Third Sunday of Lent
I have only one niece. And she loves being my only niece. Recently she graduated from medical school and I was telling her how proud I was of her. When she about three years old I would often ask her how much she loved me. When she was mad with me she would hold her two little fingers just a little apart and show me that’s how little she loved me. But this time, she had her arms open wide as she said, “This much.” And I asked her, “Only that much?” She stretched a little more and said, “This much.” This went on for about four or five times until she could not stretch more without hurting. That last time as she said, “This much,” there were tears in her eyes. Of course, I just picked her up and covered her with as much love as possible. That is one time in my life when love – pure, simple, and innocent yet overpowering, overwhelming and indescribable totally overcame me.
We have a tragic story of rebellion against God in today’s first reading and the amazingly detailed and captivating story of the Samaritan woman in today’s gospel reading. And yet, the one phrase that captivated me did not come from any of these reading. The very last sentence of today’s second reading says, “God PROVES HIS LOVE for us….” Imagine that – God has to PROVE something. And what God PROVES is not might, power, majesty, glory, splendor, or the immensity of God’s wisdom. What God PROVES is, love.
Today’s first reading and the second reading provide the background within which the second reading must be understood. These two readings are not just stories – they are commentaries on the imperfect human nature and God’s steadfast love.
I want to reflect on both of these things today. But clearly my focus is on the phrase: “God Proves his Love…” Here are my three points for today.
a)The question that emerges in my mind is: Does God have to PROVE God’s love? My instinctive answer is NO! Then why did prove God’s love? I think the readings are telling us that God proves God’s love not because of God’s nature but ours. God is love so there is nothing that God has to prove. For example, I do not have to prove that I am a human being. I simply am. But God has to prove God’s love because our nature is such that we need constant assurance. It is similar to me pushing my niece to tell me how much more she loved me. The people of Israel had seen God’s marvelous works on their behalf. And yet, when they were thirsty and death stared them in the face, they needed assurance once more. That is why the question they ask is, “Is the Lord among us or not?” That day God had to prove God’s presence through the water from the rock. The Samaritan woman too! Five husbands and a lover could not assure her enough. So God Proves God’s love for our sake, so we know that God is indeed in our midst. So today I am suggesting that we get in touch with that part of our being that constantly seeks to be loved and to be reassured.
b)My second point builds from the first point. Our need for assurance and being loved is a very powerful force within us. And depending on how we channel that power makes it either an evil or a virtue. In the first reading the Israelites’ need for assurance took many shapes. Scripture says, they grumbled against Moses; and again toward the end the reading says that the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord. They were even ready to stone Moses. This is not the proudest moment of Israelite history. There is a similar pattern in the story of the Samaritan woman. The one piece of information we do not have is why she had five husbands and a sixth lover. The one thing we know is that she was searching, longing and thirsting. The same need for assurance that led her to the six other men now leads her to that seventh man about whom she said, ‘He told me everything I have done.” The same force that led the Israelites to evil leads this woman to the font of living water. Call it the Holy Spirit or baptism or heaven or the Messiah who gives all of these things – at the end of the story, she is right there. In other words, God proves God’s love so that we can find our way to the man in whom our human nature finds its fulfillment. So this week as you get in touch with your human nature, also get in touch with the power we have for evil or holiness. Really, deep inside you what are we searching for? And how is it that at the end of our thirst we can come to the same place as the Samaritan woman?
c)How does God prove his love? This is what Paul tells us in the second reading: “God PROVES his loves for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” The Christian story is not about a God, who if are perfect, meets us at the end of the road. The Christian story is of a God who embraces us in our imperfection, loves us through it all, and meets us on the road to perfection. Yes! Christ loved and died for us while we were still sinners. And God did not just show us this love or give us a taste of it. Paul says, “The Love of God has been POURED into our hearts.” Love is PROVEN and POURED while we are still sinners. The Samaritan woman is a great example the love of God proven and poured out. Folks, I don’t know where you are in life, what your search is, or how you are trying to get there. Please always know this – there is nothing more proven and nothing more abundant than the Love of God. And let nothing, not even your deepest sin keep you away from the Love of God. For, ““God PROVES his loves for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.”
The Israelites asked, "Is God in our midst or not?" We do not have to doubt this. As we move to the altar we know that Christ whose love is proved and poured will come to us. Let us open our hearts like the Samaritan woman and confess Jesus as the Messiah. Amen.
- Fr. Satish Joseph