John 1: 29-34 (Sunday, January 20, 2008)

Three imageries are used in today’s gospel to describe Jesus Christ. These imageries are:
- Jesus the Lamb of God
- Jesus the bearer of the Holy Spirit
- Jesus the Son of God.

The imagery of the Lamb of God is one that we see strongly in the Old Testament. This imagery connotes salvation, forgiveness of sin and restoration. In Exodus 12, when God wanted to save the people of Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, he asked them to kill a lamb and mark their door posts with the blood. When the Angel of death sees the blood marked on their doors, he will pass over the house. Through the blood of the lamb, the people were saved from the destruction that was carried out by the angel of death. In the same way, through Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, we would be saved not only from death but also by the power of the evil one that hovers around the world seeking to destroy us. It is the mark of the blood of the Lamb that would save us from the calamities and the principalities of the devil. In the book of Revelation 14, we are told that the Lamb of God standing upon the mount of Zion was the one that conquered the beasts. Today, we are being harassed by the beast in many ways. When you begin to sink in your faith and you no longer believe in God – it is the work of the beast; when you have lost all hope in Christ and in the life he has given to you – it is the work of the beast; when religion falls from your list of priorities – it is the work of the beast. You need the Lamb of God to conquer the beast manifesting in your life.

The Lamb of God is the one that takes away the sins of the world. In the Mass we pray daily: “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on us.” The priest also raising the host, repeats the words of John the Baptist, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, happy are those who are called to his supper.” In these words, we are conscious of the mission of Jesus – that of atoning for our sins and restoring our relationship with the Father. In Deuteronomy 29, we learn that the people of Israel sacrificed the lamb every day in atonement for their sins. The sacrifice o Jesus Christ is a perfect sacrifice that is done once and for all in atonement of sin. He is the sacrificial lamb that dies once and for all to restore us into proper relationship with the Father. This sacrifice is salvific and it assures us of a place in heaven.

Another imagery that was used in today’s gospel is that of the bearer of the Holy Spirit. At his baptism, Jesus Christ received the Holy Spirit and when he baptizes us, he no longer baptizes us with water only for the forgiveness of our sins, but he also baptizes us with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit symbolizes power, through the spirit, we are illumined and transformed. We know that he is the bearer of the Spirit because again and again in the scriptures, he promises us that he will send us his Holy Spirit, the paraclete and this spirit will give us power, it will teach us all we need to know and it make us bold to preach the message of salvation. St. Paul tells us that the spirit we have received, is not that of timidity but one that emboldens us to preach the message of Christ. It is significant that Jesus Christ uses the word paraclete when he promises us the Spirit. Paraclete means that the spirit is our guide, our consoler and our defender. The Spirit will guide us into the future. It will show us the way of the Lord, how to follow the will of God. We can move into the future without any fear because we know the Holy Spirit is with us. He is with us as the consoler. During those troubled and difficult times, the Spirit is there to console us. The Spirit is there to defend us against our enemies; it is our defense when we are challenged in our faith; the Spirit comes to our rescue when the beast tries to harass and intimidate us.

Jesus Christ is the son of God. His being God’s son automatically enrolls us all as members of the family of God. Through our baptism, we come to share in his sonship. John 1:12 tells us that, for all that believe, he has given them the power to become sons and daughters of God. What a special privilege we share by being members of Christ’s body. For the very reason that we are sons and daughters of God, we are guaranteed a place in God’s kingdom.

This year, as we celebrate the year of victory in family life. I want to encourage us to bring Jesus to our families. Let us give him a prime place in our homes. Let us make him truly the head of our household. When we do, through his blood, he will conquer the power of evil and sin in our homes; he will fill our home with his Spirit and our children will learn to walk in the ways of the Lord and we will be able to work into the future without any fears; he will make us truly a domestic church.

Luke 17: 1-6 (Monday, November 12, 2007 – Feast of St. Josephat)

We all have had occasions when we have forgiven someone who has wronged us one or two times and we conclude that we will never forgive again because the person is making a fool of us. If in forgiving those who sincerely ask for forgiveness, we are making a fool of ourselves, Jesus wants us to be fools in forgiving. Remember that people did not understand why anyone in his right senses will choose to die a shameful death on the Cross for his enemies. When Jesus prayed on the Cross, “Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing,” the people may have thought he is foolish. When you live radically the Christian vocation, people will think you are foolish. Just as Jesus Christ does not impose limits on the amount of mercy he shows to us, so he does not want us put limits on how much we can forgive. This is the distinctiveness of the Christian dogma. In other religions, it is an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth; but in Christianity, we are invited to forgive those who hurt us as many times as possible. Is it easy to forgive? No. However, God has given us the graces we need to be able to forgive those who hurt us. We need faith to be able to forgive. When we forgive, we bring healing not only to the person who has offended us, but we become healed ourselves.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for your forgiveness which you gave to us on the Cross of Calvary. Help us every day of our lives to grow in the spirit of forgiveness, that we may generous forgive all those whom we find the most difficult to forgive.

