As Isaiah tells us, there is but one God. He is unchanging in His nature, He is love, and He seeks to guide us toward what is best for us. We may not always understand His plan, but it is a plan that has existed since before the world began, as our God stands outside of time and space as we know it. He created all, and seeks what is for our good, so that we can come to perfect union with Him for eternity.

It’s easy sometimes to confuse what is important in our secular lives with what is important to God. Our Lord’s words regarding payment to God what belongs to God, and to Caesar what belongs to Caeser, make the distinction between these two kingdoms quite plain. It is the distinction between the Divine, and the temporal. At the temporal level, we all seek the same basic needs, food/shelter/clothing/etc. but with varying emphasis on the accumulation of the resources to obtain these things. When we are in need, or perceived need, it is easy to be drawn into a mindset that places the accumulation of resources at a level that is more emphasized than it needs to be. It’s easy to fall into this trap, as we innately become more focused on immediate needs when we perceive them. What we need to keep in mind though is the balance that needs to be struck between what we actually need, versus what the needs of those around us are, and the real need we have for drawing close to God, especially during times of need.

When we began to realize the seriousness of this pandemic, there was a tremendous focus on garnering material goods that we thought might eventually become scarce. To that end, we began to obtain these things in larger quantities than were immediately necessary and created the very shortage we feared, and that did leave many of our brothers and sisters in actual need for some of these basics. We created  a problem, where none existed because we focused on self, and on stuff, rather than consider the overall good of all God’s family. It’s true that some things can become scarce when something like this pandemic occurs, but we need to guard against too much focus on self and consider the broader picture. It’s all of us that need to come through this, not just ourselves. This is the capital that we pay back to God, to look out for one another, and in doing so to show love for Him in whose image we all were created. The natural fruits of this repayment to God, is the outpouring of concern and love for all.

The urge to gather material goods on the other hand, and to expend the funds necessary to do more than we actually need to in terms of meeting our actual needs is the mindset of paying tribute only to Caesar, to become too focused on the coin and the image upon it. The idol of money is an old adversary that is the downfall of many. I’m not trying to say we do not need money, the reality is that it is the means of commerce that we use for virtually everything, but we cannot let it become an idol to us, and to take on a more significant role than it ought to. This is the balance to be struck – to keep its role to serving our actual needs, and to stop short of it becoming the focus of our desires, and to unduly dictate our actions. We must also guard against its allure to spend more than what is needed, and in doing so garner more resources than what we actually need, while leaving others without the things they need.

What we are called to desire most is God, and to draw close to Him in all things. He will always take care of us, no matter the situation, the coin on the other hand is a fleeting consolation that has no desire to serve anything but itself. In the end analysis, we must decide what expenditure is more important to focus on, that which we owe to God, or that which we owe to the many uncaring Caesars that compete for our monetary resources.

Podcast Link

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-cdxtp-efa613

We know that the Lord provides for us, the question is, do we know how to live with what He has provided? There is great abundance that surrounds us, and yet many go without the basics. The resources that we are graced with are quite sufficient for all, and yet, we allow this to happen. This is the problem with much of how we sometimes conduct ourselves – we are not looking out for our brothers and sisters with less, and so not showing love for them, and for our Lord. As Isaiah tells us, there is a veil that veils all people, and it often blinds us to the needs of others that should be obvious to us.

Saint Paul tells us that he learned to live both in need and in abundance, and that it was accomplished by keeping his needs properly focused – on Jesus Christ. In doing so, his other needs were always fully met. This is the natural outcome of a reliance on Christ. Whether he was in surroundings of material need or of plenty, his outlook and actions did not change. The exterior circumstance was not really that important, he knew this, because he was aware of the goal in life, which is to be with our Lord. That focus, on that goal, frankly, changes everything, if we let it. We can be loosed from the common concerns of the purely material and temporal aspects of this life and accept our circumstance with peace, because we know that He has a plan for us and will care for us. We can learn to share more of our own resources, and discover that we still have what we need, and feel the joy of having helped out others of Gods children, and the feeling of closeness to Him that comes with that. We will soon discover that this is what we are truly seeking. You see all the stuff that we try to accumulate to fill in that void of feeling, that desire we all seem to share but can’t quite satiate, is in reality the real need we have for that connection with Him. Only through drawing closer to Him will it ever be satiated and bring peace, and loose us from the angst that is so pervasive today.

