PEACE AND HEALING
We cannot buy our way into heaven, but if we accept the
love and mercy of Jesus, we already posses heaven in our hearts.
Isaiah paints a
picture of the goodness of God towards His people: "He will be gracious to
you when you cry out...The Lord will give you the bread you need and the water
for which you thirst...A voice shall sound in your ears: 'This is the way; walk
in it'" (Is 30:19-21). It is a beautiful picture of God's goodness, and it
is a picture that comes to life for us during our worship at Mass and during
our times of prayer.
At the beginning of
the Eucharistic Liturgy, we call out to God, "Lord, have mercy on us."
This is more than a plea for God to forgive our sins, for "mercy"
includes all that we understand by the words "love" and
"kindness". Our first prayer of the Mass is a request that God will
show us His loving concern and His guidance as a Shepherd. Our Father is then
indeed gracious to us. He does not hide nor is He deaf to our prayer. Rather,
He speaks to us in the words of Sacred Scripture.
As we listen to the
teachings woven throughout the Gospels, we come to realize that it is God's
Voice sounding in our ears and saying to us, "This is the way; walk in
it." We hear Jesus' Words being spoken throughout the four Gospels. We can
hear them and then put God's Words into action, for "the Kingdom of heaven
is at hand...without cost you have received; without cost you are to give"
(Mt 10:7-8).
God doesn't send us
out alone. If we turn to Him we will receive the strength we need to walk in
His way. We are fed with bread more marvelous than the manna which came from
heaven, more beneficial than any human nourishment, more joy-giving than the
most sumptuous of all banquets. He gives us the Eucharist! When Jesus
commissioned His disciples to carry on His works, they were to speak God's Word
and bring His healing power to the weary and oppressed. For what they had
received had been given to them freely. Jesus says, "Without cost you have
received; without cost you are to give." We cannot buy our way into
heaven, but if we accept the love and mercy of Jesus, we already posses heaven
in our hearts. We, as Christians, are also commissioned by Christ Jesus to
carry on His works.
During this Advent
season it is a great time for us to pray and to know that "This is the
way; walk in it." Walk in it with confident hope that the God who loves us
will lead us home to His Eternal Kingdom.