Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, all of us are reminded that we are all called to remain true and faithful to the Lord in all things. We must not be dissuaded, swayed or tempted away from God and His path because of all the oppositions, hardships, challenges, trials and obstacles which we may encounter in our paths in life. Instead, we must always encourage one another and remain strong in our faith despite the many difficulties and obstacles that we may have to face in this path we face, and we should gain inspirations from our holy predecessors and also from supporting one another in the face of those challenges and trials so that we may remain strong in our faith.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Kings of Israel and Judah of the story of the time when the forces of King of Assyria, Sennacherib came to Jerusalem and besieged it after this same King struck at Judah and its cities likely with the intent to conquer and destroy it as he had done with many other cities and states in the region. At that time, Assyria was an ascending great power that had conquered many nations, including that of the Aramaeans and the northern kingdom of Israel, which was destroyed not long before the circumstances of today’s first reading passage. King Sennacherib brought with him a mighty army to do the same to Judah and Jerusalem, and we heard how He mocked God and His people for trusting in Him.

But God reassured His people in Judah that He would not abandon them and that He would stand by them just as He has always promised them when King Hezekiah of Judah led the people in praying to God and asking for His Divine providence and intervention. The prideful boasts and mockery of Sennacherib, the King of Assyria God turned into a sorrowful and anguished cry of defeat when He sent His Angels and destroyed all of the whole massive army of the Assyrians, supposedly numbering a hundred and eighty-five thousand, a truly large army. God rescued His people and destroyed all those who mocked Him and those who were faithful to Him, and sent this Assyrian king in shame back to his own homeland, and according to the Scriptures, the same king would soon be killed by his own sons. A truly terrible ending for a prideful and sinful man.

From what we have heard, it is clear indeed that God truly has the authority over all things, and He has the power over all nations and all earthly forces, over life and death. God was with His people and He did not leave them at the hour of their need, fighting and journeying with them as He has always done throughout time and history. He is the one and only True God, Who has defended and protected His people, marching before them and destroying their enemies. While the other gods and pagan idols of the many countries and states, cities and places which King Sennacherib ransacked and destroyed did nothing to stop all that, the Lord alone stepped in and defended His beloved and faithful people when they were in need of His help.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the words of the Lord to His disciples telling them all not to give what is holy to the dogs and throw the pearls to the pigs, using the connotations commonly known then to highlight how they should not profane the Holy Name of God, His Law and commandments, just as the King of Assyria had done in mocking Him and His power, and just as how the people of Israel disobeyed Him and refused to obey His Law and commandments, spurning His love and kindness, all of which eventually led to their destruction and tragic fates. It is an important reminder for us not to allow worldly temptations and corruptions from distracting and misleading us down the wrong path which can lead us to our downfall and destruction.

All of us are also reminded by the Lord Himself in the same Gospel passage that the path towards salvation in God, while it is always open and available for us, courtesy of His ever enduring and wonderful love for each and every one of us, but this path is truly a narrow one, and it is not an easy path for all of us to follow and walk through. Why is that so, brothers and sisters in Christ? This is because there are indeed many obstacles, challenges, distractions and pressures all around us, all of which can lead us down the wrong path in life. Sin is born out of our disobedience against God, and unfortunately often, time and again, we and many of our predecessors have been swayed by the temptations, allures and corruptions present in this world.

This is why each and every one of us must always remind ourselves that we have to remain firmly anchored in faith in God, adhere closely to His teachings and truth. Each and every one of us as Christians must always strive to be the worthy and faithful bearers of the truth and Good News of God, obedient to His Law and commandments, and ever righteous, just and good in all of our words, actions and deeds. All of us should be exemplary and committed in our desire to serve the Lord in each and every moments of our lives. We should be good role models and inspirations for our fellow brothers and sisters, in resisting the allures of worldly glory and temptations, and in doing what God has commanded and willed us to do in our respective lives.

May the Lord continue to strengthen us all in faith and remind us all to stay true and strong in our faith in Him, and not be swayed or tempted to give up in exchange for the comforts and pleasures of the world. May He guide us all in our path and journey of faith through our lives, and may He continue to guide and bless us all in our every efforts and endeavours, in everything that we say and do, so that by all these, we may continue to glorify the Lord by our lives, now and always. Amen.

