Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)
Psalm 147 : 12-13, 14-15, 19-20
Exalt YHVH, o Jerusalem; praise your God, o Zion! For He strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your children within you.
He grants peace on your borders and feeds you with the finest grain. He sends His command to the earth and swiftly runs His word.
It is He, Who tells Jacob His words; His laws and decrees, to Israel. This, He has not done for other nations, so His laws remain unknown to them. Alleluia!
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)
Romans 9 : 1-5
I tell you, sincerely, in Christ, and my conscience assures me in the Holy Spirit, that I am not lying : I have great sadness and constant anguish for the Jews. I would even desire, that, I myself, suffer the curse of being cut off from Christ, instead of my brethren : I mean, my own people, my kin.
They are Israelites, whom God adopted, and on them, rests His glory. Theirs, are the Covenants, the Law, the worship and the promises of God. They are descendants of the patriarchs, and from their race, Christ was born, He, Who, as God, is above all distinctions. Blessed be He forever and ever. Amen!
Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we heard a very important reminder for each one of us, that as Christians we must be ever vigilant in our lives, that in our actions and every deeds we will be able to stay faithful to the Lord, regardless the temptations to do otherwise. We cannot be lukewarm or be hypocrites in our faith.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, in the first reading today, all of us heard how St. Paul in his Epistle and exhortation to the Church and the faithful in the city of Rome spoke of how the people of God must be vigilant against the temptation of their flesh, as their bodies are vulnerable to corruption by sin, by the wickedness of the darkness of Satan, who sowed the seeds of sin in our hearts and minds.
Indeed, we may have experience it ourselves, on how even though deep in our hearts we want to be righteous and good, faithful and committed to the Lord, yet our flesh is unwilling, and the pressures of our flesh cause us to stumble and falter in our journey of faith, as Jesus Himself said to His Apostles, Peter, James and John, whom He called to accompany Him at the Garden of Gethsemane just before His Passion.
In that occasion, the Apostles were supposed to stay awake and keep the Lord company, throughout the time when Jesus was praying, and yet they fell asleep because their eyelids were heavy, and the effects of the full meal they ate at the Last Supper bore down upon them. And the Lord woke them up a few times, as He went back to them to check on them, and said to them, “While the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
This is something that perhaps all of us should keep in mind, as we reflect on our own lives and actions today. Perhaps we should begin with very simple comparison with what we have just discussed about the Apostles. How many of us feel very drowsy and lethargic after eating a heavy meal, because all the blood in our system goes down to our digestive system, and our brains not getting enough blood.
And that made us very reluctant to do anything, as our bodies feel very tired and we just want to lay down and rest. Similarly, I am sure that there were many occasions when we were moved in our hearts and minds, wanting to reach out to those others around us when we see them being wronged, persecuted or unjustly treated. Yet, our flesh, our limbs and bodies deterred us from going forth to help, because of this inertia, this laziness, this unwillingness of the flesh, corrupted by sins and the temptations to sin.
This is why many Christians have not led a very Christian life. Instead, in fact, some have been very un-Christian in nature, because of the things that we failed to do, for the sake of our brethren, and also in what we have done. There were Christians who claimed that they were the followers of Christ, and yet have acted in a manner that showed just how selfish they were, caring for their own needs, and also committed acts that were contrary to the teachings of the Lord, and instead, indulging in all sorts of the pleasures of the flesh and the body.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, all of us must strengthen our relationship with God. And how do we do that? It is by drawing ourselves closer to God through fervent and genuine prayer life, and also through active participation in the faith. We have to realise that the devil is always active, prowling about trying to snatch us from God’s salvation. And therefore, the less involved we are in the Church and in living our faith, the more likely that he will be able to strike at us.
Let us all therefore help one another in our journey of faith, so that we may do our best to resist the temptations of Satan which he had made through sin, and through the temptations of the world and the pleasures of the flesh. Let us all resist these wicked abominations, and seek to purify ourselves from all that are unworthy, and which had separated us from the fullness of God’s love and grace.
May the Lord be with us always, and may He give us the courage to live faithfully day after day, doing our best to live according to His will, and following the message and the teachings of His Word in the Gospels and according to the teachings passed down through the Church. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Luke 12 : 54-59
At that time, Jesus said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it happens. And when the wind blows from the south, you say, ‘It will be hot’; and so it is. You superficial people! You understand the signs of the earth and the sky, but you do not understand the present times.”
“And why do you not judge for yourselves what is fit? When you go with your accuser before the court, try to settle the case on the way, lest he drag you before the judge, and the judge deliver you to the jailer, and the jail throw you into prison. I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny.”
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 118 : 66, 68, 76, 77, 93, 94
Give me knowledge and good judgment, for I trust in Your commands.
You are good, and Your works are good; teach me Your decrees.
Comfort me then with Your unfailing love, as You promised Your servant.
Let Your mercy come, to give me life; for Your Law is my delight.
Never will I forget Your precepts; for with them, You give me life.
