Divine Advocate

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Sunday, 1 May 2016 : Sixth Sunday of Easter, Memorial of St. Joseph the Worker (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 14 : 23-29

At that time, Jesus answered Judas, not Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples at the Last Supper, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word and My Father will love him; and We will come to him and make a room in his home. But if anyone does not love Me, he will not keep My words; and these words that you hear are not Mine, but the Father’s Who sent Me.”

“I told you all this while I was still with you. From now on the Helper, the Holy Spirit Whom the Father will send in My Name, will teach you all things, and remind you of all that I have told you. Peace be with you! I give you My peace; not as the world gives peace do I give it to you. Do not be troubled; do not be afraid.”

“You heard Me say, ‘I am going away, but I am coming to you.’ If you loved Me, you would be glad that I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. I have told you this now before it takes place, so that when it does happen you may believe.”

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Wednesday, 4 June 2014 : 7th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 20 : 28-38

Paul said, “Keep watch over yourselves and over the whole flock the Holy Spirit has placed into your care. Shepherd the Church of the Lord that He has won at the price of His own blood. I know that after I leave, ruthless wolves will come among you and not spare the flock. And from among you, some will arise corrupting the truth and inducing the disciples to follow them.”

“Be on the watch, therefore, remembering that for three years, night and day, I did not cease to warn everyone even with tears. Now I commend you to God and to His grace-filled word, which is able to make you grow and gain the inheritance that you shall share with all the saints.”

“I have not looked for anyone’s silver, gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have provided for both my needs and the needs of those who were with me. In every way I have shown you that by working hard one must help the weak, remembering the words that the Lord Jesus Himself said, ‘Happiness lies more in giving than in receiving.'”

After this discourse, Paul knelt down with them and prayed. Then they all began to weep and threw their arms around him and kissed him. They were deeply distressed because he had said that they would never see him again. And they went with him even to the ship.

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Wednesday, 8 January 2014 : Wednesday after the Epiphany (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

God is with us, and He never leaves us, because He is in us and He remains with us, so long as we remain faithful ourselves towards Him. He steadies those who have faith in Him and keep them steady in the storm of the ocean that is this world. Like the disciples, if they keep their faith in God strong, their ship would not sink, because the Lord is with them.

God sent us His Son, Jesus Christ, to liberate us from the tyranny of sin and evil. No longer will evil have any power or sovereignty over us, as they once had since the days of the first mankind until the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. This is the proof of Divine love, manifested in the suffering and death of Jesus.

And He did not just stop at that, because He promised and then sent the Advocate, that is the Holy Spirit, to come down upon His disciples on Pentecost, who then, through the disciples, passed on to all the faithful ones, all of us today. The Lord Himself dwells within us through His Most Holy Presence in the Eucharist, which we partake every time we participate in the Holy Mass.

We must always them keep all of our actions, our deeds and words within the bounds of the laws and the precepts of the Lord, because only then He will remain with us and stay within us, marking us as the ones worthy of His kingdom when He comes again at His second coming. We cannot just profess our faith in Christ without action, that is concrete action, based in love, the love of God.

Faith without love and good graces through our actions, again based on love, is dead. A dead faith is no good, and is no better than having no faith in the Lord. Our faith must be a vibrant and living faith, which is a faith made concrete by our own loving actions, both towards our neighbours, our fellow men and women, as well as of course, towards God Himself, who had first loved us.

God rewards those who have faith, and rewards those who love. This is because He treasures those who believe in Him and worship Him as the Lord their God, and those who follow His will, as revealed through the prophets and through the Lord Jesus Himself who revealed to us the true meaning of the commandments of God that is love.

And God will protect those who belong to Him and provide for them. They will be blessed and glorified. Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us put our complete trust in the Lord and love Him more and more day after day. Fear not the devil or any forces that threaten us, because the Lord is with us, on our side. Those who have any ill will against us will be destroyed before God.

Instead, brothers and sisters, we should love one another and care for each other, and give of ourselves to others in need, in the same way as Jesus Himself had given Himself to us, to be our help, our Saviour, and our hope. Be a beacon of light for the people of God, those who still live in darkness. Share with them, the love of God, that we have in us, because we have received the Holy Spirit and the Lord Himself dwells within us.

Let us profess love in all of our actions, words, and deeds, and spread the same love that God has given us through Jesus. Let us always remember that our faith is dead without action, and particularly without love. Let us from now on, if we have not done so, love one another, and love each other sincerely, forgiving each other of the mistakes we have done, and remove any grudge that existed between us. And finally, let us love Jesus our Lord with all our hearts, all of our strength and abilities!

Lord Jesus, love us ever more and continue to watch over us, and make us to realise how great the love You have for us, that we may love You ever more too! Amen.