What Jesus did for us is unsurpassed and unequalled. No one
could ever love us more than He could. He has done everything for our sake and
has not left anything unfulfilled. We could either respond in accordance to
what He has done for us or not. It is just one or the other. God did not love
us reservedly but went out all the way when He gave His only Son, Jesus for our
redemption and the forgiveness of our sins. It is only right and fitting that
we do the same without reservation. We should always have an attitude of
confidence and trust in God's perfect will in our lives. But how are we to know
the will of God? In everything we do let us take after the example of the life
of Jesus, full of total surrender and obedience. As we diligently examine
ourselves and always strive to do what is pleasing to God then time will come
when He will make known to us things we never thought imaginable or possible.
Amen. Hallelujah!
Ephesians 1:1-10
...In him we have redemption by his blood, the forgiveness
of transgressions, in accord with the riches of his grace 8 that he lavished
upon us. In all wisdom and insight, 9 he has made known to us the mystery of
his will in accord with his favor that he set forth in him 10 as a plan for the
fullness of times, to sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth.
Is there any other place we would like to be other than in
the loving presence of God? This, I'm sure we can and should have a straight
answer without delay. No one should ever claim that they haven't heard or known
about God since it is our prime duty to spread and make it known throughout the
whole world. There is no denying to the truth that all of us are given the
chance to know who our God is and it is also our duty and responsibility to
take part in this mission of spreading the good news and make known to everyone
to the best of our ability the saving power of God. We should consider each day
as an opportunity to know and learn more about our God. Whether it be an
ordinary or special day in our life nothing should be amiss and should be spent
in giving glory to God our Savior and Master. We can never ever deny the
greatness of our God even just by looking at the simplest part of God’s
creation like the tiniest grain of sand to the largest ocean in the world. As
in Jeremiah 5:22, “Will you not tremble before me who set the sand as limit to
the sea, as an everlasting barrier it can not pass? Its waves may toss but not
prevail, they may roar but can not pass beyond.” We ask ourselves how in the
world can a tiny grain of sand hold the vastness of the ocean in the same way
we know that we have a God whose saving power is known throughout the earth. It
is our duty to ourselves to aim for the ultimate good which is the will of God
in our lives. This is not something that we still have to search and look for.
It is already programmed in us and made known to us by the Lord. If by any
chance this is not the case especially for those people who have not heard or
known about our Lord Jesus since birth then the Lord Himself knows how to deal
with them in accordance to His Divine Wisdom and Mercy. For us who have been
blessed and endowed with the privilege of hearing and knowing about Jesus, this
is coupled with a responsibility. The principle that to those who have been
given much, much is also expected definitely applies to it. We have a
responsibility in our hands to make known to everyone we meet about this vital
truth that could spell the difference between life and death. It is always for
our good to attend activities that nourish our soul. We are enlightened and
inspired because of the many good things we can learn from it. Whenever we hear
words of wisdom it could always help us make sense of the things happening
around us even suffering. It gives a feeling of special joy and gladness in
every person’s heart. If we continue to stand by the principles of God then we
will come to know that there is no truth in the saying that faith is against
reason. We can truly appreciate the relevance of the truth as explained by Pope
John Paul II that true faith come together with true reason. It is the same
thing as saying that Theology tells us that God created the world while Science
tells us how God created the world. The problem is that there is a great
propaganda out there. It makes sin appear with all its fun, excitement and
glamour. It makes virtue appear boring, lame, bland and unexciting. But the
truth of the matter is, it’s not. The pleasures that God created in this world
are enjoyed the most by those who don’t abuse them and use it simply. Who do we
think enjoys food most? The person who doesn’t know how to fast and engorges
all the time or a person after a fast experiences a feast? The virtuous person
enjoys life the most. The person who uses creation and all things according to
God’s plan enjoys it the most. It is because pleasure is God’s idea. All the
good things in the world that people want are God’s idea. Satan can’t invent
even one bit of pleasure. But God
commands them to be used so that it leads to life and a part of life is joy.
The way to enjoy life is to follow God’s commands. Life is not all about rules
and regulations. God did not just give us a bunch of rules and regulations that
we are supposed to obey like machines. What we do does not just proceed from
who we are but also makes us who we are.
The actions we engage, the words that we say and the things that we do
have an impact on us. We are making ourselves all the time. We, Catholics believe
that God gave human beings reason although it sometimes gets darkened by sin
but still human reason can figure out some things. One of the things that human
beings figure out without God having to reveal it, is that human beings need to
meet 4 qualities to be deemed a human being. The philosopher, before even
Plato, Aristotle and Socrates, had this figured out. We find it mentioned in
Wisdom 8:7, the 4 virtues or qualities are also called the hinge virtues
because it is where all the other virtues or qualities of good people would
hinge. The word cardinal means hinge. The Cardinals who surround the Pope are
the doorway to the Pope. They are also the ones whom he rely the most for
advice. Everything else depends on the cardinal virtues. (Prudence or wisdom,
justice, temperance and courage or fortitude) We can also find all the cardinal
virtues, like justice which means giving each person his or her due in the Book
of Proverbs, Sirach, Ecclesiastes and all the wisdom literature in scriptures.
