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| SALVATION. Image from thepreachersword.com |
"I say to you today you will be with me in Paradise."
- Luke 23:43
Salvation is our true final destination. Salvation in its fullest sense is the attainment of perfect union with God in heaven. Christ Jesus did not come only for the purpose of freeing us from the bondage to sin and be left alone upon this earth to enjoy the blessings of the earth. No. We are not intended to live on this earth forever: we are mere pilgrims and our true home is in the Father's house [see John 14: 1-2].
If we are meant for this earth, the Lord did not have to leave us behind. He would have taken the throne of King David and restored the Kingdom of Israel. But since God's design for us is in His abode, each of us ought to say to the Lord, "Remember us when you're already in your kingdom!" just like the repentant thief who did not join the jeering of the crowd led by the Pharisees like the other thief.
It is worth noting that God takes into consideration the last minute conversion of someone who had lived a life of sin. This truth St John Vianney must have kept in his heart when asked by a woman who was worried about the state of his husband's soul who committed suicide by jumping from a bridge. To console her, the holy priest said, "Remember, there is a distance from the bridge to the water."
But for most of us, we don't have to wait for that moment when we are in the brink of death before we truly repent and ask forgiveness from God. We must already ask Him now to remember us if we haven't done it yet and if we have already done it, we must sustain it by keeping the flame of God's love in our hearts by loving and serving one another the way Jesus our Lord loved and served us.
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