Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

From the Gospel acclamation: “The Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 3:7b-15)

Jesus answered [Nicodemus] and said to him, “If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 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.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus explains to Nicodemus the purpose of being “born from above” in order to enter the kingdom of God. He emphasizes that spiritual rebirth is not something that should be surprising to Nicodemus. And he goes on, saying, “The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Just as the Israelites looked at the bronze serpent, so people look to Jesus lifted up on the cross to receive eternal life.

God, help me understand what Jesus conveys to Nicodemus in teaching him about spiritual rebirth. In the risen Christ, the lifted cross becomes the means not of death but of the way made ready for us to eternal life. Give me the grace to trust in your mercy, that what Jesus says to Nicodemus about heavenly things I can trust with complete assurance. Help me live out today as Jesus instructed Nicodemus: “You must be born from above.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

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