This evening’s reflection on the sacred scriptures began with the first moments of creation when God created the heavens and earth. (Gen. 1.1-2.2) He fashioned humanity in his own divine image. “After our likeness,” he said of the creation of man and woman.
Through the course of this Easter Vigil, the scriptures presented to us the unfolding of God’s divine plan. Through time, God patiently taught us his wisdom and mercy. With each passing generation, God crafted a covenant of live with the people he had chosen to be his own. This culminated with the coming of Jesus. On the night before he died, the Lord look tenderly upon each of his disciples saying, “You are my friends.” (Jn. 15.14) Through the Lord’s death and resurrection, Jesus called his friends to a newness of life.
To understand what Jesus has done for us, (Jn. 13.12) we must return to the story of Genesis. In the beginning, God created the heavens and earth. Along with all the heavenly bodies – the sun, the moon, and the stars – God also created time. Time, as a part of creation, marks the movement of the created universe in keeping with divine wisdom and mercy. Through the gradual movement of all created things, measured in time, the Divine Creator reveals himself. Psalm 19 explained to us, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament proclaims the works of his hands. Day unto day pours forth speech; night unto night whispers knowledge.” (Ps. 19.2-3)
The creator of heaven and earth does not exist in time. He, who created time, lives in eternity. His infinite wisdom unfolded through history, is always fully present and fully alive for each moment -- past, present, and future. He was, is and ever will be revealing himself to us. His infinite power is revealed through boundless mercy. We have reflected on this in the accounts of salvation history proclaimed to us this evening.
In the fullness of time, God sent his Son to us. (Gal. 4.4) The Eternal Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. (Jn. 1.14) Through his death and resurrection, Jesus, the eternal Son of Father, opened eternity for his friends, for us. Through Jesus, God himself entered into time so that we could be part of eternity. By all that Jesus said and did during his earthy ministry, each moment brought God’s divine wisdom into every personal encounter. His whole life was in harmony with the Father’s desire to save humanity.
This is the newness of life, of which Paul spoke. Paul instructed us, “As to his death, he died to sin once and for all; as to his life, he lives for God. Consequently, you too must think of yourselves as being dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus.” “Living for God in Christ Jesus” gives us a new horizon, an eternal horizon. (Rom. 6.3-11) To be a slave to sin is to live in a created transitory world that fades with time. This perspective enslaves us and detracts us from the greater horizon that rose on the morning of Easter.
The Sacred Heart of Jesus becomes a window into the boundless mercy of God. Jesus helps us to see the merciful creator who has given us creation and time so that he could lead us to eternity. He has entered time. He has entered into your lives so that he could speak to you heart-to-heart. He invites you, “My friend, my friends, come follow me.”