In the first reading, God gave Abram a new name, Abraham. This marked him in a special way as 'one who belongs to God'. In v. 7, "to be your God" implies the heart of God's covenant promise - to be the protector of God's people and the One who provided for their well-being and guaranteed their future blessings. (Gen 15:1). In turn, this asked for Abraham's obedience to keep this covenant and to make a commitment which he fulfilled with joy.

What about us today in our way of following Jesus? Do we keep our baptismal commitment and have a sincere desire to grow in our relationship with God? Is our life one of joy and hope?

Let us see how Jesus' life reflects this truth. In today's Gospel reading, we see Jesus proclaiming very strongly the truth that "whoever keeps my word will never see death." (Jn.8: 51) The Jews could not understand and accept this truth. As Jesus continued to speak on his intimate relationship with Father God (v.58), the Jews were infuriated and wanted to punish Jesus by stoning.

It is often painful to accept the truth yet by doing so, we will experience a sense of being free as "truth will set us free." During this Lenten season, let'us be reminded of our commitment as disciples of Jesus which is reflected in the choices we make daily.