John 3
All the living things eventually die or can be killed at any time. It is sad but true. But we feel here contradiction. Why do we live if we all die? Life itself does not imply death. Looking at a baby, we can’t think of death. Full of life, literally. But as we see in these days during the pandemic, life lives with death, life borders death. There is no grey zone between them.
But not all living enjoys the same life. Many people live death while living. When we live a life of despair, it is not real life. It can be worse than death. People living with emptiness and meaninglessness also experience death. And those people who ‘consume’ their life with addictions realize they prolong their life rather than live their life. People who burn with envy and hatred live through death. You might add some more to this list of living dead.
However, the worst of all in this list would be those who are spiritually dead. They may be satisfied with their life. They may look successful and happy. But those who do not ask the meaning of life, those who never reflect on their life, those who never seek God, and those who heard the Gospel but never paid attention to it are the living dead. They are the worst because they are not even conscious of their life or their death. They don’t even notice they are dead.
These are the ones Jesus calls ‘condemned’ in this Sunday gospel. No one condemns them, nor does the Son of God condemns them.
Jesus came to earth to save us. But this salvation does not come only after we die. Salvation begins in this life on earth. For salvation begins at living one’s life meaningfully in Christ. If you are in despair, emptiness, meaninglessness, addiction, envy, or hatred, you need Jesus, because only he can give the true meaning of life. If someone never asks about the question of life or death, we should wake them up from their condemnation. If someone pushes Jesus away, we need to pray for them so that they may be freed from Satan’s grip.
Jesus wants us to live. That’s why he came to us. That’s why he gave his Spirit to us. He wants to dwell in us with His Father. Brothers and sisters, remember God is life. Avoid death. Jesus wants to raise us to life. Let us live life. Let the salvation of the Lord begin in our life.
