The Word of God

 

Word of God, On 23rd August, 2024

Lord, let our thoughts and words give light to others 

  Sir 37: 16-18 Reason should be the basis for every activity, reflection must come before any undertaking. Thoughts are rooted in the heart, and this sends out four branches: good and evil, life and death, and mistress of them always is the tongue.Today, several thoughts were tormenting me in various ways, till a reflection occurred to me. However, the aforementioned Word of God provided the answer to my questions. Thoughts are always communicated with both good and evil intents; evil ways lead to sin. The Lord is speaking to us through His Spirit concerning this particular Word of God. Br Victor mentioned this verse during one of his talks. Br. Victor says, "The tongue is the sharpest weapon that can hurt people in their hearts and minds." The excellent words instill hope and life in people who hear them. The tongue used in bad ways will leave unhealing scars on those who hear it. Let us spread positive words and prevent the negative habits of thoughtless speech. Let us console others instead of hurting them. 

St Ignatius Loyola explains how the thoughts manipulate us: “It may be admitted as a principle that there arise in man three sorts of thoughts, of which one comes of itself, and the other two from the good and the evil spirit. A bad thought, which if consented to would become a mortal sin, may be an occasion of merit:

(1) When the thought, as soon as it presents itself, is resisted or banished;

(2) When the thought repelled, once or several times, returns soon afterward but is constantly resisted until vanquished: and this second victory is much more meritorious than the first.

Mortal sin is committed by thought, first, when the thought is consented to; and second, when the thought is acted upon, which is a more grievous sin:

(1) because it is entertained longer;

(2) because we give ourselves up to it more ardently:

(3) because we generally injure others by scandalizing them.”

The Word of God

 

Word of God, On 21st August, 2024

Lord is asking us to love our neighbour, even love our enemies! 

  Rm 13: 8-10 The only thing you should owe to anyone is love for one another, for to love the other person is to fulfil the law. All these: You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet, and all the other commandments that there are, are summed up in this single phrase: You must love your neighbour   as yourself. Love can cause no harm to your neighbour, and so love is the fulfilment of the Law. 

  We owe one other nothing more than to love one another. When we love one another, we fulfill the law. This is how we obey God's commandment. When we love our neighbors, we are fulfilling God's law and commandments. When we love our neighbor, we do not injure anyone; God’s love is unconditional. God is asking us to love even our enemies John 3:16 (NJB): For this is how God loved the world: he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. God loved the world by providing His Son for everyone's salvation. This is how God revealed to the world the fulfillment of the law. He does not discriminate in His love and care for the poor, rich, sinner, upright, wise, fool, gentle, or proud, but He does love those who have repented hearts. 

The Word of God

 

Word of God, On 20th August, 2024

Lord, let us give Your love to our brothers and sisters selflessly 

Rm 12: 9-12 NJB Let love be without any pretence. Avoid what is evil; stick to what is good. In brotherly love let your feelings of deep affection for one another come to expression and regard others as more important than yourself. In the service of the Lord, work not halfheartedly but with conscientiousness and an eager spirit. Be joyful in hope, persevere in hardship; keep praying regularly; share with any of God’s holy people who are in need; look for opportunities to be hospitable. 

Love must be poured out of our hearts without reservation. We cannot pretend that we love others. Genuine love comes from people who are humble and noble-hearted. It cannot be faked, and its scent will spread by avoiding evil and sticking to what is right. Brotherly love stems from a great passion for one another and cannot be evaluated; it will be limitless. Love is characterized by an expression of gratitude and the recognition that others are more important than oneself. God dislikes half-hearted people; instead, they should be conscientious and enthusiastic. Certain requirements must be met at all times: joy in hope, perseverance in adversity (without judgment or complaint), and consistency in prayer. We should share our resources and talents with our brothers and sisters who are living holy lives in Jesus Christ. We must seek out opportunities to help others in a warm and welcoming manner. 

The Word of God

 

Word of God, On 18th August, 2024

May God bless us and guide us to do His Will

Rm 11: 33-36 (NJB) How rich and deep are the wisdom and the knowledge of God! We cannot reach to the root of his decisions or his ways. Who has ever known the mind of the Lord? Who has ever been his adviser? Who has given anything to him, so that his presents come only as a debt returned? Everything there is comes from him and is caused by him and exists for him. To him be glory for ever! Amen. 

