Once when Jesus was praying in solitude, and the disciples were with him,
he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” They said in reply, “John the
Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, ‘One of the ancient prophets has
arisen.’” Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter said in
reply, “The Christ of God.” He rebuked them and directed them not to tell this
to anyone.
He said, “The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the
elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day
be raised.”
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Reflection:
If Jesus would ask us, who am I to you? How would we answer Him? Would we
answer based on what we know about Jesus or we answer Him in a much profound
manner like you are my Lord, Savior and my God and I feel your abiding presence
in my life everyday.
We must not limit our knowledge about Jesus to what we read or up to what
only our minds would feed us. We must dive deeper than that in such a way that
Jesus is already part and parcel of our daily life. This only means that we
read and live His teachings.
We become more productive followers of Jesus if we read and live His
teachings because this would open us to a much deeper intimacy with Him. We
read Jesus’ life and teachings in the bible. If we only read or hear and we
don’t live His teachings our discipleship is lacking in substance.
We have to know Jesus and then we have to live Jesus these two (Know and
live) must always go together. For this would help us endure the many
trials/even sufferings that we would be facing as we exist in this world.
Do you read the life of Jesus and do you live the teachings of Jesus? - Marino
J. Dasmarinas
Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was greatly
perplexed because some were saying, “John has been raised from the dead” others
were saying, “Elijah has appeared” still others, “One of the ancient prophets
has arisen.” But Herod said, “John I beheaded. Who then is this about whom I
hear such things? And he kept trying to see him.
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Reflection:
Have you experienced being bothered by your conscience?
At the back of his mind Herod was silently asking himself: Who is this
man who is doing what John did? He certainly is not John because I beheaded
John.
Why was Herod bothered by Jesus’ actions? Because Herod thought that John
had risen from the dead and now he is again doing what he has been doing: To
call for repentance, to speak the truth no matter who gets hurt, to heal and so
forth. It was a disturbing déjà vu for the powerful Herod.
Herod was surely bothered for he knows that what he did against John was
against the law of men and God. But Herod was the supreme power during that
time. And as such he could practically do whatever he wants and nobody would
dare cross his path or run after him.
But Herod’s power is limited to this world alone. There’s a much bigger
power which controls everything in this world and everything that is beyond
this world and that is God! Therefore the greater power which is God was
already bothering the mind of Herod. Perhaps Herod was already losing sleep and
incessantly being disturbed by his conscience because of what he did to John.
What is the lesson for us in this gospel episode? Worldly power no matter
how enormous has its limitations too! Because God can pierce and burst that
power whenever He wants. God can do something that is unseen by others to
punish a seemingly powerful and arrogant person.
Therefore we should be careful on how we exercise our power we should not
abuse it! We should know that it has its own limitations. And once we transgress
the limitations of our power the justice of God would be upon us to haunt us as
it haunted Herod. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all
demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God
and to heal the sick. He said to them, “Take nothing for the journey, neither
walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money, and let no one take a second
tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay there and leave from there. And as for
those who do not welcome you, when you leave that town, shake the dust from
your feet in testimony against them.” Then they set out and went from village
to village proclaiming the good news and curing diseases everywhere.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Do you depend on yourself or on God? These are the two basic questions
that we face up to everyday. What does it mean to depend on yourself? It means
that you rely on yourself alone. You depend on your own strength and
understanding and God has no place in your heart.
When you depend on God it doesn’t mean that you will relax. And let the
blessings of God come into your doorstep like the mailman putting your mail
into your mailbox. When you depend on God you simply do everything within your
power to have what you want or to achieve what you want. But at the end of the
day you humbly submit everything to the will of God and not to your own selfish
will.
When Jesus told the apostles to take nothing for their missionary journey
(Luke 9:3). Was He telling them to take nothing because everything that you
need will simply fall from heaven to your lap? Of course not! Jesus was rather
telling them to do what they were commissioned to do and not to worry because
He will use people of faith to provide for their provisions.
This is basically the same on how we live and share our own faith. We
don’t have to worry about anything. Because Jesus will provide for us for as
long as we work for the fulfillment of our own Baptismal mission which is to
help the Lord spread the Good News of our salvation.
Have you already done something to share Jesus and His teachings? - Marino J.
Dasmarinas
The mother of Jesus and his brothers came to him but were unable to join
him because of the crowd. He was told, “Your mother and your brothers are
standing outside and they wish to see you.” He said to them in reply, “My
mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Do you consider yourself as a relative of Jesus?
