MON AMI, MI AMIGO, MY BUDDY
Wednesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
My dear encountered couples:
Jesus didn’t want to frighten people. Why else would he not want them to know who he was? We are told that wherever Jesus went he was followed by crowds of people pushing against him. Unclean spirits within some of those who touched him cried out, “You are the Son of God!”, but Jesus “sternly ordered them not to reveal who he was.” Why would Jesus not want people to know who he was?
God and Christ operate in mysterious ways. Though they have the best of reasons for all they do, it can leave us wondering, for we would often do things other ways. Why not let the people know he was the Son of God? Maybe because they were not ready yet. He first wanted everybody to feel comfortable with him; he didn’t want them bowing and kowtowing, getting down on their knees in adoration. He wanted them to feel at home with him, to relax with him, to feel free to tell him anything they wanted without fear of reprimand or reprisal. He wanted to be their friend and brother without feeling intimidated, which quite probably would have happened had they known he was the Son of God.
But we know, don’t we? We know who Jesus is. So we genuflect, we kneel, we make the sign of the cross, we do all sorts of worship things - all good and respectful things in regard to the Son of God. But Jesus does not want us afraid of him. He did not come to be our Lord and Master. He didn’t come to judge us, but to be our friend and companion - our closest and most intimate.
The Son of God became Jesus the kind, young man in hopes of getting us to feel at ease and relax with him and his Father. If we don’t learn that before we get to heaven, will we be nervous in God’s presence for all eternity? If so, it won’t really be heaven will it? Jesus dreams of becoming your closest friend and buddy. Will you allow his dream to come true?
