A CLOUD OF WITNESSES

We live in the level of animals if we give in to our anger, envy and negative attitude towards our fellow human beings. We just live for these passions and not for the higher level. We live in the high level if we see beauty in its crystal form, light, grace, virtue and goodness. But we live in the low level if we see beauty just for the satisfaction it will bring. Wickedness is in a person when he sees another not as a person but an object. Sin has not changed. Human beings have not changed. Jeremiah was harassed by using mental and physical force but he remained steadfast in the Lord. He remained in the grace of God. He is depicted as a lamb among wolves. There is light and grace in holiness. He is saved because he trusted, obeyed God and held his peace. His prayers went to God and stirred the spirits of truth, wisdom and understanding in Ebed-melech and interceded for Jeremiah’s life. We, too like Jeremiah if we persevere long enough can be rescued. Stories like these in the bible serve as reminders and proof that God always work for the good of those who remain faithful and true to Him. We should continue to trust God's Divine Intervention in the natural course of events just as He did for Jeremiah the prophet when  Ebed-melech defended him. This should inspire us to always do what is right before the Lord no matter what the cost. It goes to show that at all circumstances we should stand up and stay firm in our decisions to uphold what is true and honorable in the Lord's name. Even if things don't work to our favor right away this should not discourage us to carry on. Amen. Hallelujah!

Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10       

In those days, the princes said to the king: “Jeremiah ought to be put to death; he is demoralizing the soldiers who are left in this city, and all the people, by speaking such things to them; he is not interested in the welfare of our people, but in their ruin.” King Zedekiah answered: “He is in your power”; for the king could do nothing with them. And so they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Prince Malchiah, which was in the quarters of the guard, letting him down with ropes. There was no water in the cistern, only mud, and Jeremiah sank into the mud. Ebed-melech, a court official, went there from the palace and said to him: “My lord king, these men have been at fault in all they have done to the prophet Jeremiah, casting him into the cistern. He will die of famine on the spot, for there is no more food in the city.” Then the king ordered Ebed-melech the Cushite to take three men along with him, and draw the prophet Jeremiah out of the cistern before he should die.

We need to persevere in prayer so that as we improve and daily grow in His knowledge and ways then we can easily discern and be more sensitive of how God speaks to each one of us in a very close and personal way. We should always listen intently to what God is telling us so we could effectively carry out what He wants us to do. It is God's will that we engage in activities that will enrich and deepen our faith in Him. In order to love someone better we have to know him/her better. The more you know about a person the more you become close to each other. The same way with God there is a need to really know more or everything there is to know about God. We must not be distracted and dissuaded to do otherwise when beset with problems and difficulties. If we have developed a great sense of confidence and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ then we can fearlessly and undauntedly do whatever He wills for us. We've got the very best friend we can ever have in Jesus. All we have to do is listen to and follow Him. He is the Rising Sun and Light of the world who came to live with us to direct our feet into the path of peace. Once we've known who God really is and what He is capable of doing in our lives then nothing should stand in our way of doing God's will. It may not be easy but if we have placed it in the center of our hearts then it will just come naturally as it becomes the powerhouse or mitochondria of our beings. The transcendent nature of humanity calls for dialogue and human understanding. In the face of difficulty and sign of contradiction we should never lose heart. Remember these words from the gospel, Mt. 5:10-12, “Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you (falsely) because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Violence is not overcome by violence. The world needs God. Authentic weapon for peace is religious freedom as in to practice faith without coercion. Today we remember the plight of our brothers and sisters throughout the world who suffer greatly for the faith. We pray that religious freedom will not be eroded for those who can practice it. We continue to hope in the grace of God for that alone will suffice. It is also very important that we follow the example of Mary's perfect obedience to God's will so that we can find delight in following God's laws. May our Lord show us the path to peace and use us as instruments and builders of peace. Nothing should ever stop us from doing the will of God for it is ultimately the best option we've got. If we have developed a great sense of confidence and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ then we can fearlessly and undauntedly do whatever He wills for us. Once we've known who God is and what He is capable of doing in our lives then there is really nothing that should stop us in saying with all our hearts the responsorial psalm for today. Amen. Hallelujah! 

Psalm 40:2, 3, 4, 18

R. Lord, come to my aid!

I have waited, waited for the LORD, and he stooped toward me. R. The LORD heard my cry. He drew me out of the pit of destruction, out of the mud of the swamp; he set my feet upon a crag; he made firm my steps. R. And he put a new song into my mouth, a hymn to our God. Many shall look on in awe and trust in the LORD. R. Though I am afflicted and poor, yet the LORD thinks of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, hold not back! R.

