The Word God Spells

John 1: 47-51
Dn 7:9-10.13-14 or Rv 12:7-12 / Ps 138

Truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.
(John 1:51)

May God’s angels keep us aware
That not all things are what they seem,
And we can only trust in prayer
To counter Satan’s lying scheme.

When Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him, he said of him, ‘Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!’ Nathanael asked him, ‘Where did you come to know me?’ Jesus answered, ‘I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.’ Nathanael replied, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!’ Jesus answered, ‘Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.’ And he said to him, ‘Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.’

Reflection

These words of Jesus that end the first chapter of John’s Gospel refer to the dream that the patriarch Jacob had at Bethel when he fled from the rage of his brother Esau. In his dream he saw a ladder reaching up to heaven, and on it thousands of angels were ascending and descending. (Gen.28:12) For acknowledging Jesus as “the Son of God, the King of Israel,” Nathanael was assured of seeing the glory of God in His majestic host of angels as Jacob did in his vision.

Today is a special feast to honor what many people do not give much importance to, either because they don’t believe, or just take for granted the reality of angels. The Bible mentions angels more than 300 times. These celestial beings are spirits created with superior intelligence and will, immortal creatures who serve as God’s messengers, and protectors of men. The most prominent leaders of the angels (called Archangels) are Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. Michael is the head of the angelic forces who defeated Satan and his demons. He is revered as the defender of the Church. The archangel Gabriel announced the birth of John the Baptist to Zechariah, and to the Virgin Mary proclaimed that she was to become the mother of the Messiah. Raphael is mentioned in the Old Testament book of Tobit as the angel who healed his blindness, and guided and protected his son Tobiah in his travels.

We need to pray to our guardian angel. They are not only God’s messengers, but are there also to intercede for us, and protect us. I believe God’s Word in Psalm 91: “He will put you in His angel’s charge, and guard you wherever you go.” (Ps.91:11)

Saint Michael, Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protector against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. Do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all the other evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen. (Prayer of Pope Leo XIII)

Mattthew 13:16-17
Sir 44:1.10-15 / Ps 132

Blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.
(Matthew 13:16)

We are more fortunate today,
The Word of God we hear and see,
While those who lived in Jesus’ day
Were blinded by hypocrisy.

Jesus said, “But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. Truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” Matthew 13: 16-17.

Reflection

Jesus may well be speaking those words to us today –- we who are blessed to have come to know Him, the Father and the Holy Spirit better than the multitudes of His age who followed Him blindly, regarding Him merely as the political savior of Israel.

Even His own disciples did not understand His teachings at first, and only after the Holy Spirit had descended upon them on Pentecost did they finally comprehend all that their Master had told them, and what God expected them to do.

Many Christians today are still referred to as nominal in their faith because they have not yet come to know Jesus in a personal way. They go to mass and receive Holy Communion every Sunday, but they do not really “see” or “hear” with their hearts the sacred Eucharistic transformation. They are not familiar with the parables and the wonders that Jesus performed because they never bothered to read about Him in the Gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. These so-called Christians-in-name are the ones Jesus referred to who “look but do not see, and hear but do not listen or understand” (Mt.13:13), just like the first seeds in our Lord’s Parable of the Sower that fell on the path and the birds ate up (Mt.13:4).

God’s Word comes to us in various ways in order to bless our lives. We hear it preached from the podium (or EWTN); read about it in spiritual books and writings, or in reflections such as this one; and even in subtle events of divine intervention. Through the Word of God we come to a more personal relationship with Jesus Christ. God will give us this gift of understanding the gospel through the power of His Holy Spirit when we desire and seek to become more intimate with Jesus our Savior. Not so for those whose hearts have become calloused by sin. God’s Word will only fall on hard ground where it will make no impression, much less take root in their heart.

Lord, open the eyes and ears of my heart, and make me want to know you better. By this knowledge will my spirit be empowered by Your Holy Spirit to love You and my neighbor even more. Amen.

Matthew 12: 46-50
Ex 14:21–15:1 / Ex 15:8-17

Whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.
(Matthew 12:50)

To be Christ’s brother or sister,
This we must follow willingly -
God’s will: to love one another,
To be one in God’s family.

While he was still speaking to the crowds, his mother and his brothers appeared outside, wishing to speak with him. Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, asking to speak with you.” But he said in reply to the one who told him, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.” Matthew 12:46-50

Reflection

Jesus did not let the interruption that his mother and brothers had arrived to disrupt His discourse with the crowds. Instead, He used the occasion to 1) express His deep affection to His disciples, who had left everything to follow Him, and 2) to emphasize that our spiritual relationship (with His eternal Father) is more important than our intimate but temporal kinships here on earth.

