FROM
THE SERVANT GENERAL
OUR
THEME FOR 2009
(Part 2)
Feast
of Christ the King
November 23, 2008
My
dear brethren in Christ,
Just
as in past years, the Lord gives us our theme for
the year, but it is up to us, through the enlightenment
of His Spirit, to see and discern the lessons being
taught, and the fullness of the message being given.
This is why we need to bring our theme and the accompanying
verse(s) to our prayer time, and also discuss these
often enough in our household meetings.
I
now offer you my further thoughts on our theme.
“God
indeed is my savior;
I am confident and unafraid.
My strength and my courage is the Lord,
and he has been my savior.”
(Isaiah 12:2, NAB)
The
beginning and the end
Our
theme verse begins and ends with “God as Savior.”
Indeed Jesus the Savior is “the Alpha and
the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning
and the end.” (Rev 22:13). Jesus is the be-all
and end-all of our life and mission. That is why
we are Couples for Christ. Everything we are and
everything we do is centered on Christ.
Jesus
and what he accomplished for us on the cross are
the central focus of our lives and our mission.
The cross is the very symbol of God’s love
for us. God went to great lengths to redeem us,
even sending His very own Son to an excruciating
death on the cross. The cross is all about God’s
mercy. God sent His Son even when we were sinners,
even as we were the ones who caused him to be crucified,
even as we continued to reject him. God will do
whatever He can in order to bring us back to Himself.
And
of course, our work is all about proclaiming this
Savior. God uses us as instruments in order to bring
His salvation to the whole world. This is a great
privilege. It is hope for the world, and joy for
His evangelizers.
Strength
and courage is the Lord
The
second line in the verse is quite striking. In living
for the Lord and in proclaiming his salvation, our
strength and our courage is not only from the Lord,
but is the Lord. God does not only give us strength
and courage in order to fulfill our calling, but
Jesus himself is the one, acting through us in his
Spirit, who accomplishes the task. The strength
and power are not inanimate things that are given
to us, but are incarnate in a Person.
When
Jesus gave his disciples the Great Commission, he
made a promise: “And behold, I am with you
always, until the end of the age.” (Mt 28:20b).
Jesus is Emmanuel, the God who is with us (Mt 1:23b).
Jesus is not a detached Savior, now in heaven, just
looking down on his subjects doing his work; rather,
Jesus is hands-on, he leads his troops, he directly
engages the enemy in battle.
We
know that nothing is impossible with God, because
He is God. But we are mere human flesh. How can
we do the divine work of God? Well, it is because
it is Jesus himself acting in and through us. Thus,
if we have faith that this is indeed true, then
it will be as Jesus himself assures us, “Nothing
will be impossible for you.” (Mt 17:20b).
Now that is strength, and in that we can take courage.
Our
proper posture
Since
we are mere instruments, since it is Jesus himself
acting in and through us, since we can look to empowerment
by the Holy Spirit, then we must be confident and
unafraid.
First,
we must be unafraid. The future is in God’s
hands, not ours. The power comes from God, not from
our puny selves. Whatever happens, God is there
for us. The Father already offered His very own
Son on the cross for us, assuring us of His great
love. “What then shall we say to this? If
God is for us, who can be against us? He who did
not spare his own Son but handed him over for us
all, how will he not also give us everything else
along with him?” (Rom 8:31-32). With God on
our side, we need never be afraid.
Second,
we must be confident. Even in the face of great
evil in the world, even while undergoing severe
trials, even in seeming defeats, we know that victory
has already been won by Jesus. The fullness of victory
and salvation will come at the final judgment. Till
that time, we endure and persevere. We suffer hardships
and oppression, allowing these to purify us and
push us closer to God. We simply do our work.
Because
of who God is and what He has already done for us,
we face a future full of hope. Nothing can “separate
us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
(Rom 8:39b). We have got it made! So we simply trust
in Jesus.
Let
us move on
Given
all the above, we should give thanks in all circumstances,
rejoice always, and pray without ceasing (1 Thes
5:16-18). We thank God for all He has done and for
all the graces and blessings that we have received
and will continue to receive. We rejoice in our
salvation and in the privilege of bringing that
salvation to the world. We pray always in order
to be connected to the Vine, to keep the faith,
and to grow in holiness.
And
let us evangelize with a passion. Let us share God’s
gift of salvation to all. Let us proclaim Christ
to the world.
“With
joy you will draw water at the fountain of salvation,
and say on that day: Give thanks to the Lord, acclaim
his name;
among the nations make known his deeds, proclaim
how exalted is his name.”
(Isaiah 12:3)
God
bless us all.
Your
brother and servant,
Frank
Padilla
