Daily Reflection – 1/23/2024
Sacred Scripture
His mother and his brothers arrived. Standing outside they sent word to him and called him. A crowd seated around him told him, “Your mother and your brothers [and your sisters] are outside asking for you.” But he said to them in reply, “Who are my mother and [my] brothers?” And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. [For] whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:31-35)
Reflection
Today’s scripture gives us a deep lesson about the meaning of God’s love.
Jesus gives his apostles an answer that probably caused some of them to scratch their heads in wonder. After all, when told that his mother and brothers are outside, he asks, “Who are my mother and brothers . . . Here are my mother and brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
Was Jesus minimizing his earthly family? Bu no means. He was expanding it to include all those who followed the will of His father. That, of course, includes us. We are related to God, our Father, and we are bound to all those before us and after us. Think of it this way.
Jesus came to create a new family, a new holy people without regard for family bonds.
Our relationship is now more meaningful, more substantial than the genetic bonds of physical family relationships. The Holy Spirit comes into the hearts and lives of men and women as the spirit of sonship, the spirit of adoption witnessing “with our spirits that we are the children of God; and if children then heirs, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ.”
I have often used a phrase: “Christianity is not as religion as much as it is a way of life.” We, who follow Christ, understand that prayers and petitions to God are hollow unless they are backed by the actions of our life that follow the will of Christ. That’s what sets us apart, that is what binds us. We have an understanding and a commitment to honor all of God’s children and those, who believe that, are linked to one another by a spiritual bond.
Everything we do is a reflection on how we are honoring our Father by living His word. That creates the relationship, that’s the spirit that binds.
If we don’t understand or honor that relationship, we are back at Square 1 in our faith journey. God is love. To love means that there is a relationship. And so, it is with God and us. Love also describes the actions of our lives. Our relationship with God and His children means our loving others to honor the Great Command.
It’s a relationship of trust, affection, commitment, loyalty, faithfulness, kindness, thoughtfulness, compassion, mercy, helpfulness, encouragement, support, strength, protection, and so many other qualities that bind people together in mutual love and unity.
The very model, the supreme example of living that relationship is God’s love. His love is consistent, unwavering, unconditional, and unstoppable. We may choose to separate ourselves from him, but nothing will make him ignore us, leave us, or treat us unkindly. He will pursue us, love us, and call us to return to him no matter what might stand in the way. It is his nature to love. That is why he created us – to be united with him and to share in his love and unity of persons (1 John 3:1). God is a trinity of persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – and a community of love. That is why Jesus challenged his followers and even his own earthly relatives to recognize that God is the true source of all relationships. God wants all of our relationships to be rooted in his love.
That also means that we must commit to that love. That should bring us to realize that there cannot be division amongst us. We must continually seek to love our brother and sister instead of finding fault with our brother and sister. If so. we forgive. Forgive it all. Every hurt, every petty word, every insult to our sense of being. By doing that, we turn away from those who seek to stand us apart.
You and I are bound, one to another. Bound by His love. How great is that? Pretty great in my opinion.
Prayer of The Day
“May the Lord, through His love, open my heart, mind and will so as to be more endeared to Him, emboldened by Him and entitled by Him. Entitled so that I can see my brother and sister around me.”
Daily Note
The Lord reminds us why his family is heavenly and so unique. It is not based on race, patriotism or blood. It is based on faith, hope and love. The Lord’s family is comprised of those who seek God’s will in their lives and follow it faithfully. This is what defines, binds and holds together the Lord’s family.
May I be blessed with the ability to follow these words – especially during this period of strife and anger and hatred Kim our country.