For our salvation

SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT
February 28, 2021

Abraham’s fidelity to God was tested and he was found worthy, ready to sacrifice his only son in order to win friendship with God. By that singular act, Abraham won God’s favor in a way that no one prior or after him could do. His faith became an example for generations to come. In the second reading, Saint Paul reminds us of the huge sacrifice that God made on our behalf, offering up His son, for the sake of our salvation. Although Jesus’s death on the cross for our salvation will always remain a mystery, it is the greatest act of love and devotion to the will of the father, whose love for us is boundless. In both cases, we are reminded about how the idea of sacrifice is at the center of our faith. The disciples of Jesus were no strangers to this call to a life of sacrifice, although they often wondered, sometimes aloud, why they had to give up so much. We are all too familiar with Peter’s question to Jesus as follows: “What about us who have abandoned everything and followed you?” (Matt. 19:27). Jesus assured him and the rest of the disciples of the glory that lies ahead. In today’s gospel however, He decided to reveal to them a glimpse of that glory as he took them to the mount of transfiguration. They saw and were amazed, so much so that they wanted to live in that moment of glory forever. Lent is a time when we are reminded of the need to choose God over everything else. It is a time to forsake sin and all those self-destructive habits which create a barrier between us and God. The option for God must require some sacrifices, sometimes huge sacrifices. Yet, they are sacrifices that must be made if we desire a relationship with Him. As we continue this 40 day journey, we pray that God may open our mind’s eye, to see like the disciples, what glory lies ahead for those who walk in His ways, and that He may grant us the courage, like Abraham, to choose Him over and above everything else, Amen.