TO BE WITH JESUS IS TO BE READY FOR PERSECUTION

 Wednesday, March 8, 2023

ST JOHN OF GOD, REL (Opt. Commem.)

First Reading.  Jeremiah 18: 18-20
Psalm. 31: 5-6, 14-16 (R. see 17b)
Gospel. Matthew 20: 17-28

TOPIC FOR REFLECTION

TO STAND WITH JESUS, BE PREPARED FOR PERSECUTION.

If you are doing good or making effort to do good, be ready to be castigated.

Do you not know that being good is a terrible threat to those who are bad?

Please,  do not be discouraged if no one values your good deeds, were Jesus' good deeds appreciated?

Whatever treatment Jesus received from the people of His time, multiple of it shall we who follow Him receive.

This was the situation of Jeremiah in today's first reading when he cried out that his people have set a trap for him to fall into it.

So, always remember that if the prophets of the old could experience rejection, abandonment, hardship for no reason, etc, then non of us should be surprised when we face similar difficulties or hardship in the form of persecution.
We should only pray to God to give us the grace of perseverance.

In the Gospel,  Jesus announced to His disciples how he will go to Jerusalem, to be beaten, rejected, and handed over to His persecutors, etc.

Still, Jesus is a man of justice and equity who do not treat anyone more special than others.
This happened when James and John's mother begged Jesus to allow her two sons to sit at both His left and right hand in Heaven.
Immediately, Jesus told her that there is no shortcut to heaven.

Jesus responded to James and John's mum saying: anyone who wishes to reign with me in Heaven must be ready to drink the chalice that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.
He said to them, “You will drink my chalice, but to sit at my right hand and my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”

Naturally, when the Ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers.
However, Jesus calm them, and He called them to himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you, but whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave; even as the Son of man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

In conclusion,  those who act as a servant are the humble ones, while those who do not act as a servant are the proud ones.

Invariably, those who are humble mostly endure to the end while standing with Jesus.
However,  those who are not humble might not be able to withstand trials and tribulation, hence they fall off.

Those who fall of standing with Jesus are the ones who became antagonistic to those who are good at standing with Jesus.

Peace ✌️ be with you.

Rev. Fr. Segun Oladeji,  CRS.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DO YOU KNOW WHY AND HOW JESUS OVERCAME HIS TEMPTATION?

Image
 Sunday, February 26, 2023. FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT (A) First Reading. Genesis 2: 7-9; 3: 1-7 Psalm. 51: 3-6, 12-14, and 17 (R. cf. 3a) Second Reading. Romans 5: 12- 19 Gospel. Matthew 4: 1-11 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  YOUR DESIRE IS YOUR TEMPTATION.  Do you know why JESUS did not fall into temptation? It is because...  1. He is divine and not of the flesh; remember, only flesh is tempted and not the Spirit.  2. He came from Heaven, and not from the earth.  3. He is in the world, but not of the world.  4. All that exists on earth was created THROUGH HIM, AND WITH HIM, AND IN HIM. So, how can what he creates tempt Him the creator? 5. He came to save and to teach us how to be saved, by extension, how to overcome temptation.  I will like to quickly remind us that all temptations in life fall under 3 categories. They are...  1. PLEASURE  2. POWER  3. POSSESSION.  Jesus was tempted by these 3 categories.  They are as follows:  1. The temptation of pleasure: Turn these stones into bread. Jesus did
Read more

IF JESUS WAS BAD, CAN YOU FOLLOW HIM?

Image
 *Sunday, October 22, 2023*  29TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR A  *MISSION SUNDAY*  First Reading. Isaiah 45: 1, 4-6 PSALM 96: 1, 3-5, 7-10 (R. 7b) Second Reading 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5 Gospel. Matthew 22: 15-21 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  *IF JESUS WAS NOT RESPONSIBLE, WILL YOU FOLLOW HIM?*  Today is mission Sunday, and for anyone to live a fulfilled missionary life, such ought to be a responsible person. No one can survive on a mission land if he lacks good character. I hope you know that Jesus' good character attracted us to follow Him in His mission. So will anyone with good character on a mission influence or attract people to God? Good character attracts, while bad character repels. Jesus is a good man because his ways of life are good. Christianity is a good religion because it is Jesus' way of life. Therefore, Christianity is a way of life. So, since Christianity is a way of life, it teaches how to live a good responsible life filled with a high sense of responsibility.  A Chr
Read more

DO NOT BE A HYPOCRITICAL PERSON

Image
 *Friday, October 20, 2023*  Weekday (28) Ordinary Time A First Reading. Romans 4: 1-8 Psalm 32: 1-2, 5, 11 (R. see 7). Gospel. Luke 12: 1-7 TOPIC FOR REFLECTION  *TRUST GOD, BUT AVOID HYPOCRISY*  Jesus said, "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees – that is, their hypocrisy".  It simply means if you know anybody with the under-listed attributes, please in your interest and for the sake of your future, avoid them. If you can't avoid them, learn to manage them. Do not keep such persons as friends, unless you want to ruin your future. So, avoid: 1. The people who are not real, fake by nature. 2. Those who teach the wrong doctrine 3. Those who blackmail and slander people. Note: Be aware that those who gossip to you about others have already massacred you to other people before coming to you. Avoid them. 4. Those who are pretenders  5. Those who are full of eye 👀  service 6. Those who live and dine with envy and jealousy. etc. Jesus went further to say, that ev
Read more