An Ambassador of Christ
I've been away from this for too long, I know. There is just so much grace in this world that I often want to sit back and enjoy it, soak it all in! Of course, this is selfish, I know, so I am once again turning my attentions to this blog, that it might have some small impact on your lives this day. I have so many wonderful things to write, to share with all of you! I pray that the Spirit will send me the words to communicate these things to you over the coming weeks.
Last week I attended the first presentation in a month-long series about living as a Catholic in the world. How important a job it is that we have as the Children of God! Some people misunderstand the Christian life, viewing it as impossible - God expects perfection they say. But this is not the case. God knows that we aren't a perfect people, God knows that we will sin. Yes, we are called to turn from sin and to live a holy life in service of God and his will, but this is not an expectation of perfection, it is merely an invitation to strive for it.
Remember this: as Catholics, we are part of the BODY OF CHRIST! Lumen Gentium, one of the Dogmatic Constitutions of the Catholic Church, says this about our role as laity in the world, "These faithful are by baptism made on body with Christ and are constitutes among the People of God; they are in their own way made sharers in the priestly, prophetical, and kingly function of Christ; and they carry out for their own part the mission of the whole Christian people in the Church and in the world." This means that, regardless of whether or not we feel worthy to be members of Christ's body, we are! As members of Christ's body, then, we are called to live a life in service of others.
Those of you who attended Holy Thursday Mass will remember the celebration of the Washing of the Feet. The washing of the disciple's feet by Christ is told in John 13:1-20. In this passage, Christ, even though he is God, humbles himself by washing the feet of his Apostles. This act is more than a gesture of kindness, it is a challenge - a commandment - that we do the same for others:
You call me 'teacher' and 'master,' and rightly so, for indeed I am.
If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you
ought to wash one another's feet.
I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you,
you should also do.
Remember, the Apostles weren't perfect, and yet, here they are, served by our Lord and Savior, and called to take the message of God's love to all the world. Christ came not to be served, but to serve! And he calls us to do the same. We are called, each and every one of us, to be an Ambassador of Christ's love to the world. "But I'm a sinner," you might say, "I am not worthy of the love of Christ, and I can't possibly be Christ for others!" Wrong! You are the perfect person to be Christ for others. Sin is a perfectly normal aspect of the human condition. If we were completely without sin, there would have been no need for the salvation that Christ has made possible through His death. Christ has saved us from the POWER of sin - but this is not to say that he has eliminated sin from the world.
Forget not that the Apostles, themselves, were sinners. Peter drew his sword against the high priest's servant and cut off his ear, and he later denied Christ three times. But these sins did not in any way diminish the love Christ had for Peter, nor the responsibility that Peter had to bring Christ's love to the world. To say that our sinfulness makes it impossible for us to be the love of Christ for the world is to let sin rule our lives! Do not let your sin control you, because to allow this is to turn away from the salvation that Christ suffered to secure for you. The love Christ has for YOU is boundless - it is a love that took Him even to His death, the painful death of a criminal.
Many of us may be scared or hesitant to accept the love the Christ offers us. We can't help but think that we can't possibly be worthy. Surely God doesn't mean to love ME. Surely His love is better offered to someone else. But He does love you, and this love brings with it so many wonderful gifts. But it also brings responsibility. It brings the responsibility, as I have outlined above, to be Christ to others. But this responsibility is not a burden, my brothers and sisters! It is the most magnificent privilege you could ever possibly imagine. It is a privilege that exceeds any other you could ever imagine for yourself. You are called to bring God to others. To bring Christ to others. To bring the Spirit of the Lord to others. This is the greatest gift in the world, and it is yours to bring to others. Oh the joy! God lavishes His love upon you and calls to you, "Child! Even one drop of this love is sufficient to sustain the world. Take, then, this infinite supply, and give as much as you can to every person you encounter." God gives us more love than we could ever possibly need. And he gives to us freely. Even in our sin God loves us. He forgives us our sins. He calls us always back into His loving arms and gives us another infiniate supply of his healing love.
God's love is in your heart and in your life. Turn not away from that love. Accept the love that he gives to you, and live in that love. If you choose to live in the love of God you will never want for anything else in this life, for everything that you need will be provided for you. Accept God's love, be God's love, live in God's love!
I love you all!