“God is a forgiving and merciful God, he knows that we are bound to make mistakes, we are imperfect. So whenever we make mistakes and we ask him for the forgiveness of sin, he hears and forgives us….This Advent, make a good Sacramental Confession. It’s the best Christmas gift you can or will receive”

Gospel Text: (Lk 5:17-26)

One day as Jesus was teaching,
Pharisees and teachers of the law,
who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem,
were sitting there,
and the power of the Lord was with him for healing. 
And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed;
they were trying to bring him in and set him in his presence. 
But not finding a way to bring him in because of the crowd,
they went up on the roof
and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles
into the middle in front of Jesus. 
When Jesus saw their faith, he said,
“As for you, your sins are forgiven.” 

Then the scribes and Pharisees began to ask themselves,
“Who is this who speaks blasphemies? 
Who but God alone can forgive sins?” 
Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them in reply,
“What are you thinking in your hearts? 
Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’
or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 
But that you may know
that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”–
he said to the one who was paralyzed,
“I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” 

He stood up immediately before them,
picked up what he had been lying on,
and went home, glorifying God. 
Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God,
and, struck with awe, they said,
“We have seen incredible things today.”

 

Reflect, today, upon your desire to receive God’s forgiveness in your life.  Do you long to hear these words spoken to you?  Do you long to experience the mercy and forgiveness of Jesus in your life?  The reason He came from Heaven to Earth was to offer you the forgiveness of your sins.  Miracles do not matter in the end.  What matters is mercy and forgiveness.  When you receive this gift of His mercy you will also glorify God with a joyous and holy astonishment as you see this incredible gift unfold in your life.