Wellspring of the Gospel

 

Year C: 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Second Reading: based on  St Paul’s first Letter to Timothy 1: 12-17

Today is one of those occasions when the Second Reading coincides well with the Gospel and First Reading.

St Paul is speaking of his past - as someone who blasphemed against Jesus and against God and as someone who did all they could to destroy the Christian Faith.

Whilst acknowledging his own sinfulness, St Paul does not dwell on it but goes on to show how he is an example of God’s great love - and mercy - and patience at work. As St Paul says, if God chooses to do that for me - then what does that mean for you? If I, says Paul, can be forgiven so much, it can only be because Jesus wanted to use me as evidence to the many people who would come to trust in Him for eternal life.

So what does it say to us?

Every one of us could probably think of something that we had done - or said - or been that we would think was unforgivable. We can’t forgive ourselves - and certainly can’t believe that God would want to.

We may even have got so used to the burden of guilt that we carry around that, in a funny kind of way, we are a bit afraid to let it go. Can I  really let it go - or will God drop it back on me from a great height - and tell everyone what I did?

Often, we can’t put our fears into words - but, the bottom line is - we can’t believe that God wants to free us from our sin. This is not so.

God wants us to blossom and grow - and we can’t do that with a ten-ton burden of guilt on top of us! Like the God in the Gospel - and the God in the First Reading - yes, He is a God of justice - but also of infinite mercy. 

St Paul says today “Here is a saying that you can rely on and nobody should doubt: that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”.

He sees himself as the greatest of these - and still can have confidence that he has been completely forgiven. Freed from the burden of guilt and shame, Paul was able to go into the world to proclaim the Good News. He was a living example of the Good News  - that the death and resurrection of Jesus really could change people’s lives. 

When Jesus sent His disciples out into the world, He told them not to carry excess baggage. For many of us, sin and guilt for sins long since forgiven can be excess baggage.  

If this is the case for you - read today’s Gospel again - think about what Jesus and St Paul say about why Jesus came into the world - perhaps go for a private Act of Reconciliation. Allow Jesus to lift the burden from your shoulders so that you can go out into the world - confident that you too are a living example of the love and mercy of our God. 

What does it mean for me?

Waterlily

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