SCRIPTURE

WHAT DOES JESUS TEACH ABOUT THE SIN OF SCANDAL

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING, SCRIPTURE

Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,

it would be better for him to have a great millstone hung around his neck

 and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. 

Woe to the world because of things that cause sin!

Such things must come, but woe to the one through whom they come!

MATTHEW 18:6-7

 INTRODUCTION

Scandal may be the deliberate leading another into sin like recruiting someone to pick pockets.  But the sin of scandal is more prevalent, nuanced, and pervasive than that.  A priest who abuses a child brings condemnation on a Church and even Christianity.  Catholic politicians who brags publicly they are Catholic and supports abortion undermines Church teaching and leads other poorly informed and weak souls astray.

We can give scandal or be recipient of scandal that influences what we believe and what we promote.  For example people read a poll that a majority of “Catholics” support abortion. The pressure is on in this world to go along to get along.

Many “feel” there is no outside moral authority.  It is what I believe/judge to be right for me.  This is called moral relativism.  i.e. .What is right for me may not be right for you but so what; When I fill out a form and they ask for gender I mark other.  It is up to me to decide what gender I want to be; I can have sex with anybody anytime and it is not anyone’s business.    

Contrary to moral relativists, there is moral authority outside ourselves.  God our Creator is the giver of the moral law.  God made us to show forth His goodness and to share with us His everlasting happiness in heaven. Sin is our separation from God— a cause for unhappiness, dysfunction and ultimately, jeopardizing eternal life and happiness with God.

Sin always has consequences. No one sins without consequences for ourselves and others.  i.e watching pornography coarsens and objectifies our opinion of women and if married our marital spousal relationship; a married spouse has an affair with another, breaks marriage vows, disrespects spouse, gives scandal to children, and could result in divorce and break up of family. 

To live in a pagan culture is nothing new.  Christians have had to persevere from the beginning under the imposition of false idols and immoral man made laws. But today, especially in time of social media, 24/7 news and talk shows, scandal dispersed by “Catholics” is intimidating and discouraging to faithful Catholics.

Discouragement is the tool of the Devil.  God only encourages, never discourages.  If you are discouraged by the society and culture that surrounds you, let a big red flag unfurl in front of you.  Devil alert!  Devil alert!  Jesus I trust in you!  Let me surrender to you not the culture of the times!

News and talk shows do not or should not form our moral compass.  For example I am citing some recent news stories I have been following that attack religious liberty, promotes euthanasia, and denial of the gender you were born with and formed in the womb by God.

GENDER IDENTITY PARENTS BEWARE

Last month, the Supreme Court of British Columbia issued an order that a father may not refer to his 14-year-old daughter as a girl because she identifies herself as a boy. or by her original name, whether in public or in private. Doing so has been ruled to constitute “family violence because it would cause her “psychological abuse in the form of harassment or coercion”

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING GENDER IDENTITY

When the freedom to be creative becomes the freedom to create oneself, then necessarily the Maker (God) himself is denied.  We believe and affirm that all human beings are created by God and thereby have an inherent dignity. What God has created is good. “God created mankind in his image; in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (Gen 1:27).

SEAL OF CONFESSION UNDER ATTACK

The proposal, California Senate Bill 360, would seek to require priests to violate the sacramental seal of confession in suspected cases of child abuse or neglect. The bill would force a priest who hears in the confessional about sins regarding sexual abuse to choose to “face possible imprisonment or to betray that confidentiality and violate his deepest conscience and the laws of God and the Roman Catholic Church.”

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING

The Church teaches that the “seal of confession” is inviolable and cannot be changed by human authority, because its origin is in divine revelation. A priest who intentionally violates the seal commits a mortal sin and incurs an automatic excommunication. A priest, therefore, cannot break the seal to save his own life, to protect his good name, to refute a false accusation, to save the life of another, to aid the course of justice (like reporting a crime), or to avert a public calamity.

PHYSICIAN ASSISTED SUICIDE

The Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act was signed into law by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy. As of Aug. 1, 2019, terminally ill patients with a prognosis of six months or fewer will now be able to self-administer lethal concoctions of drugs in order to take their own lives.

In Canada, a hospital for sick children has unveiled a plan for how to terminate the lives of terminally ill kids, with or without parental consent.

CATHOLIC CHURCH TEACHING

CCC 2277  Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable.

