Br. John R. Barker, OFM

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

The first reading brings us to the period after the Exile, when newly-redeemed Israel looks back on its history. The author juxtaposes the continued infidelity of his people with the enduring commitment of God. Even before they entered the land, Israel turned away from their God and toward other deities, the “abominations of the nations.” God warned them of the consequences, but they did not listen, until finally they went into exile. Once again, God has shown mercy, bringing them back to the land and reestablishing the divine presence among them. Divine graciousness, human infidelity, judgment to bring the people back to God, forgiveness and restoration: this is the pattern of God’s dealings with the chosen people that we find throughout the Bible.

Paul emphasizes God’s graciousness and goodness, which has been shown not just to the Gentile Christians of Ephesus, but to the whole church. God is “rich in mercy,” has “great love for us,” “brought us to life with Christ,” has shown “the immeasurable riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus,” which is a “gift of God.” This is no grudging salvation Paul proclaims, but great-hearted goodness from a God who wants only to give life in place of death. All those who have been baptized into Christ now in some sense enjoy the full fruits of redemption; they are “seated . . . with [Christ] in the heavens.” This “realized eschatology,” which from the human perspective is yet to come, has in fact already been accomplished in Christ.

Again this week we see Jesus as the fulfillment of a “type” from the Old Testament. In this case, it is the bronze serpent that Moses had made to heal the Israelites (Numbers 21:4–9). The larger point Jesus makes to Nicodemus is that the love of God for the world is almost beyond belief: God has gone so far as to “give his only Son.” On the one hand, this gift is simply the Incarnation itself, which makes manifest on earth the glory, grace, and truth of God (1:14). On the other hand, this gift is the saving death of Christ. Sadly, it is not accepted by all because to accept is to open oneself to the “true Light” (1:9). As with many other instances in this Gospel, the presence of God in Christ forces a decision that one is unable to avoid making.

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

After their deliverance from Egypt, the work of forming Israel into God’s people continues. Although they have seen God’s power to save, they have not experienced God’s ability to provide. Until they come to trust that their God is capable of meeting all of their needs, they will not be able to be faithful to the covenant relationship. The cry for water, revealing doubts that God is “in their midst,” is thus a “test” of God’s trustworthiness. God’s quick provision is intended not only to provide life-giving water, but also to inspire trust in the God with whom they will shortly enter into covenant relationship.

In his letter to the Romans, Paul explains that, whereas sin alienates us from God, faith in Christ brings about peace with God. More than this, Christ makes it possible to share in the divine life, which gives hope of future glory. This hope is firm because the believer already experiences the “love of God,” which can mean God’s love for the believer, the believer’s love of God, or both. In the first case, the Spirit and the life of grace are from God, a gift of love and a firm promise for the future. In the second case, the believer is able to love God through the transforming power of grace.

Today’s Johannine reading dramatizes a central theme found in the Prologue. Just as the Word was in the world but the world did not know or accept him (1:10–11), so at first the woman resists Jesus, “knowing” only that he is a Jew, estranged from Samaritans. But Jesus persists, declaring that if she really knew who he was she would have asked for “living water” from him, a metaphor for divine life and grace (“to those who did accept him, he gave power to become children of God” [1:12]). Eventually the woman comes to believe that he might “possibly be the Christ.” As a result of her testimony, others encounter Jesus and come to “know that he is truly the savior of the world.”

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

The Ten Commandments summarize God’s expectations of Israel, partner in the covenant. By delivering Israel from bondage and bringing them into this relationship, God is forming a people who will be a “holy nation” (Exodus 19:6), set apart and shaped by God to manifest God’s character to the other nations. The commandments are a template, as it were, of the minimum standards by which Israel should conduct itself as a people and as individuals in order to be a holy nation that “looks like” God. This is, in fact, why God has created Israel in the first place—to be a “kingdom of priests” (19:6) to mediate God’s holiness and righteousness to the rest of the world.

As it is today, it was common in the ancient world for “thought leaders” to attract followers. The tendency to follow the most eloquent speaker has led to divisions in the Corinthian church. Thus Paul contrasts human wisdom, thought to be manifest in the persuasive speakers, with divine wisdom, which is found in the cross of Christ. Of course, the world does not see any wisdom in the cross, an instrument of torture and death for criminals, and it is thus a stumbling block for accepting the full gospel. Paul will struggle to get his audience to understand that what God has done in Christ cannot be understood or evaluated according to the “wisdom” of the broken social order. Nor can it be modified or diluted to make it palatable to the larger society.

