Todays Mass Readings Monday, January 26, 2015 Memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops Lectionary: 520/317 --------------------------------------- Reading 1:2 Timothy 1:1-8 -------------------------------------- Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God for the promise of life in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dear child: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I am grateful to God, whom I worship with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, as I remember you constantly in my prayers, night and day. I yearn to see you again, recalling your tears, so that I may be filled with joy, as I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and that I am confident lives also in you. For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control. So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel with the strength that comes from God. -------------------------------------- Or Titus 1:1-5 -------------------------------------- Paul, a slave of God and Apostle of Jesus Christ for the sake of the faith of God’s chosen ones and the recognition of religious truth, in the hope of eternal life that God, who does not lie, promised before time began, who indeed at the proper time revealed his word in the proclamation with which I was entrusted by the command of God our savior, to Titus, my true child in our common faith: grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our savior. For this reason I left you in Crete so that you might set right what remains to be done and appoint presbyters in every town, as I directed you. --------------------------------------------- -------------------- Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 96:1-3, 7-8, 10 --------------------------------------------- -------------------- R. (3) Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations. Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all you lands. Sing to the LORD; bless his name. R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations. Announce his salvation, day after day. Tell his glory among the nations; among all peoples, his wondrous deeds. R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations. Give to the LORD, you families of nations, give to the LORD glory and praise; give to the LORD the glory due his name! R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations. Say among the nations: The LORD is king. He has made the world firm, not to be moved; he governs the peoples with equity. R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations. Alleluia SEE 2 TM 1:10 R. Alleluia, alleluia. Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel. R. Alleluia, alleluia. ---------------------------------------- Gospel: Mark 3:22-30 ---------------------------------------- The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “By the prince of demons he drives out demons.” Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables, “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand; that is the end of him. But no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house. Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.” For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.” --------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- Meditation: All sins will be forgiven except... --------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- When danger lurks what kind of protection do you seek? Jesus came to free us from the greatest danger of all - the corrupting force of evil which destroys us from within and makes us slaves to sin and Satan (John 8:34). Evil is not an impersonal force that just happens. It has a name and a face and it seeks to master every heart and soul on the face of the earth (1 Peter 5:8-9). Scripture identifies the Evil One by many names, Satan, Beelzebul - the prince of demons, the Devil, the Deceiver, the Father of Lies, and Lucifier, the fallen angel who broke rank with God and established his own army and kingdom in opposition to God. The Lord Jesus frees us from Satans power Jesus declared that he came to overthrow the power of Satan and his kingdom (John 12:31). Jesus numerous exorcisms brought freedom to many who were troubled and oppressed by the work of evil spirits. Jesus himself encountered personal opposition and battle with Satan when he was put to the test in the wilderness just before his public ministry (Matthew 4:1; Luke 4:1). He overcame the Evil One through his obedience to the will of his Father. Some of the Jewish leaders reacted vehemently to Jesus healings and exorcisms and they opposed him with malicious slander. How could Jesus get the power and authority to release individuals from Satans influence and control? They assumed that he had to be in league with Satan. They attributed his power to Satan rather than to God. Jesus asserts that no kingdom divided against itself can survive for long. We have witnessed enough civil wars in our own time to prove the destructive force at work here for the annihilation of whole peoples and their land. If Satan lends his power against his own forces then he is finished. Cyril of Alexandria, a 5th century church father explains the force of Jesus argument: Kingdoms are established by the fidelity of subjects and the obedience of those under the royal scepter. Houses are established when those who belong to them in no way whatsoever thwart one another but, on the contrary, agree in will and deed. I suppose it would establish the kingdom too of Beelzebub, had he determined to abstain from everything contrary to himself. How then does Satan cast out Satan? It follows then that devils do not depart from people on their own accord but retire unwillingly. “Satan,” he says, “does not fight with himself.” He does not rebuke his own servants. He does not permit himself to injure his own armor bearers. On the contrary, he helps his kingdom. “It remains for you to understand that I crush Satan by divine power.” [Commentary on Luke, Homily 80] Jesus asserted his authority to cast out demons as a clear demonstration of the reign of God. Gods power is clearly at work in the exorcisms which Jesus performed and they give evidence that Gods kingdom has come. Being clothed in Gods strength What kind of spiritual danger or harm should we avoid at all costs? Jesus used the illustration of a strong man whose house and possessions were kept secure. How could such a person be overtaken and robbed of his goods except by someone who is stronger than himself? Satan, who is our foe and the arch-enemy of God, is stronger than us. Unless we are clothed in Gods strength, we cannot withstand Satan with our own human strength. What does Satan wish to take from us - our faith and confidence in God and our readiness to follow Gods commandments. Satan is a rebel and a liar. Satan can only have power or dominion over us if we listen to his lies and succumb to his will which is contrary to the will of God. Jesus makes it clear that there are no neutral parties in this world. We are either for Jesus or against him, for the kingdom of God or opposed to it. There are ultimately only two kingdoms in opposition to one another - the kingdom of Gods light and truth and the kingdom of darkness and deception under the rule of Satan. If we disobey Gods word, we open the door to the power of sin and Satans influence in our lives. If we want to live in true freedom from the power of sin and Satan, then our house - our mind and heart and whatever we allow to control our appetites and desires - must be occupied and ruled by Jesus Christ where he is enthroned as Lord and Savior. Do you know the peace and security of a life submitted to God and to his Word? Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit What is the unforgivable sin which Jesus warns us to avoid? Jesus knows that his disciples will be tested and he assures them that the Holy Spirit will give them whatever grace and help they need in their time of adversity. He warns them, however, that its possible to spurn the grace of God and to fall into apostasy (giving up the faith) out of cowardice or disbelief. Why is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit reprehensible? Blasphemy consists in uttering against God, inwardly or outwardly, words of hatred, reproach, or defiance. Its contrary to the respect due God and his holy name. Jesus speaks of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit as the unforgivable sin. Jesus spoke about this sin immediately after the scribes and Pharisees had attributed his miracles to the work of the devil instead of to God. A sin can only be unforgivable if repentance is impossible. If people repeatedly closes their eyes to God, shuts their ears to his voice, and reject his word, they bring themselves to a point where they can no longer recognize God when he can be seen and heard. They become spiritually blind- sighted and speak of evil as good and good as evil (Isaiah5:20). The Holy Spirit heals and transforms us To fear such a state of sin and spiritual blindness, however, signals that one is not dead to God and is conscious of the need for Gods grace, mercy, and help. There are no limits to the mercy of God, but anyone who refuses to acknowledge and confess their sins and to ask God for forgiveness, spurns Gods generous offer of mercy, pardon, grace, and healing. Through their own stubborn pride and willfulness, they reject God, refuse his grace and help to turn away from sin, and reject the transforming power of the Holy Spirit to heal and restore them to wholeness. God always gives sufficient grace and help to all who humbly call upon him. Giving up on God and refusing to turn away from sin and disbelief results from pride and the loss of hope in God. What is the basis of our hope and confidence in God? Through Jesus death on the cross and his victory over the grave when he rose again on the third day, Satan has been defeated and death has been overcome. We now share in Christs victory over sin and Satan and receive adoption as Gods sons and daughters. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Lord enables us to live a new life of love and freedom from slavery to sin. The Lord Jesus is our refuge and strength because he makes his home with us (John 15:4) and gives us the power and help of the Holy Spirit. Do you take refuge in the Lord and allow him to be the Ruler of your life? Lord Jesus, you are my hope and salvation. Be the ruler of my heart and the master of my home. May there be nothing in my life that is not under your lordship. --------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 08:55:39 +0000
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