Save me, for I am Yours, since I seek Your statutes.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Romans 7 : 18-25a
I know, that what is right, does not abide in me, I mean, in my flesh. I can want to do what is right, but I am unable to do it. In fact, I do not do the good I want, but the evil I hate. Therefore, if I do what I do not want to do, I am not the one striving toward evil, but sin, which is in me.
I discover, then, this reality : though I wish to do what is right, the evil within me asserts itself first. My inmost self, agrees and rejoices with the Law of God, but I notice in my body, another law, challenging the Law of the Spirit, and delivering me, as a slave to the law of sin, written in my members.
Alas, for me! Who will free me from this being, which is only death? Let us give thanks to God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord!
Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day each and every one of us are reminded that in our faith and in how we live our lives according to that faith must be true and genuine, and we must not do as what the hypocrites like to do. The Lord Jesus often compared many of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law as hypocrites, as those who have not done as the Lord had commanded them to do.
What is a hypocrite exactly? A hypocrite is different from an unbeliever in that an unbeliever does not believe in God completely, and they often show it through outward signs, words or actions. On the other hand, a hypocrite is someone who is outwardly seems to believe in God and is a member of the faithful and yet in reality, they have no real faith in them.
The actions of a hypocrite in faith are done for the purpose of showing off their piety and devotion, just as the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had done, but they did these as mentioned, for their own personal glory and advancement, instead of for the greater glory of God as they should have done. God rewards the faithful for their deeds, as mentioned in the Scriptures today, but those who committed what is evil shall be judged accordingly.
Therefore, when we live our lives and go about our daily businesses, we must keep in mind that we have to practice our faith and do our works following what the Lord had taught us and indeed, commanded us all to do. We cannot just say that we have been saved without any need for further involvement or efforts just as some would say. The Church believes that each and every one of us are saved through faith, but not faith alone.
What does that mean? That means, according to the Epistle written by St. James the Apostle, faith without good works is as good as dead and meaningless. Faith without good works and good intentions for those works, is the same as the faith of a hypocrite. An empty faith without proper focus on the Lord is meaningless, and God knows everything inside our hearts, minds, indeed our entire being.
It does not matter how well we try to hide it, but the fact remains that God knows all that we ever think of, whatever we keep in the depths of our hearts and minds. And if we have not done what the Lord wants us to do, He will know it. He will also know if we have done His works, even though others might not have noticed them. And it is for these works that we will be judged, be it for the better or for the worse.
Those who have been righteous in their actions, and practiced their faith openly through those actions will be rewarded by God. Meanwhile, those who have not been truly faithful, are hypocrites, and do things for the sake of recognition and pursuit of worldly glory and human praise will be punished, condemned and be rejected by God. This is what each and every one of us need to know.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all from now on therefore be true in our devotion and commitment to God, that in every words that come from our mouth, in every actions that we do towards our brethren, we will always show faith, and not faith that is to be praised or applauded, but instead for the greater glory of God. Pride, greed and human desires may tempt us, but we must resist those temptations if we are to be true disciples of the Lord.
Let us all cast aside our pride and desires, and in the depth of our hearts, let us enthrone God as the Lord and Focus of our entire lives. Let us renew our devotion to Him, and be wholeheartedly committed to love Him and to serve Him, all the days of our lives. May the Lord be with us, and may He continue to guide us in our journey of life. God bless us all. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Luke 12 : 1-7
At that time, such a numerous crowd had gathered that they crushed one another. Then Jesus spoke to His disciples in this way, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered that will not be uncovered; or hidden, that will not be made known. Whatever you have said in darkness will be heard in daylight, and what you have whispered in hidden places, will be proclaimed from housetops.”
“I tell you, My friends, do not fear those who put to death the body and, after that, can do no more. But I will tell you Whom to fear : Fear the One Who, after killing you, is able to throw you into hell. This One you must fear. Do you not buy five sparrows for two pennies? Yet not one of them has been forgotten by God. Even the hairs of your head have been numbered. Do not be afraid! Are you less worthy in the eyes of God than many sparrows?”
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 31 : 1-2, 5, 11
Blessed is the one whose sin is forgiven, whose iniquity is wiped away. Blessed are those in whom YHVH sees no guilt and in whose spirit is found no deceit.
Then I made known to You my sin and uncovered before You my fault, saying to myself, “To YHVH I will now confess my wrong.” And You, You forgave my sin; You removed my guilt.
Rejoice in YHVH, and be glad, You who are upright; sing and shout for joy, You who are clean of heart.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Romans 4 : 1-8
Let us consider Abraham, our father in the flesh. What has he found? If Abraham attained righteousness because of his deeds, he could be proud. But he cannot be this before God; because Scripture says : Abraham believed God, Who took it into account, and held him to be a just man.
Now, when someone does a work, salary is not given as a favour, but as a debt that is paid. Here, on the contrary, someone who has no deeds to show, but believes in Him, Who makes sinners righteous before Him : such faith is taken into account, and that person is held as righteous.
David congratulates, in this way, those who become righteous, by the favour of God, and not by their actions : Blessed are those whose sins are forgiven and whose offences are forgotten; blessed the one, whose sin God does not take into account!
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 