“I Say Only What the Father Taught Me”: Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent

"These white Osterglocken, Easter bells, bloom in our parish garden, turning gently toward the light. They remind us that we, too, long for warmth and truth. As the flower turns toward the sun, our hearts turn toward the Son, the source of life, light, and love."

"The seed is the Word of God, Christ is the sower; all who come to him will live forever.”

There is a poetic depth to today's Gospel from John (8:21-30) that invites us not to skim the surface, but to pause, listen, and enter. Jesus is speaking with the Pharisees, not to argue, but to reveal something:

“I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me.”

This quiet statement gives us a glimpse into the heart of Jesus: everything he did, everything he said, came from the Father. Jesus, the Word made flesh, is completely united with the will and voice of God. There is no pride, just trust. There is no ego, just love.

In a world that often tells us to "speak our truth" and "live our own truth", Jesus offers another way: a path of listening first, of allowing our lives and voices to be shaped by God.

The Voice of the Father

The Gospel of John is the most contemplative and theologically rich of the four Gospels. It doesn’t just give us an account of what Jesus did, it reveals who Jesus is. Throughout the Gospel, Jesus refers to his oneness with the Father, in mission, AND in being.

“I do nothing on my own.”

This is not weakness, it is a deep oneness with God, Trinitarian unity. Jesus is not a messenger repeating divine truths, he is the truth. When he speaks, it is the voice of the Father through the Word.

John’s Gospel also draws a sharp contrast between light and darkness, life and death, truth and blindness. Those who reject Jesus resist the light he brings. For those who open even the smallest part of their heart, that light is gentle and life-giving.

Returning to the Garden

And so we return to our parish garden. The white Easter bells, stretching toward the sun, seem to echo the longing written in our souls: a yearning for the Light that gives life. These blooms do not grow on their own; they reach, instinctively, faithfully, toward warmth. We are the same.
The more we turn our faces toward the Son, the more we are gently into life.

Pray

Lord Jesus,
You did nothing on your own, but lived from the Father’s Word.
Help me to do the same.
Let your voice be the seed in me.
Teach me to reach for you
as the flower reaches for the light.
Amen.

Photo: Karen Curjel, Good Shepherd Parish House, Zug, Switzerland