GOSPEL
John 3:1-8
There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. He came to Jesus at night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from GΘD, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless GΘD is with him.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless one is born from above, he cannot see the Kingdom of GΘD.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man once grown old be born again? Surely he cannot reenter his mother’s womb and be born again, can he?” Jesus answered, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless one is born of water and Spirit he cannot enter the Kingdom of GΘD. What is born of flesh is flesh and what is born of spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I told you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 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.”
HOMILY
Spiritual growth does not come by exercising our will-power alone; it is ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts.
When and where the Spirit will guide us, cannot be determined ahead of time. As Jesus tells us in today’s gospel, “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.” The Hebrew word “ruah” and its Greek equivalent “pneuma” are translated as both wind and spirit. Even people who have experienced the guidance of the divine Spirit on multiple occasions cannot predict where the Spirit will lead them in the future. That’s because what the Holy Spirit achieves in us is a spiritual, not a physical, rebirth, and this rebirth manifests itself by the inner changes that tap in to our hidden potential and makes us into the people we were meant to be. The encounter that Nicodemus had with the Lord on that fateful night so long ago invites us to make progress in our relationship with Jesus. Even if we are lukewarm, we can still grow in our commitment to him as we progress through life. But we need to acknowledge that spiritual growth does not come by exercising our will-power alone; it is ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. We need to be Spirit-born to enter the kingdom of GΘD. Just as a sailboat needs the wind, we need the Spirit to fill our sails for the voyage of life. This Easter is a good time to invite the Holy Spirit once again to be our guide throughout our life.
Spiritual growth does not come by exercising our will-power alone; it is ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts.