Jesus in today’s gospel declares, “Abraham your father rejoiced to see my day; he saw it and was glad.” Those listening were convinced he was possessed. How could Abraham, who lived generations before, have seen Christ’s day?
Much has been written about Abraham, our father in the faith, who entered into a covenant with God, who heard from God that he would be the father of a host of nations. How could he possibly know that the Savior of humanity would come from his lineage? It’s safe to say that he saw Christ’s day not with his eyes of flesh, but with the eyes of faith. God’s greatness and fidelity will inevitably lead to greatness in our world when we remain faithful to him. This is what Abraham understood and saw.
Perhaps today we can call to mind all those people in our lives who have been models of an unshakeable faith in God, who always believed that his greatness was yet to manifest itself in our lives and in our world. May we see the world and what’s to come with their eyes.