At our very center is a gifted dignity deeper than any good that we do, which puts us at ease with God. Ephesians says we have received something like a “down payment” or “first installment” of eternal life, just as a pregnant woman has within her a new life, yet unborn. She has the foretaste but must wait for the birth. She holds the future within her but is still guessing what it will be like.
We are said to be “sealed with the Holy Spirit,” the pledge of our future. Paul can offer no logical explanation for this, but that we were “chosen, predestined” by our loving God. We were loved before we could love in return, chosen to be God’s very own people. Our life should then be lived in praise to God’s glory. If our life and its growth and fulfilment are due to grace, how free and confident we can be in God’s presence.
God Cares for You
The exuberant liberty of spirit is repeated in the Gospel. What was said in the dark we proclaim from rooftops. If our merciful God cares about sparrows and the small details of creation, then we need fear nothing. “You are more precious than many sparrows.” The grace of this God makes us free, confident, and already part-way to heaven.
Jesus uses image of the five sparrows. They simply were a commodity to be bought. Jesus tells his listeners that not one of the sparrows escapes God’s attention. Today, Jesus reminds us that we don’t need to worry and every one of us is deeply significant to God. May we pray for the grace to trust and believe that God loves us more than we can ever imagine. How deep is your faith?
