God made us for a reason!

Luke 4:16-30

He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has chosen me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed and announce that the time has come

when the Lord will save his people.”

Jesus rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the place was on him, intent. Then he started in, “You’ve just heard Scripture make history. It came true just now in this place.”

All who were there, watching and listening, were surprised at how well he spoke. But they also said, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son, the one we’ve known since he was a youngster?” He answered, “I suppose you’re going to quote the proverb, ‘Doctor, go heal yourself. Do here in your hometown what we heard you did in Capernaum.’ Well, let me tell you something: No prophet is ever welcomed in his hometown. Isn’t it a fact that there were many widows in Israel at the time of Elijah during that three and a half years of drought when famine devastated the land, but the only widow to whom Elijah was sent was in Sarepta in Sidon? And there were many lepers in Israel at the time of the prophet Elisha but the only one cleansed was Naaman the Syrian.”

That set everyone in the meeting place seething with anger. They threw him out, banishing him from the village, then took him to a mountain cliff at the edge of the village to throw him to his doom, but he gave them the slip and was on his way.

Food for thought

What on earth am I here for? This is the question that Jesus answers in today's gospel reading. Jesus knows why he came down to earth: "to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed and announce that the time has come

when the Lord will save his people.”

These words are Jesus' Personal Mission Statement. They're his resume, his CV. Jesus knows why came. This is Jesus. What about you and I?

If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God, because you were born by his purpose and for his purpose. You didn't create yourself, so there is no way you can tell yourself what you were created for. You must begin with God, you Creator.

Did you notice how Jesus came to know his purpose? It was by reading the Bible. The gospel says, "He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written." In other words, the starting point is the Word of God, the Bible. When Jesus opened the Bible he saw himself in it because his destiny had already been foretold, by the prophet Isaiah.

It is only in the Word of God that we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, our purpose, our significance, and our destiny. Every other path leads to dead end. You may choose your career, your spouse, your hobbies, and many other parts of your life, but you don't get to choose your purpose in life.

None of us is an accident. Our birth was no mistake or mishap, and our life is no fluke of nature. Our parents may not have planned us, but God did. He was not at all surprised by our birth. In fact, he expected it. He custom-made our body just the way he wanted it. He also determined the natural talents each one of us would possess and the uniqueness of our personality. This is what Jesus said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has chosen me to...!" Yes, God custom-made each one of us for a purpose, for something very special. Do you know yours?

Don’t run from suffering; embrace it!

Matthew 16:21-27

21 From that time Jesus began telling his followers that he must go to Jerusalem. He explained that the older Jewish leaders, the leading priests, and the teachers of the law would make him suffer many things. And he told his followers that he must be killed. Then, on the third day, he would be raised from death.

22 Peter took Jesus away from the other followers to talk to him alone. He began to criticize him. He said, “God save you from those sufferings, Lord! That will never happen to you!”

23 Then Jesus said to Peter, “Get away from me, Satan! You are not helping me! You don’t care about the same things God does. You care only about things that people think are important.”

24 Then Jesus said to his followers, “If any of you want to be my follower, you must stop thinking about yourself and what you want. You must be willing to carry the cross that is given to you for following me. 25 Any of you who try to save the life you have will lose it. But you who give up your life for me will find true life. 26 It is worth nothing for you to have the whole world if you yourself are lost. You could never pay enough to buy back your life. 27 The Son of Man will come again with his Father’s glory and with his angels. And he will reward everyone for what they have done.

Food for thought!

A nun was explaining the Stations of the Cross to her class. They got to the fourth Station were Jesus on the road to Calvary meets his mother. The nun explained that even though they could not talk to each other, mother and son spoke just using their eyes. "What do you think they said to each other?" she asked the pupils. The class gave many different answers. One kid suggested that she said, "This is unfair." Another kid suggested that she said, "Why me?" Finally a sickly little girl raised her thin hand, got up and said: "Sister, I know what the Blessed Mother told Jesus. She said to him, 'Keep on going, Jesus!'" 

Why would a mother encourage her only son on the way to crucifixion to keep on going? Because any mother understands the divine principle of "no cross, no crown." Unless there were mothers prepared to take risks, no child would ever be born. It is the simple lesson of history that it has always been the adventurous souls, bidding farewell to security and safety, who wrote their names on history and greatly helped the world of men. Unless there had been those prepared to take risks, many a medical cure would not exist. 