A theme in the Gospel of John is that in Christ, the glory of God is in the world: The “Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (1:14). The Greek reads “pitched his tent among us,” a reference to the ancient tabernacle, which was filled with the glory (the presence) of God (Exodus 40:35). The scene this week picks up this theme by portraying Jesus as the new temple who, though destroyed by humans, will be raised again by God. It is this glory manifest in Jesus that allows him to perform the various signs that draw people to him. At the same time, Jesus is fully aware that human hearts are fickle and that even the divine glory can be rejected by “human nature” in its present state.

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

The relationship between Abraham and God begins with the promise of descendants. The son born of the barren Sarah is apparent proof of God’s trustworthiness. Now the order to sacrifice that son puts Abraham in a seemingly impossible position. If he disobeys God, the relationship is over. If he obeys, he puts to death the sign of God’s trustworthiness, which would also effectively kill the relationship. Abraham is famously stoic in this scene, and we have no idea what he is thinking, but his actions imply an incomprehensible trust in God in the face of this dilemma. Concentrating on the ethically problematic aspects of the story might lead one to miss what most ancient readers were able to appreciate, which is the profound trust, not just obedience, that Abraham manifests by his willingness to sacrifice Isaac.

The second reading also treats of the sacrifice of a son. Paul has been assuring his Roman audience that they are destined for glory as God’s adopted children in Christ (8:14–22). In fact, God’s benevolent providence is such that everything can be used to bring about this divine end; God’s purpose will not be thwarted (8:28). Because of this, there is nothing to fear. Paul drives this point home with the example of Jesus. The God who went to such great lengths for us as to allow the only-begotten Son to be sacrificed will surely not abandon us; the death of Christ is a sure sign of God’s good intentions for those who love. Only those who refuse to accept their inheritance can fail to receive it.

The transfiguration of Jesus takes place six days after he announced to his disciples that “the Son of Man must suffer greatly . . . and be killed and rise after three days” (8:31). The experience on the mountain thus points to the future by displaying the glory that Jesus already possesses as God’s Son. Although Jesus must suffer and die, his glorification is assured. Moses and Elijah, both of whom received a revelation of divine glory on a “high mountain” (Exodus 34:5–9; 1 Kings 19:11–13), represent the law and the prophets, both of which have prepared the way for the Messiah. The identity and mission of Christ are confirmed by both God and the Scriptures.

Jan 24 2025

Scripture Study for

The flood in Genesis is God’s initial response the fact of human wickedness, which had filled the entire earth with corruption (Genesis 6:11–13). Afterward, God recognizes that this has not solved the problem of the human heart, whose “desires . . . are evil from youth” (8:21); a new plan will have been put in place. In the meantime, God establishes a covenant, not just with human beings but with “every living creature.” This covenant is an expression of God’s commitment to all that has been created. Even though human sin has brought corruption to the whole earth, God does not turn away, but prepares the way for a new plan that will address the problem of the human heart.

The author of First Peter refers to the time of Noah from two perspectives. The identity of the “spirits in prison” to whom Christ preached possibly refers to the spirits of those whose disobedience occasioned the flood. The point is that the account of the suffering, death, and exaltation of Christ should encourage his audience in their own sufferings (3:13–17). Peter also ties the flood narrative to baptism, suggesting that Noah and his family were “saved through water” (although actually they were saved from water). Through baptism one is renewed through the power of Christ. The “appeal” might also be translated “pledge of good conscience,” meaning that for their part humans promise to allow their lives to be renewed and to be faithful, particularly in a time of suffering.

In Mark’s account of his temptation, Jesus is in the desert “among wild beasts,” which represent the “wildness” of the desert as a place of spiritual struggle, as in the Exodus account. As in that same account, Jesus is attended by angels, agents of God’s protection. Jesus relives the experience of Israel, but unlike them he does not succumb to temptation. His proclamation is simple: The promised reign of God, in which all will be ordered according to God’s will, is coming to pass. The human response is twofold: Believe that God’s promises are being fulfilled and repent of any behaviors or attitudes that oppose the divine will.