FREE WILL

Things that are meant for our harm can be turned into a blessing by God. In today's 1st reading, Balaam a pagan prophet is supposed to prophecy ill fate to Israel but ended up declaring good things. The Jews knew of the prophecy that from King David’s lineage would come forth a King, the foretold Messiah of Israel. During the reign of King Ahaz and all other kings of Israel who did evil things the royalty was cut off. During the Babylonian captivity and in exile, those born of the line of David, of royal blood went in hiding for fear of being killed. Even though the divinic dynasty was cut off, from the tree of Jesse, the father of King David, came forth the shoot that brought forth the King. We remember that it was prophesied in Isaiah 11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.” The genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1 tells of this family tree. We would find at the end of this lineage is Joseph who is the husband of Mary the mother of Jesus. Joseph is not king but a carpenter and being Jew knew of the prophecy as foretold by the prophet including this one from Isaiah 7:14 … the Lord Himself shall give you a sign, “Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call His name Emmanuel.” as spoken to him by the angel who appeared to him. He finally understood the fulfillment of God’s promise to Israel. Isaiah is important to better understand Jesus. Joseph knew of the need for secrecy and not to make public these things because the reigning king at that time is Herod. He is not Jew but an Edomite who was just appointed by the Romans to be king. King not for the Jews but for the Romans to collect taxes for them. This is mainly the reason why Herod wants all male babies born at the time of Jesus, dead. Joseph dreamed a lot of dreams and it was through them that Joseph was able to successfully carry out his mission as the protector of the baby Jesus. Another point of reference here is the fact that in the Old Testament (OT) there was a foreshadowing of the Magi or Wise Men who came to worship Jesus in the manger. It was at the time of the reign of Balak an evil king in the OT when Balaam also a wise man from the East prophesied in today's 1st reading that there shall come a Star out of Jacob and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel who will dispossess Edom. He was asked to exact a curse upon Israel but from his mouth came forth a blessing. A star and a scepter signifies kingship. In parallel, it was also the 3 wise men who were looking for a star that would direct them to the newborn King of Israel who would inform Herod of his whereabouts but warned in a dream not to go back to him in a dream. Jesus is truly our King. The Kingship of Jesus is accompanied by many more wonderful things that we still have to know of. In the Jewish tradition the # 3 and 7 stands for perfection and completeness. It is somehow puzzling to know that there are 3 sets of 14 generations from the time of Abraham to the exile to the time of Jesus. So why the #14? The significance of the #14 stands for the name of King David which is equivalent to 14 in Hebrew.  The 3 sets of 14 stands for perfect royalty and king that all leads to Jesus. It could also be equivalent to 6 sets of 7. The #6 signifies the date when the beast is made or the beginning thus the #666 which signifies the beast of all beasts. The 6 of 7 sets could mean the beginning of the 7th set. 7 is also the Sabbath. The new 7 is the new creation. Jesus is the beginning of the 7th set. Why the fuss in all of these? It is a consolation to know that we have a God who is King. The King of kings and the Lord of lords. Amen. Hallelujah!

Numbers 24:2-7, 15-17a

2 When Balaam raised his eyes and saw Israel encamped, tribe by tribe, the spirit of God came upon him, 3 and he gave voice to his oracle: The utterance of Balaam, son of Beor, the utterance of the man whose eye is true,...I see him, though not now; I behold him, though not near. A star shall advance from Jacob, and a staff shall rise from Israel.