Peter took Jesus away from the other followers to talk to him alone.

Did you notice what Peter did? He took Jesus. He lead Jesus away. He was in front and Jesus behind! This is why Jesus said to Peter: "Peter, your place is behind me, not in front of me. It is your place to follow me in the way I choose, not to try to lead me in the way you would like me to go." He  recalled him to his proper place, as a follower walking in the footsteps of Jesus. Our place is behind, not ahead of Jesus. We're not in the driver's seat. Jesus is.

What made the temptation more acute was the fact that it came from one who loved him. The hardest temptation of all is the one which comes from a close friend; even friends can become obstacles for us; can become Satan. Satan is any force which seeks to deflect us from the way of God; Satan is any influence which seeks to make us turn back from the hard way that God has set before us; Satan is any power which seeks to change the principle of "no cross, no crown" to "no cross, all crown.''  

In the face of disappointment, bereavement, sickness, ingratitude and failure, our question should never be "Why me?" but ''Why not me?" We must recognise that in every life where there's no pain there's no gain. Let us remember that himself. Not an angel. Not an ambassador. Not an emissary, but Jesus himself. Lived fully. Not partially. Not nearly. Not to a large degree. Entirely! Jesus lived fully the principle: "no cross, no crown."

Jesus made it clear to his disciples that it was now necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, submit to an ordeal of suffering at the hands of the religious leaders, be killed, and then on the third day be raised up alive.

What did you say is your talent?

Matthew 25:14-30

Jesus said to the people that the kingdom of heaven "is also like a man going off on an extended trip. He called his servants together and delegated responsibilities. 15 To one he gave five thousand dollars, to another two thousand, to a third one thousand, depending on their abilities. Then he left. 16 Right off, the first servant went to work and doubled his master's investment. 17 The second did the same. 18 But the man with the single thousand dug a hole and carefully buried his master's money. 19" After a long absence, the master of those three servants came back and settled up with them. 20 The one given five thousand dollars showed him how he had doubled his investment. 21 His master commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.' 22 "The servant with the two thousand showed how he also had doubled his master's investment. 23 His master commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.' 24" The servant given one thousand said, 'Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. 25 I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.' 26 "The master was furious. 'That's a terrible way to live! It's criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? 27 The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest. 28 29"' Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this "play- it- safe" who won't go out on a limb. 30 Throw him out into utter darkness. '

Food for thought

In this parable Jesus tells us that there can be no life without adventure, and that God can find no use for the person afraid of adventures. Because he expects you and me to adventure, God gifted us. Some people received five talents, others two, and others one. It is not a man's talent which matters; what matters is how he uses it. God never demands from us abilities which he has not given us; but he does demand that we should use to the full the abilities which we possess. We are not equal in talents; but we can be equal in effort. The parable tells us that whatever talent we have, little or great, we must put to work.

Jesus still teaches us that the reward of work well done is still more work to do. The two servants who had done well are not told to lean back and rest because they have done well. They are given greater tasks and greater responsibilities in the work of the master.

The man who is punished is the man who did not try. Even in real life, the people who are punished by life are the people who do not want to try; people afraid of losing. The man with the one talent did not lose his talent; he simply did nothing with it. Even if he had adventured with it and lost it, it would have been better than doing nothing at all. It is always a temptation for the people with less to do even less, and people with more to even do more, and consequently earn more. This is why the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

That is why Jesus says that to him who has more will be given, and he who has not will lose even what he has. The meaning is this. If someone has a talent, a gift, an ability and exercises it, s/he is progressively able to do more with it. But, if s/he has a talent and fails to exercise it, s/he will inevitably lose it.

If we have some proficiency at a game or an art, if we have some gift for doing something, the more we exercise that proficiency and that gift, the harder the work and the bigger the task we will be able to tackle. Whereas, if we fail to use it, we lose it. That is equally true of playing golf or playing the piano, or singing songs or writing sermons, or carving wood or thinking out ideas. It is the lesson of life that the only way to keep a gift is to use the gift; the only way to lose a gift is ignoring it; more breeds more; less breeds less; the rich get richer; the poor get poorer; the good get better; the bad get worse.