We are so blessed that we have a leader and model whom we can look up to at all times and never be disappointed. For Jesus himself endured more than any of us can ever imagine and withstand we might ask ourselves, “Is there something more He could have done for us which He has not done?” The 2nd reading for today is just a follow through from yesterday’s reading which speaks of various Old Testament saints and people who have lived the faith in the face of the impossible. These are the likes of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, the prophets and so many others who followed them after having gone through insurmountable tasks came out filled with faith. They are the great cloud of witnesses that we all look up to for hope and inspiration. The idea of a group of people the so called cloud of witnesses shows unity as a group. Taking to consideration also the word martyrs meaning witnesses. They are not passive witnesses like people who see an incident or accident but can’t do anything about it. This cloud of witnesses is very active in their faith. It took a lot of action for Abraham as written in Heb. 11:8-11, “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; he went out, not knowing where he was to go. By faith he sojourned in the promised land as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs of the same promise; for he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and maker is God. By faith he received power to generate, even though he was past the normal age — and Sarah herself was sterile — for he thought that the one who had made the promise was trustworthy. The same is true for Moses who took God’s people out of slavery in Egypt. They are very active cloud of witnesses of faith and believe strongly. They give us an education and motivate us. Let us look at this as sports imagery. In Roman and Greek games running is a most important sport. When we run the race we can not possibly carry anything or have something in tow. It is like we burden ourselves just as sin will slow us down. No sin is going to help us run the race. We have to be free of all sin. We’ll end up losing in the race if we are encumbered by sin. The world fools us into believing that there are some sins that are just alright to commit. We need to clear this up and know that no sin is ok. It will not help us get to heaven. This is what’s at stake here. We have to persevere in running and remain focused on Jesus. Jesus is the leader of the pack of runners. He runs the race ahead of us for us to know where we’re going.  In order to keep pace, we follow Jesus who sets the norm for all of us. There should be no looking back as we run the race. If we look behind us we run the risk of losing because we are fixing our eyes on the loser. We don’t go ahead by seeing what’s behind us because we lose time by looking back instead of looking ahead. When we run this race what we break through is not a ribbon but death. Christ knew that there’s a joy that will lie ahead in His willingness to bear the cross, its pain and shame. During His time people who are sentenced to die on the cross cover their faces. It is a very shameful way to die and is the kind of death that is given to slaves. Jesus looks down upon the cross. This means He looks down upon the shame and doesn’t allow the shame of dying on the cross to stop him. He is now seated at the right of the throne of God. As in Heb 1:13 "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool", and Psalm 110:2 The LORD says to you, my lord: "Take your throne at my right hand, while I make your enemies your footstool." Jesus does not allow the shame of the cross to stop him neither should we allow ourselves to stop to run the race. We can slip into giving in to commission of sin and make an excuse by saying others are doing it. We should not give ourselves permission to sin. In a sense we are taking all the burden and encumbrances of sin by doing so. Our life should be one of purification by removing the burden in our souls and keeping our eyes on Jesus. We may ask how Jesus endured such opposition from sinners. He was crucified on the cross not being cheered on but jeered on, mocked and made fun of. He was laughed at for He saved others but He can not save Himself. He did that in order that we will not turn away or lose heart nor allow ourselves to be discouraged by those who are making fun of us. Whenever we watch a game or competition we see people favor one team over the other. They boo one and cheer the other. We should realize that that those who are going to boo us are those on the side of satan and evil. They will try to dissuade us from finishing the race so we lose heart and grow weary before the race is over especially if we have made a good start. This letter to the Hebrews is in the early 60AD addressed to Jewish Christians who have their properties confiscated. It is only in the 70AD during the time of Nero that there is much bloodshed of martyrs in testimony of the faith. They are being told that there is no bloodshed yet and is also being said to us so we are still in a much better position to defend our faith at this present time. May we persevere and run the race to the finish. Amen. Hallelujah!

Hebrews 12:1-4

Brothers and sisters: Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith. For the sake of the joy that lay before him he endured the cross, despising its shame, and has taken his seat at the right of the throne of God. Consider how he endured such opposition from sinners, in order that you may not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood.

Today's gospel seems to contradict what Jesus came here for when He denies to have come to bring peace, where He announces division and fire. There is really a need for us to not just reflect on the words of God but know the underlying reasons for such statements. This is one of the reasons why I will forever be grateful for those times when I attended the San Lorenzo Bible Study. It is through it that we learn a lot of things that we just don't get from reading the bible. I have always appreciated the generosity of our teachers to impart and share to us their knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus and more. The more here stands for a lot of things like the in between the lines and behind the scenes scenarios that I would have never known but have come to learn about it, that I will forever be grateful of. No matter what situation there is around us, there is only one thing required of us. That is to fully decide for and stand by what God wants us to do. It may be difficult and not in accordance to this world's standard causing you to look queer and different but if it's God's will then it must be the best. God is good and God really provides. I would also like to quote what is written in the Kerygma reflection I read. "Let us seek to imitate this all-or-nothing attitude of Jesus in the way we follow Him as His disciples. Let us live for excellence in obedience to God’s will and never be willing to settle for second best!" We all have a mission in life that we have to fulfill when we were born here on earth. The Baltimore Catechism explains it to us in simple terms. God made us to show forth His goodness and to share with us His everlasting happiness in heaven. To gain the happiness of heaven we must know, love, and serve God in this world. We learn to know, love, and serve God from Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who teaches us through the Catholic Church. In today's gospel, Jesus is full of zeal to accomplish what God has sent Him to do without regard for the manner it is to be carried out. He is detached from the things of this world and is on fire with passion to fulfill God's mission. Sometimes we, too become so restless when we know that there are things we ought to do but haven't done them. Somehow we know this feeling and could very well relate to it. The only difference lies in this question, what are the things we want to accomplish. It would help to consider this powerful statement from Companion which says, THINK: The best way to honor the Lord is by living according to His plan and promoting the Gospel in all that we say and do. In addition to this, is the reflection question from Sabbath. Do you get going even when the going gets rough? Do you find company in the Lord during these times? Do you accept challenges as opportunities to prove your faith in God? By Your grace, Lord, let me not compromise my faith when life gets tough. You are my strength and my shield. Amen. Hallelujah!

                     

Luke 12:49-53

49 Jesus said to his disciples: “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! 50 There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! 51 Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.