Fr James B Lyons on Knowing God...
Wednesday, 03 March 2010 14:08
Without Jesus Christ, God was and remains unknowable! Despite efforts on the part of humankind to “capture” God by naming as sacred rocks or trees, the sun and moon, mountains and rivers, it was never enough. The human craving to unlock mysteries, to understand, could not break the code to know the Creator of all things.
The Hebrews came closest, accepting God’s self-revelation as a loving parent, a guide and protector, but there remained a great distance between the Creator and creature. Jesus Christ brought God among us. Or, rather, in Jesus God took the unprecedented step of becoming one of us.
Christ means the Anointed One, and Christians believe that Jesus is the fulfilment of God’s promise to the Hebrew people that a Saviour would come to bring all people out of the darkness of “not knowing”, into the light and warmth of God’s loving presence.
In Jesus, we find God wrapped in humanity. Here is a God we can relate to, be friends with, because that’s how we live our lives: in relationships.
Our relationship with God had soured from almost the beginning of creation. The Book of Genesis (Bible) tells us that humankind thought it could do without God or, at least, could be as good as God. We disobeyed to the point of denying ourselves the very friendship we needed for life and became lost in mists and dead ends, as we followed substitutes for the happiness that now lay beyond our grasp.
Jesus came to restore the balance; to light the way home. He is the Word of God, speaking forgiveness and healing. He is God, offering new life through the waters of baptism. The baptised become daughters and sons of God. United in the body of Christ, we accept responsibility for one another and the world in which we live. Knowing God in and through Jesus Christ, my personal life is richer and more complete.
Prayer
The following prayer has been written to help you if you would like a place to start in knowing God.
God of all creation. You make yourself known in Jesus Christ, your Son. Help me to know Jesus that, through him, I may come to you and know you as my constant companion. I want to follow his way by turning aside from selfish ambition. I want to accept that he gave his life for me and carry his cross in loving service of those in need. Lead me to the waters of new life that I might be washed clean of all wrong-doing, become one with Jesus and surrender myself to your embrace. Amen.
What to do now:
- Sit quietly with this prayer, concentrating on some key words: constant companion; cross; service; those in need; waters of new life; surrender… What do they tell you about yourself and your desire to believe?
- Share your thoughts with a friend who is also a Christian or who may also be searching for faith.
- Visit a church and spend time before the cross of Jesus – usually located behind or near the altar. Tell Jesus about your search. Listen to him. Friendships grow through conversation.
- Ask someone you know to be Christian to explain what baptism is about.
- Listen to your heart. That’s where prayer begins.
- Fr James B Lyons
Fr James B Lyons in the Parish Priest at Sacred Heart Cathedral, Wellington.