Bad things do happen to good people!

Mark 6:17-29

17 Herod was the one who had ordered the arrest of John, put him in chains, and sent him to prison at the nagging of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife. 18 For John had provoked Herod by naming his relationship with Herodias "adultery." 19 Herodias, smoldering with hate, wanted to kill him, but didn't dare 20 because Herod was in awe of John. Convinced that he was a holy man, he gave him special treatment. Whenever he listened to him he was miserable with guilt, and yet he couldn't stay away. Something in John kept pulling him back. 21 But a portentous day arrived when Herod threw a birthday party, inviting all the brass and bluebloods in Galilee. 22 Herodias's daughter entered the banquet hall and danced for the guests. She dazzled Herod and the guests.

The king said to the girl, "Ask me anything. I'll give you anything you want." 23 Carried away, he kept on, "I swear, I'll split my kingdom with you if you say so!" 24 She went back to her mother and said, "What should I ask for?" "Ask for the head of John the Baptizer." 25 Excited, she ran back to the king and said, "I want the head of John the Baptizer served up on a platter. And I want it now!" 26 That sobered the king up fast. But unwilling to lose face with his guests, he caved in and let her have her wish. 27 The king sent the executioner off to the prison with orders to bring back John's head. He went, cut off John's head, 28 brought it back on a platter, and presented it to the girl, who gave it to her mother. 29 When John's disciples heard about this, they came and got the body and gave it a decent burial.

Food for thought

This passage is one of the most difficult to understand in the entire Bible. It records the events surrounding the death of '' the best among those born of a woman'', John the Baptist. He was a special man, chosen for a special mission. He was the “forerunner” of the Messiah. He was the fulfilment of several Old Testament prophecies. He was the last of the Old Testament prophets. He was a powerful preacher. He was a fearless prophet. He was a true man of God. As Jesus Christ Himself testified, “Among them that are born of women there has not risen a greater than John the Baptist,” (Matt. 11:11). 

All this said, John was imprisoned, then beheaded. Why do bad things happen to good people like John? The answer is in the question: Because bad things sometimes do happen to good people. Besides Jesus, John is the best example of bad things happening to good people. 

Have you ever felt like being another John, who though serving the Lord and following his ways, that you find yourself imprisoned in overwhelming circumstances in life that seem to point to the idea that God just simply can’t be trusted? 

At times, when we’re certain that we’ve been faithful to God, we can find ourselves feeling alone and abandoned by a God who promised us great things. In our times of suffering, God requires us to trust Him, against all human reason.

Didn’t John deserve better? With all that he had done for the Lord? Having prepared the way for Christ, shouldn’t he be rescued? No. Why? Because God wants to teach us that bad things do happen to good people.

Whatever your prison may be, whatever your Herod may be, you must accept that God has allowed every circumstance in your life to happen, and that he will use it all for good. He knows about the enemies surrounding you. He’s brought you to this very place, so that you can witness, first hand, what it’s like to have bad things happening to good people. Yesterday, it was John, then Jesus, then... you!

Jesus is our friend!

Matthew 24:42-51

Jesus said to his disciples, So stay awake, alert. You have no idea what day your Master will show up. 43 But you do know this: You know that if the homeowner had known what time of night the burglar would arrive, he would have been there with his dogs to prevent the break-in. 44 Be vigilant just like that. You have no idea when the Son of Man is going to show up. 45 "Who here qualifies for the job of overseeing the kitchen? A person the Master can depend on to feed the workers on time each day. 46 Someone the Master can drop in on unannounced and always find him doing his job. A God-blessed man or woman, I tell you. 47 It won't be long before the Master will put this person in charge of the whole operation. 48" But if that person only looks out for himself, and the minute the Master is away does what he pleases-- 49 abusing the help and throwing drunken parties for his friends-- 50 the Master is going to show up when he least expects it 51 and make hash of him. He'll end up in the dump with the hypocrites, out in the cold shivering, teeth chattering.

Food for thought

Jesus is indeed our friend. He came to prepare us for the end; he doesn't want to surprise us. He came to prepare us for his second coming. He told us all the answers to the questions he will make when he returns. Today's gospel is about this. 