Very clearly Jesus tells us that we could only be called His relatives if
we hear His word and act on it. What if we don’t hear His word and don’t act on
it? Does this mean that we are not anymore related to Jesus?
For example, if you have a wayward relative who doesn’t listen to
your advices. Would you treat him as not your relative anymore? Will you
condemn him to eternal damnation? Of course not!
Jesus said this statement, (My mother and my brothers are those who hear
the word of God and act on it). To convey a message to the crowd and to us too
that we must at all times abide by His teachings.
But human as we are, we sometimes wander away and we sin thus we distance
ourselves from Jesus. However the tie that binds is still there, Jesus still
pines for us. He patiently looks for us and eager to bring us closer to Him so
that He could embrace us once again.
If you are a sinner (as we all are) remember that you are still very much
loved by Jesus and you are still a relative of the Lord notwithstanding your
many sins. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus said to the crowd: “No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a
vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that
those who enter may see the light. For there is nothing hidden that will not
become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light.
Take care, then, how you hear. To anyone who has, more will be given, and from
the one who has not, even what he seems to have will be taken away.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Do you sometimes put a facade of who you truly are or do you sometimes
live a double life?
We cannot hide our real identity no matter how hard we try to hide it for
there will eventually come a time that we shall be unmasked. For example, we
pretend that we are good but deep inside we are not, etc.
Our pretension will work to a certain extent we may even fool our
fellowmen with our pretensions. However, there shall come a time that we will
be unmasked no matter how hard we try to conceal our true identity. And this
unmasking will truly expose us as to who we really are.
In the gospel Jesus tells us: There is nothing hidden that will not
become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light.
Indeed no secret is kept secret forever and every facade that we put forward
will eventually be exposed.
No secret last forever most especially dark and hideous secrets,
therefore it’s better to live an upright and moral life. If we have dark
secrets let us walk away from it. And after that let us move forward to live a
new life worthy in the eyes of the Good Lord and men. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus said to his disciples, “A rich man had a steward who was reported
to him for squandering his property. He summoned him and said, ‘What is
this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you
can no longer be my steward.’ The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do,
now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me? I am not
strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg. I know what I shall do so that,
when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.’
He called in his master’s debtors one by one. To the first he said, ‘How
much do you owe my master?’ He replied, ‘One hundred measures of olive oil.’ He
said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note. Sit down and quickly write one for
fifty.’ Then to another the steward said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’ He
replied, ‘One hundred kors of wheat.’ The steward said to him, ‘Here is your
promissory note; write one for eighty.’ And the master commended that dishonest
steward for acting prudently. “For the children of this world are more prudent
in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. I tell
you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails,
you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.The person who is trustworthy in
very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is
dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore,
you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true
wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will
give you what is yours? No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate
one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot
serve both God and mammon.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
A businessman that got sick with a severe ailment bargained with the Lord
so that he could be healed. He said to the Lord, “Heal me o Lord and I will
give away the riches that I have. I will not focus anymore on growing my
business empire. What I would focus on is to give my riches to those who are in
need of it.” The businessman was miraculously healed thus he fulfilled his
promise to the Lord.
What is keeping you busy right now? Many of us are so busy with our own
selfish issues like growing our wealth that we sacrifice our health over it. We
also sacrifice our concern for the poor to feed our self-serving concerns. But
what would we gain if we are only focused on ourselves? Nothing except the
bloating of our egos.
In the gospel for this Sunday, when the steward was notified that he would
be fired by his master from his stewardship. The steward decided to make a
positive impact on the lives of his master’s debtors. He did this by lessening
the amount of the debt that they had with his master.
We are also mere stewards of the things that we have in this world as
such we too could be fired anytime as well. That firing might come in the form
of sudden sickness or even sudden death. What if we are not prepared when that
firing comes? What would happen to our souls and where would we end up?
But we are still alive, thus we still have time to change our mindsets.
From the mindset of I, Me and Myself why not change that mindset and focus it
towards our poor relatives, neighbors and friends? Jesus would surely commend
us if we do so.- Marino J. Dasmarinas
As Jesus passed by, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs
post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. While he was
at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat with Jesus
and his disciples. The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples, “Why does
your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” He heard this and said,
“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the
meaning of the words, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the
righteous but sinners.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Does Jesus have a soft spot for sinners? Yes Jesus has a soft spot for
all of us sinners. For example in our gospel HE called a tax collector and a
sinful man named Matthew. After calling Matthew Jesus went to his house to dine
with tax collectors and sinners.
