There
was once a mother who gave birth to twin boys. As little kids, they were both
cute and lively; they were her joy. But as they grew older, they turned to be
monsters. They fought with each other and fought with other children. They lied,
they stole and broke things deliberately. At home they are so lazy; at school
they never study. They tormented all their teachers and they were mean and
nasty. When things got alarming, the parents sought help from a counselor who
suggested: send them to a boarding school to be reformed. But, no the mother
said: “I would miss them so much if they weren’t at home.” When the counselor
asked why? “Because I am their mother and I love them.” That’s the way it is
with God and us.
In
today’s gospel, Jesus teaches us a very powerful and comforting truth: that God
is a loving and forgiving Father who wants to save us through His Only Son,
Jesus. He is not a cruel and punishing God but like a Good Shepherd, He goes
out in search for his lost sheep. He is also like a conscientious woman who
painstakingly searches her lost coin recognizing its great value and worth. God
delights in the joy of finding sinners back to the fold as much as finding
things of great worth that have been lost. Indeed, there will be more joy in
heaven over one sinner who repents. Indeed, God loves the least, the last and
the lost.
Moreover,
Jesus incarnated this love concretely. The gospel begins by putting us in a
context. We are shown that Jesus is in the midst of a celebration; he is partying
with tax collectors and sinner. Definitely, the respectable Pharisees complain!
In Jesus, we experience a God who is passionately in love with us. Because of
such love, he does crazy, even unreasonable things. In order to reclaim our
lost inheritance, he made a decision to humble himself and become one of us.
God’s love is excessive and unconditional. God’s love is a grace we need to
experience deeply. Such love gives us hope. This love, in fact, becomes our
daily strength never to give up.
Prayer:
Lord, let me taste your amazing love so that I may be its living reflection to
those who are missing it.
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