All of us are called to God’s kingdom, we have all been invited to the feast, and yet like those unworthy guests in our Gospel, we often reject and evade what we know to be God’s plan. As much as we claim to seek peace and fulfillment in our lives, we often run from the very source of that peace and fulfillment – closeness to God. We sometimes reject His teachings as surely as those wedding guests who rejected those who invited them. There are many who invite us, they are called the Saints, and we read of them, but how often do we really take their message and apply it to our lives? If we fail to listen to them, as they invite us to God’s kingdom through their teaching and their words, then we are just as surely rejecting the invitation of the true King, as if we were mistreating His servants the way those described in today’s Gospel did. You have to ask yourself, why would we do something so self-destructive and short sighted? The answer is simply the inclination’s that still plague us from original sin. It is this, that we must daily guard against and be actively vigilant against in order to enter God’s kingdom. He tells us again and again that it is a narrow gate that leads to this kingdom, and it will only be those who are alert to their own failings, and who seek to take the harder path that will successfully navigate that narrower gate through God’s grace. We can’t do it on our own, no matter how hard we try, we must instead pay attention to, and RELY on God in all things, just as Saint Paul did, in order to reach the goal. We must show ourselves humble enough to follow our Lord like children and allow Him to lead us. It is only when we are this humble, vulnerable, and reliant, that our strength is augmented by our Lord to a point beyond anything we could conceive of as human beings. It is in our own weakness and reliance on God that we are truly strong enough to make it through that narrower gate.

Podcast Link

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-hgzwn-eeee8e

For many of us the significance of the agrarian references in the readings today may not be initially obvious. The wild grapes that Isaiah references are grapes that grow a lot of foliage, but not much in the way of fruit. They are wild and spread, but do not give much in return. This is something that can be a trap that we can easily fall into as well. We can grow in our material possessions or perhaps our worldly pursuits, but completely miss the opportunity for the kind of growth that really matters, the bearing of fruit that will be pleasing to God and draw us closer to Him. However, if we are from God’s stock, and are pruned and cared for, we can be fruitful individuals. This can be accomplished through being part of God’s Church, and through prayer and petition to the one who is the true Master of the vineyard.

Saint Paul similarly instructs us to pray and petition God, and to give Him thanks, and to have no anxiety about anything. This lack of anxiety is our way of placing our trust in God, knowing that He will take care of all our needs, and that no matter what, we are part of His plan. If we trust in God and not so much in ourselves, the natural fruit of that will be this lack of anxiety. There is simply no need of it when our faith and belief is truly with the one who knows all of our days and loves us more than we can conceive of.

Our love for God and for His Son Jesus Christ is the path that we strive to be on. We want to be fruitful laborers in God’s kingdom and to fulfill our intended purpose as His followers. To be servants of our Lord, and to be those to whom the Kingdom of God will be entrusted, and subsequently to provide back to God the fruits of the harvest within us at the proper season as the bounty of our labors that He gives us the grace to achieve. It is important to understand, however, that while we are all God’s children, to truly be fruitful laborers takes effort on our part. To do this we embrace our Lord and follow His teaching and show our love for Him and for one another as evidence of this. Jesus gave us the needed direction through His word and example. We must be willing to follow and emulate Him, and to place our own earthly wants and desires well after this. To do this seems at first glance like a burden, but it is really just the opposite. There is freedom and consolation in knowing that we are following our Lord. There is a closeness and intimacy that comes with that, that cannot be completely explained, but must be experienced to fully understand. If we pursue this intimacy, then we will become like a small vine, one that will grow and bear much fruit.

