Lectionary readings for today:

Morning: Ps. 43; 149
Evening: Ps. 31; 143
Jer. 31:27-34
Rom. 11:25-36
John 11:28-44 or 12:37-50

No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more. Jer 31:34

After my initial, and typical, Old Testament “huh?” response, I found this passage to be rather significant. In it, God is setting the stage for an entirely new, entirely different covenant with the Israelites. No longer will a select few have access to God. Rather, access and availability will be limitless. The icing on this cake is that people will be able to know God for themselves because God’s very words will be written on their hearts.

Here’s the cherry to this sweet deal: God will forgive them. For each grumbling word, every begrudging attitude, for all the individual and collective distrust harbored against God and one another. God will forgive and intentionally choose to no longer remember…what sin?

In her book Traveling Mercies, Anne Lamott so wonderfully depicts God’s perspective on the concept of forgiveness: “…God is for giving, and that we are here for giving too, and that to withhold love or blessings is to be completely delusional.”

Gracious God, we know that you are for love and for giving. May we not block any of your attempts in sharing that love and grace, be it towards others or ourselves. So be it.

——

Mariko Tinaya