Brothers and Sisters,
The collect for this coming Sunday sums up an absolute wealth of gospel truth in a short amount of space:
Almighty God, you gave your only Son to be for us both a sacrifice for sin and an example of godly living: Give us grace thankfully to receive his inestimable benefits and daily to follow the blessed steps of his most holy life; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
There are two profound truths set out for us in this collect. The first is that Jesus is a perfect sacrifice for our sins. As we’ve been reminded in Holy Week and throughout Eastertide up to this point, Jesus is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. By his dying and rising again, he has fully accomplished our salvation. There is nothing to add. His one sacrifice is sufficient, for all time, to save completely everyone who comes to him. We can come to Jesus with our sins and our failures, with completely empty hands, trusting that his perfect sacrifice is enough for full forgiveness.
We simply receive, by faith, the redemption he has already accomplished.
Having found forgiveness in Jesus, we also find transformation. He sets a perfect example for us and calls us to follow him. His life becomes our model for our journey through this world. Even the call to follow him is a gift of grace. Imitation of Christ isn’t something for us to accomplish in our own strength. It’s a gift. The Holy Spirit dwells in believers, conforming us to Christ, conforming our lives to his as we seek to follow Jesus.
What a gift we have in Christ! We have a perfect sacrifice, a perfect example, full forgiveness, and a gospel that transforms us. Thanks be to God.
In Christ,
Fr. Caleb