I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners

 

The scripture readings for today's reflection can be found at Saturday after Ash Wednesday | USCCB

Our readings for this Saturday after Ash Wednesday provide us with a simple way to live out our lives as followers of Jesus Christ. 

In our first reading from the Prophet Isaiah, we hear of how to live out our lives as believers in God: we are to live honestly with others by not oppressing them or falsely accusing them of wrong. We are not to speak maliciously about others or about God. We are called to feed the hungry and satisfy the afflicted. Plus, we are to keep holy the sabbath. These directions from Isaiah help us to understand the two most important commandments of God: to love God with your whole mind, heart and soul, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. These directives from Isaiah are what our Lord focused on in His teachings: love of God and love of neighbor. 

In our Gospel for today we hear of the tax collector, Levi, turning away from his sinfulness and turning towards God. With the simple request from Jesus to follow him, Levi got up and followed Him. The scribes and Pharisees had a problem with our Lord being with what they consider an outcast of society. To the scribes and Pharisees, by being with such sinners such as Tax Collectors, it would make them unclean as well. They forgot that relationship with God is for all people, especially for those who feel most rejected by society. Instead of judging others according to their sinfulness, we are to encourage them to turn away from their sins and turn to God for reconciliation. 

We are to imitate Jesus in the way we treat other people who may be away from the church and not in relationship with God as we feel they should be. People are away from the church and God for many different reasons in their lives, but we are called to share the Good News that God loves them and always has His arms open to them to come back to relationship with Him. We are not to judge their motives for being away from God, but we are called to love them as our Lord loves them: as people made in the image of God. 

Pray for those people in your life that may be away from God and, if possible, during this time of Lent, invite them to come to church with you. With your prayers and encouragement, those who are away from God, like Levi the Tax Collector, may return to God and receive the forgiveness and love that Jesus Christ has to offer them.