THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER, YR A
Acts 2:14,22-23; Psalm 16;
1 Peter 1:17-21; Luke 24:13-35
WE INVOKE GOD AS FATHER
The first letter of Peter was written to encourage Christians in the trials and crisis that abound in living truly in a hostile cultural and religious environment.
The letter was intended for those who were suffering isolation and some persecution from even their relatives because they have embraced the Christian faith. This in fact can lead to a sense of loneliness and confusion. The confusion lies in the fact that, the rejection came from one’s kindred, relatives and family. We too in one way or another find ourselves bearing some persecution for our faith, when we chose to be truly faithful to tour calling.
But Peter gives us encouragement, when he says “we invoke God as father…”. This is a very refreshing and assuring statement. It means that to become a Christian is to take on a new identity and relationship; we now have a new father and a new family. Jesus shares his father with us and by implication, we are in a filial relationship with all other children of his through Jesus Christ. Isn’t this lovely?
The new family into which the new Christian is welcomed is bigger and greater than that from which he or she has been ostracized.
The father we find in God is of one who never gives up on his children. No matter what becomes of us, he seeks to save us. God our father brought salvation to all his children not by any worthless thing but by the precious blood of his only begotten son, Jesus, as a ransom for all. If God did not spare his only son for our sake, what then can he not do for us?
The story of the paschal mystery should assure us that God will save us from every evil, even from our very selves only if we allow him.
This knowledge should make us proud and humble. Proud because this means we a re precious in the sight of God. you so precious and important that God will go every length to bring you back home. The only thing he cannot do is to force us to receive his love. We should be humble because we owe it all to the Lord. it is a great privilege to have the almighty as our father.
The blood of Jesus liberates us from our past and transforms us. This transformation is the new life we receive from God. The effect of this transformation is not only in the personal life of the believer but must be seen in their social interaction. Believers are now members of Gods new family, i.e. the church, and this must be evident in the way the church and her members interact and relate to society and the world.
Peter’s letter gives us a new orientation. An orientation of a redeemed and transformed people. By this he calls on all of us to show, keep and be aware of our identity and distinctiveness as Christians.
Go on, raise your head high for you are precious, special and different.
God bless you.
