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Home Sections The Daily B.R.E.A.D. April 16, 2009 - Thursday Meditation (Paradise Lost, Paradise Restored)
April 16, 2009 - Thursday Meditation (Paradise Lost, Paradise Restored) PDF Print E-mail
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Sections - The Daily B.R.E.A.D.
Written by Bobot Apit   
Wednesday, 15 April 2009 12:40
In Jesus, that which is broken, lost, messed up is being restored. Jesus has begun the restoration and will conclude it but, in the meantime, you and I live in a world that groans and longs for our lost paradise. What then are we to do between the now and the not yet? We trust in Jesus, turn from our evil ways, and fulfill the promise made to Abraham that through his descendants all the nations will be blessed. Blessed by Jesus, we become a blessing, but only if we are converted. To Peter, a converted person is one who listens to Jesus.



Acts 3:11-26
Psalm 8:2ab and 5, 6-7, 8-9
Luke 24:35-48 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread. 36 As they were saying this, Jesus himself stood among them. 37 But they were startled and frightened, and supposed that they saw a spirit. 38 And he said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do questionings rise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see; for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see that I have." 41 And while they still disbelieved for joy, and wondered, he said to them, "Have you anything here to eat?" 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he took it and ate before them. 44 Then he said to them, "These are my words which I spoke to you, while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled." 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46 and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things.



Meditation by George Butterfield
Today is Thursday within the Octave of Easter. It’s as if the Church does not get enough Easter on the day itself so it spreads it out over eight days. During that time the readings for Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours focus again and again on the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. This is one of the few times of the church year when there is no Old Testament reading. Instead, we hear the story of the resurrection community.

There are several aspects of the Acts reading that are thought provoking. A man is healed, Peter and John wonder why people look at them, as if they could heal him, and then Peter talks to the crowd about Jesus. You were complicit in the death of the Holy and Righteous one, the very “author of life,” Peter says. The God of their fathers, on the other hand, has glorified Jesus and it is through Jesus that the man has been healed. Peter then calls upon the people to turn to Jesus. If they do, their sins will be forgiven, they will experience times of refreshment, and God will send them the Christ. Jesus is coming, Peter says, but must remain in heaven “until the times of universal restoration.” I like to borrow John Milton’s language to describe human history in three parts: paradise, paradise lost, and paradise restored. In Jesus, that which is broken, lost, messed up is being restored. The apostle Paul refers to the creation as “groaning” and waiting for the revelation of the children of God. Jesus has begun the restoration and will conclude it but, in the meantime, you and I live in a world that groans and longs for our lost paradise. What then are we to do between the now and the not yet? We trust in Jesus, turn from our evil ways, and fulfill the promise made to Abraham that through his descendants all the nations will be blessed. We have been called to be a blessing in this world and that begins with God raising up Jesus and sending him to bless us. Blessed by Jesus, we become a blessing, but only if we are converted. To Peter, a converted person is one who listens to Jesus.

The psalmist seems thoroughly amazed that God cares so much about humans. Why is it, O Lord, considering how glorious you are, that you are mindful of us? You actually care for us. Then, as if that were not enough, you have made us just a little less than the angels, crowned us with glory and honor and made us like you: rulers over everything you have made. The psalmist can think of only one explanation for this: “O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!”

This is a message that disciples of Jesus have been commissioned to take to the ends of the earth. How do we do it? Luke tells us how the earliest disciples did it. Like us, they had troubles, questions, doubts, and, on occasion, were even terrified. How then did they take the good news of Jesus to their world? First, Jesus opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. They had power to share their faith because Jesus was in their minds. Second, in the breaking of the bread, they recognized Jesus. They saw him in the most mundane of things. Finally, in the midst of their greatest doubts, they remembered the words of Jesus: “Peace be with you.”
Understanding – recognition – memory; blessings to cherish during the Octave of Easter and beyond.
 
 

Supplementary Reading
Love Expects The Best

"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things" – Philippians 4:8

Two kinds of birds fly over the California deserts—the hummingbird and the vulture. The vulture spends its time looking for rotten meat. Not so for the hummingbird! It looks for the blooming cactus flowers hidden behind the rocks. Each bird finds what it's looking for. Be a hummingbird, not a vulture. Build bridges, not walls. Believe the best about people and, oddly enough, they will become the people you expect them to be.

When Jesus was on earth he went to the "least" earth had to offer. He believed the best about them and let them know he believed they would become the "salt and light" of the world. And they did. This small band of fishermen became leaders of a great international movement of love and brotherhood.

Jesus asks us to do the same—believe the best about the worst!



* * *
Is there anyone in your life you have trouble believing the best about? Follow the advice given here today—believe the best about that person and, oddly enough, he or she may well become the person you hope for them to be.
* * *

  

Note:   This excerpt was taken from the "Power for Life Daily Devotional
 
 
GOD BLESS US ALL!
PRAY as if everything depended on HIM. ACT as if everything depended on YOU.
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com http://www.mabuhayradio.com/sections/the-daily-bread.html

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