All of us are sinners and Jesus is continuously calling upon us to leave
for good our sinfulness and follow HIM. The gravity of our sins are not anymore
important for Jesus what is important for HIM is we respond to HIS call same as
how Matthew in our gospel responded.
Perhaps you may ask, why is Jesus calling us to follow HIM? Among many other
reasons Jesus wants us to be freed from the bondage of sin; HE wants us to be
enlightened by HIS grace. And Jesus wants to save us from hell where Satan
holds court. These are the reasons why Jesus is calling us to follow HIM.
Your life will never be the same again once you accept this call of
Jesus. There will be healing in your family; you will now become averse to
commit any form of sin and you will be freed from its bondage.
Why not respond and observe the miracle and healing that Jesus will bring
into your life the moment you respond to His call? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
1 Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,
preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. Accompanying him
were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and
infirmities, Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who
provided for them out of their resources.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Have you already preached or even shared the good news about Jesus? The gospel
today opens our eyes to the preaching ministry of Jesus. Have you shared Jesus?
For example through your life, through actual preaching or sharing or even
writing in the internet anything that deals about Jesus.
An active follower is not ashamed to share Jesus, he/she find ways and
means to share the teachings of Jesus. Let us reflect on this for we may have
not yet shared Jesus or yes we have already shared Jesus but we don’t actually
live what we have shared or preached about Jesus.
Be not be afraid to share Jesus for by sharing Jesus you will straighten
crooked lives. By sharing Jesus you are able to give hope to the hopeless and
by sharing Jesus you save lives. Jesus is alive up to this very moment and He wants to be in your heart. However, the
dwelling of Jesus in your heart can only be facilitated when you begin to share
Him.
It is therefore incumbent upon you to share Jesus and to let others know
about the Lord. So that they too would
also be transformed by Jesus the same way that Jesus is continuously
transforming you up to this very hour.- Marino J. Dasmarinas
A certain Pharisee invited Jesus to dine with him, and he entered the
Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. Now there was a sinful woman in the
city who learned that he was at table in the house of the Pharisee. Bringing an
alabaster flask of ointment, she stood behind him at his feet weeping and began
to bathe his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed
them, and anointed them with the ointment. When the Pharisee who had invited
him saw this he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who
and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.”
Jesus said to him in reply, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” “Tell me,
teacher,” he said. “Two people were in debt to a certain creditor; one owed
five hundred days’ wages and the other owed fifty. Since they were unable to
repay the debt, he forgave it for both.
Which of them will love him more?” Simon said in reply, “The one, I
suppose, whose larger debt was forgiven.” He said to him, “You have judged
rightly.” Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this
woman? When I entered your house, you did not give me water for my feet, but
she has bathed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not
give me a kiss, but she has not ceased kissing my feet since the time I
entered. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she anointed my feet with
ointment. So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown
great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.” He said to
her, “Your sins are forgiven.” The others at table said to themselves, “Who is
this who even forgives sins?” But he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved
you; go in peace.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
What compelled the woman to wet the feet of Jesus with her tears? What
compelled her to wipe Jesus’ feet with her hair and to kiss Jesus’ feet and
anoint them with an ointment?
It was her sinfulness, she was already tired of living her life in sin
that’s why when she learned that Jesus was in Simon’s house. She did everything
to get near Him so that she could humbly honor Him with whatever humble gesture
that she could offer Jesus.
The repentant woman went to Jesus she did not verbally ask Jesus for
forgiveness. But it was very evident that through her actions she wanted Jesus
to forgive her of her sinfulness. She wanted a renewal on her life which no one
could give her except Jesus. By her actions Jesus recognized her desire for
forgiveness and renewal, therefore her sins were forgiven.
Never did she think that Jesus would condemn and judge her she
simply focused on her need to be forgiven. This is Jesus for all of us, a God
who will never condemn our sinfulness no matter how serious. A God who will
never judge us based on the sins that we have committed in the past.
What is important for Jesus is for us to completely walk away from our
sinfulness. The here and now which is free from any form of sin. Never mind the
past sins for as long as we have the humility to ask for forgiveness and to
walk away from it all.
The humble gesture of the woman was her way of asking for
forgiveness of her past sins. The woman spoke to Jesus through her heart, she
spoke through her acts of humility. Thus, Jesus heard the desire of her
repentant heart. - Marino J. Dasmarinas
(Jesus said to the crowds) 31 “Then to what shall I compare the people of
this generation? What are they like? 32 They are like children who sit in the
marketplace and call to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, but you did
not dance. We sang a dirge, but you did not weep. 33 For John the Baptist came
neither eating food nor drinking wine, and you said, ‘He is possessed by a
demon. 34 The Son of Man came eating and drinking and you said, ‘Look, he is a
glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. 35 But wisdom
is vindicated by all her children.”
