A reading from the gospel according to John 5:17-30:

17 Jesus answered the Jews: “My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.”
18 For this reason they tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.
19 Jesus answered and said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for what he does, the Son will do also.
20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything that he himself does, and he will show him greater works than these, so that you may be amazed.
21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life, so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.
22 Nor does the Father judge anyone, but he has given all judgment to the Son,
23 so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
24 Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not come to condemnation, but has passed from death to life.
25 Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
26 For just as the Father has life in himself, so also he gave to the Son the possession of life in himself.
27 And he gave him power to exercise judgment, because he is the Son of Man.
28 Do not be amazed at this, because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice
29 and will come out, those who have done good deeds to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked deeds to the resurrection of condemnation.
30 “I cannot do anything on my own; I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me.”

Reflection: Like Father, Like Son

In the gospel reading above, we see Jesus explaining Himself and His relationship with the Father. He is the beloved perfect Son who offered Himself as the sacrificial lamb so that anyone who sees Him has already seen the Father. That is why there is no other way to the Father except His way (John 14:6) and to reject Him means rejecting the Father who sent Him (Luke 10:16).

Indeed, Jesus is the incarnated God, the Emmanuel (God with us). In Him, we can see the complete reflection of God the Father. In Him, we could understand who God is. Moreover, He is the ultimate exemplar on how we should relate to God as our Father in heaven and also to our earthly father. Out of love, He was obedient to the will of His Father even if it meant death on the cross. So the Father bestowed on Him glory and power including the power to exercise judgment.

In Genesis 1:27, we read that you and I were created in God’s image and likeness. Moreover, when we were baptized, we too became the sons and daughters of His Father (Romans 8:16, 2 Corinthians 6:18). The question then is how much do we act or behave as God’s children. When other people look at us, do they see the image of God in us? Let us look up to Jesus and pray that we may be like Him in our relationship with our Father in heaven and with one another.