Jn 1:29-34
Sometimes, when I am too busy in the midst of activities and details that I will miss the picture of what my mission here as a Christian is. My mission here is depicted in the proclamation from John, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’ I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel.” It is all about being Christ centered instead of self centered. Sometimes, when I am too busy in my life, I may miss my focus on Jesus and become self centered due to my fallen nature as a human being, getting what I want. It is always useful to spend regular time with God for me first thing in the morning through my prayers to set my day right with God. No doubt I will still sin. But such prayers remind me to put God above me, especially when I can be wilful. Then, I will not go too far away from Him.
In the Kingdom of God, things work differently. In the world, most of us try to be first in everything, like being the first for our children to take up vacancies in some prestigious schools, being the first to produce the best projects to be presented to bosses at work for promotion, to be the first to grab seats in the bus or MRT with the others, etc. It is all about competition, about placing self above others. But, in the Kingdom of God, as what John had mentioned, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’ It does not matter who comes first. Ultimately, Jesus who came after John is still the Son of Man. Jesus did not try to appear before John in the fear of not being recognized. He never did anything out of fear except from out of fear towards God in obedience out of Love. It implies that we are here to serve but not to be served. God’s grace is for everyone. I do not have to compete against others how holy I am when compared to them, how many people support me when compared to other people or leaders, how wealthy or capable I am, how influential I am, how talented I am, how popular I am, how attractive I am to others, etc. God does not look for all these qualities. As heard from the gospel reading the day before this, ‘Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.’ God is also here for all the sinners. He comes to love all of us and heal us. So, Jesus dies for everyone, not just for the influential, talented, wealthy, seemingly holy, etc. It is not about being first in everything. What God wants is a contrite heart as depicted in Psalm 51, ‘For you do not desire sacrifice; a burnt offering you would not accept. My sacrifice, God, is a broken spirit; God, do not spurn a broken, humbled heart.’ He wants to work through our brokenness. If I am perfect, I am god for only God is perfect. I am only perfect through love with the others in Love as part of the body of Christ with Jesus Christ as the head. So, I must make the efforts not to judge people as my mission here is to love even my enemies as a Christian to be light to not just the people I like but to EVERYONE. If God loves me even when I sin, I should also love others even when they sin. That also includes forgiving people ‘seventy seven times’. Then, that is truly unconditional love which can expand the Kingdom of God.
With Love,
Elena
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