A Recipe for Life ~ A Reflection by Betty Alexis

The first reading today talks about a jealous God whose promise to us is that if we love Him and keep His commandments, He will have mercy on us. The depth of God's love is illustrated in this scripture. God made it a point to tell Moses that He is a jealous God. Imagine how Moses felt after receiving this message for the people. Since God is extremely jealous, we must be very careful not to antagonize Him, as it is clearly stated in the first reading the consequences of disobedience.

We learn too, that God has big plans for us, especially since we were chosen by Him. It is evident that God is not going to let us off the hook so easily. God has put into place a "recipe for life" for mankind: The Ten Commandments. If we follow this recipe, we will all have life everlasting.

The paradox, that is spoken of by Paul, places the cross of Jesus in an inexplicable position; as some people still need signs and wonders to believe in God. However, those who have been called by Christ have no need for signs. For we know that Jesus' death on the cross - the ultimate sacrifice, is enough for those of us who believe. The same God who can inflict punishment on third and fourth generations of people is also a very generous and merciful God who has promised to be merciful to the thousandth generation of those who keep His commandments.

Why do some of us, when things are going great in our lives, tend to forget how we got to that point? We forget that God is the focal point in our lives and we revert to our old ways. This is what happened in the Gospel reading and is why Jesus had to cleanse the temple. The people did not consistently follow the "recipe for life" that was written. The "jealous God" we learned about in the first two readings was evident here. God's passion for us is so great that if we allow Him to dwell within us (consume us), His love alone would be sufficient.


~ Third Sunday of Lent ~