Truth

Today’s Gospel Text: Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesare'a Philip'pi, he asked his disciples, "Who do men say that the Son of man is?" 14 And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli'jah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." 15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" 16 Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 17 And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." 20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ. 21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid, Lord! This shall never happen to you." 23 But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me; for you are not on the side of God, but of men." Matt 16:13-23

Reflection: Impossible! How can anyone arrive at such a conclusion as that of the Apostle Peter?

How can Peter stand alone in a crowd and proclaim that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

On the other hand how can Jesus approve what is not proclaimed by a majority? Why did Jesus not go by the democratic principles of life?

Should not truth come from the majority?

May be we should go by what the leftist have to say and arrive at truth by asking from the marginalized and those on the fringe of society. 

Once again scripture reveals to us how to be wise and arrive at the truth?

Not by flesh and blood reasoning and hence do not give extra credence to reasoning or decisions based on majority but to decisions that are based on prayer.

It should be a decision which is based on discernment; seeking God’s will and mind in the things that we do and proclaim to others.

Today we have even people in authority and positions who reject the faith of Christ and thus give credence to flesh and blood reasoning’s.

Humanly speaking Peter could have asked for trouble and even a rebuke from the Lord, who would not mince words in order to correct what is false.

Likewise, if any among the crowd would have heard it then they would have bundled him up with his master for stoning.

Did they not judge the Lord for claiming himself to be the Son of God, and crucify him for the same very reason?

Truth stands alone and yet it is never alone because the might of God is on the side of truth and nothing happens unless God allows it. 

Prayer:  Lord, teach me wisdom in the secret of my heart and a Spirit of perseverance to adhere to it.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Will of God

Today’s Gospel Text:  "Not every one who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' 23 And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.' 24 "Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; 25 and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And every one who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand; 27 and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it." 28 And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes. Matt 7:21-29

Reflection: Wish it was that easy to know and do the will of the Father.

How easy it really is to know the will of the Father that we can live as good Christians? People often struggle to know it. 

You ask a man on the street and you will have some attempts made to answer it; either they will talk about doing good or loving one another and loving their neighbor, or talk about kindness, etc.

Does these kind of activities fit in with God’s will or is God’s will something more than these things?

These activities may fit in with God’s will but they are not primarily his will.

If we miss out on the primary aspect of God’s will then we could miss out on all the other aspect of God’s will and may even go astray, some even earnestly out of goodwill.

The primary aspect of doing God’s will is to do the work of God and this is brought out by John’s gospel as thus, when the people asked him; “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?" John 6:28

And Jesus’ reply was:"This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." John 6:29

This above explicit will of God is not just a Johanine revelation but is well brought out by the synoptic too and it is well attested with the voice of the Father saying: “ "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" Luke 9:35 (also Mt. 17:5; Mk. 9: 7)

From the above text it is evident that once the primary aspect of God’s will is accepted then we are moving on the secondary path of truth, otherwise  we are moving on the path falsity.

From this primary truth we need to move on to the secondary and so on, with the divine grace and gifts to assist us, whether these gifts be the church or the sacraments or the sacramental’s they are there for our salvation. 

Prayer:  Lord, I believe that you send Jesus your son as our savior and redeemer so that we may listen to his word and live by it, even unto eternity.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Knowing Christ of God

Today’s Gospel Text: Now it happened that as he was praying alone the disciples were with him; and he asked them, "Who do the people say that I am?" 19 And they answered, "John the Baptist; but others say, Eli'jah; and others, that one of the old prophets has risen." 20 And he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" And Peter answered, "The Christ of God." 21 But he charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, 22 saying, "The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised." 23 And he said to all, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it. Luke 9:18-24

Reflection: Do people always say things openly or give their opinion openly? 

The truth is; very rarely we have people who will speak things in the open.

Did Jesus, who could read minds, have to find out who he is and what people say about him from his dedicated disciples?

I am sure not, he must have posed this question for the benefit of his disciples and  for us, for all time to come and for every time.

It is in this light that the question posed by Jesus to his dedicated disciples gains a lot more significance.