We all know even as kids instinctively how important justice is. The first
thing that a kid cries out as soon as he learns how to talk if he has brothers
and sisters is “Not fair, he got more than I did” or “You ask me to do more
than what that person is doing.” This is because we have instinctively or natively
offensive justice. Each person has rights and ought to get their due. There’s
also another part of justice that we forget, that is, we have obligations and
duties to everyone. A person who is unjust is not a good person. To be just, we
need to control our passions. Temperance is a virtue that balances and controls
our passions. It is like controlling our desire for that last piece of cake if
we know that it belongs to our sister. In order to be just, we’ve got to
control our appetites. Make our appetites come into line with justice, truth
and goodness. We’ve got to have that balance in our life in order to be a good
and effective person. Temperance makes this happen. We also have to be
courageous. If we are not courageous then every time a difficulty arises we’re
going to shrink back. If there’s any danger involved in doing the right, just
and wise thing then we’re just going to crack out and find an excuse because
we’re afraid. Courage or fortitude helps us to master fear and not let fear
keep us from doing what’s right. In the same way that we want justice to
prevail always since it is very frustrating when we encounter situations that
are very unjust. We are reminded in today's psalm that we can all be assured of
the truth that the Lord rules the earth and He rules with justice there is no
doubt. We've got to take hold of the marvelous things that God has done.
Nothing else matters than the truth that we are all loved by God and given the
privilege of taking part in His great kingdom in heaven. God revealed to us
Himself in various different ways. In the gospel of Mark: "the gospel of
Jesus Christ, the son of God" (Mk 1:1) is summarized by the phrase - The
person of Jesus, and the gospel of Luke:"The gospel of glory to God in
high heaven and peace on earth to those on whom his favor rest (Lk 2:14) is
summarized by the phrase - Joy to the world, while the gospel of John:"the
gospel of the Word that became flesh and made his dwelling among us and we have
seen his glory" (Jn 1:14) is summarized by the phrase - Eternal life then
the gospel of Matthew is where all this happened to fulfill what the Lord had
said through the prophet (Mt 1:22) and is written almost 55x in this gospel and
summarized by the phrase - The Coming of the Kingdom. God's saving power is manifested
in this treasury of books that have been preserved and handed to us from
generation to generation. No one can deny the fact that to all God has been
gracious and loving with no exception at all. God's faithful love should compel
us to do the best we could ever do. There was a time when my computer got
bugged down and happened to be the same time that I heard and was touched by
the homily of Fr. Joseph Magdaong in the healing mass at St. Christopher where
Hendrie who fixed my computer was serving as a member of the choir. It had been
several years since I heard about this story of a tailor and his needle but I
would never forget and always remember it especially the perfect timing and
situation when I heard it. This tailor who was about to die spoke his last and
they were these words, "Give me my key to heaven." At first those
people who were there and heard him did not understand what he was talking
about until they realized that he was asking for his needle. In the same way we
must have our own keys in heaven as we try to examine ourselves and find out
what is it in our life that can be compared to that needle in a tailor's life
or our special talents that we can offer to God. I could still very well
remember that I was on the verge of tears upon hearing that because I
immediately thought of this computer that I am using to spread the word of God
through my everyday reflections on the word of God that I write and share to
others through e mail. I am just full of gratitude and joy in my heart for all
the amazing things that God had done especially of the fact that this computer
which I consider the needle in my life remained in perfect condition since that
time on. There is a need for us to respond to God's call to each one of us to
become channels of His blessings as His power is revealed in us. We will just
run out of excuses and alibis why we should not give honor and praise to God.
There is really nowhere to go but to God and that we would have to realize not
sooner or later but right now and act on it. But we have to trust, hope and
rely on God rather than our own power. Let's face it we sometimes rely too much
on ourselves and too little on God. We are troubled about a lot of things when
sometimes there's really no cause for it. There are levels of anxiety.
Exaggerated anxiety and discouragement are one of the greatest obstacles to
holiness. There is a level of anxiety that we just have to trust in God's Grace
and Goodness. We should not disturb our inner peace not even momentarily. Life
on earth is a great struggle indeed for God's Kingdom. A lot of things can
bother and bring us down but we do not have to stay that way. We have to
exercise our minds and wills to put our confidence in God. He is the one whom
we can totally trust and depend on to save us. Our life is much about the daily
revelations of God to us through all the circumstances that surround us which
points to only one truth, He is victorious. Victory is surely in our hands once
we've made the right move and choice. Let us take our stand and know that God's
grace is sufficient for us. We will not be put to the test beyond our strength.
Things are bound to get better for as long as we hold on to God's promises.
