Thirsting for God

Friends, welcome to Word on Fire Catholic Ministries. Word on Fire is an apostolate dedicated to the mission of evangelization using media both old and new to share the faith on every continent and to facilitate an encounter with Christ and His Church. The efforts of Word on Fire engage the culture and bring the transformative power of God's Word where it is most needed. Today we invite you to join Bishop Robert Barron as he preaches the gospel and shares the warmth and light of Christ with each one of us. Peace be with you friends for this third Sunday of Lent, you know we're in cycle A and that means we get some of the richest readings of the Lenten possibilities. This week the woman at the well what is it about the story? You know John's gospel is a gospel of high kind of philosophical assertions but it's also a gospel of conversations. These wonderful lengthy dialogues Jesus has with people and this one I think is a kind of master class in evangelization so this theme that preoccupies us in the church today look to the dynamics of this story and it's also it's about every one of us every one of us sinners who are seeking life. I mean that's what evangelization is about it's it's telling starving people were to find bread it's telling people dying of thirst were to find water and so it's a story about all of us I think so rich. Look how it begins Jesus coming to a town of Samaria sits down by Jacob's well it was about noon. A couple things here wells in the Old Testament are twisting places their places where people come together who eventually get married happen with with Moses happens with Isaac and Rebecca the well is a place of marriage. Ah it's our first clue. Jesus the one with the well will not be married in the conventional sense but see all of us followers of Christ in a way where the bride he's the bridegroom marriage becomes a master symbol of how the believer and Jesus are united. So watch this as a kind of story of marriage read spiritually. Secondly we hear that it's noon. Now in John's gospel details matter especially when we're dealing with the theme of light and darkness which is a key one in John noon the brightest time of the day. Jesus of course will call himself the light of the world and at noon everybody when the sun's at its height that's when you can look all the way down a well right if the sun is oblique to it you can't see all the way down but if it's right overhead you can see all the way down. I think this special illumination is being signaled here so we hear a woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her give me a drink. Very interesting now. So the Samaritan woman is going to stand for all of us. What are we all seeking? Life we're seeking joy we're seeking peace. Think of the well as a symbol of our our quest for what will satisfy us. Who's there? Jesus is already there as she comes seeking water. It's a basic new Testament principle everybody. Jesus says it's not you who chosen me I've chosen you. If we're seeking life it's because in a way life has already found us. Don't think that Jesus is up there out there playing you know hard to get with us. No no the opposite. He's seeking us. He's after us. He's there to meet us as we go seeking him even in the wrong way. Now watch how it unfolds. His first move is to say to her give me a drink. Ah the whole spiritual life is there in a way. Remember I talked about this last week. The nature of sin is Kervatos and say it's caved in around myself. It's seeking the goods of the world to fill myself up with them. That'll never work. That will never work. Instead it's always being called as I mentioned last week on an adventure outside of yourself. Let go of yourself. So what's the first thing the Lord says to her as she's seeking water give me something to drink. He's trying to lure her into a stance of generosity. Ah that's near the heart of the gospel everybody. Now she blocks you know how can you you're a man you're a Jew and I'm a woman I'm a Samaritan and I thought you Jews had nothing to do with us. So she's she's blocking at this. Listen what Jesus says. If you knew the gift of God mind you see the gift of God what's who is God he's the one who gives not not the one who who hoards for himself but the one who gives. That's why his opening move was give me a drink when we can be drawn out of ourselves that we start looking like God. See if you knew the gift of God and who is saying to you give me a drink you would have asked him and he would have given you living water. Now she's thinking undoubtedly with living water like running water. So not the kind of crummy water that's that's stagnant at the bottom of the well but like a deep aquifer that's what she's probably thinking of and she's saying oh you know look I love that but you don't have a bucket and how would you possibly reach it and what does Jesus say? Everyone who drinks this water that you're seeking will be thirsty again but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst. The water I shall give will become a spring of water welling up to eternal life. I don't know if they're more important and powerful and beautiful words in the entire New Testament than those. Now we can see see what the well symbolizes. You know you come to this well and you drink and you get thirsty again. Well that's the way it goes everybody with the goods of the world doesn't mean they're they're not goods they really are. Think of you know the the passing things of this world of wealth and power and fame and honor and good reputation and I mean all these things that we seek are they good? Sure sure sure and they'll satisfy your thirst briefly but then I guarantee you'll be thirsty again