If the day and the hour of the coming of Christ are known to none save God, then all life must be a constant preparation for that coming. And, if that is so, there are certain basics we do well to remember:

(i) To fail to prepare is to prepare to fail. Living without watchfulness invites disaster. A thief does not send a letter saying when he is going to burgle a house; his principal weapon is surprise; therefore a householder who has valuables in his house must maintain a constant guard. But to get this picture right, we must remember that the watching of the Christian for the coming of Christ is not that of terror-stricken fear and shivering apprehension; it is the watching of eager expectation for the coming of glory and joy.

(ii) The spirit which leads to disaster is the spirit which says there is plenty of time. It is the comfortable delusion of the servant that he will have plenty of time to put things to rights before his master returns. There is a fable which tells of three apprentice devils who were coming to this earth to finish their internship. They were talking to Satan, the chief of the devils, about their plans to tempt and ruin men. The first said, "I will tell them there is no God." Satan said, "That will not delude many, for they know that there is a God." The second said, "I will tell men there is no hell." Satan answered, "You will deceive no one that way; men know even now that there is a hell for sin." The third said, "I will tell men there is no hurry." "Go," said Satan, "and you will ruin them by the thousands." The most dangerous of all delusions is that there is plenty of time. The most dangerous day in a man's life is when he learns that there is such a word as tomorrow. There are things which must not be put off, for no man knows if for him tomorrow will ever come.

(iii) Rejection is based on failure in duty, and reward is based on fidelity in one's duties. The servant who fulfilled his duty faithfully was given a still greater place; and the servant who failed in his duties awas dealt with in severity. The inevitable conclusion is that, when he comes, Jesus Christ should find us employed in no better and greater task than in doing our daily duties dutifully. If we do well our duty, however simple that duty may be, on the day Christ comes there will be joy for him. For that reason, whatever you do, do it well, very well, and don't live for tomorrow what you can do today.

Be Just; Be Merciful; Have Faith in God!

Matthew 23:27-32

27 “How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but are full of bones and decaying corpses on the inside. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear good to everybody, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and sins.

29 “How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You make fine tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of those who lived good lives; 30 and you claim that if you had lived during the time of your ancestors, you would not have done what they did and killed the prophets. 31 So you actually admit that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets! 32 Go on, then, and finish up what your ancestors started!

Food for thought!

Jesus continues to criticize the people of his day. "You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but are full of bones and decaying corpses on the inside. In the same way, on the outside you appear good to everybody, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and sins." These people's outward actions were the actions of intensely religious men; but their inward hearts were all but religious. Their outer actions did not march their inner actions; there was a mismatch between their ceremonies and their hearts.

Does Jesus mean that we should abandon our religious acts and ceremonies? Not at all. Yesterday, he told us: "These you should have practised, without neglecting the others." (Matthew 23:23). In other words, religious ceremonies can and sometimes must be done, but do not neglect the more important things. So what are these "more important things"? 

Yesterday, Jesus told us these things (Matthew 23:23). He said, "you have neglected the more important matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith." These are the things we should  labour to do in all we do. Psalm 4:5 reminds us: "Make justice your sacrifice, and trust in the Lord." And in Luke 6:36 Jesus tells us: "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." And in Mark 11:22 Jesus recommends us: "Have faith in God."

Justice, Mercy and Faith are the important things that we need to practice everyday and everywhere; don't compromise on them. Be just; be merciful; and have faith in God. 

Hypocrites & hypocrisy!

Matthew 23:23-26

Jesus said, "You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Hypocrites! You keep meticulous account books, tithing on every nickel and dime you get, but on the meat of God's Law, things like fairness and compassion and commitment-- the absolute basics!-- you carelessly take it or leave it. Careful bookkeeping is commendable, but the basics are required. 24 Do you have any idea how silly you look, writing a life story that's wrong from start to finish, nitpicking over commas and semicolons? 25 "You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Hypocrites! You burnish the surface of your cups and bowls so they sparkle in the sun, while the insides are maggoty with your greed and gluttony. 26 Stupid Pharisee! Scour the insides, and then the gleaming surface will mean something.

Food for thought!

Jesus continues from where he left off yesterday. He calls his contemporaries, the "religious people", as hypocrites. What does this word mean? Originally, hypocrite was the regular Greek word for an actor, like in plays. It used to mean something amusing. But then it came to mean an actor in the worse sense of the term, a pretender, one who acts a part, one who wears a mask to cover his true feelings, one who puts on an external show while inwardly his thoughts and feelings are very different.

