NEVER PUT ASIDE, THE WORD OF GOD

Thursday, Fourth week of Lent/2024
Reflection from Nicholas Okeke,OP

Theme: Never put aside the Word of God 

We consider briefly the event that led to the apostasy of the children of Israel when Moses was on Mount Sinai. The people had recently witnessed the wonders of the Lord that led to their deliverance from Egypt. God used many other remarkable events to make a lasting impression of fear of his Name in their minds. It happened that Moses needed to be with the Lord on the mountain to receive a lasting memory of what God wanted the children of Israel to know and put into practice. He stayed on the mountain for 40 days and nights. In human reckoning, this was a long time for the people to wait for him in the wilderness. Many things would have entered their minds: wild animals, cold, sickness, etc. would have killed him. This way of thinking is purely human, and they were not wrong in supposing these various possibilities. But their sin consisted in throwing away what they had seen Yahweh do and heard him say through Moses. The pillar of fire over them at night and the pillar of cloud in the day never ceased at any moment of their journey. Though Moses was not with them in the camp, God’s presence was still visible. Even if these visible signs of God’s presence were not with them, the words of God spoken to them through Moses were supposed to be still in their minds. Their sin against God was that they threw away all the instructions God had given them, forgot the deeds of Yahweh, and did their own thing. This is the consequence of not internalizing the word of God when we hear it. 

Our Lord accused the Jews of doing the same thing. They treated the works of God with levity and failed to pay due attention to the word of God as representing the authority of God. They put the word of God aside and did what they wanted. “The works my Father has given me to carry out, these same works of mine testify that the Father has sent me. Besides, the Father who sent me bears witness to me himself. You have never heard his voice, you have never seen his shape, and his word finds no home in you because you do not believe in the One he has sent.” God sends his word for our salvation and redemption. Our only adequate response to the word of God is faith. The Eternal Word took flesh and lived among us so that we may experience God in our humanity. No one can ignore or put aside the word of God without committing a grave sin. Thus, the children of Israel were forgiven their sin of unbelief and apostasy at the plea of Moses, to give them another opportunity to believe, and raise progenies who would believe the word of God and keep his commandments. All who refused to believe the word of God and failed to take to heart the deeds of Yahweh died in the wilderness. It is impossible to possess the promise of God without faith in his word. We must make every effort to fill our minds with the message of Christ, for in them is the fullness of life and peace. The word of God is light, we must approach it daily with reverence and faith. “These same scriptures testify to me, and yet you refuse to come to me for life!”

Let us pray: Grant us, Lord, the grace to believe in your word, so that we may come to fullness of life in your Son Jesus Christ.    


 

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