26 May 2016 - cry out to Jesus

[ Today's Readings ]

“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” 
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.

Let's cry out to Jesus today. The world will try to silence us. It doesn't believe that Jesus can help us. And even when it believes that he can it often doesn't believe that he cares. It sees him as interested in lofty goals. World peace, perhaps, but not in hearts. But Jesus's interest first and foremost in individual hearts! World peace can only be a consequence of what he does first in each one of us. Let's keep calling no matter what the world says.

But he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me.”

We need to do this because we are all blind. Like this blind man, like Paul, only faith can give us our sight. The one thing which is truly worth seeing, the desire that lays it the core of our desire to see it all, is God. And only the pure of heart shall see him. He is the one "who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

Like the blind man, we may experience rejection. Jesus understands.

Come to him, a living stone, rejected by human beings
but chosen and precious in the sight of God,

Jesus calls us to himself. If we accept his invitation and embrace faith in him he takes the fragmented pieces of our lives and builds them into houses. He takes us from the sands of life apart from him and plants us on the solid rock of lives based on his word. We just have to let him do it.

like living stones,
let yourselves be built into a spiritual house
to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices
acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Let's call upon him for healing. Let us allow ourselves to be built. Let's live the lives that this makes possible.

Once you were no people
but now you are God’s people;
you had not received mercy
but now you have received mercy.

We can now keep away from worldly desires that wage war against the soul. We can now maintain good conduct among the gentiles so that they can observe our good works and glorify God.

With the psalmist, let us sing:

Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.