CCC 2281 Suicide contradicts the natural inclination of the human being to preserve and perpetuate his life. It is gravely contrary to the just love of self. It likewise offends love of neighbor because it unjustly breaks the ties of solidarity with family, nation, and other human societies to which we continue to have obligations. Suicide is contrary to love for the living God.

SCANDAL

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

CCC 2284 Scandal is an attitude or behavior which leads another to do evil. The person who gives scandal becomes his neighbor’s tempter. He damages virtue and integrity; he may even draw his brother into spiritual death. Scandal is a grave offense if by deed or omission another is deliberately led into a grave offense.

CCC 2285 Scandal takes on a particular gravity by reason of the authority of those who cause it or the weakness of those who are scandalized. It prompted our Lord to utter this curse: “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. ”

POSTSCRIPT

We must fight back daily the influence of scandal and of course not be guilty of scandal ourselves. Pray always that we will persevere and overcome temptation.  All prayers are heard and answered by God. Read and pray Scripture.  God speaks to us though their written words. Take advantage of the Sacramental life of the Church.

 

JESUS IN SCRIPTURE TEACHER MY YOKE IS EASY AND MY BURDEN LIGHT

SCRIPTURE

COMMENTARY

 When I think of YOKE I think of many uses some positive some negative.  First I will add a couple of pictures of actual yokes so we are all the same page.

PICTURE OF MAN PLOWING HIS FIELD

First yoke as a negative.  Sometimes it is used as a metaphor for slavery or oppression.  Some authoritarian figure has subjected the people to iron clad rule.  It may also refer to the yoke of sin that a sinner is bound to his sinful addictions and is enslaved to sin.  On the positive side a yoke is useful in plowing a field by having the oxen work together as a team to follow the instructions of the farmer. In our Scripture reading today, Jesus is asking us to yoke ourselves to him because it is easier to reach our goal of everlasting life with him than to go off on some other path of our choosing.

Yoke is defined in dictionaries as a bar fitted on the neck of oxen for the purpose of binding to them the traces by which they might draw the plough, It was a curved piece of wood “bar.” which signifies a pair, two oxen yoked or coupled together.  In a literal sense, the word ‘Yoke’ means a bar of wood, so constructed as to unite two animals (usually oxen), enabling them to work in the fields, drawing loads, pulling instruments used for farming.

 

MATTHEW 11:25-30  MY YOKE IS EASY AND MY BURDEN LIGHT

 “I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.  Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will.

 All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him. 

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

REFLECTION:

Jesus reminds us again that he has revealed his teachings to the child like not the so called sophisticated who are skeptical but the believer and trusting humble looking for something. someone to believe in.   believe in Jesus…He is the Way the Truth and the Life…The Father has handed all over to the Son….whoever sees or hears Jesus sees and hears the Father…

Come to me all you who labor and are burdened and find rest…take the yoke I will give you… Jesus often uses imagery from his culture to make his point… Jesus suggests we bond with him as partners for life…secure and safe on our journey…his yoke is light…he will guide gently, for He is meek and humble of heart…

listen to me, my child, my yoke is easy and my burden light…learn of me for I am meek and humble of heart…if you do you will know the Father, the Father of us all….

 SILENT PRAYER

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. 

For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common?

Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? 

2 Corinthians 6:14

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.

 Stand firm, and do not let yourselves be burdened again

 by the yoke of slavery (to sin.)”

Galations 5:1:

JESUS IN SCRIPTURE WHO DO YOU SAY I AM

SCRIPTURE

MATTHEW 16:13-20 WHO DO PEOPLE SAY THE SON OF MAN IS?

When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”  They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”  He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”    Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. 

 And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.  I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”  Then he strictly ordered his disciples to tell no one that he was the Messiah.

REFLECTION:

 Jesus is always bringing God and His kingdom into the secular, the pagan, and the unchatechized.  In this Gospel He brings his disciples to a historic shrine to pagan Gods to announce He is God above all other gods, listen to me, follow me, don’t be misled.. Jesus as a great teacher does not directly say these words but asks questions of His disciples so they can figure it out for themselves, a great way to evangelize Who do people say that the Son of Man is….

 Jesus, the Word made Flesh, affirms his humanity…on the one hand, he is the Son of Mary thus the title Son of Man…but Jesus is seeking more insight…inspired by the Holy Spirit, Peter answers, you are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God….Do we listen to those moments of inspiration or is there too much noise, too many distractions in our lives…

Jesus tells Peter that he is blessed by the gift of faith from the Heavenly Father…because of this blessing…Jesus renames Cephas, Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, Jesus’ CHURCH!…it is not unusual for God to change the name of a person when they are given a new identity and mission, Abram to Abraham; Saul to Paul….reminds me of how we are given a baptismal name when we become a child of God and call Him Abba, Father!

