 |
| Abraham |
Abraham had nothing to boast about concerning his own merits in the presence of God. It was God Who sought him even before he knew the One Who sought him. Encountered by the Unknown One, he is told to: “Set out from your country, and from your kindred, and from your father's house, and go to the land that I will show you” (Gen. 12:1).
This invitation will be repeated by an unknown itinerant preacher from Nazareth to a group of fishermen: “Put out into the deep water, and let down your nets for a catch” (Lk. 5:4).
Leaving all that was comfortable and familiar, our patriarch in the faith is like the apostles, set out on a journey of faith into the depths of God’s provident love and grace. Not knowing where the journey would lead, he followed the Voice that spoke to his heart. It was this obedience of faith that was accounted as righteousness.
Newness of life is offered to all who surrender to the movement of grace. The initiation rite does not justify us. Circumcision or baptism serve as a sign that we have responded to the One who called us.
In this light, Abraham is our Father in the Faith. Following in his footsteps, we run on the path of God’s commandments with our hearts expanded by the inexpressible delight of love.
The seal ofthe Holy Spirit is our sanctification, making us new creatures conformed to Christ. The object of our faith is God and God alone, in whom we are justified and recreated. Because of God’s love for us, our sins have been atoned and our iniquity cleansed.
Since Christ has taken all our sins to Himself, let us walk in the freedom that His victory has won for us. As children of the kingdom, let us sincerely seek to do the will of Him who created and redeemed us.
The author of the Letter to the Hebrews wrote: “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the guarantee that the things not seen are true” (Heb. 11:1). The assurance of our hope is in Christ who has told us that we are precious in the Father’s eyes.
God has told us to cast our cares upon Him because He cares for each of us individually and promises to provide for all our needs.
Allow me to close with a blessing.
Wherever your faith journey may lead, may the Living Lord go with you; May he go behind you, to encourage you, beside you, to befriend you, above you, to watch over you, beneath you, to lift you from your sorrows, within you, to give you the gifts of faith, hope, and love, and always before you, to show you the way. Amen.
(Benediction - Blair Monie)
--Father Jerome Machar, OSCO
No comments:
Post a Comment