Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words os the Scriptures, we are reminded that God will always be with us, providing for us for what we need and in all of our circumstances. God will never abandon us or leave us alone in suffering, but He is always present with us and guiding us throughout our journey, and we have to trust in Him and His guidance so that we will not be tempted by worldly desires and ambitions which may lead us astray in our journey towards the Lord. And unless we adhere firmly and faithfully to God’s path, it is easy for us to falter and fail in this journey that He has been calling us all into.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis relating to us the moment from the time when Jacob together with his whole family, with his two wives, Rachel and Leah, came back to the land of Canaan after spending at least fourteen years or so in the land of Haran, at his uncle’s place, after fleeing there in the aftermath of him taking away Esau’s inheritance and blessings from his father by trickery. Esau, Jacob’s elder brother was furious, and understandably Jacob fled to protect himself, and as he was returning to the home of his father, he was still worried of how Esau would react to him and whether he was still angry and furious at him.

And it was at that very occasion that God appeared to Jacob, who was at that time was filled with fear and uncertainty, probably thinking of how he could persuade his brother by his own designs and plans. God, disguised as a Man, wrestled with Jacob all night long, and hit the latter on his hip, and it was there, at that very time and place that God gave Jacob a new name, Israel, which means ‘one who had struggled with God’, as first a reminder of his renewed calling and Covenant as God’s servant and follower, in doing His will and in trusting in Him rather than in depending on his own mechanisms and designs, plans and other methods.

This change of name was also significant, as his own grandfather, Abraham, was also known by the name Abram prior to the Covenant that God made with him. And in other occasions in the Scriptures, there were also several others who had changed their names and identities, marking a dramatic change and moment of conversion in their lives, and for Jacob, this change symbolises him putting his trust in God completely and the restoration of his family ties, which had once been broken and frayed because of the rivalries and competitions, as one that he had with Esau, his elder brother, as well as a clear sign of God’s favour and Providence.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the Lord healed two blind men who were brought to Him, and then another man who had been struck dumb because of possession by evil spirits, and the Lord Jesus continued to show His power and authority, commanding that evil spirit to leave behind the man, and he was therefore cured from his afflictions. But as we also heard, the Pharisees who were there, likely jealous from the Lord’s great popularity and from their hardened hearts due to their conflicting ideals, criticised the Lord harshly. They accused Him of performing His miracles, casting out demons with the help of the prince of demons.

Such was the conflict and disagreements between the Pharisees and the Lord that they made such a heinous accusation against the Lord, but the Lord continued to carry out His good works and ministry nonetheless among the people of God, sending out His disciples to carry out many more good works in those places that He was to visit Himself, and He was telling the disciples that the works of the Lord and the harvest was indeed plentiful, but there were few workers to work in the field of the Lord that is this world. Thus, the Lord asked them all to pray so that God would send more labourers, for more to be called to work in His field that is the world.

We are all reminded therefore that each and every one of us as Christians must not harden our hearts and minds like how those Pharisees had hardened theirs and refused to listen to the Lord. They also depended on their own power, intellect and wisdom rather than trusting in the Lord and allowing Him to speak to them, as the Lord Jesus Himself had done, and hence, that was why they continued to walk down the path of disobedience and rebellion against the Lord. But as Christians, we should be humble and committed to the Lord, ever aligned and attuned to His will through constant prayerful life and listening to Him in whatever He has called and told us all to do.

May the Lord continue to guide each and every one of us, giving us the strength and courage, the perseverance and power to go on serving Him faithfully in life, to the best of our abilities, following God and doing His will, entrusting ourselves to Him and following Him in His path. Let us all also trust in His wisdom and providence rather than depending solely on our own power, intellect, plans and designs, and instead, walk together with Him in our paths of life going forward. May God bless us all in our every good works and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the love that God has for each and every one of us, all the guidance and help that He has provided to us from time to time, as He constantly watches over us, helping us in times of great distress, just as he had done to Lot and his family and to His own disciples when they were facing predicaments and troubles. God never abandoned those who are dear to Him, and He has always shown His kindness and patience in leading us all out of our troubles, and in our darkest times, God’s hands are actually always with us, and if only we can have more faith in Him, then surely we can be more assured and less worried, knowing that God is always there for us, no matter what.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Genesis, we heard of the moment when God told Lot, the nephew of Abraham, and his whole family to leave Sodom and Gomorrah through His Angels, whom He had sent to Sodom and Gomorrah with the purpose of rescuing Lot and his family. Abraham earlier on, if we recalled what we heard in yesterday’s Scripture readings, had pleaded with the Lord to spare both Sodom and Gomorrah if there were some righteous people that could be found there, including that of Lot and his family. Unfortunately, as the events unfolded, there was no one else who were considered righteous, and the people of Sodom and Gomorrah doubled down on their wickedness and disobedience against God.