 Pray for gift of faith that I may know Jesus the Son of the living God as Peter affirmed…Jesus built a church on Peter’s faith…from the time of the apostles, the Church has preached the Good News…am I listening…am I embracing the Word made flesh…what stands in my way…Who do you say Jesus is!

 SILENT PRAYER

 NOTES

 CAESAREA PHILIPPI

Caesarea Philippi was an ancient Roman City and the location of the Cave of Pan, the place of the pagan Gate of Hades. It was in this area that the first king of Israel (Jeroboam) led the northern kingdom of Israel into idolatry. King Herod the Great built a magnificent white temple at the site.  Following Herod’s death his son Herod Phillip established Panias as his capital city and called it Caesarea-Phillipi to distinguish it from Caesarea on the coast. The city had been known as Banias, an Arabic pronunciation of Panias. This name honored the Greek god Pan — a half-man, half-goat deity often depicted playing a flute — who was worshipped here. Here the cult of Pan flourished. East of a large cave are the remains of shrines to Pan and inscriptions, from the 2nd century, bearing his name

CAESAREA PHILLIPI TODAY

SON OF MAN

SON OF MAN is used to designate Jesus Christ no fewer than eighty-one times — thirty times in St. Matthew, fourteen times in St. Mark, twenty-five times in St. Luke, and twelve times in St. John.

The Son is Lifted Up (John 12:23, 34). Now the “hour” has arrived. It is the moment when the Son of Man is to be lifted up—and this involves both glorification (John 12:23) and death (John 12:32-34). When the Son of Man is lifted up, the name of the Father is glorified (John 12:28).

The glory of the Son of Man is to glorify the Father through his death, and in response God will glorify the Son.

 “Son of Man” is a reference to Jesus’ humanity, it is not a denial of His deity. “Son of Man” reference makes clear that Jesus in one of us and therefore able to be our Redeemer.  Jesus has two natures (divine and human) conjoined in one person.

 I AM WHO I AM

It is interesting that this scripture passage Jesus asks who do people say I AM?  Jesus is I AM!  Just as God gave His name to Moses, I Am Who Am.  Jesus is God and is often in trouble with his religious enemies who accuse him of taking Yahweh title I AM.

 OLD TESTAMENT REFERENCES
Genesis 15:7, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
Exodus 3:14, “God said to Moses, “I am who I am.”1 And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I am has sent me to you.’”
Exodus 29:34, “And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.”

GOD (I AM) IS NOT ANOTHER BEING BUT EXISTENCE ITSELF HE IS! EXISTENCE IS HIS ESSENCE THE NAME OF GOD IS FATHER SON AND HOLY SPIRIT; ONE GOD THREE PERSONS)

 NEW TESTAMENT REFERENCES

JOHN 4:26  Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

JOHN 8:58  Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.”

JOHN 10:36  Do you say of Him, whom the Father sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?

MESSIAH

The mashiach ( Messiah) will be a great political leader descended from King David (Jeremiah 23:5). The mashiach is often referred to as “son of David). He will be well-versed in Jewish law, and observant of its commandments (Isaiah 11:2-5).

He will be a charismatic leader, inspiring others to follow his example. He will be a great military leader, who will win battles for Israel. He will be a great judge, who makes righteous decisions (Jeremiah 33:15). But above all, he will be a human being, not a god, demi-god or other supernatural being.

When Peter calls Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, he challenges the customary expectation of the Jewish community.  Rather than a great military leader who will liberate Israel from its occupiers, Jesus is the Messiah who will liberate us from sin and death.

 

JESUS IN SCRIPTURE ASK AND IT WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU; SEEK AND YOU WILL FIND

SCRIPTURE

“Everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds;and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened”  Matthew 7:8

INTRODUCTION

Today’s blog is about prayer, I will share a couple of parables of Jesus after he taught his disciples how to pray.

We call this prayer, the Lord’s Prayer.  I hope to illustrate the importance of prayer, our role, God’s role and what faith filled expectations should look like.

The picture above illustrates that long before we seek out Jesus, Jesus is already knocking at our door, pleading with us to let him enter.  “Seek that you may be found” is ironic but true.  It is our seeking the Way, the Truth, and the Life, that facilitates God’s unending search for us ever since Eden.  Our merciful Father has gone out of His way to bring us home again, even death on the cross.

