Reflect on the importance of following God's plan despite challenges, inspired by Jesus's bravery in the face of adversity in today's Gospel reading.
Today's Gospel: John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30
The plot thickens.
That is the phrase that comes to mind when I ponder this Gospel reading.
Jesus did not come to planet Earth to spread rainbows and to feed unicorns. He came with a mission: to die so as to free us from our sins. Along the way to His passion and death, He showed His immense power through His preaching and by performing miracles.
But He was not the Savior some people were looking for. He came from a modest background—a carpenter’s son. He did not seek earthly authority—His kingdom was not of this world. He was not going to defeat the Romans in a mighty physical battle. He came in humility and would die the same way.
Yet, Jesus is no shrinking violet, afraid of His own shadow. He is strong and His words carry a great deal of weight. He declares that He has been sent by God the Father, whom He knows better than anyone else does.
He is condemned for speaking the truth. Some people could not get past their preconceived ideas about the Messiah. In other words, if they had been casting a movie about the Son of God, they would not have cast Jesus in the role.
In this instance, it sounds as if Jesus barely escaped. People were determined to arrest Him. But God the Father was still in charge, and it was not yet time for Jesus to give up His life. And so He lived to see another day.
From this passage, we see the importance of carrying forward with God’s plan, even when we run into interference and even when it is difficult. We must imitate Jesus’s bravery in the face of obstacles, knowing that the Lord will help us through any challenge. We can always depend on Him!
Ponder:
What is the Lord calling you to do, despite the obstacles which may lay ahead?
Pray:
Dear Jesus, You were willing to put everything on the line to free us from our sins. Help us to follow You, even during times of difficulty.
Pray Together:
As a family, talk about times when you followed Jesus, even when it was hard.
Copyright 2026 Maria V. Gallagher
About the Author
.png?width=1806&height=731&name=CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png "CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)"){kind=logo}
Comments