Beyond Borders: Unveiling God's Unexpected Grace
March 4, 2024 - Monday of the Third Week of Lent
2 Kings 5:1-15ab; Psalm 42:2, 3; 43:3, 4; Luke 4:24-30
Our liturgical psalm today comes from two psalms: Psalms 42 and 43. In several Hebrew manuscripts, these two psalms are preserved as one psalm, and the biblical commentaries treat them as one unit. The first two stanzas are taken from Psalm 42, and they speak about a deep longing for God. The soul of the psalmist longs for God the way a deer longs for water.
The theme of seeking God and His deliverance resonates with the narrative in the first reading. Naaman, the commander of the army of the king of Syria, seeks healing for his leprosy in the land of Israel. The story highlights the truth that salvation comes from the Jews, but God's grace and mercy are not confined to Jews alone (see John 4:22-24). Naaman, initially resistant to the prophet Elisha's simple instructions, is ultimately healed when he humbles himself and follows God's guidance through the prophet.
Jesus brings this story up in his sermon in Nazareth, emphasizing the fact that God's grace is for everyone. Elijah and Elisha were Jewish prophets, and yet through them, God saved two Gentile people: a Sydonian widow and a Syrian military officer. Jesus was a Jew, and yet many non-Jews received God’s grace during his ministry on earth. The apostles of Christ were all Jews, and yet they brought the Gospel to the whole world. On the other hand, those who despised the Jews and thought that their religious traditions and sacred books were better than the Jewish tradition and the Bible could not experience God's grace.
This liturgy of the Word emphasizes that God's mercy is not limited to a specific group of people but is available to all who approach Him with faith and humility. Whether it's Naaman's initial rejection of Elisha's instructions or the people's initial rejection of Jesus in his hometown, both stories serve as a warning against disbelief and closed-mindedness. We all long for God. This longing can be explained by St. Augustine, who said: "You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you." Together, as one human family, forgetting our differences, we come to the waters of grace that never dry up.
In his longing for God, the psalmist prays: “Send forth your light and your truth” (Psalm 43:3). He asks that the Savior be sent to us, and God answers that prayer by sending His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Light of the world (John 8:12); Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He alone can heal us of our spiritual leprosy; He alone can quench our thirst for God; and in Him alone can our hearts find rest. He not only passed through the midst of his people (Luke 4:30), but also passed through the gates of death to pave the way for us to everlasting life, to Mount Zion, the Heavenly Jerusalem. There, "He will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away" (see Revelation 21:4).