Fifth Sunday in Lent (1879)

The natural man closes himself, following the course of his heart, to the Word of God because it is the Truth1, and because he loves darkness rather than light.2 This unbelieving reluctance finally induces, if repentance does not takes place, the judgment of hardening, as the example of the Jews shows. This judgment is a strict, but a just one, because the obdurate willfully rejects the recognized truth against his better judgment and resists the Holy Spirit. Only the one who by the Holy Spirit can pull themselves up and listens to the voice of Jesus escapes this judgment. John 8:46-59 What must move everyone to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ? 1. the holiness of His life3, a. in general: His sinlessness, . predicted in the Old Testament4, . demonstrated by His perfect love for God and man, . testified to by His disciples and His enemies; b. in particular: His truthfulness, . predicted in the Old Testament5, . demonstrated by Christ knowing the Truth at all times, even though He knew that the Jews were exasperated as a result and would seek His death, . testified to by His disciples and His enemies; 2. the saving power of His Word6, a. promised in the Old Testament, b. experienced by the faithful of all times, c. justified by the fact that His Word . reveals Him as the conqueror of death, . works faith in Him, and . communicates His grace; 3. His divine person7; His divinity is a. witnessed in the Old Testament, b. asserted by Christ through the clearest statements, c. proved . by His miracles, . by the foundation and preservation of His Church. F.
John 8:45. John 3:19. 3 John 8:46. 4 Isaiah 53:9 ("no violence"). 5 ibid ("no deceit"). 6 John 8:51. 7 John 8:58.
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