Reflection

Meditation: Do you want to be made clean and whole, free from
sin, pride, and a willful heart that refuses God's grace and instruction?
God makes us a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), but sinful
pride, indifference, and unbelief can block that transformation from taking
full effect in us. God repeatedly sent his prophets to the chosen people
of Israel to shake from them their indifference and unbelief, but their
ears grew dull of hearing. They forgot to ask for healing and pardon. We
all stand in need of God's grace and help every day and every moment of
our lives. Scripture tells us that "the steadfast love of the Lord never
ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning" (Lamentations
3:22-23). God gives grace to the humble who seek him with sincerity, with
expectant faith, and with a repentant heart that wants to be made whole
and clean again. When Naaman, a non-Jew went to Jerusalem to seek a cure
for his leprosy, the prophet Elisha instructed him to bathe seven times
in the Jordan river. He humbly followed the prophet's instructions and
was immediately restored in body and spirit.
When Jesus proclaimed the good news of God's kingdom to his own people,
he did not hesitate to confront them with their sin of indifference and
unbelief. He startled his listeners in the synagogue at Nazareth with a
seeming rebuke that no prophet or servant of God can receive honor among
his own people. He then angered them when he complimented the Gentiles
who seemed to have shown more faith in God than the "chosen ones" of Israel.
The Jews regarded the unbelieving Gentiles as "fuel for the fires of hell."
Jesus' praise for "outsiders" offended the ears of his own people
because they were blind-sighted to God's mercy and plan of redemption for
all nations. The word of warning and judgment spoken by Jesus was met with
hostility by his own people. They forcibly threw him out of the town and
would have done him harm had he not stopped them.
The Lord Jesus offers healing and pardon to all who humbly ask for his
mercy and help. He will set us free from every sinful habit and every harmful
way of relating to our neighbor, if we allow him to cleanse and heal us.
If we want to walk in freedom and grow in love and holiness, then we must
humbly renounce our sinful ways and submit to Christ's instruction and
healing for our lives. Scripture tells us that the Lord disciplines us
for
our good that we may share his holiness (Hebrews 12:10). Do you want
the Lord Jesus to set you free from every sinful pattern and to make you
whole and well again? Ask him to show you the way to walk in his love and
truth.
"Lord Jesus, teach me to love your ways that I may be quick to renounce
sin and wilfulness in my life. Make me whole and clean again that I may
I delight to do your will."
This reflection is courtesy of Don Schwager (c) 2012, whose website is located at http://www.rc.net/wcc/readings

From my Samsung Galaxy Pro GT-B7510
Robin K Brookes
69 Beresford Road,
LOWESTOFT,
NR32 2NQ
UK
Mobile: +447920881439