No matter how unsure life may be and how unfair it may seem we can always rely on the one true God who was, is and will always be forever. If we will just take to heart at all times the assurances of God in the scriptures then there is really nothing that should stop us from following the right path that leads to God. We should constantly implore God's help in prayers so that we faithfully live out His example in our lives. In the Philippines there is an expression being said when people are so bent over and head strong about doing a certain task like nothing can ever stop them. It is known as, “Kina-career mo naman yan” In English, “You’re making it a career!” If we will look at the meaning of career in the dictionary we’ll find that it means, course of action; height of activity or run or move at full speed. Come to think of it, that’s how we should act when it comes to the most important aspect of our life. There is really no doubt about the goodness of God. If there is one thing in this world that we can depend on that is the mercy of God. We should constantly implore God's help in prayers so that we faithfully live out His example in our lives. Our confidence in God should never waver nor falter. It should be our goal to grow and mature in our knowledge and love for God. As we move forward in it then we win for ourselves a friendship that is like no other. We have seen a lot of broken relationships in our lifetime and if we will base our understanding of the word friendship on that then we will start to lose faith and confidence in friends. It is so reassuring and comforting that in the friendship of God we can be sure that it is something we can always count and depend on. Everything comes from God. All good things come from God. All blessings come from God. God pours out to us the all abundant love in every possible way. Love and life is not simple other wise we will be living in a heavenly world where there is no strife, deceit, injustice and division.  The world we live in is fractured, unless we stop doing mundane and distracting things that pulls us away from visualizing the things of God then we will just find ourselves distracted and unfocused. We just might find ourselves going in all directions but not really finding where we are supposed to go. God teaches us His ways with the guidance of the Holy Spirit directing us every step of the way. This is how we should relate to God by aiming to encounter Him in an intimate and personal way. It is possible that all our hurts and injuries be turned to compassion for those who have caused us so much pain because God who is full of mercy and love is the one who did it first for us and we ought to follow.  It is indeed a consolation to know that we are in the hands of God. There is no reason to fear nor doubt, for the Lord will surely bless and keep us at all times. This made me think of the children who squirm and try to break free from the protecting hold of a parent. Sometimes we are no different from the children because we want God to let loose of His hold. We have a gentle and loving God who will never impose nor force Himself. It is all up to us whether we remain or wriggle free from the loving grasp of God's hands.  God always work with perfection. We can always be assured that if we allow ourselves to go through the Refiner's fire then we will surely come out perfect. God is always precise in His moves and can never go wrong. We should be very grateful and awe inspired as we realize that there is nothing beyond the power of God. If we are sensitive and attentive enough to the Lord then we would discover that God allows the events in our daily experiences to happen in a way that is best for us. Although there are times when we just can’t see it the way it is. It is in the consultation of the word of God that we can find so much consolation and hope in our daily walk in life. As we develop this communication with God through scriptures we would find it to be always connected if not perfectly fitted as God opens up our mind and allows us to grasp things in a very unbelievable way. Our God is beyond compare, awesome, wonderful and marvelous. If we give to God all our concerns and anxieties and trust in His goodness and mercy then He will always direct our steps in the way that He wanted us to go. A few years ago in a Lenten Retreat at St. Lorenzo the speaker said that Catholicism is the religion of the soul while Protestantism is the religion of the mind. This is because Protestants have a problem accepting things that are not written in the scriptures. The language of the mind makes use of words alone which are limited unlike the language of the soul which goes beyond what is written and extends to signs, images, symbols and metaphors. There are things that are beyond human comprehension and expression. This explains why we are a people attracted to signs and symbols. Dan Brown, a famous author of books, Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons are only a few of them, which deal greatly on the meaning of signs and symbols has become a hit. His style appeals to the public that's why he has earned millions and become popular. It is in this nature of ours that God speaks to us not just in physical terms and words but in spiritual language as well.  We have to be aware of the truth of the richness of our Catholic dogma, doctrine, discipline and practices. Our Catholic faith is so rich, it's like eating cheesecake and if we ever think of leaving the Catholic fold after knowing these truths it would be like exchanging the cheesecake for a sugarless donut. Liturgical cycles of the Church are very interesting in the light of the seasons of love, life and faith. Advent is defined as anticipation of something that is coming. We are well aware of the 1st coming (Parousia) when Jesus came to this world more than 2,000 years ago and the 2nd coming of Jesus which no one knows exactly when it would be. But there is one more thing we need to really prepare for which is the 3rd coming or our own personal coming of Jesus when we die. As Catholics, we might want to ask ourselves why we go to Church and attend mass. We come to the Lord at a designated time and place to know of the mystery of life. If we somehow come to know of these signs, symbols, images and metaphors although not totally then we could relate better in our relationship with God. The Mass is full of these signs and symbols that appeals to our sense of sight, sound and smell. There are lots of explanations that go with these practices. Though these practices can change in the course of time the core teachings of the Catholic Church like the dogma and doctrine are all non negotiable and would stand through time. We should no longer doubt in our minds all the things that God is capable of doing. Life is a mystery which is much like a black hole. Once we fall into that black hole then there is no more turning back from where we came from. We just go on and on learning about life until such time when we come to the knowledge of its full mystery when we die.  For God has reserved for us something special like the front row seats in a spectacular play in a theater. No less than the prime spot for the Lord will always grant our heart's delight as we faithfully cling to Him. While we still can, we must come to a better understanding of these things and strive to learn the deeper meaning of our faith. No one in his right mind can ever deny the presence of a Supreme Being who created all of us and this wonderful world we live in. It remains a mystery how the sky hangs on high without ever getting tired and falling, even the rising and setting of the sun, the moon and the stars that bedecks the sky and the planets that rotate around the sun without ever losing its alignment and end up bumping into each other. Even the wisest and most brilliant scientists are continuously amazed at the endless and infinite discoveries and revelations of the universe as they strive to unravel its mystery. From generation to generation and ages past no single human being was able to completely unfold it for human intelligence is simply insufficient and can never measure up to God's. Have we ever wondered and asked how things in our life came to be? There is only one thing that needs to be done, that is to call on God endlessly at all times for guidance. As we try to look back and recall may we always find ourselves confidently claiming all our life's events as according to what God has planned for us and if not then it is about time that we call on to God with these words in the psalm reading. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 25:4-5ab, 6, 7bc, 8-9

