4th Sunday of Lent

This Sunday we continue our Lenten journey through Salvation History with a continued focus on covenant.  We’ve already given witness to the covenants with Noah, Abraham, and Moses.  This week we turn our attention to the Davidic Covenant (the covenant with King David), or more accurately, the covenant with the monarchy of Israel.

The Word for the 4th Sunday of Lent
2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23
Psalms 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
Ephesians 2:4-10
John 3:14-21

Our first reading comes from the end of the 2nd book of Chronicles.  Though our intent this Sunday is to remember the Davidic Covenant, our Lectionary has chosen an interesting approach.  Rather than give us a story about King David, we are presented with a story from the end of the Babylonian Exile.  Why approach the covenant with David from this tail-end view?  

It’s an approach that actually fits very well with the Book of Chronicles, for you see, the Book of Chronicles is much more than a retelling of the story we heard in books of Samuel and Kings.  The “chronicler” of this book had a mission – a mission taken from the original Greek title of paraleipomena, which translates roughly to “things omitted.”  But the Chronicler had much more in mind other than writing about those stories that may have slipped through the cracks of the period of the monarchy.  The Chronicler’s mission was also to try to make sense of their current situation, to ask the question of how God’s chosen people could end up in exile in Babylon.

This Sunday’s passage comes from the end of the 2nd and final book of Chronicles, summarizing the events that lead to the fall of Jerusalem.  But that’s not the end of the story, for our passage continues with story of how Cyrus the Great, following the will of God, sends the Israelites back to Jerusalem to rebuild their temple, calling an end to their exile in Babylon and sending them back to the land God had given them.  From the Chronicler’s perspective, the people had learned their lesson.  Their covenant with David and the kings of Israel was that they and their King needed to stay right with God in order to be protected by God.  Our Psalm echoes the feelings of the people of Israel at the end of the Exile, “Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!”

Our second reading comes from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.  The passage reminds us that it is by the grace of God that we are shown his great mercy and love.  A grace earned through Christ Jesus and his death and resurrection.  Paul’s words are quite clear:  Grace is a gift from God, freely given, not earned.  It challenges the notion that we must “earn our way into Heaven.”  That’s not to say that we can do whatever we want and still expect to get into Heaven.  Rather, it shows us that our reciprocal love for God can only have us doing good for Him and one another.  In other words, if we love God and accept his grace, how could we do wrong?

Our Gospel comes from John and gives us the full story around the well-known verse of John 3:16.  It is common to see signs that read “John 3:16” at sporting events, rallies, marches, and other large gatherings.  The verse reads, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”  Our more evangelical brothers and sisters who like to hold up these signs are trying to tell us that it is belief in Christ (and only through Christ) that leads to eternal life.  But that’s a somewhat limited view that is not necessarily keeping with the context with the full story.  As our Gospel opens, Jesus is talking with Nicodemus, one of the leading Pharisees who has come to see Jesus as one sent by God.  Nicodemus, like the Apostles at that time, are having some trouble understanding how one can be born again in the Spirit.  At this Jesus tells him that it will be through his death and resurrection that the people will see the light.  As the passage states in verse 17:  “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.”

Final Thoughts:
Our theme of Baptism also continues through our readings for this week.  In our first reading we are reminded of the covenant God made with his people.  Our baptism is also a covenant with God, and just like with the kings of old, if we continue to follow the Lord, he will be with us.  Our second reading reminds us that we have been saved through Christ, a benefit we gain through our Baptism.  Our Gospel has Jesus teaching about the light; how it illuminates the truth.  During Baptism we are given a candle to remember that Christ is the light of the world.

During the season of Lent, and again at the Easter Vigil, we focus on what we call “the Story of Salvation” or “Salvation History.”  Calling to mind those stories in Scripture where God and man cross paths and interact.  Pivotal moments where we grow in both knowledge and relationship with God.  As important as these moments are, however, we also need to pay attention to the bigger picture.  All of these stories form a larger tapestry that take us from creation to the establishment of the New Covenant through Jesus’ death and resurrection.  Why do we spend so much time rehashing these stories?  Because this New Covenant marks a new beginning – a clean slate between God and his people.  Where do we go from here?  The possibilities are endless, but only if we can avoid the mistakes we made before.  Like the Chronicler in our first reading, the goal isn’t just to learn our history but to learn from it.  Lent affords us this look back, so that when we look ahead we can carry those experiences (successes and failures) into our continued quest in building the Kingdom of God.