So That You May Believe

04-08-2018Weekly Reflection

It is not often that the author of one of the books of the Bible comes right out and tells us directly why he is writing what he is writing. In this Sunday’s Gospel reading, taken from the conclusion of John’s Gospel, the author tells us that he has chosen to record these events so “that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name” (20:31).

The letter of John echoes this idea by saying that “everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God” (5:1)—what we might refer to as being “born again.” Our reading from the Acts of the Apostles for this Second Sunday of Easter shows us exactly what it looks like when believers are born again through faith.