Galatians 3:22-29
Scripture makes no exceptions when it says that sin is maser everywhere. In this way the promise can only be given through faith in Jesus Christ and can only be given to those who have this faith.
Before faith came, we were allowed no freedom by the law; we were being looked after till faith was revealed. The Law was to be our guardian until the Christ came and we could be justified by faith. now that that time has come we are no longer under that guardian, and you are, all of you, sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. All baptised in Christ, you have all clothed yourselves in Christ, and there are no more distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female, but all of you are one in Christ Jesus. Merely by belonging to Christ you are the posterity of Abraham, the heirs he was promised.
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Luke 11:27-28
As Jesus was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, “Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!” But he replied, “Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!”
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About a week or two ago, there was an article in The New Paper about a school that barred students from taking their ‘N’ Level examinations unless they cut their long hair before taking the examinations. After repeated warnings, the school finally enforced discipline and stationed teachers outside the examination hall, giving the students one last chance, and to make that choice – get their hair cut by the teachers, or be barred from taking the examination.
The school rules are often unyielding. What is written down in the discipline handbook is what must be followed by the students. There were to be no exceptions to the rule. Many, if not all, of us, when we were at that age, resented the discipline master or mistress, because we just couldn’t see what’s the point of having so short hair, so neat uniform, short nails, etc. But it was a case where we could not see the forest for the trees.
The purpose of discipline that was enforced in this way was to teach us discipline, which is necessary for us to follow some rules in life. Most of us, after graduating from school, and going on to university or to the working life, throw aside these rules and keep hair and nails as long as we want, dressing sloppily etc.
We keep the rebellious attitude that we had in our teenage years until slowly we mellow down over the years when we realise that we are faced with societal rules which although are quite different from school rules, are equally unyielding and have stiffer consequences if not followed.
Only then do we realise that the purpose of discipline in our school years was to prepare us for the adulthood, was to teach us to follow rules. And, admittedly, it is much harder to follow rules in adulthood than it was in our school years, because as adults, the rules are not as clear-cut, and frequently involves us making certain decisions. Often, we seek the advice of lawyers to help explain to us certain laws that do not make sense to us.
I found that this incident was very similar to the history of Israel. Throughout history, God sent them repeated warnings through their judges and prophets – repent or be barred from the kingdom of God. The Law was like our school rules, clear-cut and unyielding. When Jesus came, he offered the Jews their ultimatum, repent or be barred from the kingdom of God. But with Jesus also came adulthood for the growing nation of Israel. It had been suitably prepared for adulthood and with the coming of Jesus, they were brought into the adult world where they realised that they were not the only ones that God had been preparing.
Those who followed Jesus eventually came to realize that the discipline of the Law that the Jews were put under was to prepare them to follow a different kind of law – the law that is written in the hearts of each person. It is on this law that we will be judged by God, not whether we follow the rules laid down by Moses, or by the Church. We learnt that those rules are mere guidelines for our adulthood, and that if we are following the law that is written in our hearts, they will be in line with what the Church teaches. However, it is not always easy to follow the law that is written in our hearts. At times, that law is not so clear-cut and our vision might be clouded.
What then is one to do? Just as in our adult life, we seek the help of lawyers who are well-versed in the laws of the nations to advise us what is best to do, so in the spiritual life, we seek the help of priests who are well-versed in the law of God to advise us what is best to do. Like lawyers, there are good and bad ones, knowledgeable and ignorant ones. Ultimately, it is not the lawyers and priests we can put the blame on when we run afoul of the law and have to face the consequences. It is ourselves.
Hence, better to get to know the judge in person, isn’t it? And that is exactly what our spiritual judge, God, wants us to do.
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Prayer:
Dear Jesus, teach us your ways so that we may be able to follow the law that has been written into our hearts. Teach us to examine that law and to follow it whenever we make decisions in our daily lives. Teach us to form our understanding of that law so that our understanding may be more in line with the teaching of the Church, which you have given to us as a guideline for that law in our hearts. Let us also pray for the neophytes who will be confirmed later at the Church of Christ the King, that they may remember their formation during those years in RCIA/Y and live their adult spiritual life according to the law that is already written into their hearts. Amen.
Give Thanks to the Lord for: Time to spend in reflection.
Filed under: Daily Reflections