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Reflection:
Why did the Pharisees and scribes refuse to hear the message of
conversion and hope of John and Jesus? There are many reasons why they refused
to hear their message of conversion. But primarily Jesus and John were nobodies
for them; they (Pharisees and scribes) were the ruling class and rulers of
their time. So why hear the message of these two nobodies?
By their contemptuous treatment of John and Jesus they deprived
themselves of a meaningful life. A life that is not based on earthly power but
based on a higher power that is beyond this world.
Why do many of us refuse to hear the conversion message of John and Jesus
as well? Because we love this world more than we love the wisdom filled words
of Jesus and John. This is the reason why so many of us refuse to hear the
conversion message of John and Jesus.
But what would it do us if we amass all the things in this world if we
are without Jesus? Could we bring to the next life the wealth that we have
amassed in this world? Could our love of earthly wealth help us gain passage to
heaven?
What if we hear and ponder the conversion message of John and Jesus?
We will certainly gain entry to heaven even if we are materially poor in
this present and fleeting world.
It’s absolutely better to be materially poor yet have Jesus in our lives
than to be rich without Jesus. - Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a large
crowd accompanied him. As he drew near to the gate of the city, a man who had
died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. A
large crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, he was moved
with pity for her and said to her, “Do not weep.” He stepped forward and
touched the coffin; at this the bearers halted, and he said, “Young man, I tell
you, arise!” The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his
mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, exclaiming, “A great
prophet has arisen in our midst,” and “God has visited his people.” This report
about him spread through the whole of Judea and in all the surrounding region.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
What does Jesus do to our life?
He makes miracles for us everyday some of us notice these miracles that’s
why we always thank HIM everyday through prayers. Many of us also do not notice
this, so we live our lives without being aware of the goodness of Jesus.
While on their way to Nain Jesus saw a funeral march with a grieving
widow. Jesus saw her approached her and told her, “Do not weep.” And thereafter
HE approached the coffin of her son and HE said, Young man I tell you arise!
The grieving widow suddenly became joyous and thankful for the reason that
Jesus brought to life again her only son.
This is Jesus for you and me, a God who heals, a God who create miracles.
And a God that is always by our side ever ready to help us in whatever way. Therefore,
in everyday of our life we must strive to walk with Jesus. We must discard any
actions and thoughts which would only make us sin.
Do you make a conscious effort to avoid sin or distance yourself away
from people who influence you to sin? Have you recently thought of submitting
yourself to the healing Sacrament of Reconciliation/Confession? – Marino J.
Dasmarinas
When Jesus had finished all his words to the people, he entered
Capernaum. A centurion there had a slave who was ill and about to die, and he
was valuable to him. When he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to
him, asking him to come and save the life of his slave. They approached Jesus
and strongly urged him to come, saying, “He deserves to have you do this for
him, for he loves our nation and he built the synagogue for us.” And Jesus went
with them, but when he was only a short distance from the house, the centurion
sent friends to tell him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy
to have you enter under my roof. Therefore, I did not consider myself worthy to
come to you; but say the word and let my servant be healed. For I too am a
person subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one,
‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come here,’ and he comes; and to my slave,
‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him
and, turning, said to the crowd following him, “I tell you, not even in Israel
have I found such faith.” When the messengers returned to the house, they found
the slave in good health.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Do you always favor your rich relatives and friends?
The concern of the centurion/military officer for his slave was very
admirable; just imagine he went to Jesus to ask for healing for his very sick
slave. The centurion/military officer’s love for his slave was very pleasing to
Jesus that’s why Jesus granted his pleading.
To whom can we compare the slave today? The slaves of our time are the
poor people that we know, whose status in life is way way below us. Oftentimes
our concern for the poor is very different from those who are rich.
Many of us have two sets of standards of concern for our friends who are
poor and rich. Many of us lean towards our rich relatives and friends for this
are what is normal for us: go for the rich relatives and friends first.
Jesus would always wants us to help and pray for those who are in need
specially the poor for they are closest to His heart. This doesn’t mean that we
neglect the rich but if there would be a choice to whom would we extend help
first.
