March 12, 2023 - Third Sunday of Lent - Gospel Reflection

March 12, 2023

Third Sunday of Lent
Lectionary: 28

In those days, in their thirst for water,
the people grumbled against Moses,
saying, “Why did you ever make us leave Egypt?
Was it just to have us die here of thirst
with our children and our livestock?”
So Moses cried out to the LORD,
“What shall I do with this people?
a little more and they will stone me!”
The LORD answered Moses,
“Go over there in front of the people,
along with some of the elders of Israel,
holding in your hand, as you go,
the staff with which you struck the river.
I will be standing there in front of you on the rock in Horeb.
Strike the rock, and the water will flow from it
for the people to drink.”
This Moses did, in the presence of the elders of Israel.
The place was called Massah and Meribah,
because the Israelites quarreled there
and tested the LORD, saying,
“Is the LORD in our midst or not?”

Responsorial Psalm: 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9

R. (8) If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD;
let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyfully sing psalms to him.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the LORD who made us.
For he is our God,
and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
   “Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
   as in the day of Massah in the desert,
Where your fathers tempted me;
   they tested me though they had seen my works.”
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Reading II: Rom 5:1-2, 5-8

Brothers and sisters:
Since we have been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have gained access by faith
to this grace in which we stand,
and we boast in hope of the glory of God.

And hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
For Christ, while we were still helpless,
died at the appointed time for the ungodly.
Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person,
though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.

Verse Before the Gospel: Cf. Jn 4:42, 15

Lord, you are truly the Savior of the world;
give me living water, that I may never thirst again.

Gospel: Jn 4:5-42 or Jn 4:5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42 (shortened)

Jesus came to a town of Samaria called Sychar,
near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.
Jacob’s well was there.
Jesus, tired from his journey, sat down there at the well.
It was about noon.

A woman of Samaria came to draw water.
Jesus said to her,
“Give me a drink.”
His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.
The Samaritan woman said to him,
“How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?”
—For Jews use nothing in common with Samaritans.—
Jesus answered and said to her,
“If you knew the gift of God
and who is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink, ‘
you would have asked him
and he would have given you living water.”
The woman said to him,
“Sir, you do not even have a bucket and the cistern is deep;
where then can you get this living water?
Are you greater than our father Jacob,
who gave us this cistern and drank from it himself
with his children and his flocks?”
Jesus answered and said to her,
“Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again;
but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst;
the water I shall give will become in him
a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
The woman said to him,
“Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty
or have to keep coming here to draw water.”

Jesus said to her,
“Go call your husband and come back.”
The woman answered and said to him,
“I do not have a husband.”
Jesus answered her,
“You are right in saying, ‘I do not have a husband.’
For you have had five husbands,
and the one you have now is not your husband.
What you have said is true.”
The woman said to him,
“Sir, I can see that you are a prophet.
Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain;
but you people say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.”
Jesus said to her,
“Believe me, woman, the hour is coming
when you will worship the Father
neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
You people worship what you do not understand;
we worship what we understand,
because salvation is from the Jews.
But the hour is coming, and is now here,
when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth;
and indeed the Father seeks such people to worship him.
God is Spirit, and those who worship him
must worship in Spirit and truth.”
The woman said to him,
“I know that the Messiah is coming, the one called the Christ;
when he comes, he will tell us everything.”
Jesus said to her,
“I am he, the one speaking with you.”

At that moment his disciples returned,
and were amazed that he was talking with a woman,
but still no one said, “What are you looking for?”
or “Why are you talking with her?”
The woman left her water jar
and went into the town and said to the people,
“Come see a man who told me everything I have done.
Could he possibly be the Christ?”
They went out of the town and came to him.
Meanwhile, the disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat.”
But he said to them,
“I have food to eat of which you do not know.”
So the disciples said to one another,
“Could someone have brought him something to eat?”
Jesus said to them,
“My food is to do the will of the one who sent me
and to finish his work.
Do you not say, ‘In four months the harvest will be here’?
I tell you, look up and see the fields ripe for the harvest.
The reaper is already receiving payment
and gathering crops for eternal life,
so that the sower and reaper can rejoice together.
For here the saying is verified that ‘One sows and another reaps.’
I sent you to reap what you have not worked for;
others have done the work,
and you are sharing the fruits of their work.”

