There will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents
The response to the Psalm was: “Let hearts rejoice who search for the Lord.” Indeed, searching for God is a cause of great rejoicing because it is success guaranteed. The one who said that everyone who searches always finds, cannot fail to reveal himself when he is the object of our search if he grants our requests even when we search for less important things. On the contrary, even as we search for Christ, Christ is searching for us. He is the shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine sheep to go in search for one which is lost. Our search for God is the bleating of a sheep which hears the voice of its owner looking for it. It is a response that brings the Master even faster, giving him greater joy.
When Paul weas still a strict observer of the Jewish Law to the extent of persecuting the Church in its name, he thought that he was searching for God. On the contrary, it was God searching for Paul. Even the fanatic following of the Law was willed to be a preparation for Paul, so that he would later help those converts who fanatically remained attached to the Mosaic Law. Now, after Jesus had claimed Paul for his own, Paul considers everything that he valued before as loss in comparison to the extreme advantage of knowing Christ.
We thank the Lord who constantly knocks at our doors (cf. Revelation 3:20), and who longs to enter into a deeply intimate relationship with us. We pray for the wisdom to hear his voice among the many voices that attract our attention, so that we too may attain that insight which considers every other value as loss in comparison to the extreme advantage of knowing Christ and belonging to him.