 MATTHEW 7:7-12 ASK AND IT WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU; SEEK AND YOU WILL FIND

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.  Which one of you would hand his son a stone when he asks for a loaf of bread, or a snake when he asks for a fish?  If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him…. 

 REFLECTION:

 Sometimes an answer to prayer is delayed but never ignored…God’s time is not always the same as ours….but his timing may be better… a physician knows better than the sick person what he needs for healing…our natural instincts may need the help of supernatural grace to see more clearly…

 We may not always receive what we ask for…but we will always be blessed by God with what we need….Do we recognize God’s gifts as from a truly loving Father…Do we accept His gifts even if they are not exactly what we asked for…after our petitions do we ever attach, but Thy will be done… if I as parent do good things to my children…how much more will my heavenly Father do for me…

 We might not always hear God’s voice back to us but He hears us and is pleased by our faith…He always responds…but sometimes the voice is a whisper or some unexpected event or insight…

 God waits patiently for our approach…He is always near…always hovering in the background…turn around and you will run right into Him…knock and the door will be opened…do I approach the door…do I hesitate…do I knock…am I ready to engage…

 God does not hide from His children. His heart’s desire is for us to persistently and passionately look for Him all around us, the more time a Christian spends in communion with God, the more he or she will know what to ask for in accordance with God’s will….. “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

SILENT PRAYER

LUKE 11: 5-13 And Jesus said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend to whom he goes at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey and I have nothing to offer him, ’and he says in reply from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked and my children and I are already in bed. I cannot get up to give you anything.  I tell you, if he does not get up to give him the loaves because of their friendship, he will get up to give him whatever he needs because of his persistence.”

PRAY ALWAYS!

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JESUS IN SCRIPTURE I AM THE VINE YOU ARE THE BRANCHES

SCRIPTURE

JOHN 15:1-12 I AM THE VINE; YOU ARE THE BRANCHES

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes so that it bears more fruit.  You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you…

 I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.  Anyone who does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them into a fire and they will be burned…

 As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love.  If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.  “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.  This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.

REFLECTION:

 We, future saints, and saints already in heaven receive the grace to become saints from abiding in Jesus…

The Father is the vine grower. Jesus is the vine… “I am the vine you are the branches…whoever remains in me will bear much fruit”…

Our Branches are pruned to bear more fruit…do we resist when God tries to remove shoots from the branch that may inhibit the bearing of more fruit….

” Remain in my love…and your joy will be complete”…anyone who doesn’t remain with Jesus will wither and die…Do I want to wither and die…Of course not…Jesus keep my branch attached to you…

if we remain with Jesus our joy will be complete…all of us want to be happy…really happy…really whole…by keeping the commandments and loving one another, my joy will be complete…

Jesus wants his friends, us included, to know He is not abandoning us. Though His physical presence may be taken away, His spiritual reality will continue to sustain and nourish us as long as we abide in him……. For in Him we live and move and have our being” Acts 17:28

In our pursuit of things of this world, have I not had enough disappointment with unmet expectations,  material pleasures that only satisfy for a moment… I was made by God for God…And that’s a good thing….to share in His divine life …What makes me think doing it my way is better than God’s way…isn’t it time to embrace His pruning…that I may bear more fruit… “This is my commandment, love one another as I have loved you!”

SILENT PRAYER

ABIDE IN JESUS!

 

 

JESUS IN SCRIPTURE PARABLE OF UNFORGIVING SERVANT

SCRIPTURE

 

MATTHEW 18:23-35 PARABLE OF UNFORGIVING SERVANT

Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him?  As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.

That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount.

Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt.  At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’  Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan.

When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount.  He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, ‘Pay back what you owe.’  Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.” But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt.  Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair.

His master summoned the (unforgiving) servant and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’  Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart.

 REFLECTION:

Peter asks a reasonable question, ”How often must I forgive my brother…”  it is difficult to forgive after all….sometimes we can’t forgive ourselves….we must accept and trust in the mercy of God…there is no sin so bad or so big that God’s mercy can’t wipe clean….in this parable Jesus addresses our forgiving others…Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us….be careful of what we pray for….the measure we measure will be measured to us…we are told to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect…one way we achieve this is through forgiving others…we live now in time of mercy…later there will be judgment…so will my heavenly Father do to you as you do to others…

SILENT PRAYER

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JESUS IN SCRIPTURE NO ONE CAN SERVE TWO MASTERS

SCRIPTURE

COMMENTARY

Today’s blog takes up a couple of Jesus’ teachings reminding us that there is only one “master”, one God that is worthy of our praise and obedience.  Jesus reminds us also that worry is pretty much a waste of time. Trust in Him is what we need to work on,  All good things and blessings are from God.

