Third Wednesday of Lent

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.

Jesus fulfills the law and prophets through his Gospel and sacrifice. The law and prophets were necessary before Jesus, because mankind needed them. However, Christ completes them through his priestly, prophetic, and kingly mission to the world. His words build upon the law and transfigure it into the Gospel message we have today. His actions complete the foreseen future of the prophets. This is why we as Christians do not depend merely upon the law or prophets of the Jewish people. We give them due acknowledgement, but there is something more than the law and the prophets in Christ. He calls us to follow his Way, Truth, and Life and in order to do that we must look past the letter of the law and the signs of the prophets to the spirit of the law and the sign of our salvation.

Do we live our lives according to the spirit of the Gospels? Do we focus our every thought, word, and work on the goal of saving souls, including our own? What are the sacrifices we are willing to make to follow God’s commandments?

O Lord, we want to fulfill your Gospel message and become prophets of your love.

Amen.