Matthew 9: 9-13 (Friday, September 21, 2007)

In today’s gospel, we see the call of Matthew. Jesus says to Matthew who is a tax collector, “follow me” and without questioning, Matthew stood up and followed him. Tax collectors were considered sinners and were not favorable people in the society. They were known for their cheating and exploitation of the people. Of all the people that Jesus could have called, he decided to call Matthew, a sinner. He will later do greater works with Matthew. In this encounter with the living Lord, Matthew knew the time has come for him to give up his dirty carry and follow Jesus. Matthew could not have followed any rabbi that called upon him to become his follower but they was something special about Jesus that the moment Jesus called him, he knew his time has come to become the person God has called him to be. Sometimes we let our sinfulness or our sins of the past overweigh us that we fail to accept the present invitation Jesus Christ is making to us. Jesus invites us today to leave our past alone and come to him, so that he will transform us and use us to accomplish great works.

Prayer:
Lord, I come before you repenting of all my sins. I know have failed in the past to do your will. I have lied, cheated and exploited other people. Forgive me Lord and use me as you will.

Luke 7: 31-35 (Wednesday, September 19, 2007)

John neither eat nor drink wine and the people said he was possessed by the demon. Jesus Christ who ate and drank with the people was accused of being drunkard. Who do the people really want? The gospel reflects people’s judgmental attitude. Sometimes we take so much pleasure in criticizing those who take on leadership positions in the community. It doesn’t matter whether it is a democrat or a republican; a conservative priest or a liberal priest. We always have something negative to say. Jesus does not want us to do this. He wants us to see the wisdom in the leadership of these people and help them to serve better. Related to this is the faulty move to please everyone by compromising the positions you truly believe in. No matter what you do, there are people who would still find problems with you. Our encouragement today is to be the best we can be and stand firm in the truths that we hold.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, we ask your forgiveness for the times we have been judgmental of others; the times we fail to see the good in other people. Help us to appreciate the efforts of others in serving us and may we be able to stretch out a helping hand to them in their various responsibilities of leadership.

Matthew 18: 21 - 19-1 (Thursday, August 16, 2007)

Without faith, it is difficult to forgive others who have offended you. You need faith to recognize that through the event of the Cross, Jesus Christ has forgiven you all your sins. Saint Paul tells us that Jesus died for us while we were still living in sin. He forgave us and offered his life for our salvation even before we asked for forgiveness. As he has forgiven us, he invites us today to forgive other people. We should not place limits on how much we forgive, but generously forgive as Jesus continues to forgive us. There is no offense your fellow human person can commit against you that is greater than that which you have committed against God. If he whom we have offended the most forgive you, why can you not in the same way forgive those who have offended you?

Forgiveness brings us healing. It makes us whole. Until we forgive, we do not feel whole. Our moods always change when we encounter the person that has offended us. As Christians, the right thing to do is to ask for forgiveness even if we are the ones that have been offended. That is the Christian difference that we must take seriously.

Forgiveness from the heart does not mean that you forget that the event ever took place. It means not holding the offence against the person that offends you. This also means not keeping records of offences you have forgiven. Like Jesus, forgive without counting the offences.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us today all our failings, as we continue to forgive those who offend us. Give us the graces we need to forgive those who have hurt us the most and those we feel, we cannot forgive.

Matthew 18: 1-5, 10, 12-14 (Tuesday, August 14, 2007)

God’s ultimate plan for every one of us is that we be saved. When we stray, like the good shepherd, he goes in search of us to bring us back to his fold. When we come back to him, he receives us with joy and celebrates our home coming. We may have committed a particular sin and we have continued to dwell on that sin, refusing to accept God’s generous forgiveness. God invites you today back to his fold. Do not stay away from him because of your weaknesses but come to him that he may make you whole.

I want to assure you that God is in search of you to heal you, to give you peace and joy in your life and to put you back in the right path. Please do not turn your back on him.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, because of our sinfulness, we are sometimes ashamed of coming to you. We want to say “yes” to you today. We ask that you put us in the right path so that we will be the people you have made us to be.

Matthew 18: 1-5, 10, 12-14 (Tuesday, August 13, 2007)

God’s ultimate plan for every one of us is that we be saved. When we stray, like the good shepherd, he goes in search of us to bring us back to his fold. When we come back to him, he receives us with joy and celebrates our home coming. We may have committed a particular sin and we have continued to dwell on that sin, refusing to accept God’s generous forgiveness. God invites you today back to his fold. Do not stay away from him because of your weaknesses but come to him that he may make you whole.

I want to assure you that God is in search of you to heal you, to give you peace and joy in your life and to put you back in the right path. Please do not turn your back on him.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, because of our sinfulness, we are sometimes ashamed of coming to you. We want to say “yes” to you today. We ask that you put us in the right path so that we will be the people you have made us to be.