We are broken, but Jesus leads us back to God

Father Perry D. Leiker, pastor.

A reflection on the daily readings, for Saturday of the Christmas Weekday, by Father Perry.

By Father Perry D. Leiker, pastor

Epiphany is celebrated on Sunday, Jan, 7.

+ John’s first letter again and again calls us to avoid sin, to remain in God through Christ, to love and not to hate, and to be on guard against idols.

In fact, the very last line of this letter in Verse 21 of Chapter 5 says it quite directly, “Children, be on guard against idols.”

Remaining faithful to the faith and avoiding the idolatrous religions of neighbors must have become rampant; and the Christians must have needed constant reminding, constant urging, constant corrections, and constant attention.

The second to the last verse of the same and last chapter roots us in the truth that this letter cannot emphasize enough —

“And we are in the one who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.”

Here we clearly see John’s purpose.

+ In the Gospel today we have options.

The first plants us 30 years after Jesus’ birth (Chapter 1, Verses 7 to 11); and he is baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist, after John has proclaimed his unworthiness to even “loosen the thongs” of Jesus’ sandals.

And most noteworthy is the descent of the Spirit of God, “like a dove” over Jesus with a heavenly voice proclaiming, “You are my Beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

+ Then in the next two options, both in Luke 3, Verses 23 to 38, or the same chapter, but various verses between 31 and 38.

Strangely, both of these texts take us chronologically back to the beginning with God.

Luke gives us a Genealogy, and also links it to Jesus’ baptism and the beginning of his ministry.

So Luke wants us to understand and believe that this Jesus is the Christ and his roots truly go “back to God,” as Jesus is proclaimed by Luke to be “the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.”

And this follows both logically and deeply spiritually from God’s own proclamation of his pleasure in announcing Jesus’ sonship with God.

Whereas Matthew’s Gospel begins with a Genealogy, Luke presented his own Genealogy just after Jesus was baptized.

There is no confusion or question as to who Jesus is and what his ministry is all about.

Jesus comes from God to lead us and our broken humanity, broken by sin, back to God.

And further, this will be done divinely by Jesus on the cross as he loves and forgives, and gives us the model of what and how to do that in total pain and rejection, and human failure, but Divine Redemption.

Oh Luke, what purpose you have! Oh Luke, how you tell the story is truly good news!

Oh Luke, how wonderfully you bring alive those words from today’s Gospel verse from Mark —

“The heavens were opened and the voice of the Father thundered: This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”

And listen, we must. We just simply must!

Father Perry Dean Leiker is the 13th pastor of St. Bernard Catholic Church. Reach him at (323) 255-6142. Email Father Perry at pleiker@stbernard-church.com.