Thursday of the Fifth Week of Lent
In today’s Gospel, Jesus makes a striking promise: “Whoever keeps my word will never see death.” Those listening immediately object. Abraham died, the prophets died—so how can Jesus say such a thing? But Jesus is speaking about a deeper kind of life.
Throughout this week, we have heard how life comes through hearing and responding to God’s word. In the first reading, Abraham falls prostrate before God as the Lord establishes a covenant with him. Abraham listens, trusts, and orders his life according to God’s promise. That act of faith becomes the beginning of a living relationship between God and his people.
Jesus now reveals the fullness of that truth. To “keep” his word does not simply mean hearing it. It means receiving it, trusting it, and allowing it to shape the way we live. When God’s word takes root in our lives, it brings us into communion with the living God himself. And communion with God is life.
This gives a very concrete application for us. Each day we hear God’s word—in Scripture, in prayer, in the quiet movements of conscience. The question is not only whether we hear it, but whether we keep it.
Because every time we listen and act on God’s word, we choose life.
Reflection by Fr. Etienne Huard, OSB
Posted in Articles for Lent, Daily Reflections