Our Lord was not exaggerating on the first point. After all, how much more proof of His love can One Who died on the cross for our sins show for His followers? On the second point, the writer of Hebrews said of Him, “He who sanctifies, and those who are being sanctified all have one Father. Therefore He is not ashamed to call them ‘brothers’, saying, I will proclaim Your Name to my brothers, in the midst of the assembly I will praise You.” (Heb.2:11-12)

However, kinship with Jesus by following the will of God in our lives is never as easy as being born into a human family and being obedient to our parents. To be a member of Jesus’ family is to imbibe all the lessons He has been teaching us in the Scriptures. Following the will of God means submitting to the doctrines of our Church, against the more popular (and modern) teachings of the secular world. Developing a spiritual relationship means seeking and seeing a spiritual meaning in the ordinary day-to-day events in our life, as we are guided by the Holy Spirit. But what an enormous privilege it is to belong to Christ’s family! What blessings! What grace! “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, Abba, ‘Father!’ The Holy Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, suffering with Him, so that we may also share in His glory. (Rom.8:14-17)

On a personal note, although I belong to a large close-knit family, it is both with sadness and joy that I feel a closer relationship with most of my brothers and sisters in our praying community than I do with one of my ten siblings, who does not share the same zeal for our Church and faith. Nevertheless, I still keep praying for him, that one day He too will join the more important, eternal family of Jesus Christ.

Thank you, Jesus, for our large, close-knit clan, for our loving mother of 84 years, for her eleven children, 35 grandchildren, and 17 great-grandchildren (so far), and for giving us a loving community (BCBP), where brothers and sisters truly care for each other, constantly growing in Your love. Amen.

Mark 10:17-27
Sir 17:19-27 / Ps 32

It is easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.
(Mark 10:25)

As I ponder life’s mystery,
Its deepest question comes to me:
What good would all the world’s riches be
If I don’t gain Eternity?

Jesus was about to set out on His journey when a man ran up to ask him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the laws.” And Jesus enumerated them. “Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth.” Jesus then lovingly told him, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” At that his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had great possessions. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!… It is easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” His disciples were astonished, and they asked Him, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus replied, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.” (Mk. 10:17-27)

Reflection

This Gospel narrative gives us pause to reflect: What is our greatest treasure in life? Isn’t it ironic that the greatest treasure we can have is the very thing that most people are afraid to acquire because they refuse to give up lesser treasures that corrode and corrupt? Observe that rich young man. Jesus saw the goodness in his heart, looked at him lovingly, and offered him His fellowship. Only a few among thousands that followed our Lord were given the same invitation. Jesus even hinted that He was indeed God when He said, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.” And yet he could not give up his temporal wealth in exchange for eternal prosperity, even if that was what he said he was seeking in the first place.

Why is it “easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle” than for rich people to earn a place in God’s kingdom? It is because excessive wealth is the strongest drug of addiction that can imprison a man’s spirit. Jesus clearly marked the boundaries of earthly wealth and His kingdom when He said, “No one can serve two masters… you cannot serve both God and mammon.” (Mt. 7:24) In fact the very first prohibition in the Ten Commandments of God is: “Thou shall not have strange gods before me.” In most cases, rich people put more importance on their wealth before God. They play golf, poker, ‘sabong’ or other recreational activities rather than go to Sunday mass.

Your blessings are more precious than the fleeting pleasures of wealth; Your Spirit satisfies the deepest longing in my heart… Lord Jesus, You are my greatest treasure. Amen.

Mark 8: 1-10
Gn 3:9-24 / Ps 90

They ate and were satisfied. They picked up the fragments left over– seven baskets. There were about four thousand people.
(Mark 8:8-9)

God’s love and generosity
Is beyond our comprehension;
So have no fear in adversity,
Just have faith in His compassion.

In those days another large crowd gathered, and had nothing to eat. Jesus called His disciples and said, “My heart is moved with pity for the crowd; they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they might collapse along the way, because some of them have come a long distance.” His disciples answered, “But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?” Jesus asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” “Seven,” they replied. He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then He took the seven loaves, and giving thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to distribute to the people. They had a few small fish as well; He gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. They ate and were satisfied. They picked up the fragments left over — seven baskets. There were about four thousand people.

Reflection

Today’s Gospel passage of Mark tells about the abundance and generosity of God. Our loving Father teaches us to be generous as He is generous, just as His beloved Son teaches us to be forgiving as He is forgiving. To the open-handed belongs the bounty of creation. As Khalil Gibran said in his book, ‘The Prophet’, “ . . . And there are those who have little and give it all. These are the believers in life and the bounty of life, and their coffer is never empty.”

We worry too much about our own needs that we fail to see the abundant blessings that we have been receiving from God. And this lapse chips away at our sense of gratitude. Like the nine lepers who were healed, but were so overcome by the miracle of their healing that they forgot to go back and thank the Healer, most of us take our blessings and good fortune for granted.

Our running club, Davao Sunday Runners, took a 4-day out-of-town trip to Bukidnon and Cagayan de Oro, one bus load of 36 happy runners. Some of our members are just minimum wage earners, but because of the generosity of the others who have the means, everyone was able to enjoy first-class accomodations thru-out the trip. This gift of generosity, we believed, was the main reason why the Lord made that short vacation a happy and very memorable one for all.

We cannot help but thank God everyday for the rich life that we live in our faith and trust in God’s Providence. We experience answered prayers as daily occurences that renew our faith, strengthen us and make us persevere, make us confident, and be at peace and joyful in our loving relationships. As I write, this text message from a brother came: “Even in the worst of times, we still have many blessings for which to be grateful. Never should our trials make us forget the abundant goodness of God.” A big Amen to that!

“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever. My strength and my courage is the LORD, and He has been my savior. The joyful shout of victory in the tents of the just” (Psalm 118:1,14-16). Thank You, Father, for the many blessings You constantly provide for us, especially those that we take for granted, which are actually the most important, like the gifts of the Spirit. Amen.