Friday of the First Week of Lent - March 6
Ezekiel 18:21-28 Matthew 5:20-26
It feels so extreme to hear that a virtuous person “will die” if they turn from their faith and commit sin while another – who has done bad things all along, but then turns away from sin “shall live.” That doesn’t align with our sense of justice. But maybe justice is not the point. Maybe to “live” doesn’t refer to just breathing or to personal freedom – but to being and living in God’s grace. Maybe to “die” means to make choices that lead us to live outside of that grace – the gift of life.
The prophet Ezekiel assures us that God does not wish for the death of the wicked, but rather rejoices when the wicked turn from their evil ways. One “lives” because of the virtue he or she practices – doing what is “right and just.” At Visitation school, the students have learned that a virtue is a “holy
habit” that imitates God and leads us to heaven.
Remember the story of the prodigal son? The younger brother surely “lived” at the end of the story. I hope the older son did, too, but it seems like there was a choice he would need to make in order to do so. I think he needed to forgive like his father forgave. I think we do, too. And perhaps one way we
choose our own “death” is when we refuse to forgive.
The psalmist sings “If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand? But with you is forgiveness…” We are called to forgive as God forgives. Today’s gospel tells us to “lose no time” in being reconciled with one another. Forgiveness needs to become our holy habit.
Something I firmly believe, and often say, is “It takes humility to live in peace.” To ask for forgiveness and to forgive another – both acts call for humility. If we choose to embrace humility, we make reconciliation possible. And, if we choose to be reconciled with God and with others, we can LIVE (both now and forever) in God’s holy grace!
Q: With whom do I need to reconcile? Is it someone in my family, at work, in my social circle? Do I have the humility to reach out to that person this Lent?
It feels so extreme to hear that a virtuous person “will die” if they turn from their faith and commit sin while another – who has done bad things all along, but then turns away from sin “shall live.” That doesn’t align with our sense of justice. But maybe justice is not the point. Maybe to “live” doesn’t refer to just breathing or to personal freedom – but to being and living in God’s grace. Maybe to “die” means to make choices that lead us to live outside of that grace – the gift of life.
The prophet Ezekiel assures us that God does not wish for the death of the wicked, but rather rejoices when the wicked turn from their evil ways. One “lives” because of the virtue he or she practices – doing what is “right and just.” At Visitation school, the students have learned that a virtue is a “holy
habit” that imitates God and leads us to heaven.
Remember the story of the prodigal son? The younger brother surely “lived” at the end of the story. I hope the older son did, too, but it seems like there was a choice he would need to make in order to do so. I think he needed to forgive like his father forgave. I think we do, too. And perhaps one way we
choose our own “death” is when we refuse to forgive.
The psalmist sings “If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand? But with you is forgiveness…” We are called to forgive as God forgives. Today’s gospel tells us to “lose no time” in being reconciled with one another. Forgiveness needs to become our holy habit.
Something I firmly believe, and often say, is “It takes humility to live in peace.” To ask for forgiveness and to forgive another – both acts call for humility. If we choose to embrace humility, we make reconciliation possible. And, if we choose to be reconciled with God and with others, we can LIVE (both now and forever) in God’s holy grace!
Q: With whom do I need to reconcile? Is it someone in my family, at work, in my social circle? Do I have the humility to reach out to that person this Lent?
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