The Price of Sin

Reflection for Saturday of the 5th Week in Ordinary Time Year
(Gen 3:9-24; Mk 8:1-10)
“The Lord God called to the man, and said to him, ‘Where are you?’” God searches out for man in sin! The act of disobedience; ‘the taste of freedom without limitation’, dislodged man from God's presence, both internally and physically. His thoughts and words no more conform with God's. Beclouded by shame and fear, he could not accept responsibility for his situation. Man has lost his freedom! And creation is denied of its primordial blessing. The empty promises of the serpent could not save man.

God alone can rescue man from the predicament he brought upon himself. To begin the rescue mission, the serpent is denounced and cursed. Then victory was announced through the offspring of “The Woman.” However, up till the time of victory, man must bear the consequences thereof. He would not be allowed to eat of the tree of life in the state of sin. If not he would live forever in the state of evil. That this evil might not be permanent,  God drove man from the garden to be trained by the consequences of sin to long for salvation...

The hour of salvation has come. Jesus associates with suffering humanity. “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days, and have nothing to eat...” By feeding the crowd with seven loaves and few small fish, Jesus took upon himself the consequences of our failings, and restored us to that ‘satisfaction’ God willed for us. “And they ate and were satisfied.” Jesus stands before us as the original tree of life that we eat and shall never die. He has paid the price.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Immaculate Conception Parish,
Iba Estate, Lagos.
Saturday 16th February, 2019.