In our suffering which will naturally come, God is present in support and empathy as He was on Calvary when His Son gave His life for the life of the world. Greater love has no man than to lay down his life for another, whether that is a donation of a kidney or visiting the sick, or even giving into some other person’s agenda. “Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. “  Luke 17:33

YOU CAN’T SERVE TWO MASTERS MATTHEW 6:24

“No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat (or drink), or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?

 Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they?   Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span.

 So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’   All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  But seek first the kingdom (of God) and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. 

 REFLECTION

Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Trust in God…there is no other…with God all will be well…worry never solved a problem…though my body may suffer…let no harm come to my soul…God knows the needs of my flesh…let not my soul be found wanting in pursuit of the flesh…pray that I may desire the holiness that transcends all earthly creatures… God is the one Master I seek to serve… seek first the kingdom of heaven and all things will be given to me…Blessed be the Lord…

 LUKE 20: 20-26   RENDER TO CAESAR THE THINGS THAT ARE CAESAR

RENDER TO CAESAR THE THINGS THAT ARE CAESAR MARK 12:17

They watched him closely and sent agents pretending to be righteous who were to trap him in speech, in order to hand him over to the authority and power of the governor.  They posed this question to him, “Teacher, we know that what you say and teach is correct, and you show no partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.  Is it lawful for us to pay tribute to Caesar or not?”  Recognizing their craftiness he said to them, “Show me a denarius; whose image and name does it bear?”

 They replied, “Caesar’s.” So he said to them, “Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”  They were unable to trap him by something he might say before the people, and so amazed were they at his reply that they fell silent.

 REFLECTION:

Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s…my very life is God’s…the air I breathe…what isn’t God’s…what is not to be grateful for…I have life on earth because God gave it to me…I have the potential of eternal life in heaven because His only begotten Son, Jesus earned it for me on the cross….

 Is my heart as generous as God’s…do I give back to God by giving to my neighbor….do I share God’s bounty with others less fortunate… does my use of earthly things give glory to God… or do I grasp things of this world just for my pleasure….do I obey man made laws as long as they don’t conflict with God made laws….The Father Son and Holy Spirit are the TRUTH THE WAY AND THE LIFE!

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JESUS IN SCRIPTURE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN PARABLES

SCRIPTURE

MATTHEW 20:1-16 THE WORKERS IN THE VINEYARD.

 “The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard.   After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard.  Going out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and he said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard, and I will give you what is just.’ …he went out again around noon, and around three o’clock, and five o’clock, he found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?….’ He said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard.’

When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’ When those who had started about five o’clock came, each received the usual daily wage.

So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also got the usual wage. And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, saying, ‘These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and heat

He said to one of them in reply, ‘My friend, I am not cheating you.* Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous?’

 REFLECTION Do I resent God’s generosity with others or do I rejoice in the blessings and gifts of others?

 MATTHEW 22:1-14 THE PARABLE OF THE WEDDING FEAST

“The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come.  A second time he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those invited: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet, my calves and fattened cattle are killed, and everything is ready; come to the feast.” Some ignored the invitation and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. The rest laid hold of his servants, mistreated them, and killed them.  

 The king was enraged and sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.   Then, he said to his servants, ‘The feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy to come. Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever you find.’  The servants went out into the streets and gathered all they found….,

 But when the king came in to meet the guests he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment. He said to him, ‘My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?’  But he was reduced to silence. Then the king said to his attendants, ‘Bind his hands and feet, and cast  him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’ Many are invited, but few are chosen.”

 REFLECTION what a privilege it is to be called…… but I need to be dressed appropriately…nothing sullied enters the wedding feast…my attire and behavior must fit such a solemn occasion….am I getting prepared for the wedding feast to come…will I be accepted by the King of kings….

Mark 4:26-29 THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER

“The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows–how, he himself does not know. “The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. “This is how it is with the kingdom of God;  it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

 REFLECTION The Spirit goes where it wills….God is sower of the seed…God knows when it takes root…and supplies the nutrients to nurse the seed to full bloom in us until we are transformed…we pray to let it be so…let us be good stewards…God wills that all will be saved! Say yes!