Podcast Link

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-9ppqg-ee2010

We have a problem with humility, or rather the lack thereof. So many times, I hear from people who happen to have read a verse in the bible, usually without bothering to read the whole thing to put it in proper context, that God is simply not being fair. This usually relates to some action that the Lord took, often those in the Old Testament, and people who have never bothered to read much more than some isolated instance of the Lord’s judgement cry foul. The other example that I typically see is when there is a moral imperative that is part of our belief as Catholics, and people with a particular agenda that often deviates from that imperative call God, and us, intolerant, hateful, etc. The reality is a bit different. The Ten Commandments have been around and unchanged for several millennia; What has changed in that time (quite often in fact) is man. We claim to be a more tolerant society, one that is accepting of all. Not really. We are accepting of what is the popular social agenda of the moment, but we are wholly intolerant and unaccepting of those who adhere to a moral code that simply defines such behavior as sinful and wrong based on God’s teachings. The fact that we have an unwavering code of morals is like a red flag being waved in front of an angry bull. The shear venom that I see exuded from those who proclaim to be the most tolerant is amazing. If that is not enough, then insert general hysteria, foul language, and trying to label others with socially abhorrent labels that they have weaponized to silence those who have any opinion other than their own. This is the level that our society has frankly degraded to. It reminds me of the Baals in ancient Judea, who would use similar tactics to try to bully others into their way of thinking. The simple fact is, God is immutable, He is love, even when that love entails calling our behavior onto the carpet for our own good, and ultimately, our salvation. If He did not do this, He simply wouldn’t be God. We, on the other hand, need to rediscover our humility, and acknowledge that there is one far greater than we, instead of making vain attempts to change God to our liking or making ourselves out to be our own gods so that we can do whatever we want. When we develop our own spiritual belief systems, that is effectively what we are doing. We need to be better than this, MUCH better, and we need to make the effort to bring our brothers and sisters along with us by leading by example and holding to our values in our communications, the decisions we make, and what we reflect to others in our everyday lives.

It’s easy to take the path of least resistance, kind of like the son who told his father he would go out and work, but then did nothing. The other brother took the harder path. First of all, he initially stood up for what he wanted to do and was at least honest about it, but then relented and humbly performed the task that was asked of him. He did this silently, performing the will of his father. We need to perform the will of our Father, even if we do not initially relish the idea, and perhaps even protest a bit. We must be equally humble, and then equally resolved in our actions. This is what God seeks from us in our humility and our conduct. It is the harder path to be sure, but it is the one that leads through that narrower gate. I hope that we all make it through there.

PodCast Link

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-h43hv-ed47d2

Each time I read the Gospel reading for today, my first thought is that it really does not seem fair that those fellows who worked the whole long day did not receive something more than those who worked only an hour. I guess that comes from knowing what it is like to work all day in a field, especially in the heat of the day. The afternoons and evenings are a joy compared to the noon day heat. Yet that is merely a human perception, and that limited perception is what really ties all our readings together today.

God’s ways are not our ways, His thoughts and perspective are beyond anything we can conceive of. We have no common frame of reference, and that makes it all the more crucial for us to pay close attention to what He is saying, and take Him at his word, rather than trying to fit His meaning into our own idea of what is fair or proper. Once again, we really have it backwards in how we sometimes view things, especially when we encounter a scriptural passage we don’t understand at first. We are called to serve God, not judge His teachings. Yes, we are curious about Him, and yes, we are supposed to ask questions so that we can learn from Him, but we need to be careful that we do not cross over the line to passing judgment. That is simply not our place. How can finite creatures possibly judge the infinite?

Saint Paul’s perspective that to live is to do so to serve Christ is the one that we need to humbly observe. We are here for that very reason, and if we really think about it, to those who believe, the idea of leaving this earth and being with Christ is something to indeed look forward to. However, while we are here, it is our task in life to do all we can for our brothers and sisters to help bring them to God, by our example and our words, so that we show love for them, and in doing so, show love for the Father.

