Jesus gave you two commandments – love God with all your heart, all your soul, and with all your mind. Once you arrive at such love his second commandment will become your natural state of being, you will love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus even went as far as to tell us the whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments. Meaning, without them the law is void and the words and prophecies offered by the prophets are meaningless. Wow! This is how big love is! Love is the backbone of everything in this world – love for God and love for others. Before we dive into the power of love and a common block that interferes with love lets chat about Ezekiel in today’s reading.
Ezekiel and His Visions
Let’s start with some facts. Ezekiel was a 30-year-old educated prophet of great significance in Judah who ranked up there with Isaiah and Jeremiah. He experienced amazing visions from God and he seemed to be able to exist at times in the sacred space between heaven and earth. His hopes and dreams for his people had been thwarted by King Nebuchadnezzar. It is likely that the people of Judah were captives of the Babylonians when his prophecies began.
Ezekiel’s prophecies, while revealing a message for the distant future, offered serious warnings for the descendants of Israel. Included in his messages were warnings for the modern tribes of Israel. A close look at scripture tells us that this includes all descendants of Israel– Jews and God’s adopted children like you and I.
Dry Bones
In today’s reading we learn of the “dry bones” Ezekiel witnessed. Bones of those who had died at some future point in time. No longer did these people have life within them. They had become “dry bones” because they separated themselves from the source of all life – God. Eventually these bones would need the breath of God breathed into them so that they could live again – the final step in their coming back alive. This is the same breath of life God gave Adam and Eve. Ezekiel witnessed God offering this breath to Israel so they could indeed live again.
You see God alone has the power to bring the dead back to life and this is what Ezekiel witnessed in his vision. Ezekiel saw those dead as a result of their separation from God, the one who is the source of all life. Ezekiel then witnessed God rescue the whole of Israel. Remember this is a vision of some distant future point in time. And the best part of this vision is that these dry bones became a vast, living army with God’s spirit within once God restored them to life! Once alive God would settle on their (our) land! Amazing, they were once dead, then not only did God make them into a vast army; God then choose to dwell with them. Sounds a bit like Revelation doesn’t it?
“And I heard a great voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them” – Revelation 21:3 (RSVCE)
God’s Promise
God gave Ezekiel a promise for all of us. God will walk among us again! Yet, we must participate in God’s plan and given this, God sent his son with the message we need. A message that is the cornerstone of God’s law and the prophet’s messages – love. We must love. We must love God above all else and we must love our neighbor as ourselves. Yet, this is where we all too often get stuck. Sometimes we just can’t love our neighbor – especially when they have hurt us. What seems so easy can sometimes be unbelievably hard. Why?
Why does something that feels so amazing become seemingly impossible at times? Often the reason can be found in unforgiveness. If we hold unforgiveness in our hearts then we cannot love another. If we could better understand forgiveness, then perhaps we could find it easier to extend. Once extended we open our heart to love in greater capacity as Jesus commanded all of us.
Forgiveness
I have written about forgiveness in Chapter 8: The 4th Face of Struggle: Forgiveness of Self and Others my book, Understanding the Jesus Code. So please allow me to share with you an excerpt from this chapter in today’s reflection.
“Chapter 8: The 4th Face of Struggle: Forgiveness of Self and Others
Your soul craves forgiveness: forgiveness of self, forgiveness of others, and forgiveness of God. And for good reason, because it is through forgiveness that real freedom is achieved. A freedom that promises to open the door to lasting happiness and peace. Without forgiveness, you remain trapped in a prison of harmful emotions. Yet, if you are like most individuals, you often find forgiveness an elusive and impossible dream.
There are many reasons why forgiveness can be hard to experience; however, they can all be overcome with the right guidance. Forgiveness is a key component to The LIVE Method, and it is a key component to this book for good reason: it is a foundational piece toward your freedom. All too often forgiveness is presented without the depth required for it to gain genuine entry into the human heart. Too often a wounded heart is expected to forgive and forget too soon, before the soul has had the opportunity to allow for its full transformation. Too often humanity tends to confuse forgiveness with reconciliation, leaving the victim with a deep sense of guilt, shame, and powerlessness. Maybe this is you. If it is, then there is hope that forgiveness, true forgiveness, will provide a needed pathway for your soul’s growth and ultimate happiness and peace.
When the need for forgiveness arises, you are presented with an opportunity to learn more about yourself and what you need to experience wholeness. While forgiveness may, at first blush, appear to be about the other person, it is actually a doorway into your own soul’s journey and ultimate union with God. Forgiveness is beautiful, patient, multifaceted, mysterious, and healing, but most of all, forgiveness is a journey worth traveling and a journey your soul deeply yearns to experience.
FORGIVENESS OF SELF AND OTHERS – WHY FORGIVENESS?
We have learned up to this point that emotions have a significant impact on our physical health, our emotional health, and our spiritual health. We have also learned how detrimental exclusion can be in the family. Anger and unforgiveness are key emotions found in both topics, so let’s take a look at them now. To begin, these two emotions separate your heart from experiencing the love God has for you. Additionally, they interfere with the growth of your spiritual gifts and their expression in the world.
We all know the feeling of anger; we’ve all been there. Given that love and anger are not congruent with each other, the times we have experienced anger are moments in our lives where love has been limited. Anger is often the result of unforgiveness, when someone has trespassed against you and when someone has wounded you. Both anger and unforgiveness hold power in your subconscious mind, and both limit your ability to give and receive love.
WHAT FORGIVENESS IS AND WHAT IT IS NOT
To begin, forgiveness is a gift you give yourself. Forgiveness is not about the person who has hurt you, and it is not something you give to another. Yes, by extending forgiveness, the one who has harmed you will benefit in some way because they will receive forgiveness and love from you instead of unforgiveness and anger. This is God’s will, my friend. Isn’t this exactly what Jesus called you to do when he told you to love your brother as yourself?
By extending forgiveness, it is your heart that becomes more Christ-like as you model Christ for others to see. Further, by embracing forgiveness, you must face your sinful part in the relationship—even if your only sin is holding unforgiveness in your heart. Once you surrender to forgiveness, you open yourself to God’s mercy and aid. Harboring unforgiveness takes a lot of energy—energy you could use in areas of your life that offer fulfillment and happiness.
For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done that which is evil in thy sight.
—Psalm 51:3-4 (RSVCE)
Remember, forgiveness does not give another person permission to hurt you again. If someone is hurting you, then you become the victim, and they become the wrongdoer. In both cases, neither person is living a life fully alive as God intends. God doesn’t want you to be a victim any more than he wants the other to be the wrongdoer. Sometimes the best thing we can do for the one who is harming us is to let them go, providing we walk away with love and forgiveness in our heart and pray that they find their way to Jesus Christ.”
You Can Do It!
You can grow in forgiveness and Jesus will show you the way as you surrender to him. Perhaps your fist step is to ask Jesus to help you forgive another, sharing with him your struggles. Talk with him and let him know you are trying to love in greater capacity and that you need his aid and assistance. Then perhaps your next step is to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation my friend. Here you will receive the sanctifying grace your souls needs for healing and transformation so you can love more.
Be blessed in your relationship with God and your neighbors. May you forgive and love as you experience the life God has for you! – Carolyn
Sacred Heart of Jesus – have mercy on us.
Today’s Readings: Ezekiel 37:1-14 Psalm 107; Matthew 22:34-40
