26 June 2013

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Wednesday, 26 June 2013 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflection)

Dear brothers and sisters, we are warned today by the Lord of the presence of false prophets who would certainly try to lead us astray from the path of salvation and wrest us away from God’s hands, through their numerous devious and insidious means to corrupt us and our beings that we become unworthy of the Lord our God.

Do not be led astray by these false prophets and their lies, dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Remember that no man or angel can be as truthful and faithful as our Lord and God in His promises, the covenant He had made with Abraham, which we heard this day in the first reading, which He renewed with all of us through the Blood of the Lamb of God, that is Christ Jesus our Lord.

We have to keep faithful to our faith in the Lord Jesus, that we will remain in God’s grace and remain in His love. Put our full trust in the Lord, and believe in Him. Do not fear, for God will always remain with us, as long as we keep Him in us. If we keep faith in the Lord, the Lord will dwell within us, and He will recognise us, because we will shine with the light of God that is within us.

What matters is that we keep God’s commandments that is love, that we love one another as Christ had commanded us, and love our God with all our hearts, our minds, and our beings. In doing so, we also do the will of God, and the Lord who loves us will reward us with His love and eternal life.

If we do not keep our faith in God, then the fruits of the Holy Spirit that God gave us cannot grow, and we will bear rotten fruits just like the bad trees that are barren and useless. That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, we should remain always in God’s favour and love, through our own words, actions, and dedication to the Lord and His people.

Holy Spirit grants us much gifts, the gifts of love and hope. It invigorates our hearts that it strengthens those who are downtrodden and in despair. The flames of the Holy Spirit bears much fruit when we do things rooted in love, compassion, and acts of mercy, in accordance with the Lord’s will. This gift of the Holy Spirit is granted to us freely, and we should indeed utilise them and not waste them. If we do things out of evil and darkness, we too will bear the fruits of darkness, and the gifts of the Spirit will be wasted.

Our forefather Abraham himself was rewarded for his faith in the Lord, simply because he is an upright person, and someone who kept true his faith in the Lord, and who kept strong the love of God within him. This was reflected in his actions, that he gave all he has to the Lord, without condition, even to the point of giving up Isaac, his precious son, son of the Lord’s promise, to be sacrificed for the Lord.

God who loves us had sent us His Son, Jesus, that He could renew the covenant that He made with Abraham, but broken by the evils and rebellions of our forefathers, that is Abraham’s descendants. God has given us another chance through Christ, that with the new covenant sealed by the Blood of the Lamb of God. Through His death, Christ offered us His salvation and His new covenant. Would we then waste this brilliant opportunity? Surely we won’t want it, do we?

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pledge ourselves to the Lord, from now on, that we will truly be faithful and loving to Him, and give our best, all of our hearts to Him. Let us bear fruits, the fruits of love and the Holy Spirit. May God be with us, and guide us in our path. God bless us all! Amen.

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Wednesday, 26 June 2013 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Matthew 7 : 15-20

Beware of false prophets : they come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inside they are wild wolves. You will recognise them by their fruits. Do you ever pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree always produces good fruit, a rotten tree produces bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a rotten tree cannot bear good fruit.

Any tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown in the fire. So you will know them by their fruit.

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Wednesday, 26 June 2013 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Psalm 104 : 1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8-9

Give thanks to the Lord, call on His Name; make known His works among the nations. Sing to Him, sing His praise, proclaim all His wondrous deeds.

Glory in His Holy Name; let those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and be strong; seek His face always.

You descendants of His servant Abraham, you sons of Jacob, His chosen ones! He is the Lord our God; His judgments reach the whole world.

He remembers His covenant forever, His promise to a thousand generations, the covenant He made with Abraham, the promise He swore to Isaac.

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Wednesday, 26 June 2013 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Genesis 15 : 1-12, 17-18

After this the word of YHVH was spoken to Abram in a vision : “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward will be very great!”

Abram said, “My Lord YHVH, where are Your promises? I am still childless and all I have will go to Eliezer of Damascus. You have given me no children, so a slave of mine will be my heir.”

Then the word of YHVH was spoken to him again, “Eliezer will not be your heir, but a child born of you, your own flesh and blood, will be your heir.” Then YHVH brought him outside and said to him, “Look up at the sky and count the stars if you can. Your descendants will be like that.”

Abram believed YHVH who, because of this, held him to be an upright man. And He said, “I am YHVH who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession.” Then Abram asked, “My Lord, how am I to know that it shall be mine?” YHVH replied, “Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtle dove, and a young pigeon.”

Abram brought all these animals, cut them in two, and laid each half facing its other half, but he did not cut the birds in half. The birds of prey came down upon them, but Abram drove them away. As the sun was going down, a deep sleep came over Abram, and a dreadful darkness took hold of him.

When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between the halves of the victims. On that day YHVH made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this country from the river of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates.”