In today’s first reading, we see God delivering some bad news to Noah. “I will wipe out from the earth the men whom I have created…for I am sorry that I made them.” Ouch! More on this in a moment. In the Gospel from Mark 8, Jesus warns his disciples to “Guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” Even though the Pharisees and Herod had seen so many signs and miracles, they would not be convinced of the coming of the Kingdom. Their hearts were hardened.
Let’s take a look at the opening line of today’s first reading. “When the Lord saw how great was man’s wickedness on earth, and how no desire that his heart conceived was ever anything but evil, he regretted that he had made man on earth, and his heart was grieved.” Can you imagine that there was a time when God was so ticked off at people that He regretted that He had made us? We, of course, like to see God as an all-loving and all-forgiving Father. So, is this a different God than the loving Father that Jesus introduced to us? The answer is no.
Like any parent, God’s heart is grieved when His children do bad things. If you are a parent, you know exactly what I mean. When our kids mess up, we can get REALLY ticked off. And when they mess up, a good parent metes out punishment. And so it is with God. As I look back at the time of Noah, I hope that we’re not reaching that time of critical mass again in the eyes of God. We each need to do our little part to see that that doesn’t happen.
Father, you know that we do boneheaded things; indeed, even wicked, evil things. Show us the error of our ways, and give us repentent hearts today, that we may always do what is right in your eyes. Amen.
0 comments