Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent
Commandments: Sign of Freedom and Love
Liturgical Cycle: A, B, C | Lectionary Cycle: I, II
Introduction
What is the meaning of the commandments to us? To some, they are the summary and summit of all morality; to others, narrow and outmoded rules; still to others, obstacles to the freedom of the gospel.
To Israel, they were the expression of fidelity to God and to the whole people as part of God’s covenant. They were the road to freedom from all forms of slavery: to other gods, to selfishness, to exploitation of one person by another. They were the sign of belonging to God and God’s nearness. And they were witnesses that love of God and love of neighbour cannot be separated.
In Christ, all this is fulfilled, and more. The commandments remain, but they become a basic step not to salvation by observances but to seeking communion with God in Christ and communion with our neighbour, and they are animated by love.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God,
You have given us your commandments
to set us on the road of freedom
from all forms of alienation.
May we learn to obey them
not to save ourselves by observances
nor to do you favors,
but to be free for you and for people
and to live in your love,
with Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (12a) Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
He spreads snow like wool;
frost he strews like ashes.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Alleluia Verse
Glory and Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ!
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
You have the words of everlasting life.
Glory and Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ!
Prayers of the Faithful
– That we may learn to look at the commandments not as obstacles to our freedom, but like the people of God of old, as guidelines for fidelity and freedom, we pray:
– That we may not get entangled in the letter of the law but serve the Lord with the freedom of the sons and daughters of God as Jesus teaches us in the gospel, we pray:
– That we ask ourselves not so much what must we do but rather what can we do to for the love of God and people, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God,
you are near to us
in your Son Jesus Christ.
May he make us aware
of the price he paid for our freedom.
As we sit at table with him,
may he give us the grace and strength
to give you a response of freedom,
that with him we may love you
as your sons and daughters,
now and for ever.
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God,
you have chosen us to be your people.
May your Son be alive in us,
that with him we may be faithful to you
and march forward together
to build a land of freedom
and to share with one another
until you share yourself with us for ever.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Blessing
Let the great commandment given us by Jesus guide our life and make it beautiful and rich: Love God and love your neighbor as yourself, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Sprit.
REFLECTIONS
Matthew 5:17-19
Accompanying in Humility
“Whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:19)
Today's readings emphasise the Law as a gift from God, not a distant commandment, but an expression of His love and closeness. Moses declares, “Indeed, what great nation is there that has gods so close to it, as the Lord our God is close to us whenever we call to Him?” (Dt 4:7). God desires to accompany His people, guiding them with love and care.
Throughout salvation history, God's closeness is met with contrasting human responses. In Genesis, Adam and Eve hide from God after their sin, and later Cain refuses responsibility for his brother (cf. Gen 3:8-10; 4:9). Sin creates distance, fostering fear and self-centeredness. Yet, God's love never wavers—He draws even nearer, offering His presence despite human rejection.
Jesus exemplifies God's ultimate act of closeness. By becoming one of us, He embraces our frailty and endures death on the cross for our salvation. His humility shows that God's intimacy is not defined by power, but by vulnerability and love.
The Gospel challenges us to reflect this divine closeness in our lives. Lent calls us to break down walls of isolation and accompany one another with tenderness and compassion. Even when physical distance separates us, we can express nearness through prayer, kindness, and solidarity.
Let us ask the Lord for the grace to be people of nearness—ready to walk alongside others with humility and love, just as God walks with us.
Lord, you are the God of nearness, always present in our lives. Fill our hearts with humility and compassion, that we may accompany others as you accompany us. Amen.
Accompanying in Humility - Youtube
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Mathew 5:17-19
A call to accompany
In our Gospel today, Jesus declares that he would not undermine the Law and the prophets but fulfil them. But what is he going to fulfil? Protestant theologian N.T. Wright has pointed out that the Old Testament is essentially an unfinished symphony, a drama without a climax. It is the articulation of a hope, a dream, a longing—but without a realisation of that hope, without a satisfaction of that longing.
And then Jesus came, fulfilling the dream in the most unexpected way. "Our God is a God of nearness, who walks with his people and loves them unconditionally. When we say that God falls in love with us, it means that He is willing to give up everything for us, just like two life partners do for each other. However, this love and closeness also bring vulnerability along with it."
Pope Francis develops this theme and says, "As God walks among His people and falls in love with them, He makes Himself vulnerable. The closer He comes to us, He takes on the form of a man, becoming one of us by taking on our weaknesses and carrying them to the point of the most painful and shameful death. He does so to be with us, to walk with us, and to help us."
In today's Gospel, we are presented with a proposal: to be there for our fellow brethren and to love them, even if it means being vulnerable and humble. By doing so, we can become the greatest in His Kingdom!
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Transcending the Law
The Law and the Prophets are two central pillars of faith in the Hebrew Bible. Jesus came not to displace either of them but to reconcile and absorb both into himself, and thereby completing them. This is evident from the scene of the Transfiguration where Jesus is seen with Moses (for the Law) and Elijah (for the Prophets). It is the temptation of the binary human thinking to see them as ‘either-or’ instead of ‘both-and.’ Let us look at it this way: No great musicians are born great; they begin by learning the laws of music, one by one. And once they have truly mastered them, they transcend them and compose new forms of music. This transcendence is no negation; but such a perfect absorption of the laws that they are able to transform them from inside out to create loftier music. And in their doing so, the law has served its purpose! Isn’t it the same dynamics we find in the life of Jesus or of our many mystics?