In other words this question is meant to be answered, not only by the dedicated disciples of his, at that time but it is question even meant to be answered, by each one of us, now and here:

"But who do you say that I am?" (vs. 20)

You may choose to avoid it and say that we are not meant to learn doctrine and lets be more pastoral and some may even say; "as long as we love as Christ wanted us to love is enough." 

Yet if you choose the latter then better step down as leaders in the church of Christ and if you have not grappled with this question in its entirety then you can only be an imposter scurrying for power and positions. (Mt. 16:17-19)

On the other hand, Jesus is not just the Christ of God but he also a suffering messiah for  a purpose.

Hence it is not enough to know the doctrine of Christ but also the suffering that he the messiah would undergo and all those who follow him will also have to undergo similar sufferings in order to follow him.

It is not just a life of mighty works and miracles, with the anointing of God all the way, that counts but a way of the cross is what is essential: 

"If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it. (vss. 23-24)

                                                                                                                                

Prayer:  Lord that I may know you and the power of your resurrection, and may share in your sufferings, becoming like you in your death, that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. (Prayer of St. Paul the apostle; cfr. Phil 3:10-11)

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Peace and Unity

Today’s Gospel Text:  "I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. 22 The glory which thou hast given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and thou in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them even as thou hast loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom thou hast given me, may be with me where I am, to behold my glory which thou hast given me in thy love for me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father, the world has not known thee, but I have known thee; and these know that thou hast sent me. 26 I made known to them thy name, and I will make it known, that the love with which thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them." John 17:20-26

Reflection: Peace and unity are a great value to strive for; an effort made in many circles to bring humans together on a common platform. .

One could lead to another and hence the goals too may differ according to ones priorities in life; if someone is peace oriented then they will seek that peace by bringing people together or if they are unity oriented then they will work towards actions of unity in order to achieve peace.

Or they may persevere in either directions of peace and unity with confused orientations.

What are the things that create division in society? Though these are not easy questions that can be answered for the many that come to the debating table with their minds set and their conclusions already arrived at.

Since many of these, who are in the forefront, are clear in their heads about that one goal and vision which is either Unity or Peace, they will act with fanatical zeal to curb any action which they think are detrimental towards peace and unity.

It is a short sighted vision that they have and usually look towards the immediate good of society and self and therefore crush any opposition towards their limited knowledge and ideologies.

Sometimes nations and even some of its laws are also aimed in the same direction and are short sighted on achieving lasting peace and unity.  They will curb anything that they think is an affront to achieving a myopic peace and unity.

Unfortunately, this happens in the church of God too, in many of its decision making, and it is a serious issue which needs to be addressed immediately.

You cannot have an agenda for peace and unity without basing it on a solid and time tested foundation of Truth, the ultimate truth does not originate from the humans.

Since the truth of the gospel teaches us that there can be no peace and unity among humans with their human agenda, even if it is based on Gods word. 

Therefore, as we can see from a close reading of the gospel passage;  Jesus; the truth of God revealed (Jn.14:6) prays that we may find that unity in him. Jesus is the beginning and end of all unity and in him we have peace. 

Prayer: Unite us in your name O Lord Jesus Christ that we may find the peace that truly comes from you.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Sincere Jesus

Today’s Gospel Text:  Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. 37 "Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For the measure you give will be the measure you get back." Luke 6:36-38

Reflection: The foundation of God’s working is based on truth.

As humans we sometimes do feel that God may be playing the game with us and with humanity.  Instead he is honest to the core and if we feel the way we do then it is more an interpretation and analysis performed by our mind, which seeks to judge God.

It is like a child who sits in judgment over his father’s action, with his limited knowledge of the circumstances and situation, in which his father may have acted.

How can we sit in judgment over God with our limited understanding of the multi-dimensional working of the immortal being?

Here in the Gospel text we see the sincerity of God working when Jesus without beating around the bush voices out that which first needs to be voiced out, on priority. 

He does it because that is the order of truth. He operates on the basis of a principle and law which he will not easily budge from. 

Whereas when humans look at it then they tend to see things from their petty narrow angle.

“Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful” – that is the first and the most important statement that Jesus makes and it is, in the order of priority, first.