why? Because we're not like dogs. See dogs have a very narrow narrow range of interest and when they get what they want they're completely satisfied that's why they seem so happy much the time but we're not dogs because we are designed to hunger and thirst for God. Everything in this world which means less than God is not going to satisfy the hunger of the heart so we'll be happy. Hey I got what I've always wanted I got that job I got that reward I got that title I got the amount of money I've always wanted yeah and you're happy for a time but then you get thirsty again that's the way it goes. I want to give you water that will bubble up in you to eternal life so you'll never be thirsty again. What's the one thing that can possibly satisfy us is the divine life why? Because the divine life is infinite it's like this ever flowing ever overflowing stream and source and fountain drink all you want from it it'll keep coming drink all you want it's never going to run out and see what's the divine life? I've you knew the gift of God. Yeah the mystery of grace Grazia what's freely given God's life is infinite grace. You order your heart toward that grace you will find it welling up in you to eternal life. Stop seeking the goods of the world they're not going to satisfy you but surrender to the gift of God. Ah you receive the grace and now you give it away and then you get more and you give that away and then you get more and you give that away and the well bubbles up in you to eternal life. Look fellow sinners that's the answer right we're looking for the answer what will satisfy my hungry heart that's it now I mentioned this is a masterclass in evangelization she she's being drawn now by Christ into his power but see what has to happen to make this grace really flow in her well she's got to deal with some moral issues in her life mind you I know the many people here moral issues they get nervous notice he did not start with moral issues know his opening move was one of great friendliness and invitation right and then this beautiful description of what he's offering he didn't begin with you by the way you're a lousy person you better get your life straight now no no no no and the good evangelist should never begin with you know moral reform that's not going to work but once he's drawn her in and he's opened up this great possibility what has to be dealt with well there's a moral block in this lady so Jesus says go call your husband I have no husband she says aha said the Lord that's right you've had five and the one you're with now is not your husband what's he naming that painfully yeah this addictive pattern she's been caught in we begin to see now what it is that she's been searching for for love but doing it in in the wrong way in this kind of addictive manipulative way does that have to be dealt with before she can really come to life yeah it does and so everybody in this lenten season as we hear the Lord say to us I know you've been coming to this well of pleasure honor power whatever it is I know and you and you drink and you get thirsty yeah I know yes yes I want to give you the water welling up to turn life and we say yes that's what I want but he's going to say to us in his own way but there's a moral block there's there's something in your life that that's not right there's something that's going to block the flow of grace can we do a searching moral inventory during lent and find out what that is what's off in my moral life it has to be dealt with you know and so the woman of the well has to come to terms with that well then she moves the next I love is she starts talking theology I see you're a prophet well you do say we should worship in Jerusalem we Samaritan say Mount Gharazim you know which one is it well she's broaching the great theological topic of worship and I've talked a lot about that what's at the heart of the whole spiritual life is right worship ordering your life unto God and so Jesus has to look the time is coming it's even now well worship not in Jerusalem and not on the mountain but in spirit and in truth what does he mean he means I'm the focus of your worship I am the focus of your ultimate concern turn your life dramatically and radically over to me and you'll find this grace flowing within you marvelous there's the whole pattern of evangelization it leads finally to right worship we Catholics would say it leads to the mass which is worshipping in spirit and in truth how does this great story end it's woman who at first was you know reluctant she was resistant to the Lord once she's understood she said here's a man who's told me everything I've ever done well she doesn't mean in detail like he's rehearsed every detail of her life she means he's unlocked for me the key he's unlocked for me the mystery of my life he's shown me the addictive patterns I've been in he's shown me the way out he's told me everything I've done and now ought to do and so she becomes herself an evangelist she leaves behind the water jug right her her errand searching and she goes back into the town to tell everybody about Jesus what's evangelization as I said telling starving people were to find bread telling people dying of thirst were to find water that's exactly what she does when she goes back into town and proclaims Jesus a great length and meditation for all of us we who've been liberated by the Lord we who found the path through him leave that water jug behind that old way of life and now we go into the world and tell starving people were to find bread we go into the world speaking of Jesus thank God bless you thank you for listening to this week's homily from Bishop Robert Baron for more resources from Bishop Baron please visit word on fire dot org