Saturday of Week 27 in Ordinary Time
Gal 3:22-29
Lk 11:27-28
Scripture makes no exceptions when it says that sin is master everywhere. In this way the promise can only be given through faith in Jesus Christ and can only be given to those who have this faith.
When I was in secondary school, we had a discipline teacher who was fierce as anything. She taught us Math and our class trembled before her during each lesson. When she scolded us, you’d hear her voice right into the opposite school block. She was a serious disciplinarian and kept us all in check, and I know many students who probably hated her guts but with wisdom of hindsight, I know that had she not been as strict as she had been, we would have been a wild and unruly bunch.
Just like my teacher who made sure we kept the law at school, today’s first reading explains that before Jesus had come, the role of scripture was to do just that. For hundreds of years, people followed the commandments religiously, with the temple priests ensuring that they did. “The law was to be our guardian until the Christ came,” said Paul. But if we read further on, he also says, “Now that that time has come, we are no longer under that guardian…” Does this mean we are no longer bound by God’s commandments?
Well, yes and no. I don’t think that all of what was taught before Christ is no longer applicable. But what I think it means is that our redemption for our sins is not found in the law, but in Christ Jesus. But this is just my interpretation as a lay person. The law is there to tell us that there are things we should not do. It is ingrained in us from childhood, becoming the foundation for our moral compass, so that we have a direction in life. We know that if we were to steal and kill, our actions are wrong. But while it provides a guide, it cannot save us.
I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced a time when you have hit rock bottom, maybe going through an addiction or relationship that you know is not favourable in God’s eyes. Yet, because we are human, our desires are of the flesh, and it can be a struggle to break free of these shackles. As it was said in Matthew 26:41, “the spirit is willing, but the body is weak”. In such a time, we know that what we are doing is against God. And in this time of desperation, at rock bottom, that is when we understand that only Jesus can save us. Not the law, not our own efforts, just our faith in Jesus. When we call out to Him and surrender to Him, we acknowledge that He is the only one who can help us and lift us from this despair. We need Him to turn our lives around, not more laws. Paul says that “through faith in Jesus Christ, the promise might be given to those who believe.” This is God’s promise of salvation, no matter what our standing in life, race or nationality; if we truly come to Him through Jesus in faith and repentance, we can be certain that God will not abandon us to our despair.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Annette Soo)
Prayer: Our Mighty Father in Heaven, we are not worthy to stand before You as we are all sinners. In our darkest hours and lowest depths, please hear our cries. Without You, there is no light in our lives.
Thanksgiving: Thank you, God, for Your promise that You will never leave us nor forsake us. Thank You for Your promise of salvation, even though we are not worthy of the promises of Christ.
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