Awesome Elijah!

Awesome Elijah!

The readings today http://usccb.org/bible/readings/121011.cfm describe how awesome Elijah is!

How awesome are you, Elijah, in your wondrous deeds!
Whose glory is equal to yours?
You were taken aloft in a whirlwind of fire,
in a chariot with fiery horses.
You were destined, it is written, in time to come
to put an end to wrath before the day of the LORD,
To turn back the hearts of fathers toward their sons,
and to re-establish the tribes of Jacob

How interesting. Astig pag nakita mo yun no? Elijah taken in a whirlwind of fire in a chariot with fiery horses! And how awesome Elijah’s role is, to re-establish people and prepare them for Christ’s coming. During that time, it was believed that Elijah would come back before the Messiah comes. And in the gospel, Jesus tells us that it’s true. However, he did not come in a way they wanted to or they expected him to. He came in the person of John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Jesus. By baptising and proclaiming the message, he prepared the people for Christ’s coming. That’s how he re-established the people with God.

This is again an example that God’s ways are not always our ways. As Elijah came in the person of John the Baptist, the Messiah came in Jesus, a carpenter’s son born in a stable – not the mighty king and ruler they were expecting. It reminds us that even if things does not fit the way we expect them to be, God’s purpose can still be accomplished. We should not close our minds and expect God to behave in the way we expect him to be.

Another thing is that God uses us in ways we don’t expect, if only we allow him. We may not know the implications or effects of the things that we do for Him, but we still do it anyway. He needs us to. He used John to prepare the way for Christ, and after 2000 years, he still needs people who will do that. In our own little way, we can. As we prepare ourselves, we should also be open and let God use us, we should also do our part to help others prepare for Christ’s coming. This has been the theme for a number of days now because it is important. God is continuously inviting us. He’s just waiting for our reply.