Today’s readings invite us to look deeper at God’s love for us and to consider our response when we accept his Son, Jesus Christ.
The first reading reveals that the early Church clearly understood how their witnessing of Christ would be understood by the community when they took care of each other’s needs.
Let’s look at what the community “held in common”:
- None of the members was ever in want
- Those who owned land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds to the Apostles
- The Apostles would distribute the proceeds according to the needs of each person in the community
What a powerful witness to Christ! So many commandments coming together: 1) Love your God with all your heart and mind 2) You shall Love your neighbour as yourself 3) You shall not steal…
The invitation is to look deeper at how we use our God given graces. When these graces are used for the benefit of others, a joyful community that has time to creatively pool their talents together in service of the Lord is created. Let’s give a deeper thought to our actions within our family, community, work place, and social life. Christ is everywhere. We are invited to be strong witnesses to him in the world as a community of believers by the way we live.
The second reading affirms God’s love for us through his Son Jesus Christ and our love for him when we believe in his Son and practise his commandments in our daily lives for the betterment of our brothers and sisters in Christ.
God’s Love = Christ (Son of God). Belief in Christ(Faith) + practising the commandments (Loving God, loving God’s people) = Victory over the world(Sin)
Our Lord Jesus Christ beckons us to take his yoke upon us and learn from him for a life that is lived in love is liberating; not burdensome. Let us therefore look at our intentions when we serve in our parish, and when we serve our brothers and sisters in Christ. Are these filled with Love for God and his commandments? Are we glorifying our Lord the way we live this law of love?
The Gospel highlights the need for faith and renewal in answering the Lord’s call.
The disciples who walked with the Lord and saw the miracles with him were blanketed with doubts about themselves – a sense of hopelessness descended on some of them. They felt guilty because they had failed Jesus. They had forgotten the Lord’s promise that he will rise again and were trapped in their own misery. Does this scene sound familiar?
Jesus appears among them and offers peace, not chastisement. Jesus offers them the possibility of a new life and breathes the Holy spirit upon them – enabling them to do wonders in his name.
Doesn’t this give us assurance? Let us therefore emerge from the tomb of lies , self-doubt, anger, insecurity, self-pity, hatred and listen to what the resurrected Lord has to say to us. He is calling us by name but are we listening to him? He wants to heal us and assure us that he is walking with us and wants us to emerge from this tomb so that we can work wonders in his kingdom
Many of us are like Thomas questioning God in our trials and tribulations and doubt his voice when he calls us to a mission in his kingdom.
Nicollette Karanth