R: Teach me your ways, O Lord.

4 Your ways, O LORD, make known to me; teach me your paths, 5 guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior. (R) 6 Remember that your compassion, O LORD, and your kindness are from of old. 7 In your kindness remember me, because of your goodness, O LORD. (R) 8 Good and upright is the LORD; thus he shows sinners the way. 9 He guides the humble to justice, he teaches the humble his way.

Jesus knows the motive and intention to every question and the rationale for our every action. We can stop beating around the bush and just be true before the Lord to the best of our ability. We can not hide anything from God. It's about time we straighten up our acts and really be ourselves. Unless we accept who we are and be humble enough to admit our shortcomings God can never carry out the work He is supposed to do in each one of us. We've got to be transparent before God because there is no use in covering up anything. The greatest adversity that God is up against is our free will. It is for our own good if we go to God and rid ourselves of all pretentions, not hold back and totally surrender everything to Him. Jesus in today's gospel is also teaching us alternative ways and means how to handle the affairs in our life or our opponents and detractors present in our life. Have you ever been in a situation with people when no amount of explanation can ever suffice or will ever be enough for them because they refuse to understand or plainly because they are too shallow some things are beyond their comprehension? It's a pity that there are really people who are out there to make things difficult for us in the same manner that these chief priest and elders of the temple are for Jesus. Don't despair! Jesus went through the same thing and in today's gospel He gives us the best strategy and approach to handle the situation. Jesus obviously outsmarted them and was able to escape their evil scheme and turned the situation to their disadvantage. In dealing with the realities of life we have to resort to other strategies and try out a different route or solution. Jesus tells us to be wise and efficient in dealing with the matters of this world in order to get where we are going. I believe that we have a long and difficult journey ahead of us because the road of this world where we are traveling is not easy but we can always be assured that we always have Jesus who is the way the truth and the life. Amen. Hallelujah!

Matthew 21:23-27

23 When Jesus had come into the temple area, the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him as he was teaching and said, “By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?” 24 Jesus said to them in reply, “I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me, then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 Where was John’s baptism from? Was it of heavenly or of human origin?” They discussed this among themselves and said, “If we say ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we fear the crowd, for they all regard John as a prophet.” 27 So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.” He himself said to them, “Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”