22 October 2013 - the power of one

22 October 2013 - the power of one

For just as through the disobedience of one man
the many were made sinners,
It doesn't seem fair that one person can ruin things for everyone.  Yet originally Adam is called to bless the whole earth.  His legacy is meant to be one of life, order, and peace.  But the very vastness of this blessing backfires on us when he fails to pass it on.  In an even greater way than a bad father can negatively influence children when he is meant to bless them Adam leaves the world without the grace to resist sin even though he is meant to be the conduit of this grace.

But God does not leave us there.  He brings forth a new Adam, one who can pass on this grace to all who have faith in him.

so, through the obedience of the one
the many will be made righteous.

Adam lets his trust in God die in his heart as he takes a bite of the fruit.  But Jesus trusts throughout his life, throughout his suffering, all the way to the cross.

Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Burnt offerings or sin offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”
This is the obedience of the one that undoes the sin of Adam and makes us righteous.  It is a far greater blessing even than that which Adam loses.

For if, by the transgression of the one,
death came to reign through that one,
how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace
and the gift of justification
come to reign in life through the one Jesus Christ.

This is why we keep our loins girded and our lamps alight.  This is why we don't grow tired in the watches of the night.  We know that we depend entirely on his grace.  Only in his presence do we servants experience true blessing.  He empowers us to be vigilant because he himself makes his obedience present in us.  Adam doesn't pass this blessing to us but Jesus pours it out in abundance.

Where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more,

Let us announce this justice in the vast assembly of the Church and the world.  Let us not restrain our lips:

May all who seek you
exult and be glad in you,