The rest of the statement he makes, whether it is judging, forgiveness or giving, they are all extensions of a merciful action and qualify for mercifulness.

In other words, if we want to be merciful then we shouldn’t be judging easily, in order to condemn, forgive people no matter what the odds, and give freely.

What is more this action affirms our son ship as God’s children.

Prayer:  Lord, strengthen me to be merciful as I seek to imitate your character.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Sacrifice of Truth

Today’s Gospel Text: Pilate entered the praetorium again and called Jesus, and said to him, "Are you the King of the Jews?" 34 Jesus answered, "Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?" 35 Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me; what have you done?" 36 Jesus answered, "My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over to the Jews; but my kingship is not from the world." 37 Pilate said to him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice." 38 Pilate said to him, "What is truth?" John 18:33-38

Reflection:  There is time for everything, even a time for asking questions.

Was it the right time for Pilate to ask a question to Jesus? Can you hold a man at gun point or hold a dagger to his neck and ask him to speak the truth?

Can you have the truth in such a situation?

With God, whose love is sacrificial, all things are possible! He will sacrifice his life for the sake of the truth: Jesus knew that he will be killed for the sake of the truth, the knife was pointed at him, yet he spoke what needs to be spoken.

What he spoke was necessary for us and for all ages, for our Salvation, so that we may enter into life by accepting this truth in our life, without which we cannot find Salvation; we cannot be saved.

That confession of Jesus, before Pilate was needed and was necessary for the world to believe that Jesus indeed is God and King of the whole universe and is the one who reigns for all eternity.

Such was his love and dedication towards humanity that in spite of foreseeing at Gethsemane the rejection of the many  down history, yet he accomplished with great pain and sacrifice the means of our our salvation through.this confession of his before Pilate. 

How hardened humanity can be that it still offers its own agenda as a perfect solution for humanity and being deceived themselves they now go about deceiving others, offering humans the panacea of wholeness therapy, godless or occult spiritualities, false ideologies, corrupted theology, etc.

Many are so enmeshed in the daily routines of life that they hardly have time to think about their eternity or to seek the truth that saves.

There are also the many that would rather prefer to walk the beaten path set forth before them by their parents and elders rather than seek what God in his goodness has revealed in his Son Jesus; as savior of the world.

Prayer: Lord, I thank you for revealing to me the Salvation which you offer us freely by your great sacrifice. Help me to value this sacrifice and not let my faith in you go in vain. May I be the servant of the New Evangelization as your instrument. 

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Jesus Christ is King of the Universe: Happy Feast to you all at DD!

Love of Neighbor

Today’s Gospel Text: And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the first of all?" 29 Jesus answered, "The first is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these." 32 And the scribe said to him, "You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that he is one, and there is no other but he; 33 and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that no one dared to ask him any question. Mark 12:28-34

Reflection: Love is the greatest commandment of all and I am sure no one will doubt that.

There are times I have often been in serious discussion and they have been individuals who have rendered the whole discussion flat by just one statement: “In the end what is important is that we love”

As if asserting that the horizontal commandment is the most important, they think that if we love one another is enough to enter into heaven. And what they say is even broadened to include the love of anyone and everyone.But in the end love no one.

In all these false assertions, the love that one practices is the love that seeks to please and compromise on the truth of God and sound doctrine.  Thus one even has to act crooked with all types of lies in order to present oneself as loving, gentle and kind.

There have been times, when I have heard experts in New Testament quoting St. Paul’s famous words on love, as if the horizontal dimension is the only important:element: “Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.”  Rom 13:8

What one fails to learn is that St. Paul's assertions is to a community that is born out of love for God and he is preaching to a community on the aspects of brotherly love.

Then there have been some who have quoted from St John’s letter: “If any one says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.” 1 John 4:20

Here St. John in his letter is shocked about a community that is supposed to be loving God and yet not loving him enough by loving his commandment of loving one another. He sums it up well in the statement below:

“By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments.” 1 John 5:2

Hence what Jesus asserts in the gospel about loving God is prime and important. 

Prayer:  Lord, I pray that I may love thee above everything and thus be an instrument of loving my neighbor too.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us