Many of the Samaritans of that town began to believe in him
because of the word of the woman who testified,
“He told me everything I have done.”
When the Samaritans came to him,

they invited him to stay with them;
and he stayed there two days.
Many more began to believe in him because of his word,
and they said to the woman,
“We no longer believe because of your word;
for we have heard for ourselves,
and we know that this is truly the savior of the world.”

OR: Jn 4:5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42

or have to keep coming here to draw water.

“I can see that you are a prophet.
Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain;
but you people say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.”
Jesus said to her,
“Believe me, woman, the hour is coming
when you will worship the Father
neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
You people worship what you do not understand;
we worship what we understand,
because salvation is from the Jews.
But the hour is coming, and is now here,
when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth;
and indeed the Father seeks such people to worship him.
God is Spirit, and those who worship him
must worship in Spirit and truth.”
The woman said to him,
“I know that the Messiah is coming, the one called the Christ;
when he comes, he will tell us everything.”
Jesus said to her,
“I am he, the one who is speaking with you.”

Many of the Samaritans of that town began to believe in him.
When the Samaritans came to him,
they invited him to stay with them;
and he stayed there two days.
Many more began to believe in him because of his word,
and they said to the woman,
“We no longer believe because of your word;
for we have heard for ourselves,
and we know that this is truly the savior of the world.”

Reflection

This Third Sunday of Lent calls us to trust God even in the most difficult of circumstances. It may be the death of a loved one, financial distress or pressures in relationships. Some of these can be so life-changing that it can break those with lesser or weaker faith in our Lord. However, we have to realize too that these hard times can also be opportunities to lift ourselves to holiness because they might just be holy tests from God. With holy tests, we need the Holy Spirit for guidance. St. James said: Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4)

It is during our darkest night that we need the Lord more by our side. Being tested by God is not something we should turn away from because it only goes to show how much we are loved by the Lord. Besides, God is faithful. He will always extricate us from troubles we won’t be able to bear. St Paul said: No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. (1Corinthians 10:13)

Life is all about persevering until the end for the cause of salvation. Our Lord has already paved the way to salvation and He is the only way to the Father. Therefore, salvation means abiding in Jesus who died on the Cross for our sins.

In life, the road isn’t always smoothly paved. There are bumps, humps and potholes ahead. All these “unsmooth” sections of the road are the challenges, difficulties and hardships in our lives. However, these are also opportunities to shine, to persevere and to grow. Most of all, these are episodes that drive us to holiness because there is no Easter without going through Lent; there is no Christmas without passing through Advent.

We will all be tested. When testing comes our way, do we budge and flinch or do we stand our ground and ask God for the power to go through the test with flying colors? The choice is with us.

First Reading: “Is the LORD in our midst or not?”

Today’s First Reading recalls the grumbling and complaining of the Israelites in the desert of the Sinai Peninsula about thirst and absence of water. Well, if you’re in the desert today or if you were there some 3500 years ago, water would really be a problem and you would rant about it. The Israelites not only ranted, they even doubted if the God who liberated them from Egyptian bondage is still with them in the desert.

Like the Israelites of old, like Father Abraham in last Sunday’s First Reading, we all get tested in life and no one is exempted. Please note that if the suffering is due to some immoral act or inaction, which assumes the damage of another, the suffering is just right for the perpetrator. In this case, God’s forgiveness and mercy is the only recourse for salvation and healing. Please note here that the forgiveness and mercy of God is still made available because there is no sin too big to forgive for a repentant soul.

On the other hand, if the suffering is not self-caused through some nefarious act, then the suffering may be considered a God-given opportunity for holiness, not only for the perpetrator, direct victim but also for those who have been hurting for the victim.

Make no mistake, we are not against upholding justice and we are in favor of upholding the ends of justice, except the imposition of capital punishment because the Church would always stand for repentance, reform and God’s forgiveness. What we are emphasizing today is the fact that due to original sin, evil and suffering entered the world and no one is exempted from it. Man lives in a world of two forces: Good and evil. The choice is ours to make.

