Word of Life August 2011

"Behold, I come to do your will." (Heb 10:9) "Behold, I come to do your will." (Heb 10:9) ).

The writer of the letter to the Hebrews places these words from a verse of Psalm 40 on the lips of the Son of God in his dialogue with the Father.

In doing so the author wants to emphasize the love of the Son of God when he became man to fulfil the work of redemption in obedience to the Father’s will.

The words are part of a passage in which the author wants to demonstrate the infinite superiority of Christ’s sacrifice compared to the other sacrifices made according to the old Law.

Those previous sacrifices offered to God were of animals or things external to a man, but what Jesus did was different. An intense love led him in his life on earth, to offer the Father his very own will, or all of himself.

"Behold, I come to do your will." (Heb 10:9) "Behold, I come to do your will." (Heb 10:9) ).

These words offer the key to understanding Christ’s life. They help us appreciate its deepest aspect and the golden thread running through all the events of his earthly life:

from his childhood, the years of his hidden life, the temptations, his choices, his public life, all the way to his death on the cross.

from his childhood, the years of his hidden life, the temptations, his choices, his public life, all the way to his death on the cross. In each instance, in every situation, Jesus sought only one thing: to fulfil the will of the Father. And he accomplished it in a most radical way, that is, he never did anything that wasn’t expressed in that will, and he refused even the most tempting offers that were not in full agreement with the Father’s will.

"Behold, I come to do your will."

These words help us to understand the great lesson we can gather from the whole of Jesus' life

and that is, that the most important thing is to fulfil not our own will, but the will of the Father. It means being able to say "no" to ourselves in order to say "yes" to Him.

True love of God does not consist in beautiful words and ideas, nor feelings, but in actual obedience to his commandments. The sacrifice of praise that he expects from us is a loving offering to him of the most intimate thing we have: our will.

"Behold, I come to do your will."

How can we put this word of life into practice?

This, too, is a sentence that highlights how the Gospel goes against the current insofar as it goes contrary to a very basic human tendency: that of fulfilling our own will, of following our own instincts and feelings.

This sentence is also one of the most annoying for modern men and women.

We live in an age that exalts the ego and one’s independence. Freedom is seen as a goal in itself, and self-satisfaction as the fulfilment of the person. What gives pleasure becomes the basis for one's decisions and the secret for one’s quest to happiness.

Yet we all know well the disastrous consequences this culture leads to.

A culture based on fulfilling one's own will is in complete contrast with that of Jesus, which is totally oriented towards accomplishing the Father’s will and produces the wonderful effects that He promised.

Let us try to live out this word of life by choosing the will of the Father, making it the guideline and motivating force of our whole life, as Jesus did.

We will thus embark on a divine adventure for which we will be eternally grateful to God. Doing so, we will attain sanctity and also spread the love of God in many hearts.

Text by Chiara Lubich "Behold, I come to do your will." "Behold, I come to do your will."