The Lord has made his salvation known
November 10, 2023 - Friday
Memorial of Saint Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church
Psalm 98:1-4
Psalm 98 is a hymn that celebrates the reign of the Lord. God’s reign is evident in his wondrous deeds. These wondrous deeds began with creating the universe described in Genesis 1-2. Then came the calling of Abraham, the miraculous birth of Isaac, and the growth of the family of Jacob into a nation. The next stage is connected with Moses, the Exodus from Egypt, the giving of the commandments at Mount Sinai and the entry into the promised land. And when the people sinned against God and were sent into the Babylonian exile, the Lord in his mercy brought them back to their native land.
The psalmist proclaims that “the Lord has made his salvation known in the sight of the nations” (Ps 98:2). He did it in Jesus Christ who is the Saviour of the world. At the heart of Jesus’ message was the reign of God. His ministry began with the proclamation: “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 4:17). And many people could experience God’s saving power through Jesus’ powerful deeds: lepers got cleansed, the sick got healed, sinners were forgiven, dead were raised back to life, the hungry were fed, and the poor heard the Good News.
But, the full revelation of this salvation and the most glorious deeds of the Lord took place on Good Friday. John records that over Jesus’ head, Pilate placed an inscription written in three major languages of the Mediterranean world - Aramaic, Latin, and Greek - that read: “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.”
Hebrew (or Aramaic) was the vernacular of the Palestinian Jews; Latin was the official language of the Roman Empire - particularly the government of Rome; Greek was the common medium of culture and conversation, and the language of trade and commerce particularly in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. In this way, God’s salvation has begun to be known internationally. Jesus the Lord reigns from the wood of the cross. The crucified Jesus is the true King and the Saviour of the world.
Since then, the Gospel continues to be proclaimed in all languages of the world. The Lord has made his salvation known through the Church. We can say that the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the crucified Lord of Glory is that “new song” that we sing in honour of the Lamb that was slain and by his blood “ransomed people for God” (Rev 4:9-10). Through that “song,” God’s salvation reaches all the ends of the earth.