To come back to the Gospel, consider this: if we look at the narrative metaphorically, and the vineyard is our existence here on earth and the work that it entails, and the payment received at the end of the day is our heavenly reward, it all starts to make a bit more sense. You see, heaven, by its definition, is perfect union with God, you cannot receive more than that, no matter what you do, nor would you want to. So, whether we started our work sooner or later, the end reward makes it all worthwhile. Moreover, we know from scripture that there is more joy in heaven for one that changes their sinful ways, and comes to salvation in Christ, than for all those who are already on the right path. God is always looking for those lost sheep, even when they arrive late in the day to begin their work, and once on the right path, He will lead them to heaven right along with those who have been on that right path for a while. Why? Simply because He loves all of us and wants all of us to be with Him. This is especially true of those lost sheep. We should in fact all be grateful for that because we have all been lost at one time or another. Our God is the God of mercy and love, and that supersedes all else because there simply is nothing greater.

Podcast Link

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-fikk3-ec4654

There is nothing quite so poisonous to us both physically and spiritually as pent up anger and hate, and this is especially true when it is something we have harbored against others for a long time. To hold onto a grudge against someone, no matter how bad the transgression they committed, is to harm oneself, and to fail to show gratitude to the One who took upon himself all the suffering, humiliation, insults, and abuse that was rightfully ours to endure. You see, when we hold a grudge against our brother or sister, we are not only failing to love another child of God, we are failing to show proper love and respect for Him who gave himself up for us. If we look at it through the eyes of Christ’s suffering, our issues with others will be put into proper perspective. This is not to say we will not feel some hurt when we are transgressed against, but we must take that hurt and offer it up to the One who gave all for us, and then let it go. We must forgive, we must allow healing within ourselves, and we must be willing to allow our relationship with others to heal. As children of God, we are called to take the higher, more difficult path, but also the one that leads to salvation. It will not always be easy. It’s going to require effort, introspection, and especially prayer, but it is something that must be overcome with effort and with God’s grace, because if it is not, we cannot hope to enter His kingdom. There is absolutely no room in heaven for anger, hate, or selfish vengeance. There is only one who is worthy to judge, and He has told us that if we do not extend mercy and forgiveness toward others, we will not receive mercy ourselves. To be judged without God’s mercy is to invite certain destruction, because the fact is, we all fail, we all commit transgressions against others, and we all sin in this way. Sin is sin – another’s sins are no more heinous than our own. Even though the gravity of the act committed can be different, it is still unacceptable to God. God hates all sin. We cannot justify our grievances and failure to forgive by contrasting our sins with those of others; This is a sure path to failure because you are making yourself a judge, and the fact is, there is only one Judge.

We all, each of us, operate at a debt to God. One we cannot possibly repay. We are very much like the poor servant we heard about in the Gospel. We have no way to pay back our Master, so how can we then expect to receive some compensation from others as a condition of our forgiveness? We received our forgiveness without cost, for our multitude of sins, from the one who we hurt the most by our actions. Are we then to allow the offenses of others to keep us from following our Lord’s example? No matter what we tell ourselves about how we have been hurt by someone else, it pales in comparison with the abuse, rejection, pain, and loneliness that we subject our Lord to by our sins. This is what we must always keep in the front of our minds.

Each day is a new opportunity to extend forgiveness. We must not wait, because none of us knows how long we have, or whether or not there will be a tomorrow to offer us again the same opportunity. The time is now; There is no more time for waiting a little longer to get over it, or for our anger or resentment to cool. If we do this we are inviting upon ourselves the fallout of the missed opportunity of forgiveness and to be caught off-guard and to face the merciless judgement that we have then earned.