To Jesus the Scribes and Pharisees were men who were religious actors. What he meant was this. For the Scribes and Pharisees religion consisted in outward observances, the wearing of elaborate garments and vestments, the meticulous observance of the rules and regulations of the Law. But in their hearts there was bitterness and envy and pride and arrogance and evil. To Jesus these Scribes and Pharisees were men who, under a mask of elaborate godliness, concealed hearts in which the most godless feelings and emotions held sway.

That accusation holds good in greater or lesser degree of anybody, including you and me, whose life is on the assumption that religion consists in external observances and external acts. Religion is an act of the heart. The laws and rules and rituals and ceremonies are intended to be manifestations of our heart. When this does not correspond to those, when that which happens in the heart is different from religious laws and rules and rituals and ceremonies, we become mere actors, we become hypocritical. In theaters and plays this kind of hypocrisy is accepted and even expected; in religion it is condemned because it is sinful. In religion, we are called to be genuine and not actors.

There are many of us who wear the right clothes to church, carefully hand in our offering to the Church, adopt the right attitude at prayer, are never absent from the celebration of the Eucharist, and yet outside the church we live irreligious lives. As we said yesterday, Church laws, rules and ceremonies are simply manifestations of what goes on inside our hearts. But unfortunately, sometimes we focus on them at the expense of our hearts. God looks more at our hearts than at our laws, rules and celebrations.

Woe to them and to us!

Matthew 23:13-22

Jesus said to the people: "I've had it with you! You're hopeless, you religion scholars, you Pharisees! Frauds! Your lives are roadblocks to God's kingdom. You refuse to enter, and won't let anyone else in either. 15" You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You go halfway around the world to make a convert, but once you get him you make him into a replica of yourselves, double- damned. 16 "You're hopeless! What arrogant stupidity! You say, 'If someone makes a promise with his fingers crossed, that's nothing; but if he swears with his hand on the Bible, that's serious.' 17 What ignorance! Does the leather on the Bible carry more weight than the skin on your hands? 18 And what about this piece of trivia: 'If you shake hands on a promise, that's nothing; but if you raise your hand that God is your witness, that's serious'? 19 What ridiculous hairsplitting! What difference does it make whether you shake hands or raise hands? 20 22 A promise is a promise. What difference does it make if you make your promise inside or outside a house of worship? A promise is a promise. God is present, watching and holding you to account regardless.

Food for thought!

Jesus directs a series of seven woes against the Scribes and Pharisees. It is hard to translate woe for it includes not only wrath, but also sorrow. It is righteous anger; it is the anger of the heart of love, broken by the stubborn blindness of men.

The word hypocrite occurs here again and again. It means an actor in the worse sense of the term, a  pretender, one who acts a part, as in theater, one who wears a mask to cover his true feelings, one who puts on an external show while inwardly his thoughts and feelings are very different.

To Jesus the Scribes and Pharisees were simply actors. What he meant was this. Their whole idea of religion consisted in outward observances, the wearing of elaborate clothes, the meticulous observance of the rules and regulations of the Law. But in their hearts there was bitterness and envy and pride and arrogance. To

Jesus these Scribes and Pharisees were men who, under a mask of elaborate godliness, concealed hearts in which the most godless feelings and emotions held sway. And that accusation holds good in greater or lesser degree of anyone who lives life on the assumption that religion consists in external observances and external acts.

Religion is first and foremost an inside experience; it is our spirit talking to God, and God talking to our spirit. The external acts of religion are meant to reflect and mirror the internal acts of the spirit. Not vice versa. The same with religious rules and regulations; they're are not meant to complicate but to enhance the inner religious experience. If and when they begin to compromise religion, they cease to be relevant. Unfortunately we have not a few of these.

The Lord save us from hypocrisy, from seeming to be religious when we are not. Let us strive to really be and not just seem to be religious, to really be and do good and not just seem to be and do good, to be Christians and not just seem to be Christians.

Jesus, who do you say I am?

Matthew 16:13 

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi he put this question to his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say he is John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’ Then Simon Peter spoke up, ‘You are the Christ,’ he said, ‘the Son of the living God.’ Jesus replied, ‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.’ Then he gave the disciples strict orders not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.

