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party, then I can expect the whole contractual relationship to end. So, if I don˅t pay my
car insurance, the insurance is cancelled, or if I don˅t turn up for work one day, I can
lose my job.
In the kind of covenantal relationship that God has with us, there are also certain expec-
tations that one party has of the other. Our part of the covenantal relationship is to love
God above everything else and to try to follow God˅s ways of love and justice. God has
promised as his part of the covenant that he will love us unconditionally, and he will
never abandon us, regardless of what we do. Like the rainbow which God sent Noah,
Jesus too is a sign of God˅s covenant with usˁindeed there could be no greater sign of
God˅s love for us than sending his Son. Both parts of the covenant, divine and human,
are united perfectly in Jesus; through his unconditional and reconciling love for each one
of us, Jesus shows us how we must love God and one another.
Can we live up to our part of the covenant, following Jesus in the paths of love and jus-
tice? Can we surrender to the extraordinary love which God has for us? Can we even
begin to wrap our minds around the fact that, whatever we have done, however resistant
we are, for any reason, to opening ourselves to God˅s love, the offer is never withdrawn,
and the covenant is never cancelled? Jesus could not have said it plainer than he did:
ˈThis is the time of fulfillment. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in
the gospel.ˉ We are all invited to be part of the Kingdom.
Prayer
Grant, O Lord, that we may grow in understanding of the riches hidden in Christ, that our
hearts may grow in love for God and that we may strive to follow the paths of love and
justice. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the
unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
_______
Cambria Smith
Parish Life Director