17 december 2013 - o wisdom

17 december 2013 - o wisdom


The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Jesus doesn't just step onto the scene out of nowhere.  There is context to the coming of the Messiah.  God prepares humanity for this from the very beginning.  He promises, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel" (cf. Gen. 3:15).  He promises, "I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And din your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed" (cf. Gen. 26:4).  He promises, "I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever" (2 Sam. 7:12-13). 

From the beginning God has been laying the foundations of his kingdom.  He is preparing the world for the king whose "scepter shall never depart from Judah, or the mace from between his legs".  What does it mean for us that Jesus does not come out of nowhere?  It means we can take great comfort in the depth of God's plan.  It isn't some impulsive last minute decision.  This plan exists from before the foundation of the world when "he chose us in him ... to be holy and blameless in his sight."  And since this plan is sound it is worthy of all of our trust.

We note that it is a plan not just for any one individual.  It is a plan for the entire family of God.  It is a plan to reestablish the unity of the humanity family that is lost at the fall, emphasized especially at the Tower of Babel.  It is a plan that is all about love, a love which cannot be lived in isolation.  The enemy's plan for us is to make us isolated, lonely, and ineffective.  God's plan is to unite us in love, empowering us to share each others strengths and to face any challenge from the world.

We are meant to be one people in the kingdom built by God the Father.  But we can only be one people if we are willing to follow one king.  If we as individual people are each our own nation-state negotiating treaties with everyone else in an attempt to balance our wants and theirs we will never escape our selfishness to achieve the mutual benefit of all.  We will never achieve peace if we insist on what we imagine to be our rights.  Our sense of justice is tinged with selfishness and not sufficiently tempered by mercy.  Our mercy is lax and has no regard for the demands of justice.  Instead, let us listen to the just one, the one who is mercy itself, the king whom God sends to us.

Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.

In the O Antiphon today we address Jesus as the Wisdom of God.  We recognize this wisdom in his plans which last from age to age.  Let us place all our trust in him.