Homily: Fourth Sunday of Lent / Laetare Sunday (B)
John 3:14-21
10 March 2024
Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez
“For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life.” – John 3:16
I’ve heard it said that if all the Gospels had been lost early on, except the first line of today’s gospel passage, it would be enough for us. Rightly so, this verse most profoundly sums up the entire biblical message. The verse reminds us of the tremendous love of God for each one of us by not sparing His only Son. In Jesus, we are shown how God continuously reaches out to us in love, saving us from evil, failure, ruin and darkness. The verse affirms what God’s plan is for us — to bring us into eternal life. “For God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:17)
In his encyclical letter, Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), Pope Francis says, “When everything is said and done, we are infinitely loved.” Once we are convinced that God truly loves us, we have hope. Infinitely loved. Pagmamahal na walang humpay, walang kapaguran, walang kondisyon, walang hangganan. Wala nang mas radikal pa sa pagmamahal ng Diyos para sa atin. At dahil sa ganyang uri ng pagmamahal, wala ding kawalan ng pag-asa. (Love that is relentless, untiring, unconditional, boundless. There is nothing more radical than God’s love for us. And because of that kind of love, there is always hope.)
Brothers and sisters, the challenge is for us to accept this love. We have to make the choice. We can be confident that God truly loves us! He does not force His love on us. We make the choice whether to accept His love and live in His light or reject His love and persist in darkness. Let us always remember that we are loved. God loves us immeasurably even when we feel unlovable or if we feel we cannot love Him back. He loves us! St. Paul reminds us… “God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ.” (Ephesians 2:4-5)
In turn, we, too are called to share this love with others. As St. Teresa of Calcutta famously said: “God loves the world through us — through you and me.” Living in and witnessing to God’s love is not easy. It entails sacrifice! St. Marie Eugenie of Jesus, Foundress of the Religious of the Assumption once said: “Love dies without sacrifice?” For some, the concept of love with sacrifice makes true love less appealing. They would rather take pleasure in someone for a while and when the “kilig” fades or the relationship gets rough, they walk away, ghost the person and set their hearts on the next adventure or conquest. These days it is very common to hear people say, “wala na lang label” ang sa atin. (Let us not have any labels in our relationship.) In weddings, I always tell couples that if we try to rephrase their marriage vows, it would simply say… “I am going to faithfully love you because you are worth dying for.” Striving to keep that promise is an example of real love, true love. That is exactly how God loves! Hence, the act of loving is more difficult, more demanding because it is patterned after the way the Father loves each one of us in Jesus.
To love as God loves is a tall order! Nevertheless, we need not be discouraged. It is true that some relationships don’t last… friends fight, families break apart and some marriages do end. However, it doesn’t mean it is an impossible task. As God, Jesus could love perfectly, but at the same time, Jesus was also fully human, showing us that the human heart also has the capacity for true and lasting love. Jesus is proof of this. He shows that love survives and blossoms again despite hurt, ugliness, and tragedy through forgiveness. Think of all the times Jesus managed to have love and compassion even for those who hurt Him and misunderstood Him.
Let us not be afraid then to aim for the ideal in love. Through Jesus Christ, we have all been gifted with the capacity to love as God loves. St. Paul reminds us in the Second Reading: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them.” (Ephesians 2:10) It is the Holy Spirit that guides and helps us discover the strength of our capability to love as Jesus did! It just takes practice and mindfulness. May our loving God make us steadfast in our love for one another and make us witnesses of His saving love.
Sunday Gospel Reflections 