God invites everyone to have a personal rapport with Him. Yes everyone. But then what are the things that don’t let us get into a personal, working and everyday/every moment relationship with God?
Yesterdays reading told us, that failure on our part to recognise God as our Father is the first fact. The next is God is Good and everyday/every moment of our lives are willed for us by God, to better us and make us like Him. Example: when we read stories of destruction in the Bible, we believe a Good God, no a strict and totalitarian God is at work. But this is not the truth, because in these incidents (The Flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, Egypt), God was heading in their directions to save them. This leads us to be evasive and aloof with God and have our feet in two boats. We want to reap good benefits by associating with God, but don’t want to follow Him, because what He may ask us may not be to out sense of good.
But if we do trust God/Jesus, we then become the house that God resides in. We are blessed and everything around us is blessed. Precisely the 3rd Promise/Covenant, that God made with Abraham; “...And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” This is precisely the recipe for goodness, peace and love to flourish around us. But we do not understand. This is because, we do not know God’s goodness. When we do know God’s Goodness, we will match it against the values/ideas/understanding of the world, and the Truth will be clear, and we will be able to act correctly, and flavour the world with peace.
Today’s readings can be approached through a story Jesus mentioned of how a Pharisee and Tax Collector approached God. One self-sufficient in his own knowledge and righteousness, and the other knowing his own limitations and failures coming before God wanting to learn and improve. To such, i.e. those who understand their shortcomings and are ready to learn with and have a working relationship with Him; God extends His hands and says Come. This is also meant to help everyone with a pharisaical attitude, to see God’s goodness, and open up on their own shortcomings, and that they also may be saved.
Come then, lets commit ourselves anew to Jesus, and accept God’s goodness and our goodness which comes from Him.