Gospel
John 3:13-17
Jesus said to Nicodemus:
“No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.
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Today’s Reflection
Gospel: John 3:13–17 – “The Son of Man must be lifted up.”
The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is a day to remember and honor the cross of Jesus, through which He saved all people. Tradition says that St. Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine, found the cross of Jesus. Around the year 335, the emperor built a church in Jerusalem near Jesus’ tomb, and from then people began to venerate the cross. The feast is celebrated on September 14 because that is when the cross was discovered.
In the Old Testament, the people of Israel complained against God and Moses because of food. God sent poisonous snakes as punishment. When they repented, God told Moses to make a bronze snake and put it on a pole. Whoever looked at it was saved from death. This bronze snake was a sign that pointed to Jesus being lifted up on the cross.
When the Gospel says Jesus was “lifted up,” it means two things: first, He was lifted up on the cross, and second, He was lifted up into glory in heaven. Without the cross, there is no crown of glory. Through the cross, Jesus fulfilled God the Father’s plan of salvation and opened the way for all people to return to God. The cross is the sign of God’s great love. Whoever believes in Jesus, the Son of God, will have eternal life.
For us, there are two main things to remember:
Believe with all our hearts that God is love, and that Jesus carried the cross for our salvation.
Believe that Jesus is the Son of God, listen to His words, and live by His teachings.
Jesus came to fulfill God’s plan of salvation. Only He can lead us to the Father. If we believe in Him and live according to His teaching, we will receive salvation. But if we reject Him, we also reject the gift of salvation and God’s love. That choice leads to destruction. Our life is always about choosing: to accept or to reject His love.
Like the Israelites who turned back to God and received mercy, we too must live a life of repentance—always returning to Jesus who was lifted up on the cross and in glory. When we carry our own crosses, we also experience resurrection and new life. Just as Jesus saved the world through His cross, we too can grow in faith and become more like Him through the crosses in our own lives. To be like Christ is to reflect the image of God in us.
So let us live in this way: experiencing the mystery of the cross more deeply, and courageously sharing the gift of salvation with others (Rev. Thomas Cho)
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Sharing
1. Let us share the words or phrases from today’s passage that touched our hearts.
2. How do I experience God’s love in my daily life, and how can I respond to and live out that love?
3. Instead of judging others, do I try to see them with Jesus’ eyes of forgiveness and salvation? Let us reflect on this and share what keeps us from seeing others as Jesus does.