Food for thought!

Jesus asks his disciples, «Who do people say the Son of Man is?» Jesus wants to know what they know about him. Like Jesus, we all want to know who we are. We want to know what others think of us. One thing is certain, NO ONE KNOWS WHO WE ARE, EXCEPT JESUS. All the others call us many things, many names; I am many things for many people, you're many things to many people. If you asked your friends who you're, like Jesus did, you would here all kinds of answers, good and not so good; it is all guesswork because no one can tell you who you are except the Lord. 

Only Jesus could tell Peter who Peter was. And only the Father in heaven could tell Peter who Jesus is: «Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah! No mere man showed this to you. My Father in heaven showed it to you.» The disciples tried and ended up calling Jesus all sorts of names that every body called him: «Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets»

Then Jesus asked them and us, «But what about you? Who do you say I am?» Simon Peter answers, «You are the Christ. You are the Son of the living God.» Jesus replies, Here is what I tell you. You are Peter. On this rock I will build my church. The gates of hell will not be strong enough to destroy it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. What you lock on earth will be locked in heaven. What you unlock on earth will be unlocked in heaven.»

Wow! What a revelation about Peter. Lucky Peter, whom Jesus told who he was. But in order to tell him so, Peter had to tell Jesus who he is. Please, notice that as soon as Peter told Jesus, Jesus told Peter; as soon as Peter says who Jesus is, Jesus tells Peter who Peter is: «Here is what I tell you. You are Peter...» Until this moment, Peter did not know really who he (Peter) was or what lay ahead for him until Jesus started to reveal Peter to Peter. And Jesus did not start to tell Peter until Peter started to tell Jesus. So, the principle is clear: tell Jesus and Jesus will tell you, answer Jesus and Jesus will answer you, know Jesus and Jesus will make you know yourself, give to Jesus and Jesus will give to you...!

Now, it is your turn, try it. Jesus is the key that opens each one of us. We are all mysterious, and without Jesus we never come to know ourselves, we never come to know life, death, suffering, loving. We are sealed people, we are closed books, and only Jesus has the key to unseal and open us.

Then I saw a scroll in the right hand of the One sitting on the throne. The scroll had writing on both sides. It was sealed with seven seals. 2 I saw a mighty angel calling out in a loud voice, "Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?" 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll. No one could even look inside it. 4 I cried and cried because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, «Do not cry! The Lion of the tribe of Judah has won the battle. He is the Root of David. He is able to break the seven seals and open the scroll.» (Rev. 5:1-4)

Before we go: Jesus asked his disciples, Who do you say that I am? Let us ask Jesus the same question: Jesus, what do you say that I am? I hear many things about me, but YOU, who do you say that I am?

You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates!

Matthew 23:1-12

1 Now Jesus turned to address his disciples, along with the crowd that had gathered with them. 2 "The religion scholars and Pharisees are competent teachers in God's Law. 3 You won't go wrong in following their teachings on Moses. But be careful about following them. They talk a good line, but they don't live it. They don't take it into their hearts and live it out in their behavior. It's all spit- and- polish veneer. 4" Instead of giving you God's Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn't think of lifting a finger to help. 5 Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next. 6 They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions, 7 preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called 'Doctor' and 'Reverend.' 8 "Don't let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates. 9 Don't set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of 'Father'; you have only one Father, and he's in heaven. 10 And don't let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life- Leader for you and them-- Christ. 11" Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. 12 If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Food for thought

There's lot of food for thought for all of us in today's gospel reading. You can't read it and talk; its best response is silence. It is a reading that reminds us a number of things that need to be corrected in our faith, our lives, our (Catholic) Church, in our world.

Why did Christ say these words? Because he is our saviour; he came to save us from bad practices, bad traditions, bad customs, bad policies. He came to show us the right way of living and being. He came to teach us; " You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates." This means that only Jesus can and must tell us what to do. In other words, " Don't set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do."

If anybody whosoever tell you anything contradictory to what Jesus teaches you to do and be, don't do it. Nobody, not even of the church, should tell us what to do. Only God can tell us what to do. And He has told us whom to listen to, "This is my beloved Son, listen to him!"