Today's psalm, kind of remind me of this preaching about this wise man from the
East in the Old Testament (OT), he is a prophet named Balaam and served an evil
and wicked king. King Balak wanted Balaam to exact a curse upon Israel
but from his mouth came forth a blessing. He prophesied in Numbers 24:15,18
that there shall come a Star out of Jacob and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel who will dispossess Edom . A star and a scepter
signifies kingship. In parallel, it was also the 3 wise men in the New
Testament (NT) during the time of King Herod an Edomite who were looking for a
star that would direct them to the newborn King of Israel, Jesus. He is truly
our King and the fulfillment of God's promise. We are all called to respond
with gratitude to the Lord who has revealed His saving power to us. There is no
doubt that the God of the house of Israel is still the same one true
God of today. The same privilege is handed over to us as the chosen people of God , Israel
Psalm 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4, 5-6
R: The Lord has made known his salvation.
1 Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done wondrous
deeds; his right hand has won victory for him, his holy arm. (R) 2 The LORD has
made his salvation known: in the sight of the nations he has revealed his
justice. 3 He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness toward the house
of Israel .
(R) All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation by our God. 4 Sing
joyfully to the LORD, all you lands; break into song; sing praise.
Sometimes we complain that life is not fair when things
happen to us without doing anything that deserves what we're getting. It is
just not fair at times and we would just have to trust that God will always
make things right for us. There are times too when we don't realize that we
could have known that some things are bound to come to us. It could or could
not be of our own doing or of others. Whatever it may be we have to be aware of
the responsibility in our hands. We can not always evade the real issue and try
to hide the real picture. If we are confronted or got caught in a really messy
situation, it is irrelevant to keep on looking for somebody to blame and do
something foolish. Just like the scribes and Pharisees in today's gospel. Being
the learned and respected group of people they could have acted positively when
they were corrected and reprimanded. Instead of wallowing up in their pride and
exacting revenge they could have been receptive and considered it as a jolt or
eye opener to change for the better rather than act in hostility. Sometimes it
is our initial reaction or natural instinct to fight back or retaliate against
someone who places us in an embarrassing situation. It is clear that in today's
gospel the scribes and Pharisees need to be corrected but whether we deserve
something like it or not is always good to respond positively. Sometimes we get
a share of nasty comments that are sometimes out of line but we can always
respond and act in all calmness rather than with hostility.
Here are several bible passages
cited to us by Atty Moya that support the need for us to cooperate and work
with God. James 2: 14-22 & 24 say that faith without action is dead. From
the gospel of Matthew: What must I do to be saved? (Mt. 19:16-21) When the rich
man asked this question he was told to keep the commandments and he said he
already did so Jesus told him to sell all his possessions and give to the poor
for he is very attached to his possessions that he has to let go of all
attachments. We are also called to keep our fire burning for the Lord so that
we don't end up like the 5 virgins in the Parable of the Ten Virgins in Mt
25:1-13. The same principle applies with the Parable of the Talents or Silver
pieces that we have to cultivate the goodness in ourselves and let it grow. It
is also very clear from Mt. 25 31-46 which mentions about the last judgment
that we can not just accept the Grace of salvation but needs to do our part,
too since it specifically stated here that whatever we have failed to do will
go to eternal punishment. Also it is stated in Mt 7:21-27 that we need to live
His words because not everybody who says "Lord" will enter the kingdom
of heaven for there is a need to turn away from our wrongdoings. He said that
there is no dichotomy between Christ and His doctrine. If we really believe in
God then we also need to do what He teaches. We have to do the Works of Mercy
(CCC 2447) The works of mercy are charitable actions by which we come to the
aid of our neighbor in his spiritual and bodily necessities. (Isa 58:6-7; Heb
13:3.) Instructing, advising, consoling, comforting are spiritual works of
mercy, as are forgiving and bearing wrongs patiently. The corporal works of
mercy consist especially in feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless,
clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned, and burying the dead.(Mt
25:31-46.) Among all these, giving alms to the poor is one of the chief
witnesses to fraternal charity: it is also a work of justice pleasing to
God:(Tob 4:5-11; Sir 17:22; Mt 6:2-4) He who has two coats, let him share with
him who has none; and he who has food must do likewise.(Lk 3:11.) But give for
alms those things which are within; and behold, everything is clean for you.(Lk
11:41) If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of
you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving
them the things needed for the body, what does it profit?(Jas 2:15-16; 1 Jn
3:17)
Galatians 5:6:For in Christ Jesus,
neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith
working through love. 1 Cor. 13:1-3 If I speak in human and angelic tongues but
do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal.And if I have the
gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all
faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing.If I give away
everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not
have love, I gain nothing. In conclusion: We are saved by God's "Grace
Alone" through Faith that works in Love which is also the message in
today's gospel. Amen. Hallelujah!
Luke 11:47-54
...Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with
their blood! 52 Woe to you, scholars of the law! You have taken away the key of
knowledge. You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.”
53 When he left, the scribes and Pharisees began to act with hostility toward
him and to interrogate him about many things, 54 for they were plotting to
catch him at something he might say.
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