At that time: Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him and said of him, ‘Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!’ Nathanael said to him, ‘How do you know me?’ Jesus answered him, ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.’ Nathanael answered him, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!’ Jesus answered him, ‘Because I said to you, “I saw you under the fig tree”, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.’ And he said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.’

How must Christ have looked at Nathanael for him to burst out with such joy? Jesus looked straight into Nathanael’s heart, beyond appearances. Christian marriage is called to be an alliance where spouses feel seen, understood, and loved—even in their weaknesses. We are invited to experience unconditional love: to be received and cherished in our entirety.
And if we live this way, Jesus promises us that we will see heaven opened—a life where heaven touches earth. Our spousal love must be open to heaven by placing God at the centre: every gesture of forgiveness, tenderness, and service within marriage is already a foretaste of those “greater things” God has promised.
Let us resolve to let heaven touch our marriage by loving and giving ourselves, so that in the daily life of our home, we may glimpse God’s promise of greater things.

Applied to Married Life

Joseph: Darling, I think I love you more—and better—every day.
Alice: Oh! What a beautiful declaration of love. But why are you saying that now?
Joseph: Because I’m sure that before, when you made that comment this morning, I would have taken offence. Yet this time, I thought perhaps you were just tired or struggling with some temptation. And I also saw it as an opportunity for me to grow in humility.
Alice: You really have changed. You know how quickly I speak sometimes, without even realising what I’m saying—and then I can’t even remember afterwards. So if I wasn’t very affectionate this morning, forgive me. And thank you for not looking at me harshly. I really do love my “new Joseph.”
Joseph: And I love my “new Alice” just as much. [laughs]

Mother,

Help me to look at my spouse through the eyes of Your Son, who does not judge or condemn, but loves me in my weakness and invites me to do the same in my marriage. Praise be to the Lord.