The WORD in ADVENT - First Monday
November 28, 2022: Isaiah 4: 2-6; Matthew 8: 5-11
We began Advent yesterday with a call, "to return to the Reign"! And what could that mean - it means to find the fundamental meaning of our faith in the Lord, which fills us with hope, love and joy!
One of the concrete expressions of faith is, total confidence that the Lord has the power to act on my behalf! The Word today explains this reality to us in a splendid manner. Isaiah infuses hope into the people in exile that the Lord will bring back their glory to them, that the Lord will forgive all their iniquities, cleanse them and heal them! He is building up their shattered faith.
It is the same faith that Jesus notices in the centurion, a non-Israelite, a 'pagan' according to the Jews... Jesus sees the confidence that the centurion had in Jesus' power to heal that servant at home. He had no doubt whatsoever and surrendered the whole situation to Jesus. He did not demand, nor did he prescribe to Jesus what is to be done; he just surrendered. The faith stands out here.
Work-stress, family problems, personal crises, misunderstandings, relationship issues, daily concerns, discouragements, health issues... when we are faced with these - we need to have an unassailable confidence that Our Lord has the power to act on our behalf. Let us pray for the strength of faith, to say as the centurion does today: "Lord, only say a word, and your servant will be healed!"