God Is With Us 24/7

𝐀𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐋 𝟏𝟓, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔: 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟏: 𝐀𝐜 𝟓:𝟏𝟕-𝟐𝟔

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐦: 𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟑𝟒:𝟐-𝟗 “𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐫.”

𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐋: 𝐉𝐍 𝟑:𝟏𝟔-𝟐𝟏

𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞: “𝐋𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝…” (𝐯.𝟏𝟗) 

           There are two images that we all need to carve in our hearts and minds. These two images can help us a lot when we find ourselves in a depressed situation, especially when things aren’t going alright in our lives.

We may feel down and out from losing our jobs, or when our business may not be picking up the way we projected it. Or when our clinical tests are not that encouraging. Some may have been diagnosed with a life-threatening disease or when there is a death in the family.

There may be times we find the full weight of our problems are simply too much to bear and we find ourselves unloved and left alone to fight our battles. This is the time when we find ourselves at the crossroads of our existence. This is also the time we can retrieve the two images that we have kept at the back of our minds.

These two images are the words of Jesus in 𝐉𝐧 𝟑 when Jesus told Nicodemus:  "𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐧, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞. 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐡𝐢𝐦." (𝐯𝐯.𝟏𝟔-𝟏𝟕)

The other image is that of the Crucifixion and Death of Jesus Christ on the cross that is described in 𝐉𝐧 𝟏𝟗:𝟏𝟕-𝟏𝟖. How can these two images help us when we feel down and unloved. These two images have helped me a lot when I find myself at a low point of my life.

The words of Jesus in Jn 3:16 when he said: "𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐧,” and the 𝐂𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐱𝐢𝐨𝐧 show us how much God loves us that He willed to send His only begotten Son to suffer and die on the cross to atone for our sins and save us from eternal damnation.

I cannot fathom how great God’s love is whenever I am drawn to these images of love coming down that we may experience the love of God in our lives and his dying on the cross is simply overwhelming especially when I think of how wretched I am and undeserving of his love.

In today’s Gospel passage lies one of the great texts in the Sacred Scriptures as it reminds us once again of the special kind of love that God has for us. To begin with, there shouldn’t be any doubt as to where we all began – not from an atom nor from an ape.

          While science tells us otherwise, man was created in the image and likeness of God (𝐆𝐞𝐧 𝟏:𝟐𝟔) and it is for this reason that God has bestowed on us our senses and the gift of speech among the many other gifts that He has conferred upon our souls. God gave us understanding, free will and memory and He has given us everything that we need for our sustenance. Such is the love of God for the creatures He created.

          And it is because of this realization that we also respond in love but our love for God can never be as great as the love of God for each one of us that “𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐧, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞. (𝐯.𝟏𝟔)

          Great also is the love of Christ for us “𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬” (𝐉𝐧 𝟏𝟓:𝟏𝟑)  as he embraced his sacred passion and death in order to prove the excess of his love for us. With this manifestation of love from a God who loves us beyond our capacity to understand it would seem natural for man to include in his daily preoccupation his search for God.

          This, however, is far from present realities as many still feel that God is missing from their lives if not from the world we live in. Amidst the vast technological advances of this wired world around us the search of for God appears irrelevant and meaningless to many as unbelief and doubt has become the norm today rather than the exception.

          Notwithstanding this reality of God’s sacrificial love for us, there are times we fail to see God in a more tangible way for the simple reason that we find difficulty detaching ourselves from our pursuit of gods that would bring us comfort and luxury such as material wealth, social standing, worldly happiness, power and influence and, for as long as we are in search of these we will never find God.

          And we find ourselves searching for the one true and living God when the world we have created for ourselves collapses and crumbles. This is the reality of life that we sometimes must go through times of trials and rejection that we may arrive at a more mature faith that would lead us back to God.

          It is out of his great love for us that God respects our freedom and our person but what is unknown to us is that God is calling each of us by our own name and as He enters into that intimate relationship with us, He enables us to develop into our maximum potential as a person.

          What we have is a God who is reaching out to us even in times when we bask in the freedom that we have. But because God is omniscient and omnipresent, He is involved in all aspects of our lives such that He suffers and rejoices with us as He experience what we experience including our hopes, fears, joys and sorrows. God need not go through these but because He loves us so much that He becomes so involved in our lives even if we are not entirely aware of it.

          And in today’s Gospel passage, Jesus also shows us the paradox of love and judgment. As God is a respecter of our free will, we are given the choice to love the darkness of sin and unbelief, or we can love the light of God's truth, beauty, and goodness. If our love is guided by what is true, and good, and beautiful then we will choose God and love Him more than anything else.

          The object of our attention or how we pursue life belies our nature and this is a fact of life. What we love and do shows who we are. If we love God then it follows that He should take first place in our lives, our thoughts and our actions. If we love God less, then it explains why there are some who go through life with wild abandon and setting aside even their morality in search of what they believe will make them happy.

          Today, Jesus impresses upon Nicodemus and he is telling us also that only those who will believe in him will not perish but are assured of eternal life for 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐡𝐢𝐦." (𝐯.𝟏𝟕)

Again, we must go back to the reality that God doesn’t condemn us and will never do because He created us. If our lives do not turn out the way we expected, then we must realize that it is us who brought condemnation to ourselves as we gave in to our own will rather than follow the Will of God.

        To believe in God is not just an intellectual agreement between us and God but to believe in the words of Jesus is to place all our trust and confidence in God and accept that we cannot work out our own salvation, but it is only through God that we can be saved.

         There are many who “𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭” (𝐯.𝟐𝟎) because they are afraid that the light will expose their unrighteousness and are unwilling to avail of the new birth that Christ offers through His Holy Spirit.

         Many avoid the light simply because they don’t want to change their behavior, attitude or way of life. There is a duality in the lives of  many Christians even to those who are already in the Church or Community as they project two different sets of persona – one that caters to their social network and one that projects an image of holiness in the Church and such can only be determined by the level of commitment that one has in terms of service to God.

         In other words, what comes out of our lips are opposed to what we do. We confess and we shout that we glorify and magnify the Lord, but don’t we choose the time and place where we serve and don’t we also run away from our responsibilities as Christians because the standards in the places we are told to go do not measure up to our own standards?

         In closing, when Jesus talks of unbelievers (𝐯.𝟏𝟖) he was referring to those who ignore and reject him and there is a tendency, albeit unknown to us, that we may be veering towards unbelief by our refusal to change our ways. What we may not realize is that it is much better to live in the light than in darkness. (𝘌𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘺 - 𝘈𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘭 15, 2026)