Just like how earthly fathers put their sons to the test to build their character and resilience, God subjects us to holy testing as His way of showing His undying and unconditional love for us. Actually, God is unlike any Father we know. We may have an idea as what kind of a Father he is by comparing Him to the best known fathers we know, perhaps starting with our very own fathers but God is the best Father we know and we can ever know, multiplied to the nth power. God is much more a father than all of the best fathers on earth combined and much more. God is our perfect Father.

God knows that He is the best “thing” in our lives and He’s not letting go of us. It is when we say “no” to Him, even saying no to the holy pain and suffering, when our lives turn for the worse. When we keep on complaining like the Israelites in the desert, instead of just asking God for mercy and guidance, instead of just trusting God, we fall into trusting ourselves. When this happens, we begin to think of ourselves as gods by convincing ourselves that we can DIY (do it yourself) everything or anything. Sometimes, we fall into the trap of thinking that God is MIA (missing in action) instead of realizing that we are already playing God’s role. That is why God looks like He’s absent because He wouldn’t want to interfere with our choices when we play god. And when God seems absent when we are playing god, we even blame God for His absence. In the vernacular, God may say: “Saan ka pa naman lulugar pag ganyan.” This is how man can be so ungrateful to the one who gave us everything, including His very own life.

To summarize, God is never and will never be absent in the universe, ever. He created the universe and everything in it. He never takes a day off from his multiple roles and He never gets tired. He is always available to anyone who seeks Him. In fact, He always calls us and talks to us. We just have to tune our hearts and minds to his Word.

Today’s Responsorial Psalm is very true: If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

This is something we have to always rejoice about – that we have a God who is our ever loving Father, who loves us more than anybody can love us.

We are the ones who are absent because when we start trusting our selves more, we push God aside and He respects our choices. We have to want being with Him now and forever if we ever aspire for life everlasting. Hope is aiming to reach Heaven which is a real place because Jesus himself promised it and prepared it for us.

Gospel: “I am he, the one speaking with you.”

Today’s Gospel recalls Jesus telling the Samaritan Woman by the Well of Jacob: “I am he, the one speaking with you”, a message of hope for a soul who has been through much thirst, abandonment and heartache.

We all have souls with unquenchable thirsts. But the quench can never be satisfied by anything or anybody else. Only Jesus can quench our thirst because He is the living water. Why, you ask? Because we came from God and only by returning to Him would we have eternal rest.

The Samaritan Woman represents the soul which experienced abandonment and heartache due to having had five (5) husbands. She already had five (5) relationships and the one whom she’s with now isn’t her husband. She has a total of six (6) relationships and the one whom she’s speaking with (Jesus) is, for all intents and purposes, proposing to be her seventh but perfect husband. Jesus is calling on her to partake of the water He gives because it will satisfy her thirst now and forever.

There is famous line from St. Augustine which applies to the Samaritan Woman, and it goes: You have made us for yourself, O Lord and our hearts are restless until they rest in thee.

The Samaritan Woman, like any person on the face of this earth, was searching for stability to belong and for love. We were all created to belong to our Father who made us. On top of all that, we were created from love so that we could be loved and be able to share love because our God is a God of love.

This Sunday, let us reflect on this reality: all the cruelty, suffering and pain in this world cannot whiff out the love that our God and Father have for all of us. Love is really, truly and definitely stronger than evil.

Our Lord Jesus, our God who loves us, constantly and unceasingly calls us into a love communion with Him because through Him, with Him and in Him, does our thirst for living water gets satisfied. It is Jesus’ the living water that, when drank, quenches our thirst and swells up in us that it overflows, flooding others with rivers of love. If this isn’t a cause for rejoicing, we don’t know what will. Our Lord’s love is not some tiny brook. It isn’t even a lake or an ocean. It is a tsunami that can change anything and everything in its path, if only we give it a chance in our hearts.

Allow us to end with the hope that St. Paul declares in the Second Reading: “…God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.”

A blessed Sunday to all.

– Gospel reflection by Kuya Rommel Cecilio of SLRP Bible Apostolate Ministry

March 12, 2023 – Third Sunday of Lent – Gospel Reflection