Gospel: Matthew 17:1-9
Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up a high
mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; his face shone
like the sun and his clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and
Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him. Then Peter said to Jesus in
reply, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three
tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." While he was
still speaking, behold, a bright cloud cast a shadow over them, then from the
cloud came a voice that said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well
pleased; listen to him." When the disciples heard this, they fell
prostrate and were very much afraid. But Jesus came and touched them, saying,
"Rise, and do not be afraid." And when the disciples raised their
eyes, they saw no one else but Jesus alone.
As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, "Do
not tell the vision to anyone until the Son of Man has been raised from the
dead."
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Do you want to be in heaven when your journey in this world is over
already? Of course you want to be in heaven. However, would you be willing to sacrifice something
of yourselves for you to go to heaven?
The episode of the Transfiguration of the Good Lord clearly tells us that
there is heaven. And we should aspire to be heaven bound and not hell bound
someday. However, there is no free ride going to heaven we have to do some sacrifice for us to go to heaven.
Many of us may be afraid to do some sacrifice for the simple reason that
doing some sacrifice would require us to give something of ourselves. But
what is sacrifice in exchange of heaven? What is sacrifice in exchange of
everlasting life? And what is sacrifice when it assures is of the kingdom of
God?
After the fleeting heavenly experience of Peter, James and John in the
mount of Transfiguration. They descended back to this world to face their
respective share of sacrifice for the advancement of the Kingdom of God. They
could have easily avoided the sacrifice by detaching themselves from their Lord
and Master. But they chose to stick it out with Jesus in spite of all the
hardships and trials.
What sacrifices for the advancement of the Kingdom of God are we willing
to face so that we can also be in heaven someday? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
No comments:
Post a Comment