BELIEF IN HIM BRINGS ETERNAL LIFE
When Jesus offers us real life, He brings us into a new relationship
with God, a relationship of trust, love, and obedience.
We will not be
amiss if we look upon the first reading today in a broad, symbolic fashion.
Notice that the Ethiopian was reading the Scriptures when Philip caught up with
him. Philip asked, "Do you really
grasp what you are reading?" The man replied, "How can I unless someone explains it to me?" Philip then
became his teacher. In a real sense, Philip represents the Church and all its
tradition. The Ethiopian represents any person of good will who wishes to know
more about faith.
It is important for
us to understand that the Scriptures belong to the Church and must be
understood in light of its tradition. In fact, the Church as a body of
believers who preached their faith in Jesus Christ existed before the New
Testament was composed. The oldest book of the New Testament, the first letter
to the Thessalonians, was composed no earlier than about the year 50 A. D. The
Church today, looking back upon its tradition of twenty centuries, is the only
final interpreter of the Scriptures.
A good case in
point is the teaching of Jesus in the Gospel whereby He declares, "The Bread I will give is My Flesh for
the life of the world" (Jn 6:52). The Church understands that the
Eucharist is truly the Body and Blood of Christ, which we receive at each
Communion. The Church assures us, by ancient and abiding tradition, that Jesus
meant what He said.
The Gospel
proclaims these words, "I am the
Bread of Life; I am the living Bread; My Flesh for the life of the world" (Jn
6:48,51-52). These are powerful words for us to hear. God offers His people
abundant life, but we can miss this gift from time to time. What is the Bread
of Life that Jesus offers us? It is first of all the Life of God Himself, which
sustains us not only now in this age but also in the age to come. The rabbis
said that the generations in the wilderness have no part in the life to come.
In the Book of Numbers, it is recorded that the people who refused to brave the
dangers of the Promised Land were condemned to wander in the wilderness until
they died. The rabbis believed that the father who missed the Promised Land
also missed the life to come. When Jesus offers us real life, He brings us into
a new relationship with God, a relationship of trust, love, and obedience. He
offers us real life that lasts forever, a life of love, fellowship, communion,
and union with the One who made us in love to be with Him forever and to have
joy in our hearts by knowing Him. To have a desire to know Jesus brings joy;
the joy of seeing good in others, not only the bad; the joy of living life to
the fullest with the help of God and those around us.
May we rejoice that
we have our Church as a sure, safe guide for teaching and interpreting the
Scriptures. This is where we can be spiritually fed and nourished for our
journey in life with God.