December 11th

December 11th, 2023
Desi Ortega
Readings: Is 35:1-10/Lk 5:17-26

In today's readings, I thought about the idea of divine knowledge, a divine plan that is beyond
what we can understand. I also found myself thinking about how much God loves us and that he
will heal our greatest ailments. Luke chapter 5 talks about Jesus forgiving and then healing.
Back in that time period, it was thought that a physical ailment told us of one's sin. Hence, if you
were blinded, deaf, or contracted leprosy it was your own doing. It was a physical reminder of
what one has done wrong in their life. In Luke chapter 5, one of the verses I was given to reflect
on, Jesus heals a paralyzed man after he forgives him of his sins. This was a deliberate action
to make witness of God’s power. He can heal someone of sin and illness. Today we know this
not to be true and that the illness of a person is not because of their wrongdoings, but God’s use
of this understanding was purposeful. Moreover, it was God working through the beliefs and
ideals of his people. He understands mankind so deeply he knows the best way to appeal to us
and show us his power so we can have faith in him as our creator. Isaiah chapter 35 is more a
show of God’s love and what our lives could be without that love. It talks about a barren desert
that will come to life with the coming presence of God coming in it. This can be seen more as a
symbol of God’s power like that of Genesis with God creating the world. God is a being that we
can not fully understand, but we can love. He returns that love tenfold to us, so we can know
him more intimately.