lenten mission

Confronting sin is not easy; it's not pleasant. It's painful. And we have to name the sin. Sometimes people don't name the sin as sin. The other aspect of dealing with a sin, once we are aware of the sin is, we need to accept a paradox. The paradox is, that there is God's grace in us, and we are always open to God's grace. But at the same time, there is a sinful inclination in us. So these two poles are always in us.

How does the love of God affect me? If it does not affect me, then the love of God is just an abstract, so it doesn't become personal. If the love of God is personal--He loves me deeply--then also He wants a response from me. So how do I respond to His love? The response to love is love.

The Jesus who came, who spoke of God, who spoke of God as a loving Father--it was not that He was drawing some inferences, or that he was talking in metaphysical terms. He was talking in real terms, because He came from the Father. He had experienced that love of the Father. He knew what was the nature of the Father. So it was His experience that caused Him to call God, "Abba, Father."
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