In the temple, at Solomon's Portico, Jesus was rejected. Many people reached for rocks to stone Him (Jn 10:31). They also tried to arrest Him (Jn 10:39). Jesus "eluded their grasp" and "went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing earlier" (Jn 10:39-40). "In that place, many came to believe in Him" (Jn 10:42).
Why was Jesus not accepted in the holy place, the temple, but believed in "down by the riverside"? It was because St. John the Baptizer had been administering his baptism of repentance "down by the riverside." Wherever there is repentance, there is faith. Where there is no repentance, Jesus is rejected and His Church persecuted.
If we have had a Lent of repentance, then we will have an Easter of faith. If our Lent is lacking repentance, however, our Easter will not be pleasing to God. We will even be used consciously or unconsciously to hinder God's work. Therefore, we must repent. Even if we have let sin blind us to our need for repentance, we must ask the Lord to break through our spiritual blindness, convict us of our sins, and empower us to repent.
"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel" (Mk 1:15 RSV-CE).
| PRAYER: | Father, immerse me in repentance (Mk 1:4). |
| PROMISE: | "Sing to the Lord, praise the Lord, for He has rescued the life of the poor from the power of the wicked!" –Jer 20:13 |
| PRAISE: | After years without going to Confession, Thomas repented and now is grateful for monthly Confession. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College