself;
I can only judge as I am told to judge,
and my judging is just,
because my aim is to do not my own will,
but the will of him who sent me.’
CHRIST IS GOD’S COVENANT TO THE PEOPLE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISA 49:8-15; PS 144:8-9,13-14,17-18; JN 5:17-30]
Today’s First Reading is a continuation of the Second Suffering Servant Song from Isaiah. The first part of this song focuses on his mission, which will be read during Holy Week; hence the first seven verses are not included in today’s readings. The point of today’s Scripture is to teach us that Jesus is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah because the Lord has “appointed you as covenant of the people. I will restore the land and assign you the estates that lie waste. I will say to the prisoners, ‘Come out’, to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.'”
The Suffering Servant mentioned in the Book of Isaiah could be referring to the People of Israel, but it also anticipates the Messiah who is to come, because without Him, the People of Israel cannot be saved and be the light to the nations.
Indeed, we know that Jesus took upon Himself the role of the Suffering Servant and the Messiah that was prophesied by Isaiah. At the beginning of His ministry, citing from the prophet Isaiah, He said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” (Lk 4:18f) Indeed, He has come to set prisoners free from their bondage and slavery, and to give light and life to all. “Along the roadway they will graze, and any bare height will be their pasture. They will never hunger or thirst, scorching wind and sun will never plague them; for he who pities them will lead them, will guide them to springs of water. I shall turn all my mountains into a road and my highways will be raised aloft.”
And as prophesied earlier on, this everlasting Covenant will be brought about by much suffering. “And he said to me, ‘You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’ But I said, ‘I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my cause is with the Lord, and my reward with my God.'” (Isa 49:3f) It will be through His blood and death. Hence, at the Last Supper, the Lord said to His disciples, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” (Lk 22:20) But this covenant is eternal because it is the blood shed by God’s only Son. This is God’s eternal sign that He loves us and has forgiven us. As St Paul wrote, “What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.” (Rom 8:31-34)
Thus, the Gospel today underscores that Jesus is truly the Son of God and equal in majesty and glory. Jesus speaks of His special relationship to the Father and its implications for us and our salvation. His claims were astounding for the Jews as they were strict monotheists. The claims of Jesus were tantamount to blasphemy. Jesus defended His actions of healing during the Sabbath claiming His authority is equal to the work of the Father. Jesus said to the Jews: “‘My Father goes on working, and so do I.’ But that only made them even more intent on killing him, because, not content with breaking the sabbath, he spoke of God as his own Father, and so made himself God’s equal.” In their eyes, Jesus was claiming equality with God, almost setting up Himself as a rival to the Father, which was what led to the fall of humanity in the sin of Adam and Eve.
However, Jesus made it clear that He was not claiming equality with God in the sense that He was a second deity, and thus a denial of monotheism. What Jesus wanted to reveal to us was that His equality with the Father is a unity expressed in His Sonship. As the Son, He totally submitted to His Father’s will and does nothing without His Father. It is a unity of willing and doing. Jesus’ unity with the Father therefore does not rival the Father’s uniqueness, but He and the Father work together in unity, with the Son totally dependent on the Father. The Father, who is God, sent the Son, who responded in obedience. This is further elaborated by our Lord when He later reiterates, “The Father and I are one.” (Jn 10:30) He continues, “I tell you most solemnly, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees the Father doing: and whatever the Father does the Son does too. For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he does himself, and he will show him even greater things than these, works that will astonish you. If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” (Jn 10:37-38)
In other words, we are not concerned with a strict monotheism but a rich Trinitarianism. Jesus’ unity with the Father is rooted in the mutual love between the Father and the Son. Truly, the revelation of God in the Son is rooted in their common love for the world (Jn 3:16), a love which moves the Father to give Himself in the Son to the world, especially for sinners. The Christology of subordination does not deny the Son’s participation in the divine being of God. Hence, Jesus could also say, “You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I.” (Jn 14:28) Indeed, He reiterated, “I can do nothing by myself: I can only judge as I am told to judge, and my judging is just, because my aim is to do not my own will, but the will of him who sent me.”
So what does the Father do in the Son? Firstly, the Son shares in the Father’s work of raising the dead at the end of time. “As the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son gives life to anyone he chooses.” The power of Jesus to raise the dead is the same power that gave Him the capacity to restore the paralysed man at the pool to health and to raise Lazarus from the dead. The resurrection of the soul already begins whenever we hear His voice. “I tell you most solemnly, whoever listens to my words, and believes in the one who sent me, has eternal life; without being brought to judgement he has passed from death to life. I tell you most solemnly, the hour will come – in fact it is here already – when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and all who hear it will live.”
Secondly, the Son shares with the Father the role of judge of all. This is another supreme prerogative of God. Jesus says, “the Father judges no one; he has entrusted all judgement to the Son, so that all may honour the Son as they honour the Father. Whoever refuses honour to the Son refuses honour to the Father who sent him. For the Father, who is the source of life, has made the Son the source of life; and, because he is the Son of Man, has appointed him supreme judge.” As God is our creator, all of us are accountable to Him, and so God the Father is the judge of all. Jesus, however, has been appointed judge as well since, as both divine and human, He would be most fitting to act as judge of us. Thus, the Letter to the Hebrews says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb 4:15f)
In the light of this revelation, we should never doubt His love for us as the Israelites did when they were in exile. Zion was saying, “Yahweh has abandoned me, the Lord has forgotten me.” But God retorted, “Can a woman forget her baby at the breast, feel no pity for the child she has borne? Even if these were to forget, I shall not forget you.” All we need to do is turn away from our sins and unbelief. As the Lord warns us, “Do not be surprised at this, for the hour is coming when the dead will leave their graves at the sound of his voice: those who did good will rise again to life; and those who did evil, to condemnation.” Knowing who Jesus is, how do we want to commit ourselves to Him? If we want life, only the Son can raise us up in the face of the destructive power of sin and death. But we must not pay lip service only. Do we still want to twist and turn His words, or accept His teaching fully without compromise?
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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