God's wisdom is enormous and profound. How can we get God's wisdom and knowledge, which are impossible to obtain through human means? We can have a glimpse of His wisdom through His mercy and grace. Who can grasp God's mind? Only those who do His will can get a glimpse into it. No one can offer advice to our Lord because He is the Almighty God. We are merely God's creatures and cannot approach Him unless He lets it. Everything is derived from Him, produced for Him, caused by Him, and exists because of Him. May God bless and lead us in carrying out His will in all that we do. 

The Word of God

Word of God, On 15th  August, 2024

It is not by our effort, but by the grace, God is working in us 

Rm 11: 2-6 NJB God never abandoned his own people to whom, ages ago, he had given recognition. Do you not remember what scripture says about Elijah and how he made a complaint to God against Israel: Lord, they have put your prophets to the sword, torn down your altars. I am the only one left, and now they want to kill me? And what was the prophetic answer given? I have spared for myself seven thousand men that have not bent the knee to Baal. In the same way, then, in our own time, there is a remnant, set aside by grace. And since it is by grace, it cannot now be by good actions, or grace would not be grace at all! 

God would never desert His people to whom He has given recognition. We may wonder why all of this is happening to us, and why God is not assisting us in overcoming our suffering and persecution. God is using all of our suffering to shape, purify, and strengthen us. God desires to demonstrate His power in our infirmities, as well as His power and greatness amid all of the principalities and ruling powers in order to contradict their fallacies and exaggerated pride . 

We should never believe that we are righteous and holy people; there are many among us who are more sanctified and holy. If we are spared by God, it means that we did not do anything on our own, but through God's grace. Grace is the final action that God is performing for His chosen people, and they will not bow down to any pagan gods, but only to God! 

The Word of God

 

Word of God, On 10th  August, 2024

The Word is near to us, let us embrace it 

Rm 10: 8-10 What does it say, then? The word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, that is, the word of faith, the faith which we preach, that if you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and if you believe with your heart that God raised him from the dead, then you will be saved. It is by believing with the heart that you are justified, and by making the declaration with your lips that you are saved.

The Lord has given us His Word, the Word of God, which is Jesus Himself, who has been with God since the beginning. How beautifully St John wrote the first word about Jesus. Jn 1: 1-3 In the beginning was the Word: the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things came into being, not one thing came into being except through him. Everything on Earth came into being through Jesus, and nothing exists without him. This is our faith: He was born in flesh by the Virgin Mary. He is God Incarnate, a true God and a true man, having assumed both Divine and Human natures. This is what we must say with our mouth: Jesus is the Son of God. He died for our sins; he was sinless but carried all of our sins on his shoulders to bring us salvation. We have to believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. This truth must be communicated to the multitude with our hearts and mouths, and only then will we be redeemed for all eternity. 

The Word of God

Word of God, On 10th  August, 2024

Lord, make us Your faithful servants of Your Kingdom. 

  Rm 9:17–24 NJB Scripture says to Pharaoh: I raised you up for this reason, to display my power in you and to have my name talked of throughout the world. In other words, if God wants to show mercy on someone, he does so, and if he wants to harden someone’s heart, he does so. Then you will ask me, ‘How then can he ever blame anyone, since no one can oppose his will?’ But you—who do you think you, a human being, are, to answer back to God? Something that was made, can it say to its maker: why did you make me this shape? A potter surely has the right over his clay to make out of the same lump either a pot for special use or one for ordinary use. But suppose that God, although all the time he wanted to reveal his retribution and demonstrate his power, has with great patience gone on putting up with those who are the instruments of his retribution and designed to be destroyed; so that he may make known the glorious riches ready for the people who are the instruments of his faithful love and were long ago prepared justified. 

  God raises certain people to be wealthy, famous, and hard-hearted; He makes them kings and princes. God wants to demonstrate His power over people, to humiliate them if they defy Him. This manner, they will grasp how tremendous God's splendor is over all of the powers of this world. This is how He demonstrates His splendor over all the nations. If he wishes to harden someone's heart, he may do so, as He did with Pharaoh. In comparison to God, we are nothing. If He wishes to offer mercy to someone, He does so. Nobody can dispute His will, and we cannot respond to God.God is like a potter who creates pots of many varieties and for various purposes; some are for unique uses, while others are for regular reasons. God always has the patience to perform the things, but He will expose His wrath and strength via demonstration. When we are chosen as God's tools, He will utilize us for His purposes, grant us authority over the authorities of this world, and demonstrate to the world the power of His destructions. Blessed are God's faithful servants, whom He has chosen to undertake the job for His Kingdom.