The Word of Life

 

On 4th May 2025 [VM 3]

Meditating the Words of Jesus from Holy Scriptures 

Lord, give us strength, perseverance and grace to overcome the persecutions. 

Blessed are those who are persecuted in the cause of uprightness: the kingdom of Heaven is theirs.  (Matthew 5:10, NJB) Jesus always says that the people will persecute us, but we have to pray for them. As he says: But I say this to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; (Matthew 5:44, NJB). We can see how St Stephen prayed for his persecutors. He did not resist while the Jews were throwing stones on him and beating him but was praying while he was dying.  As they were stoning him, Stephen said in invocation, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ 60 Then he knelt down and said aloud, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ And with these words he fell asleep.  (Acts 7:59–60, NJB) St Stephen prayed fervently for the persecutors and that was a special prayer he has done and many were repented and converted and among them was Saul the persecutor of the Church and he became St Paul the greatest Apostle. When we pray for for our enemies they will become our friends. What St Paul Apostle says about the persecution he has gone through is written in his letters. We are subjected to every kind of hardship, but never distressed; we see no way out but we never despair; 9 we are pursued but never cut off; knocked down, but still have some life in us; 10 always we carry with us in our body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus, too, may be visible in our body. 11 Indeed, while we are still alive, we are continually being handed over to death, for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus, too, may be visible in our mortal flesh. 12 In us, then, death is at work; in you, life. 13 But as we have the same spirit of faith as is described in scripture—I believed and therefore I spoke * —we, too, believe and therefore we, too, speak, (2Cr 4: 8-13, NJB) What St Paul wrote is enough for us to reflect and meditate. Let us pray: Lord, give us strength, perseverance and grace to overcome the persecutions.