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Gospel Reading
(John 9:39-10:10)
Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains. “Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly
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Epistle Reading
(1John 3:2-6)
Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when He is revealed, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is. And all who have this hope in Him purify themselves, just as He is pure. Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that He was revealed to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin. No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has either seen Him or known Him.
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Gospel Commentary
In this Gospel reading Jesus says: “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.” We who are members of His Church cannot claim ignorance. We are not “blind.” We have no excuse. We have experienced Jesus even to the extent of becoming united to Him in the reception of His Body and Blood in the Holy Communion and thereby we have demonstrated our hope in Him. “And all who have this hope in Him purify themselves, just as He is pure.” During this week try to make a conscious effort to demonstrate your hope in Jesus. Think before you think, speak or act. Try to remove impure thoughts, control your tongue and do acts of kindness. See how you do.
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