Why does the Lord permit evil? Why did He allow "the massacre of all the boys two years old and under in Bethlehem and its environs"? (Mt 2:16) One explanation is that He loves the Herods of the world so much and wants to save them all (see 1 Tm 2:4). The suffering of these innocents is the most powerful means in God's plan of salvation for changing the most hardened Herod-hearts. We see this in the deaths of the martyrs and especially in the sufferings and death of Jesus, the most "holy Innocent" of all.
Why does the Lord permit the abortions of millions of "holy innocents"? One explanation is that He loves those who kill their children and even us who, by our sins, have shared in killing Him. Abortions will be stopped when many of us (not only those directly involved in abortion) stop sinning, stop denying our sins, and start repenting (see 1 Jn 1:8-10). However, if we don't accept the grace of repentance being poured out through His "holy innocents," abortions will then stop only when we are stopped through death, judgment, and hell.
On this fourth day of Christmas, repent and allow the Lord to change the Herod in you into holy innocence.
| PRAYER: | Father, in our contraceptive and abortifacient culture, may I choose life by choosing repentance. |
| PROMISE: | "If anyone should sin, we have, in the presence of the Father, Jesus Christ, an Intercessor Who is just. He is an Offering for our sins, and not for our sins only, but for those of the whole world." –1 Jn 2:1-2 |
| PRAISE: | The Holy Innocents became the first victims for Jesus Christ. They empower us for holiness and innocence. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College