Today is Sunday, it is the Lords day, and I can think of no better day to stop and take the time to reach out to someone who we have unresolved issues with, to extend the peace of forgiveness, and to try to mend our relationship with that person. Even if they are not agreeable to this, we must try. Take the time today, allow your heart to open to anyone whom you hold resentment toward, and cut it loose, forgive, and then experience the peace from God that will come of that. We are sometimes masters of holding things in and harming ourselves in the process. Allow instead the healing from the Divine Physician to work in you and bring you healing as part of the fruits of the forgiveness that you have extended. Know the Lord’s peace.

PodCast Link Below

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-9hsn6-eb4dcb

I think it’s fair to say that Ezekiel had a lot on his mind after God explained to him the parameters of His expectations. As a prophet he was among a people with a long history of slaying prophets when they either did not like the message, or simply did not want to be reminded of it anymore. And yet, our Lord tells him that it is his responsibility to both spread His word to the people, and to try to turn them from evil, lest their sins cause his own destruction.

I hate to break it to everyone, but the expectations God has of us really are no different today than those he had for Ezekiel. Our audience is a bit different, but I don’t think that it would be out of line to say that they / we can be an equally stiff-necked people. The sins haven’t really changed, they are just as prolific, and just as destructive to the soul as anything that the Israelites might have weakened to – the idols that are worshipped, and some of the temptations and perversities have simply changed, others are as consistent as ever. The nature of man certainly has not changed, though we have now the hope of salvation through Jesus Christ, we are still saddled with the stain of original sin inclining us toward continued weakness and sinful behavior.

Our task now, as it was in the time of Ezekiel, and in the time of Saint Paul when he was trying to convert and cleanse the gentiles, is to love our fellow man enough to go to the trouble of enlightening and correcting those who are ignorant of Gods law, and the salvation that is possible through knowledge of Him, and belief in Him. The trick of course, now as it was in times past, is to get people to listen to, and accept the word of God. If people truly understand and believe in God’s word, the rest will of the tasks in terms of changing errant behaviors will come in due course. Not that they will be perfect, just as none of us is, but the effort will be there and the path toward salvation will have begun to be trodden by those we have successfully brought to a new belief. The reward and the penalty for either having done this, or not, is also the same. God will hold us accountable – each of us, as to whether we have taken the time and loved those around us enough to have been part of effecting the change of heart within them that could lead to salvation. The question is, do we love enough to do this?

PodCast Link below

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-fkspj-ea57e2

I would imagine Peter was a little shocked when Jesus referred to him as Satan and told him to get behind Him. That’s a pretty strong rebuke, especially from someone that you love so greatly. Yet it paints the picture of what each of us has to decide, and endure, if we are to enter the kingdom of God. Our earthly affections, and the close relationships we form, must come secondary to our relationship with Jesus, and our devotion to following the path that he has chosen for each of us.

