4th Week of Lent 2026 - Wednesday (school mass) - Eyes fixed on Jesus

 

We have reached the half-way point of Lent. For the first half of Lent, our Scripture readings focus on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Now, as we get closer and closer to Holy Week: to Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, and Good Friday, our Scripture readings shift focus. No longer are the daily scriptures reminding us of the importance of prayer and fasting. By now, prayer and fasting are our dear friends. We know them well. And we understand their value.

But now, half-way through Lent, our scriptures begin to focus more and more on Jesus, specifically the hostility and opposition he faces leading up to his arrest and crucifixion. Our readings help us to understand, “why?”. Why did they hate him so much that they lied about him, mocked him, conspired against him, arrested him, whipped him, crucified and killed him?

This morning, our Gospel reading contains a very clear answer to these questions: “For this reason they tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.” They hated him, they tried all the more to kill him because he claimed to be God.

That is very important for us to understand. Jesus was not simply a nice man who told people to be kind. He was not merely a wise teacher with good advice. He was not just a miracle worker or even a prophet. Jesus claimed something much greater. He claimed equality with the Father. His work, his ministry, his preaching—was the work and words of God.

Because Jesus is God, we cannot be indifferent to Him. We cannot treat Him as unimportant. We cannot just fit Him in when it is convenient. We must listen to Him, trust Him, obey Him, and love Him.

These readings also help us to understand that all that Jesus suffers during Holy Week, especially on Good Friday, he does so because He loves us, God loves us. And he endures all of these things to save us from our sins, to save us from being people who turn their hearts away from God, like those who sought to murder him because they didn’t like his words.

So in these remaining weeks of Lent, let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Praying and fasting, yes, but also growing in faith, gratitude, and love for Him. And may our hearts not harden against His word, but open more fully to the God who suffers to save us, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

 

As we continue our Lenten journey and fix our eyes more closely on Jesus, true God and true man, let us bring our prayers before our heavenly Father.

 

For the Pope Leo, and all bishops, priests, and deacons, that they may preach Christ faithfully and lead God’s people more deeply into the mysteries of His Passion, Death, and Resurrection.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For a quick and peaceful resolution to all violent conflict in the world, and that the wisdom of God may govern all of our national and international affairs. Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For those whose hearts have grown cold, distracted, or indifferent toward the Lord, that God may soften their hearts and draw them back to faith, repentance, and love.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For our parish and school community, that in these remaining weeks of Lent we may keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, listen to His word, and grow in gratitude for all He endured to save us from our sins.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For the sick, the suffering, and all who carry the weight of the cross in their lives, that they may find comfort in Christ, who suffered out of love for us and who never abandons His people.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For the faithful departed, that they may come to share forever in the glory of the risen Christ.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

Heavenly Father, hear the prayers we place before you. Keep our hearts fixed on your Son, that walking with Him through His Passion, we may come to share in the joy of His Resurrection. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Good Friday 2024 - Morning Prayer - Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus

 There is a poignant line from the Letter to the Hebrews which contains an important injunction for any day of the year, but particularly for today, Good Friday. The biblical author writes, “let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith. For the sake of the joy that lay before him he endured the cross.”

This line from the Letter to the Hebrews is particularly poignant for Good Friday because it encapsulates the essence of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.

Let’s break it down. First we are told,  “let us rid ourselves of every burden of sin”. Good Friday is a day of reflection on the weight of sin and our own inability to overcome it on our own. Yet, we must do our part in “ridding ourselves”—rooting out sin with the help of God’s grace, acknowledging our selfishness, and making a firm purpose of amendment to overcome it as we can. 

Next we are told to perseverance in Running the Race of Faith: Good Friday marks the culmination of Jesus' earthly ministry, during which he endured trials, opposition, and ultimately, crucifixion. And we his followers are to persevere in our own journey of faith, following the Lord’s example of steadfastness and endurance, even in the face of suffering and persecution. In this way, the Lord is the leader and perfecter of our faith. Our faith is imperfect until it attains union with Christ crucified. 

Then we are told to keep Our Eyes Fixed on Jesus. This is our task on Good Friday. We are to keep your focus firmly on Jesus throughout the day by reflecting on his life, his teachings, his sacrificial love, his obedience to God's will, the wounds, and blows, and mockery, and agony he suffered to obtain the ultimate victory over sin and death. Make every effort today to avert your eyes from all things that are not Him. 

Finally, Hebrews says that he endured the cross for the sake of the joy that lay before him. Despite the agony and suffering of the cross, Jesus endured it all for the sake of the joy that lay before him. This joy refers to the redemption and salvation of humanity. Your redemption and freedom from sin is God’s joy. Which is why, for God, today is Good. 

May our prayer this morning help us to enter into the goodness of the day. Helping us to keep our eyes fixed on him, to persevere with him to the cross, to be cleansed by him, that we may know his joy, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.