By the Waters of Babylon – Ps 137:1
When I was young, I would go to my grandmother’s house and eat the grapes growing in her backyard. Of course, most of the time, they were not ripe and very, very sour. I could never quite figure out that they were only good to eat in the fall, so, all summer I would try every time I was there to see if they were ripe yet, and they usually weren’t. And every time I would have to go back into the house with my teeth on age and an ache in my belly! I would sit down at the kitchen table and ask my grandma to help me get rid of the taste and the tummy ache. Usually, she would give me a glass of sweet grape juice. That took care of the problem for a time, but it did not really get rid of the sour taste in my mouth. The juice tasted good and most often calmed the tummy ache as well – at least it took my mind off it!
Our Heavenly Father has essentially the same cure for our ills. Hen we have been eating sour grapes and want to be forgiven, he invites us to his table where the sweet wine of the Eucharist has become the essence of Jesus Christ, and the bread of the communion becomes the strengthening body of Jesus. The sour taste of whatever has bothered us is obliterated and we are refreshed and renewed. The sour grapes of our sin are turned into the week blessing of the presence of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. In this way, we are freed from the bitterness of our sin. We have hope for relief and release. We are a new creation.
[see Ezekiel 18:2]
7/1/2020
