Yesterday, in the first Eucharistic reading, the Lord called us "princes of Sodom" and "people of Gomorrah" (Is 1:10). Today, He says we are worse than Sodom, for if the miracles we have received would have taken place in Sodom, it would have repented (Mt 11:23-24). The Lord is likely telling us that we have not yet repented according to His standards.
We naturally tend to compare ourselves with others to make ourselves feel better or even superior. So, when the Lord compares us with some of the most wicked people ever and then says we are worse than they were, we tend to reject His words.
Why is Jesus being so rough on us? It's because He loves us (see Heb 12:6). He died on the cross to free us from our sin; so He does not want us to die in our sins (see Jn 8:21, 24), but to repent of them.
Could it be that the Lord is not speaking to someone else but to each one of us? Jesus is looking you right in the eye (Lk 22:61). Firmly, with love, He says: "Repent." Take His words to heart. Go to Confession today or, at the latest, this weekend. His words "are spirit and life" (Jn 6:63). Repent.
| PRAYER: | Father, may I repent on a very deep level. |
| PROMISE: | "Unless your faith is firm you shall not be firm!" –Is 7:9 |
| PRAISE: | "As soon as I lie down, I fall peacefully asleep, for You alone, O Lord, bring security to my dwelling" (Ps 4:9). |
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