Thursday of the Fourth Week of Lent

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032212.cfm

Yellow moss marks a footpath to the lake.

"If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is not true.
But there is another who testifies on my behalf,
and I know that the testimony he gives on my behalf is true.

People who choose to live by the law trust the processes of the law. There are standards which everyone knows; and procedures for hearing every side of a quarrel; and persons with authority to decide. 

So long as we are human there will be differences  of  opinion, misunderstandings, charges  of misconduct and so forth. And so we have law, court proceedings, lawyers and judges. 

The Jews have always revered the Law as one of God's most wonderful gifts. To live within the law, under its protecting shelter, is to be blessed. And nothing seems more "right and just" than to honor the  Lawgiver. 

The Gospel of John often uses language of the Law and the courts to describe Jesus conflict with the religious leaders of his day. He never said anything as foolish as "I'll bet you ten thousand dollars" or "Read my lips." 

Rather, he gave his testimony to the truth and stepped down, to allow others to testify about his truthfulness. In today's gospel from John 5, we hear about those others testators: 

• First was John the Baptist. He spoke out clearly as this Gospel records:  
• A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony,to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him; and
• 
  
• John testified to him and cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’"; and
• 
  
• The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God,* who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’ I did not know him,* but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel.” John testified further, saying, “I saw the Spirit come down like a dove* from the sky and remain upon him. I did not know him,v but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the holy Spirit.’
• Secondly, there are  
• The works that the Father gave me to accomplish, these works that I perform testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me.
• It should be noted that  these works, by some standards, may under-whelming. Tricks like changing water to wine; prophetic gestures like driving money changers out of the  temple; knowing the seedy details of a Samaritan woman's life; even feeding five thousand people with a few loaves and fishes were probably no more impressive to the ancient world than the special effects we see every day on television. You might recall that the signs Moses gave were duplicated by the Egyptian magicians. It takes more than "stranger than science" to inspire faith. 
• But Jesus works, like the sacraments, do inspire those who have the eyes to see.
•  
• Thirdly, there is God Himself:
• ...the Father who sent me has testified on my behalf.
• That testimony appears explicitly in John 10: And what should I say—“Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, ‘An angel has spoken to him.’ Jesus answered, ‘This voice has come for your sake, not for mine.
• 
  
• Finally, there are the scriptures:  You search the Scriptures, because you think you have eternal life through them; even they testify on my behalf.

But the real problem is quite simple: ... you do not want to come to me to have life.

The Jesus we meet in the Gospel of John has enormous authority, an authority so evident it  needs no further witnesses or documentation. And yet Jesus is willing to argue with his opponents and to present his witnesses. His authority is entirely reasonable if only they will listen to reason. 

As Christians and Catholics who have seen the signs he gave us -- especially the signs of Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Matrimony, Orders, Anointing of the Sick and Penance -- our testimony is also thoroughly reasonable. The proof is our holy and good life.