Monday, 17th Week

SIN

So Moses went back to the Lord and said,”Ah, this people has indeed committed a grave sin in making a god of gold for themselves. If you would only forgive their sin!”

INTRODUCTION

Man fell into a hole. He couldn't get out because it was slippery. So he started to cry for help. Good thing a man was passing by and heard him. The man looked down at the hole. Since there was no rope or wood around, he fell flat on his stomach and extended his hand to the man in the hole. The man lost no time in grabbing the hand of the passerby. With a bit of effort, he was able to get out of the hole. Grateful for having been rescued, he invited his savior for dinner.

SIN

This story is also our story. We fell into the hole of sin. We couldn't get out by ourselves. Somebody had to come and save us. We needed a savior. And that savior was Jesus Christ.

But take note. The rescuer came but for the man to get out of the hole, he had to grab the hand of the rescuer. Jesus has come into the world. He has offered and continues to offer his hand. But until we take his hand, he can not save us.

What does it mean to take the hand of Jesus?

1. We have to be sorry. But it is not enough to be sorry because what we did was wrong. It is not enough to be sorry because our sin has hurt people. We have to be sorry because we sinned against God.
When David sinned by committing adultery with Bathsheeba and then having Uriah, the husband killed in battle, Nathan confronted him David’s immediate response was not “I have sinned against God!”

2. We have to confess our sins. Confessing our sins means owning them. It means taking responsibility for our sins. Kailangang aminin natin ang ating mga kasalanan. It means bringing them to a priest in the sacrament of reconciliation. On the evening of Easter Sunday, Jesus said, “Whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven them. Whose sins you retain, they are retained.”

3. We need to do reparation. In my ministry as a confessor, when a daughter or son confesses having sinned against his or her parent, the penance I would give is: Do something to make your mom or your dad happy. Why this penance? I use algebra to explain why. (-1) + (+ 1)= 0. That is, (-1) means you did wrong. (+1) means you do something good to make up for the wrong that you did. That way you cancel it out. In other words, you made up for the bad that you did by doing something good.

4. We need to avoid sin. When a woman caught in adultery was brought to Jesus, he saved the woman from the penalty of stoning to death. But before sending her home, Jesus told her, “From now on do not commit this sin.” We need to take steps to avoid the occasion of sin. If you realize that people you hang out with are a BI to you, you need to split with them.

CONCLUSION

But what if I commit the same sin again? A High school student once told me that he doesn't dare to go to confession again. It’s not that he doesn’t want to confess his sins. But he said that he promised God so many times to avoid his sins but he ends up doing them again. Nahihiya na siya sa Diyos.

When we sin, we separate ourselves from God. When we repent, we return to God. Which would make God happier? That we stay away? Certainly not!

No matter what we did. No matter how long we stayed away from him. God would be happiest when like the Prodigal Son, we return home to the Father.