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, each and every one of us are reminded of what we all need to do as Christians, that is as God’s holy and beloved people. All of us are called and expected to be loving and compassionate as the Lord has been always full of love and compassion towards us. Unless we love one another as the Lord Himself has loved us and how we have loved ourselves, then we cannot truly call or consider ourselves as Christians. Love is the hallmark of what being a Christian is all about, as one cannot be a Christian and yet without love and compassion, first and foremost towards God, and then towards our fellow brothers and sisters.

In our first reading today, we heard from the first Book of Kings, in which the Lord responded to the wicked actions of king Ahab which had been described to us in our earlier two days of Old Testament passages of our weekday Masses, in which he had acquired unlawfully the lands of Naboth, the owner of a vineyard by accusing him falsely of blasphemy and sin against God. The prophet Elijah conveyed God’s words and judgments against Ahab and also against his wife, the wicked Jezebel and Ahab’s whole family, because the wickedness which they had committed had been really too much, against God and His Law, blatantly acting in their pride and greed, in breaking the Law and Covenant of God, as well as in misleading the Israelites into sin.

God wants each and every one of us to be free from the corruption and evils of sin, all the temptations of this world, of pleasures and wickedness that may mislead us into the path of evil and sin. He therefore showed that all the sins and wickedness of Ahab and his wife, Jezebel, in being directly involved in the death of Naboth and the unlawful seizure of his vineyard, as well as for the many other evil deeds, the worship of pagan idols and in misleading the people into the path of evil and damnation, hence, Ahab and his family’s reign would end in a tragic manner, as a just consequence for their behaviours and attitudes in this world, and also as a warning to all of us that we must not take sin and evil lightly. For although God does truly love us and shows compassion on us, but sin and evil still can lead us into destruction and eternal damnation.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which God spoke to His disciples and followers regarding what they all should be doing in fulfilling the Law and commandments of God and in doing what He has taught them to do. As Christians, all those who believe in the Lord and accept Him as Our Lord and Saviour, all of us must always be filled with God’s love in all things, in our every words, in our every actions and in our every deeds. Each and every one of us must always be loving, first towards the Lord, and then towards one another, and towards ourselves as well. That is why the Lord reminded His disciples and followers of this important reality and commandment which He has entrusted to them, teaching and reminding them all to love one another just as God has loved them.

All of us hence have been reminded that our faith in the Lord must always be founded upon the foundation of love, deep and strong, genuine and vibrant love present in all of us. If we do not love God and one another in the same way that we have loved ourselves, then unfortunately, we may not be able to develop the kind of faith that is truly genuine and pleasing to God. Faith without love and without actions based on love, compassion and care for others will not be faith that is pleasing or truly worthy of God, as faith that without love and actions based on love, as St. James put it, is truly dead and meaningless. Our faith must always be filled with overflowing love, from our hearts towards God and our fellow brothers and sisters around us.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, having been blessed by God by His love, by all the compassion and love which He has constantly given us all these while, let us all therefore commit ourselves anew in love, to be always ever generous in loving one another in our way of life, so that by our love and compassion, kindness and generosity towards each other, God may be shown and proclaimed to all those whom we encounter in life, to all of our brothers and sisters and everyone in our midst, all those whom we have affected and interacted with in this life. We should always be filled with love for each and every one of them, showing what true, gentle and genuine Christian love is all about, love that comes from the Lord Himself.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all continue to do our part in our respective areas in life to glorify the Lord and to proclaim His truth, let us always remember to be loving and filled with strong, genuine and ever-present love, for God first and foremost, and then towards our fellow brothers and sisters, and of course also towards ourselves. But this love must always be selfless and pure, free from the corruption of worldly desires and sins, all of which had perverted our love into all sorts of things that prevented us from truly loving God and one another, as love gave way to lust and desires, attachments and compulsion, obsessions, jealousy and other things that made us to forget about our calling and mission in life to be loving to God and to our fellow brothers and sisters around us.

May the Lord continue to bless and guide us all in our path so that in everything that we say and do, we will continue to be filled with most generous love and kindness, compassion and grace, in all the things and at all times, that our lives may truly be nurturing and be inspirational to everyone who witness our efforts and works. May the love of God continue to touch our hearts and minds, so that we ourselves may also continue to love Him and love one another in the same way as well. May all of us be truly loving and compassionate, holy and worthy people of God. Amen.