Posts

REDEEMED BY INEXHAUSTIBLE MERCY OF GOD

Image
SUNDAY OF DIVINE MERCY Act 5:12-16; Ps 118:2-4,22-27; Rev 1:9-13,17-19; Jn 20:19-31 Jesus Christ. the Font of Divine Mercy The Jewish leaders thought Jesus Christ was a disturbance and a reproach to their way of life, a reprimand for their warped religion. They planned to eliminate him without knowing that they were about to open the font of God’s inexhaustible mercy and cause the replication of Jesus everywhere. In ignorance, they captured Jesus Christ, made him suffer, and carried his cross to Calvary, where they crucified him on the cross. The transformed or glorified Lord can now be present everywhere by his Holy Spirit in his members who believe in his resurrection. The Acts of Apostles report this phenomenon in Jerusalem. Jesus is present in many places where the faithful are present and continues to work salvation through them. “So many signs and wonders were worked among the people at the hands of the apostles that the sick were even taken out into the streets and laid on...
Post a Comment
Read more

THE GIFT OF IMMORTALITY

Image
EASTER SATURDAY Act 4:13-21; Ps 118:1,14-21; Mk 16:9-24 The Invitation to Immortality The speech of Saint Peter before the ruling families and elders of the people in Jerusalem was captivating; the argument he presented to explain the miracle was scripturally sound and convincing, as we noted yesterday. After the speech, the rulers did not find any way to perforate his argument for the resurrection because of the healed man standing beside Peter, a result of his belief in the resurrection. “The rulers and scribes were astonished at the assurance shown by Peter and John, and they recognised them as associates of Jesus; but when they saw the man who had been cured standing by their side, they could find no answer.” The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a wonderful gift of God to humanity. The implications are far-reaching for the life of any man. However, we have to believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ to receive the gift and the effects of the resurrection. The rulers and eld...
Post a Comment
Read more

BUILDING ON THE KEYSTONE

Image
EASTER FRIDAY Act 4:1-12; Ps 118:1-2,4,22-27; Jn 21:1-14 The Corner Stone for our building We cannot overemphasise the importance of understanding and appropriating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have explained how the resurrection authenticated the true humanity and divinity of Jesus Christ. If Jesus Christ is truly a man, his resurrection from the dead opened a new possibility for all of us. The possibility of rising from the dead is the core of his message of salvation. If we are to overcome the grasp or prison of death, we must solve the problem of sin which caused our death in the first place. Understanding what constitutes sin as sin helps us to see how Jesus Christ resolved the ancient problem of sin and overcame the power of death. The power to solve the problem of sin, which is disobedience to the will of the Father, lies with one who lives sinless. There is no such man. So, God came to our rescue by sending his Son to assume our nature without sin. So, as...
Post a Comment
Read more

ENTERING OUR INHERITANCE IN JESUS CHRIST

Image
EASTER THURSDAY Act 3:11-26; Ps 8:2,5-9; Lk 24:35-48 We are Heirs of the Covenant of God The apostles and disciples were still not convinced of the story or Good News of the resurrection of Jesus Christ after those who encountered him narrated the story. Hence, Jesus appeared among them and greeted them: ‘Peace be with you.’ Their confused minds and unbelieving hearts caused them to be terrified at the appearance of the risen Lord. “In a state of alarm and fright, they thought they were seeing a ghost.” Notwithstanding their fellowship and interaction with him before his crucifixion, they were still not sure of what to believe. Jesus spoke openly and prophesied about his coming passion and death to them, yet they did not accept he rose from the dead. The prophets wrote these things to make us understand how difficult it is for the human mind to comprehend divine reality without divine aid or grace. Many have read about Jesus Christ and heard people preach about his power to save....
Post a Comment
Read more

THE WORD AND THE EUCHARIST REVEAL THE RISEN LORD

Image
EASTER WEDNESDAY Act 3:1-10; Ps 105:1-5,6-9; Lk 24:13-35 Recognised at the Breaking of Bread As we mentioned, the Church guides us with the newly baptised, who received the Eucharist and confirmation through the period of mystagogia . The word is derived from Greek and refers to the period of deeper reflection and understanding of the sacraments and the mysteries of Christian life for those who underwent the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA). Jesus did the same for his disciples after his resurrection. Though he had taught them for three (3) years before his passion and crucifixion, their experience of his suffering and death disoriented them completely. They could no longer piece anything he did or taught them together. The two disciples going to Emmaus reveal the mindset of the disciples of Jesus Christ after their Master’s crucifixion and death. Their disappointment and resolve to abandon the quest for salvation are evident in their response. “Our own hope had bee...
Post a Comment
Read more

CONDITION FOR THE RECEPTION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Image
EASTER TUESDAY Act 2:36-41; Ps 33:4-5,18-20,22; Jn 20:11-18 Crucified Jesus is Lord and Saviour The Church gives us the speech of Saint Peter at the Pentecost for our rumination today for two reasons: First is that the gift of the resurrection of the Son of Man is the commencement of the resurrection of man or human nature to eternal glory. It formally opens the possibility of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on men. The Holy Spirit is the glory of the Father and the Son that was given to the Son of Man at the commencement of his mission to carry out the will of the Father. The resurrection confirms that outpouring and the glorification of human nature assumed by the Son of God. The resurrection of Jesus Christ permanently conferred the glory on man or human nature. What made this possible is the general removal of the impediment to such indwelling of the Holy Spirit in human nature, the atonement of the sins of humanity by the death of the Son of Man. Hence, the resurrection co...
Post a Comment
Read more

MEETING THE RISEN LORD IN GALILEE

Image
EASTER MONDAY Act 2:14,22-33; Ps 16:1-2,7-11; Mt 28:8-15 Leaving Jerusalem to Galilee With the Church’s celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ commencing with the Easter Vigil, we struggle to receive and assimilate the divine and mysterious gift entrusted to man. It is the greatest thing ever to happen to our nature, the resurrection of the Son of Man from death. The old and sinful human nature cannot accommodate it, for it is a divine reality. Any person who is to encounter it needs a new orientation. Its reception is the birth of a new or regenerated human nature. The women who desired to anoint the dead body of Jesus Christ had what was nearest to the required orientation for the reception of the eternal reality of the Risen Lord. Their desire to see the Lord, dead or alive, made their minds and hearts susceptible to the new and heavenly reality. The desire made them believe the angels with the news of the resurrection of the Lord without any hesitation. They drew the...
Post a Comment
Read more