MATTHEW 13:31-35,44-46  KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS LIKE BURIED TREASURE

“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it. kingdom of heaven is a treasure…worth leaving everything behind…a pearl of great price…

REFLECTION   Am I willing to give my all to God….He has given His All to me…His very self that I might be saved…what return do I make for that!

Mark 4:3034 THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED

 “How shall we picture the kingdom of God….,”It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that‘ birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches and nest under its shade.”  “

REFLECTION The kingdom of heaven grows mightily under God’s providence…it  provides us refuge…Come you that are burdened seek my rest and peace…be united with me and know all will be well

MATTHEW 13:47-52 THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS LIKE A NET CAST INTO THE SEA

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; and when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. “So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, 

REFLECTION In this world the wicked and righteous will coexist but when the eternal kingdom comes (end of the age), the sheep and goats will be separated…may we be among the sheep who hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of thy lord.” Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life…come follow Jesus!

 MATTHEW 13:33 THE PARABLE OF THE YEAST

He spoke to them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast* that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.”  All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:*“I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.l

REFLECTION  We are the leaven in God’s hands….we are the clay in the Potter’s hands….first we are transformed….then the world….as the Spirit moves over the land and water to all nations….let us pray the Lord’s prayer…thy kingdom come, thy will be done….let it be so!

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PARABLES OF JESUS IN SCRIPTURE

SCRIPTURE

THE SOWER AND THE SEED

LUKE 6:12-13, MARK 4:2-8

In those days Jesus departed to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God the Father. When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve.

Jesus taught them at length in parables, and in the course of his instruction he said to them, “Hear this!  A sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky ground where it had little soil.

It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep. And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it and it produced no grain. And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit.  It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”

REFLECTION:

Our Scripture begins with Jesus going apart in prayer….solitude is best….especially when facing a tough decision….with the Father, Jesus discusses his choice for those closest followers who will be commissioned to carry on the Good News….do I take my tough decisions to God in prayer or do go it alone…..

Jesus  begins His instructions to the chosen Twelve in parables….challenging them….testing them….probing their hearts….. Jesus begins his teaching with HEAR THIS!….Do I really listen to the Word at Mass….when I am reading scripture do I really hear especially the parts that may be difficult for me

In this parable Jesus is the sower and the Word…the word on the path is taken away immediately by Satan…due to the hardness of our heart…those sown on rocky ground receive it at once with joy but they have no root; they last only for a time….have I been preparing my heart through prayer and sacraments to receive and nourish the word of God…am I prepared to say Thy will be done…or do I opt out…

Those sown among thorns are the people who hear the word, but the lure of riches, and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word,…but those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold…does the word bear fruit in my life…how…with the help of the Holy Spirit I will do what I must to enrich the soil that I may bear more fruit….God willing!

SILENT PRAYER

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THE PRODIGAL SON PARABLE OF JESUS

SCRIPTURE

LUKE 15:11-24  THE PRODIGAL SON

A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.

After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.  When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need.  So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.

And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any.  Coming to his senses he thought, ‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger.

I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.  I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”‘

So he got up and went back to his father.  While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion.

He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him. His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.’

REFLECTION:

Imagine a child of yours asking for his inheritance now without regard for your future wellbeing and demonstrating he only cared about the material goods you could provide…resentment may be the response of many parent….some may even write the son off….maybe tell him to never show up here again…all those negative feelings that are so natural but the Father in this parable, a stand in for our Heavenly Father, filled with grace and compassion never gave up on this prodigal son..

The Prodigal Son, apart from the Father,  wallowed in a life of sin and squandered everything…no mere mortal came to his aid…he longed for nourishment but none was available apart from the Father…finally convicted in his conscience by the Holy Spirit he came to his senses…he willed to return to the Father…I will say to my Father, “I have sinned against heaven and against you…I no longer deserve to be called your son”…while he was a long way off…his Father saw him…rushed to meet the prodigal son, embraced and kissed him…

The Father was looking for his beloved son…every day…Our Heavenly Father seeks us every day….His outreach is unlimited…except if we put up a road block…God respects our free will more than any other gift He has given us…He loves us and wants us to share in His Divine life of love and peace but won’t force us…

The Father of the prodigal son in his love for his son orders material signs of that love….the Father clothed him in the finest garment and ordered a feast for this son who was dead and has come to life again…he was lost and has been found….so it is with God when we turn from sin and return to the Father…He places a wedding garment on our shoulders and welcomes us to the wedding feast….

SILENT PRAYER

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