It’s not enough to develop and value relationships where we feel close to others; True, we are called to love one another, but we are even more urgently called to love God who created all. It probably seemed very natural to Peter to try to be so protective of his teacher. He undoubtedly thought he was showing proper affection and loyalty, yet he lost sight of Jesus’ purpose here on earth because his perception was clouded by human emotion. It’s easy to do; We naturally find it easier to display affection and love toward those who are most familiar to us, and often lose sight of doing what is really good for them in the form of correcting them if needed. The thing is, we are called to do just that – to do what is really in their best interest, even if it might sting a bit in the short term. We are also called to love those we don’t know, simply because they too are children of God, and we must care for them equally. However, beyond all this, we are called to love God first and foremost. If we sometimes feel like He is distant and we don’t feel a closeness to Him, we should be asking ourselves why that is. Is it a spiritual dry spell, which does happen sometimes, or is it because we have not pursued His word in reading scripture? Excluding the case of a spiritual dry period which may be used to spiritually strengthen us at times, we should in fact be familiar enough with Him through our reading of His word to feel very close indeed if we are holding up our end of things. We should know enough about Him, and what He sacrificed to save each one of us, to feel a very keen closeness and gratitude. Yet, sometimes this can still seem elusive. Have you ever read a book that really resonated with you, and you found yourself caught up in one of the characters to the point where you felt a closeness to them? The Bible is not so different. There are probably many people in the bible that we can relate to quite intimately. Personally, I find myself very keenly able to relate to both the prodigal son, and to Zacchaeus the tax collector. It’s only through God’s grace that I turned my life around and found him and came back humbly only to be embraced lovingly and granted far more graces than I deserve. Moreover, I’d gladly climb any tree just for a chance to see our Lord a bit better. Each of these instances resonates with me, but what resonates most, the more I read and become familiar with Gods word (which is a never ending process, by the way), the more I can move past the others in the bible, and feel a direct closeness and familiarity with our Lord. He is my master, my teacher, My God, and the object of my affection. My perspective on Him has changed much over the years the more I have gotten to know Him by studying His word. I know with certainty that He has no limits, and that nothing I ask of Him is impossible. I know that there are no boundaries in how I can pray to Him. He knows and understand all, and there are certainly no secrets. All the veneer of what I used to think of as “propriety” in prayer is gone, there can only be room for direct honesty. I don’t know that I am always taking the right direction in how I interpret His will, I only know that I need to pursue it as best I can. Each of us has a unique plan that has been laid out for us, each of us is called to pursue it differently, but we are all definitely called to pursue it passionately. There can be no objects allowed in our way with this pursuit. We cannot allow the multitude of distractions that vie for our time to derail our efforts. Sometimes this can even mean a little pushback toward those that are close to us, but gently. We must feel free to explain that we need time for God, and to pursue Him. We need to be comfortable enough with our faith that we are never embarrassed to tell others of this need, no matter where they may be at in their own journey of faith. If nothing else, we are making a righteous request of them to respect our needs, and perhaps we may even be laying the groundwork for their own perspective to change a bit when they see that it is important to us to spend our time with God, and make no apology for it. These priorities mean placing others and ourselves well behind our focus on our Lord. When we learn as we go, we may find that we are called to leave our comfort zones as part of His call and His plans for us. We need to trust Him, and to take up our own crosses that we are called to bear, and to follow. The weight of the cross that He bore for us in the wounded and pain filled state of our Lord’s walk through Jerusalem toward His crucifixion should always be in our minds when we feel challenged. He endured all for us and asks in return for our love and closeness, even when this entails suffering; Yet we should know that He has gone through any trials ahead of us. We’re never alone, or without His understanding, and He will help us along. That is what Love does.

PodCast Link below:

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-bcbpr-e960b1

It was the ultimate question at that time – Jesus asks, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”. Peter did not hesitate, he answered from his heart, not his head, and affirmed that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God. This is I believe, what our Lord is looking for. The ability to leave out all the other noise from our thoughts, doubts, ponderances, etc. and instead take from the heart the answer that resides there and is beyond our human intellectualizing. To trust, to allow God to work within us and through us without letting our doubts, fears, and indecisive thoughts get in the way. This is why Peter was chosen as the foundation for the Church. Don’t misunderstand me, this is not the same thing as blindly following, this is instead following the call at the level of the heart, at the level of our spirit being directed by the Holy Spirit. The difference is huge.

As Catholics, we have the entire history of Jesus’ Church to draw upon, from the earliest discerned ideas and theologies from the Church Fathers, to the most recent guidance from our Pope who is Peters successor. We have never been called to blindly follow, as God who created us knows well our need for understanding. He created us to be curious, and to seek answers, and to think. Yet He also gave us His Spirit to reside within us, and to be a voice that will guide us to Him if we listen. It’s the listening part that can be difficult for us, as there is so much that can get in the way. The enemy clouds our thoughts with doubt and fear at every opportunity, his techniques ranging from preying upon our internal fears, to using stoking them or creating new ones using all the superabundance of information we are pelted with daily. There are also our fellow men and women who have strayed from truth, and who have their own agenda’s push, and will use any means they can find to do so. All of this, requires us to make a choice, to either play into all these negative influences, or to make the same leap that Peter did, and accept that with that the peace that comes from knowing and trusting in our Lord and God who can do all things and loves us without limit.

