God’s love finds those who do not close their hearts to Him. Not everyone has turned their back on Him; not everyone lives indifferently as their earthly life passes by; not everyone remains mired in lethargy or keeps their ears closed to God’s call. There are also those who are faithful to Him!
After Noah, God found Abraham, the father of believers (cf. Rom 4:1-3), and said to him: “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves” (Gen 12:1-3).
And He sealed an eternal covenant with him: “And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you” (Gen 17:7).
And Abraham proved himself worthy of the covenant, even when his love for God was put to the test (cf. Gen 22:1-12). In Abraham, we begin to glimpse the light of the One who would be born in Bethlehem and who was designated by God as Lord of all the peoples of the earth.
Abraham became a friend of God (cf. 2 Chr 20:7; Is 41:8; Jas 2:23) and fought to prevent the sinful city of Sodom from being destroyed (cf. Gen 18:20-33), just as the Messiah would do much later, paying with his own life to redeem the whole sinful human race.
From Abraham’s descendants comes the People of Israel, with its twelve tribes. God walks with Israel and prepares for the coming of His Son. It is a long journey through the desert; it is the story of God’s faithfulness in contrast to the frequent apostasy of His people. It is a true love story! It is the constant courtship of the divine Bridegroom toward His Bride. He wants to lead her home and make her share in His fullness, but she does not truly understand this love. Often, she turns her heart to other gods, but the Lord’s faithfulness remains unshakable:
“In that day, says the Lord, you will call me, ‘My husband,’ and no longer will you call me, ‘My Ba′al.’ And I will make for you a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the creeping things of the ground; and I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land; and I will make you lie down in safety. And I will betroth you to me for ever; I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love, and in mercy” (Hos 2:16, 18-19).
It is this faithfulness of God that far surpasses our unfaithfulness (cf. 2 Tim 2:13). His love is greater than sin and weakness! In God’s Heart, love for His people never dies. Behold our true happiness! And this love leads him to Bethlehem…
Meditation on the reading of the day: https://en.elijamission.net/2023/12/06/
