Every day of Lent, Bishop Edward Malesic writes a Scripture reflection for the faithful. Follow the bishop on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Click HERE for the readings.
Pilate killed a group of Galileans, not because they were sinners, but because Pilate was. And then there was the case of the people who were killed when a tower fell on them. They didn’t die in that tragic way because they were guilty, but because time is short. Time runs out for the good and for the bad alike.
A plane crashes and kills all on board. A person dies of cancer. Tragedy strikes. That’s life. Life is short. Make the most of it. Time is a gift that is given to us so that we can make our way to God.
God is patient with us, as Jesus relates in the story of the fig tree that didn’t bear fruit after three years. Some wanted to uproot the tree. But the gardener said, “Leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future.” God is like the gardener. We are alive today because God has given us a reprieve. Elsewhere in scripture this is made clearer, “The Lord does not delay his promise, as some regard ‘delay,’ but he is patient with you, not wishing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
May we use the time of Lent well so that we can “Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
Have a blessed week everyone.