Saturday
14th March 2020. Read Micah 7:14-20, Psalm 103 and Luke 15:1-3,11-32.
_“Son, you are always with me, and
all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to make merry and be glad, for this
your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost and is found.” *(Luke
15:31-32)*_
The key to understanding the story of
the Prodigal Son is to bear in mind that Jesus gave the story in defence of his
association with those whom the Pharisees and Scribes labelled as “sinners.” It
is true that birds of the same feather flock together but in the case of Jesus,
it was different. While eating with Matthew and the tax collectors, Jesus
said: “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:32)
The story of the Prodigal Son shows
us the depth of God’s compassion. As one great man said: “God is never tired of
forgiving us, we are the ones who get tired of asking for His forgiveness.” God
is the Father who takes more joy in seeing the sinner repent than in seeing the
sinner perish. (Cf. Ezekiel 18:23). God is the Father who waits patiently for
the return of his lost Son despite what the boy did in the past.
As Micah tells us in today’s first
reading: “God does not retain His anger forever because He delights in mercy.
He will again have compassion on us, he will tread our iniquities underfoot.
He will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” (Micah 7:18-20)
Like the prodigal son, we often think
the grass is greener in the neighbours’ lawn, we feel God’s commandments are a
burden and we assume we would be happier elsewhere but then all we get in the
end is sorrow, tears and regret. As St. Paul clearly states, the only reward
for sin is death. (Romans 6:23). No wonder the Father said to the elder
brother: “this your brother was dead, and is now alive; he was lost and is
found.”
As we say in the Stations of the
Cross, “no matter what my past has been, I can begin anew.” God is inviting us
today to rise from where we have fallen, to pick up our Cross again, to say
with the Prodigal Son, “I will arise and go to my Father.” Perhaps you haven’t
been to the sacrament of confession for a very long time, today is another
opportunity. Examine your heart, make a firm purpose of amendment and return to
God.
Let us pray: Lord Jesus, may I never
be tired of asking for your mercy. Amen.
*Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you. (Saturday of the 2nd Week of Lent. Bible
Study: Micah 7:14-20, Psalm 103 and Luke 15:1-3,11-32).*
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