Third Sunday of Lent
Human nature - there is much to be said about human nature. We have heard the saying, “To err is human; to forgive is divine.” At its core, this saying is about nature – human nature and divine nature. Or think about the times you wanted to do one thing but ultimately did something totally opposite. And you wonder, why! Here is an example from my life. During Lent, the day I decide to fast, that is the day I feel more hungry than other days. I blame it on human nature.
In Catholic theology, when we talk about human nature, it is referred to as ‘the fallen human nature.’ Human nature became ‘fallen’ because of original sin. But God sets out to redeem and restore human nature to its original dignity. In this sense, all of salvation history can be defined as God’s intervention to redeem fallen human nature. So, we should not be surprised when we hear John making a comment about human nature in today’s gospel reading. Jesus had just cleansed the temple. While he was in Jerusalem, many came to believe in him. John says, “But Jesus would not trust himself to them because he knew them all, and did not need anyone to testify about human nature. He himself understood it well” (Jn 2:23-25). During Lent we become very aware of our human nature. Through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we are invited to become aware of our fallen human nature. Through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving we also try to overcome our fallen human nature and become more and more like Christ.
In these three points, let us reflect on God’s work to redeem the fallen human nature and our efforts to cooperate with God.
We Do Not Save Us. God Does!
We know from our catechism that Jesus was fully human and fully divine. He had two natures, the human and divine, which mingled in him in such a way that he was still one person. When Jesus took on human nature, he was not subject to original sin because he was born of the Virgin Mary who was preserved by original sin. This does not mean that Jesus did not face the temptations in his life on earth. In fact, he faced the same temptations that the first man and woman did. He faced the same temptations we face each day. In the desert he was tempted to give into the weaknesses of human nature. The greatest temptation he faced was in his passion and death. But he chose to overcome the temptations to succumb to the weakness of human nature and stay true to his divine nature. By doing so, he was choosing to redeem the fallen human nature.
What does this mean for us? Today, we must recognize our need to be saved. Today we become aware of our fallen human nature. We also recognize that we cannot save ourselves. Often our temptation is to rely on our own efforts, our own capabilities, our own strengths. Rather, Lent is the time to recognize that it is God who saves us. In this Eucharist, let us look to Christ, Our Savior. This week as we live our mundane lives, let us rely less on ourselves and more on God. Christ is our Savior!
Lent: A Holy Time of Renewal
Today’s first reading gives us the Ten Commandments. How do we understand these commandments? Very often, the commandments are understood as the restriction of human freedom. In reality, the opposite is true. These commandments are a sign of God’s love for a fallen humanity. These commandments are the beginning of the work of human redemption that God began at the fall of the first human beings. These commandments show God’s care for us. These commandments help us to overcome the weakness of our fallen human nature and stay true to the image in which God created us. These commandments are like the signs on a highway. If we follow them, they set us on the road to eternity.
What does this mean for us? This week let us be very aware of God’s care for us. Now is the time to embrace these commandments, not as restrictions on our freedom, but as God’s help to overcome our fallen human nature. Let us try to live by God’s commandments. But is not only the Ten Commandments. Jesus’ life and his love – these are the greatest commandments. To love God like he did and to love one another as he did – these are the commandments we live by.
Can Jesus Trust Us?
Today’s gospel reading is a very sad commentary on human nature. We read in the Gospel reading that Jesus had come into the temple and discovered that they had made the Temple like a marketplace. When he cleansed the Temple, they asked him for a sign to prove that he had the authority to do such things. Jesus tells them, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up” (Jn 2:19). He was not talking about the physical temple but the temple of his body. At the same time, he was taking about the new temple – the people of God. His death and resurrection would raise a new people, a New Temple – the Church. The New Temple is us – every one of us a brick in the Holy Temple of God. God dwells in us! God dwells amidst us! God dwells with us!
What does this mean for us? Does Jesus have to clean THIS temple? What about the temple that is me? What is it that Jesus has to cleanse from within us? After cleansing the temple, John says to us, “Jesus would not trust himself to them" (Jn 2:23). We ask ourselves – Can Jesus trust us? Our task is to cooperate with God in redeeming fallen human nature so that we can reclaim the original image in which God created us. Let us be fully available to God. Let us be God’s holy temple, both as individuals and as a people.
In many ways, each time we celebrate the Eucharist and receive Holy Communion, we are reminded that we are God’s Holy temple. We are also reminded that God comes once more to raise fallen human nature and make us more like Christ. Let us surrender ourselves to God and to Christ today.