And hence, the destruction of those two cities proceeded as the Lord had intended it, but He did not let the righteous ones to suffer the same fate as the wicked, and that was why He guided Lot and his family out of danger, so that they would not get caught in the destruction that was to come upon Sodom and Gomorrah. And the whole family except that of Lot’s wife, who turned and looked upon the two cities, disobeying what the Angels of God had told her and her family, they all were saved and protected from harm in the end. In the end, we heard how God’s love and providence helped those who have been faithful to Him to endure and to survive through bitter hardships and challenges in life, and be saved and liberated in the end from all kinds of harm and troubles.

Then, similarly, as we have heard in our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, the Lord intervened for the sake of His disciples when they were all assailed by the strong winds and waves battering against their boat in the middle of the Lake of Galilee. The disciples were afraid and fearful, despite some of them being fishermen themselves and should have been accustomed to such storm. That also gave us insight that the storm and the waves must have been particularly bad and terrible, for them to be so worried for their lives. They asked the Lord for help and the Lord chided them at first for having little and no faith in Him, and then He proceeded to calm the storm, which immediately ceased upon His orders.

This is a reminder for all of us that even when we are facing troubles, hardships, challenges and difficulties in life, we must always have faith in the Lord and we must not give up despite the temptations, pressures and coercions to do so. As Christians, we and the Church will surely face challenges, trials and hardships, oppositions and difficulties in our paths, as we have likely experienced ourselves in our past experiences and lives as well. But this is where this event of the Lord calming the storm for His disciples is a reminder for all of us that no matter how tough things may be for us, we must never give up and we must still have faith and hope in the Lord, because if we choose to abandon Him and find other means to save ourselves, we will surely fall into destruction instead.

Why is that so? Those disciples had the choice of whether they stayed in the boat and trusted in the Lord, or to abandon the boat to save themselves, but they chose, despite being fearful and afraid, to put their faith in Him and begged Him for help. Should any one of them choose to abandon the boat, more likely than not, in the great intensity of the storm and the waves, they would have been swept away and drowned in the water. And there is also deep symbolism in this boat and the disciples within it, as the Church itself is often represented as a ship or a boat, and the disciples within that boat symbolises all of us, God’s holy and beloved people, the members of the same Church of God, and as we can see in that event, the Lord was with His disciples, even in the most troubled times.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, can we ourselves also put our faith and trust in the Lord in the same manner as well? As we have been reminded from how the Lord rescued Lot and his family, and how He calmed the storm and the waves for His disciples, therefore we should also have that strong and enduring faith, believing that with God everything is possible and there is nothing that God cannot do for us in helping and providing for us. We should always hold firmly to the promise and assurance from God, and believe that with Him we can do great things beyond what we can do alone, and with God by our side, we will not falter and be dissuaded in our efforts to walk in the path that the Lord has shown and revealed to us. And as Christians, it is important that we continue to be faithful in the Lord at all times, even in the most difficult moments, knowing that with God, we will eventually overcome all those difficulties.

May the Lord, our most loving God, continue to help and strengthen us in our journey in faith, so that no matter what hardships and obstacles we may encounter in our paths in life, we will always persevere and remain faithful in the Lord, remaining firm in our conviction, dedication and desire to glorify the Lord always at all times by our exemplary and worthy lives. May God be with us always and may He empower each and every one of us to serve Him in whatever capacities that He had entrusted to us, and also in helping one another, our fellow brothers and sisters, in overcoming our troubles and difficulties, showing care, concern and compassion at all times, now and forevermore. Amen.