It’s no brainer that we go to the poor first, we have to
prioritize them over the rich. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but
the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners
and eats with them.” So to them he addressed this parable. “What man
among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave
the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And
when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his
arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you, in just the
same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over
ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and
sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? And when she does find
it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice
with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ In just the same way, I
tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who
repents.”
Then he said, “A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his
father, ‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So
the father divided the property between them. After a few days, the younger son
collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he
squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation. When he had freely
spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in
dire need. So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to
his farm to tend the swine. And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on
which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any. Coming to his senses he thought,
‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but
here am I, dying from hunger. I shall get up and go to my father and I shall
say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer
deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired
workers.”’ So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long
way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran
to his son, embraced him and kissed him. His son said to him, ‘Father, I have
sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your
son.’ But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and
put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the
fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because
this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has
been found.’ Then the celebration began. Now the older son had been out in the
field and, on his way back, as he neared the house, he heard the sound of music
and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.
The servant said to him, ‘Your brother has returned and your father has
slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ He
became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and
pleaded with him. He said to his father in reply, ‘Look, all these years I
served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a
young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns, who
swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened
calf.’ He said to him, ‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have
is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead
and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
A wife told his Godly husband: “Don’t mingle anymore with our neighbors
for they are drunkards and sinful.” The husband told his wife, “If I would not
mingle with them how could I convince them to walk away from their sinful lives
and how could I show them that God still cares for them?” Oftentimes we are
like that wife we feel that we are more holy and less sinful than others but
that is far from the truth.
Holier than thou and feeling of self-righteousness these were the
attitudes of the Pharisees and the scribes. When they complained that Jesus was
mingling with tax collectors and sinners.
So, Jesus gave them three parables for them to realize that He doesn’t
discriminate, that His love, forgiveness and mercy is for everyone. The Lord
looks for and welcomes everyone no matter how sinful and poor. This is also the
message of Jesus for us all sinners thru these parables in the gospel.
In the first parable, the shepherd of the hundred sheep did not stop
looking for the one who got lost. Never minding to temporarily leave the
ninety-nine. And after finding the one that got lost he joyfully put it on his
shoulders to bring it home. In the second parable of the lost coin, the woman
searched diligently for the lost coin until she found it again.
In the third parable of the lost son, when the lost son had a realization
of his misdeeds. He humbly decided to go back home, not certain if his father
would accept him again. But lo and behold when his father saw him coming home
he ordered his people to prepare a big banquet for the lost son. Then, the
father full of love run to his repentant son embraced and kissed him as if
saying, “Everything is forgiven my son.”
God in His infinite love, mercy and forgiveness is always looking for us
sinners. Why? Because the Lord wants us to completely walk away from our sinful
life. The Lord wants us to live a new life completely free from any form of
sin. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus said to
Nicodemus: "No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down
from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the
desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up so that everyone who believes in
him may have eternal life."
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who
believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not
send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be
saved through him.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Why do we suffer and what is the purpose of our suffering in this world?
We suffer because we refuse to embrace the love of God. Human suffering is not
a suffering that God created for us because it’s us who create our own suffering/s.
And when we suffer many of us point not to ourselves as the culprit.
Think about the many wars that the powerful leaders of this world have
created. Think about the many personal and family problems that many of us have
created for ourselves. Nevertheless in the midst of our self-created sufferings
there’s hope and this hope is being offered to us by Jesus on the cross.
Perhaps, many of us are averse to look at this cross of Jesus because we
are reminded of Jesus’ own sufferings. We are reminded that to suffer entails
hardship and sacrifice. But how would we know that there’s hope, healing and
salvation in the cross of Jesus if we will not look up to it? If we will not
embrace it and if we will not hold on to it?
In our first reading the people that were saved by Moses from the slavery
of Pharaoh created their own sufferings by complaining to Moses about their
hardships. And by complaining they were severely punished by God yet they would
also be saved by the same merciful God. That is If they’ll would look up to the
bronze serpent mounted on a pole. We all know that the bronze serpent that was
mounted on the pole that healed the suffering people in our first reading is
now represented by Jesus on the cross in our gospel.
We have so many sufferings in this world and majority if not all of these
sufferings are created by us that we ironically sometimes blame on God.
Nevertheless our merciful God so loved us that He let His only begotten son to
die on the cross for our salvation.
Do you have a cross with Jesus nailed upon it in
your house or in your room? Look at it hold it if you could and prayerfully ask
Jesus to heal all your pains and sufferings. - Marino J. Dasmarinas
