The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they follow me. JN 10:27
GALATIANS 5:18-25
My Soul's Beloved,
Today's passage from the letter to the Galatians reminds us that lovers of the flesh and the world are incompatible with the things of the Spirit. We read the lives of all the great men and women who lived lives of heroic virtue and are stirred with admiration and a longing to love You as they loved You and wish to be saints, sadly the feeling is ephemeral. When we must make hard choices, deny ourselves, and choose the narrow way of discipline and privation, we balk and give up. We make a few half-hearted attempts to strive for holiness and perfection and soon grow weary. We crave distractions. We lack the will necessary to stay the course.
Nothing is hidden O Lord. Scripture reveals clearly what is necessary for authentic discipleship but few are prepared to follow it. The world celebrates self-indulgence which St. Paul reminds us, leads to fornication, gross indecency and sexual irresponsibility; idolatry and sorcery; feuds and wrangling, jealousy, bad temper and quarrels; disagreements, factions, envy; drunkenness, orgies and similar things.
Our world seems to be heading straight into the bottomless pit of hell unless we heed the clear warnings and read the signs of the godless time we are living in. Our current culture will rob us of the inheritance that You won for us at the cost of Your life. We lack nothing for salvation and over and above the infinite merits You won for us on the Cross You have sent Your Holy Spirit to assist us. He brings love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control. These are free gifts given to us because of the goodness of God but we cannot belong to the family of God unless we crucify all self-indulgent passions and desires. Help us O Lord because of ourselves we have no power to overcome our evil and sinful inclinations.
Since the Spirit is our life, let us be directed by the Spirit.
PSALM 1:1-4,6
Anyone who follows you, O Lord, will have the light of life.
PSALM 1:1-4,6
Anyone who follows you, O Lord, will have the light of life.
Happy indeed is the man
who follows not the counsel of the wicked;
nor lingers in the way of sinners
nor sits in the company of scorners,
but whose delight is the law of the Lord
and who ponders his law day and night.
who follows not the counsel of the wicked;
nor lingers in the way of sinners
nor sits in the company of scorners,
but whose delight is the law of the Lord
and who ponders his law day and night.
He is like a tree that is planted
beside the flowing waters,
that yields its fruit in due season
and whose leaves shall never fade;
and all that he does shall prosper.
that yields its fruit in due season
and whose leaves shall never fade;
and all that he does shall prosper.
Not so are the wicked, not so!
For they like winnowed chaff
shall be driven away by the wind:
for the Lord guards the way of the just
but the way of the wicked leads to doom.
shall be driven away by the wind:
for the Lord guards the way of the just
but the way of the wicked leads to doom.
Anyone who follows you, O Lord, will have the light of life.
LUKE 11:42-46
My Soul's Beloved,
My Soul's Beloved,
While it is true that by virtue of our baptism, we become children of God and co-heirs with You to the Kingdom of Heaven, we are privileged to address God as Father, we have You for our Brother and the Holy Spirit as our Helper, yet salvation is guaranteed to no one. All is God's gift to us freely given and we can squander our inheritance and lose it completely.
Yes, Lord, You are the Good Shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine to seek the stray and carry it back to the fold. You are full of mercy and tender compassion slow to anger and full of love yet, You are also stern with the proud, the haughty, and the boastful. Those who use their power and position, their wealth and their influence to deny the rights of the little ones, the marginalized, the poor, the down-trodden, those whom the world pushes to the peripheries so it can forget they exist, will be dealt with severely and mercilessly.
You will not hesitate to pick up the whip, overturn the tables of the money changers, and clear the temple of all defilement. You do not shy away from calling out sin and the sinner where You find it, especially hypocritical sinners like the Pharisees and the lawyers and they hated You for it. You knew that they would stop at nothing because You dared to show them up for the whited sepulchers that they were and they would stop at nothing until they put You to death but You called them out anyway. You died for all, Beloved, and You do not desire the death of the sinner but that they may turn from their sin and live.
The Lord said to the Pharisees: ‘Alas for you Pharisees! You who pay your tithe of mint and rue and all sorts of garden herbs and overlook justice and the love of God! These you should have practised, without leaving the others undone. Alas for you Pharisees who like taking the seats of honour in the synagogues and being greeted obsequiously in the market squares! Alas for you, because you are like the unmarked tombs that men walk on without knowing it!
A lawyer then spoke up. ‘Master,’ he said ‘when you speak like this you insult us too.’
‘Alas for you lawyers also,’ he replied ‘because you load on men burdens that are unendurable, burdens that you yourselves do not move a finger to lift.’
A lawyer then spoke up. ‘Master,’ he said ‘when you speak like this you insult us too.’
‘Alas for you lawyers also,’ he replied ‘because you load on men burdens that are unendurable, burdens that you yourselves do not move a finger to lift.’
No comments:
Post a Comment