Those who love their life destroy it, and those who despise their life in this world save
it even to everlasting life. Whoever wants to serve me, let him follow me; and wherever
I am, there shall my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Reflect

“To die to ourselves.” What we have reflected on yesterday highlighted Jesus’ selfless
giving of himself. Today’s Gospel, from the Gospel of John, accentuated the same
message graphically. What can be more graphic to convey a message of dying to
oneself in order to bear fruit than an imagery of a grain of wheat falling to the ground
in order to produce more grains? In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus told this paradoxical
message to his listeners. Jesus was referring to himself and to his selfless offering of
himself so that others may live. As followers of Jesus, we are called to die to ourselves
so that others may live. Our world today is characterized by a strong tendency toward
self-preservation. However, we may further reflect on the imagery of seeds. If we try to put
seeds inside a glass container in order to preserve them instead of allowing them to be
buried under the soil, these seeds will eventually rot. They will be wasted. Our life is
similar to seeds. For our life to be fruitful, we first need to die to ourselves. The more we
try to preserve our own life, the more it will decay. Jesus’ true followers follow his ways
of dying for others.

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