Our Journey to the Cross: Feb. 26, 2018

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Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr.

Prayer of Presence: 
Here I am as fully in your presence as I am able to be,
Offering my fears, my needs, my hopes, my love, and my life.
For I am yours and belong to no other.
40 Days of with Wesley by Rueben P. Job, p. 29

Scripture: Today’s reading is from Exodus 20:1-11
Then God spoke all these words: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God; you shall not do any work–you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days, the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and consecrated it.

Reflection: 
This portion of the Decalogue (Ten Commandments) addresses the first part of the Great Commandment Jesus refers to in the gospels. That is, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37; Mark 12:28; Luke 10:27). To “love God” is not so much an imperative that is imposed on Israel, rather it is a call to a right response of worship within a covenant relationship between God and God’s people grounded upon all the good things God has done for them out of steadfast love. Loving God with all of one’s being also reminds the people of who they are and to whom they belong.

Questions for Reflection:

• What is one thing that God has liberated you from? 
• Is your worship of God based on fear or gratitude?
• Is your assurance of God’s love for you deepened when you worship?

Prayer Focus: For the grace to remain faithful in our love of God.

Concluding Prayer: 
O God, our bread, our milk, and our honey;
in the resurrection of your Son, you have brought us to your table.
Feed us with your plenty, and enlarge our table for all the hungry,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Alleluia.
(John 6:35, 1 Peter 2:2; Ezequiel 3:3)