On being a nice human

Good morning, dear reader and a blessed Sunday to you. This is our last Sunday of the Lenten season. Next Sunday we begin the Passion of Christ, where we will see the story of His death and resurrection begin. 

We begin this morning with the prophet Isaiah. God is speaking to the people, reminding them that He is the God who makes way for all. He is the one who rules the oceans and the lands. He is also the one who punishes the wicked and rewards the just. He reminds us that He is the one who created us in His image. He is the one who puts on us the task of spreading His word. 

God also reminds us that we are not to focus on the things of the past. What's done is done. We are to savour today and enjoy the things He has given us. He has provided the life-giving waters of His words to help us on this journey. Without that, we become like the baren desert. We need to start each new day with His word, His instruction. It is through these words that we are to conduct ourselves and our life; to remind all that He is responsible for our being here. 

Philippians is one of my favourite books in the Bible. It was written by the apostle Paul, who, at the time, was in prison for spreading the word of Jesus, facing his imminent death. He is using this letter to guide the faithful Christians on how to live a life that speaks of Jesus. He is recounting his thankfulness for his conversion at Damascus (Acts 9:1-31). Paul is reminding us that we need to always remain thankful and humble for all that we have found in Jesus. To remember that it is not the material things in life that count, but our faith in Jesus is what is important. 

Moving on to our reading in John. We see Jesus is teaching the people who have come to the temple to listen to Him. In the middle of this, a group of men barge in, hauling with them a woman who they have caught committing adultry. They know that this is a mortal sin that breaks one of the great commandments. This sin must be punished. The men want to use this event as a way to solidify their case against Jesus. They're basically saying that Jesus knows this is a sin, that the woman needs to be punished, and if He doesn't punish her, then He is breaking the law as well. But their plan backfires. Jesus tells them that the person who is blameless, who is without sin, should be the first one to stone the woman. At this point, I imagine the gentlemen must've looked at each other, realising that none of them are as lily white as they claim to be. They slowly shuffle out of the temple, leaving the woman and Jesus alone. Jesus then looks at the woman and asks her where are the people who said she is guilty? Are they still here? He tells her that He is not here to judge her. He forgives her sins, tells her to be good and not do it again. He is giving her a second chance to change her life. I'm sure the woman was grateful and would not take a chance on her life again. 

All of this reminds us that we owe our lives to our Creator. That Jesus took our sins with us to the cross. All we need to do in return is live our lives according to the laws that God set before us. When we sin, and we will, we need to admit to what we have done wrong and ask forgiveness, promising that we will try to do better. This does not mean we are free to go and do it again, ask forgiveness again.. it doesn't work that way. If we constantly do the things we know are wrong, then we are not truly sorry for having done it. Those actions WILL be punishable. As the saying goes, we reap what we sow. And that, dear reader, is what I mean when I say be a nice human. Treat others as you wish to be treated, let your life speak of your faith, and be thankful every day. 

Enough of my preaching.. go out there and spread love and kindness. Be a nice human to all you meet!! 😇

Here is a video for the song "To The Cross" by Paul Baloche:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mzqwnAvpTQ