Sunday:       4 TH SUNDAY OF LENT
Date:         March 14, 1999
Year:         A
The readings: [1 Sam. 16:1, 6-7, 10-13; Eph. 5:8-14; Jn. 9:1-41]
The message:  Worldly blindness versus spiritual enlightment
Prepared by:  CATHOLIC DOORS MINISTRY
Total words:  1005

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Today's readings are mystical in nature. They appear as mysteries to those who are worldly minded. They speak of God looking at the hearts, we being children of the light, we trying to find what is pleasing to God. They speak of rising from the dead, life's hardship not always resulting from sin but glorifying the Lord God. They speak of the blind seeing and those who see being blind.

If we were to start work on a beautiful Monday mornings with so many mysteries, we would be so overwhelmed that we would not know where to start. The logical means of starting to sort all these mysteries would be to determine if there is a common denominator between all of them.

The common denominator is found in the Second Reading. It tells us to rise from the dead so Christ may shine on us. This is the major clue. What does it mean to be dead? To be dead means not to believe in the existence of God. It means to reject Jesus Christ as our Saviour and the power of the sanctifying Holy Spirit. It means to live a worldly life, apart from the mystical Body of Christ. It means to have no spiritual life whatsoever. It means to lose the gift of eternal life in the Kingdom of God.

We, as baptised Catholic who live our faith in Christ, have risen from the dead. We are pilgrims on our way to the Kingdom of God. We seek the way, the light and the truth that is found in the Word of God.

To achieve this goal, we must embrace a spiritual heart in our thinking through the gift of the spirit that we have received during the Sacrament of Baptism. We must walk with the Holy Spirit so, once blinded by our sins, we may now see the truth of God.

Spiritual blindness is a major obstacle that all Christians must overcome. As long as we are worldly minded, we are dead. Our worldly eyes are blinded because we will not allow the Holy Spirit to enlighten our spirits. The first step that reflects that we are children of light is our faith. Without seeing with physical eyes, we accept what is invisible as being the truth. That is because our spirits, of the spiritual world, see what we cannot see. Our spirit tell us that, yes, we have the Holy Spirit to teach us and to guide us in life. Yes, Christ is real. Yes, there is a God. Yes, we must love one another. Yes, there is a Trinity in God. Yes, the Church is holy. All these things are known to our spirit. The way we know it, wee identify it by saying, "I feel in my heart that it is true." In reality, it is our spirit speaking to you.

When we become aware of the disposition of our inner spirit, the gift of God, we are no longer dead. We have faith. We accept dogmas of faith. We allow the Holy Spirit to guide us through our spirit. We worship God in spirit. We become a light in the world. We seek to please the Lord in all of our thoughts, our words and our actions. When we sidetrack, we feel great remorse. We repent and ask the Lord for forgiveness us so we may remain in His grace. This is today's message to us.

When we walk in our spirit, permitting the Father of spirits to lead us, our eyes are opened. Some may ask, "How do we know that we have a spirit?" I know because the Word of God, the Bible, is the inspired work of the Holy Spirit. Hebrews 12:9 says, "Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live?" Do we want to live? Then we must subject our spirits to God. We must allow the Holy Spirit to sanctify us. We must worship God in spirit as Jesus has taught us to do.

We must remove that spiritual blindness that prevents us from seeing the truth! We must be as innocent as children with an open mind so that the truth will set us free. When we embrace a spiritual mind, the teachings of Christ that are found in the Bible, the open themselves to us in an entirely different light. Nothing remains hidden anymore because the Holy Spirit is our teacher. We no longer see life's hardships as hardships but rather as God's blessings to elevate our spirit in virtues in the likeness of Christ. We perceive that hardships teach patience and perseverance. They transform us to become non-judgmental souls. They provide a closeness to God for guidance. They result in compassion, mercy, submission, prudence, trust, hope, humility, wisdom, peace, honesty, etc... We come to realize that God's grace is sufficient in all our needs. What many considers as crosses is viewed by the spiritually enlightened soul as a God given blessing for the sanctification of the soul.

So what are the obstacles that can prevent us from embracing a spiritual approach to life? It can be conceit, our status in the community, an education that lacked in spiritual wisdom, the refusal to accept the sound teachings that are found in the Bible, a lack of humility, or even the refusal to accept what is real, but invisible to the worldly eyes.

Today, we are commanded to rise from the dead so Christ can shine on us. A good start is by humbling ourselves, by asking the Lord to come to us in our hearts and to remove our spiritual blindness so you can see the truth, the light. We must ask the Lord to change our hearts if it is necessary so He will be pleased with what He sees. We must ask the Lord to anoint us with His Holy Spirit as He has chosen David to be anointed. Then the Holy Spirit will be with us from that day on. We must endure God's transforming power within us. Then, and only then, can we truly walk as children of the light because we will be children of the light!

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The readings...

[The readings were taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible (C) 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the United States of America.]

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First Reading...

"For the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. Rise and anoint him for this is the one. And the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward." [1 Sam. 16:1, 6-7, 10-13]

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Second Reading...

"Live as children of the light. Try to find what is pleasing to the Lord. Rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you." [Eph. 5:8-14]

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Gospel Reading...

"Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see. I came into the world... that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind." [Jn. 9:1-41]

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