When Peter made his proclamation about who Jesus is, he turned a corner for all of us. His profession laid the foundation for the Church on earth to be built upon, and it gave us as humans the example of how we can each react to our Lord each time we are faced with the question of whether or not we believe, and if we will follow Jesus. To follow Him means to ultimately deny our own wants and needs, and to push past these to what we know to be what He would want us to do. To listen to Him because we too, know who he is, and to proclaim this through our actions and words. To stop when we see someone in need and take the time to give whether it is convenient or not. To not be afraid to show caring to others whom we may not know, and who perhaps may not be someone we would normally associate with. To proclaim truth regardless of how others may react. There are many ways to follow this subtle communication that comes to us from the Spirit of God. It is ultimately the question of belief in their source being God, that will give us the strength to carry through and act upon that quiet voice. It is the leap that Peter made, and the same proclamation to be made through our actions. It transcends our politics, our personal standards, sometimes even the lessons we have learned in life – yet it is still the truth and what we must ultimately listen to, to really be His followers. It is the continued building of the Church by being one of the living stones that comprise its structure by leaving self, and becoming part of it. What Peter began as the foundation, we continue to build to this day, with the certain hope that one day, when Jesus comes He will take his place as the capstone of this structure and complete all that has been done.

Podcast Link is below.

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-ksavk-e84b43

God loves all His creations, and it has always been His plan to bring salvation to all peoples. His requirement for this is simply the love of Him and one another, and the keeping of His laws that He has always instructed. His chosen people Israel were not the only ones He had in mind to save. Salvation did come from Israel through Jesus, but the acceptability of all peoples also came through Him. Jesus fulfilled prophecy, in that He came to the people of Israel first, and it was they to whom He brought His word,  His signs and His sacrifice. However, even during this, He did not turn others who were acceptable to Him through faith away.

The prophet Isaiah foretells clearly that all peoples who obey the Lord will be found acceptable to Him. Those who love Him and demonstrate this by keeping His law would find favor with Him. It is really no different today, God accepts all who love Him and keep his commandments. He is merciful to all who do this and will judge each one of us on how we have used our individual gifts. To those with a very full knowledge of Him, more will be expected. To those who through no fault of their own, He is not completely known, but they have tried to live their lives according to the natural order, He will be judge accordingly. He does not turn away those who seek an understanding of Him.

I am always humbled by the account of the conversation that Jesus has with the Canaanite woman. All her life she has been instructed in teachings contrary to God, and yet when she sees Jesus, she simply knows that He is the one. He is the only one who can bring healing to her daughter. She pleads with Jesus for His healing touch, and yet at first she is ignored. Yet despite this, she persists, and eventually when recognized by our Lord, makes the humblest of professions. Our Lord did not make her ask of Him more difficult because of a lack of compassion, rather it was to demonstrate two things. His adherence to prophecy, that He came to the children of Israel first, and to show to others her acceptance because of her unwavering faith. She is an example to all of us. No matter our position in life, no matter what we have believed or done, if we come to the Lord in humility and faith, we are acceptable to Him.

So often I hear it said by someone that there is no way they could have a relationship with Christ after all the things they have done. Yet this is so far from true. While it may be hard for us to grasp the kind of limitless forgiveness that our Lord possesses, it is real, nonetheless. All we need do is ask of Him his forgiveness, and show our change of heart through our actions, and He will find us acceptable. He loves each and every one of us, and wants all of us to come to Him, even in our most ragged state, and have that change of heart. We are a people with hope because of this, and with that hope, we should also be a people of joyful sharing. Each day is an opportunity to show others what is possible through our faith, and to leave them in a better place than when we first encountered them.

 

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