THE GLORIOUS FISH

The Holy Bible says, “When the net is full, they pull it to the shore and sit down to divide the fish; the good ones into their buckets….”  (Matthew 13:48)

PART TWO

The first creation, Adam and Eve could not foresee and overcome the cunning plan of Satan, where as Lord Jesus demonstrated that using the Word of God as a sharp weapon mankind can overcome the world and its power.  Those led by God’s Spirit are God’s sons; while those who live according to the human desires are surely going to perish. Preparing yourself for the Eternal Reward is sure to raise an internal fight to overcome the lust of your eyes, lust of the flesh and the pride in gaining something and everything of this world. The fruit that God forbade them to eat was always in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve never felt the fruit as attractive as they were under the command of God’s glory. They had so much to enjoy in the marvellous creation with like mindedness and same opinion. It was only when they lend a ear to satan’s explanation of the fruit they were attracted to it and disobeyed God. Consuming the fruit opened their eyes to all dreadful views. Dislike towards each other, difference in opinion cropped up, dissatisfaction arose, aware of the things they lacked, sadness made place where joy once reigned; love gave way to hatred. In their supremacy of ignorance, they began to find fault in God’s creation- forgetting their origin of existence.  The veil of God’s glory was torn off  and destroyed by the cheater who still gains access to each one and continues his destructive work in us all.  

Our Lord then began His mission delightfully by preaching His message,“Turn away from your sins, because the Kingdom of Heaven is here,” demonstrating  to us how to win over the world and its tempting powers.  Through the Incarnated Word of God, Lord Jesus brought goodness of joy to all the people and in His Name the message of repentance and forgiveness of sin must be preached to all nations. God, the Lord of all, richly blesses the Jews as well as the Gentiles and all those who call out to Him, without any partiality. Every Apostle had the divine opportunity to enjoy the Kingdom of Heaven except for Judas Iscariot who became a bad fish in the net and lost the eternal reward. Likewise, the holy invitation is sent to all by the Divine Host and it is our responsibility to accept the invite, carefully guard the precious treasure that is handed over to us and be prepared to give away each and everything that belongs to the world to safeguard our Eternal Fortune. As mentioned above, Lord Jesus has already taught us the basic qualities that are required to enter the Kingdom of God. (John 3:5)Through the Apostles, everyone in Jerusalem was familiar with the extraordinary miracles performed by Lord Jesus; meanwhile the Scriptures do clear that some of them did not believe in it. The Heavenly Kingdom of God that Lord Jesus introduced and acquainted to us is entitled to all who live in His justice.

Ponder yourself with these questions: Do I belong to the Kingdom of Heaven as a good fish caught by the disciple of Lord Jesus?

If not, how can I transform myself into a good one?

Though I have heard about the love and concern of Lord Jesus Christ, yet what could it be that is forbidding me to follow Him?

Let us once again walk through the Garden of Eden and see the occurrence after the disobedience of our ancestors Adam and Eve. Sovereign God in His utmost affection for his children humbles Himself to visit and walk with them as day by day. But after the disobedience, human being, the prime of His creation loses their virtue and are aware of their ungodliness to stand in front of their Creator. The absence of holiness forbids them from partaking in His life. This is also one of the concerns why certain people cannot remain steadily in God’s presence. Even today, God visits us, but we, mere human, find excuses to hide from Him due to the uncleanness of our soul.  No one wishes to be an unclean or a rotten fish which is good only to be thrown to the fiery furnace. Forgetting that the enemy is within us we often prepare ourselves for a battle to evade thinking that our enemies from outside would attack us. 

So let us begin our fight against the forces that lead us to ugliness by casting the thief out; covering yourself then, with the veil of God’s glory can transform you into a glorious fish in the Basket that would be carried by the holy angels to welcoming Heaven where we would be enthroned and crowned.

May the Lord bless you and take care of you. May He be kind and gracious to you. May the Lord look on you with favour and give you peace.

With love filled blessings,

Your Sister in Christ

THE GLORIOUS FISH

The Holy Bible says, “When the net is full, they pull it to the shore and sit down to divide the fish; the good ones into their buckets….”  (Matthew 13:48)

Jesus Christ educated His disciples and the public about the value of the Kingdom of God in easy to understand manner and often He would explicate via His teachings that the Kingdom of Heaven would be similar to that of a fisherman’s net that would gather all kinds of fish- good and the bad. Two thousand years ago, when He called his fishermen turned disciples to follow Him, He told them that He would teach them to catch men. This call amazed and caught their interests and they set out to follow Lord Jesus. Three years of His coaching and they became scholars in His Mission. They began to spread wide the net of Heavenly Spirit of truth and cleared His way to the Father in Heaven. This mission continues and will continue till the end of age. In this parable our Lord says, the fishermen waited till their net is full with all kinds of fish. Pulling it then to the shore, they separate the catch; the good ones are collected in their buckets while the bad are thrown away. Likewise our Almighty God gives a chance to each of us through various incidents of our daily toil to seek the truth and follow the right path. Jesus Christ continues to explain that at the end of the age, the holy angels would appear to gather the evil populace from among the good ones to throw them into the fiery furnace; where they will cry and grind their teeth.  But before all this would happen, all mankind from every corner of the earth will be attracted to the Good News of Eternal Salvation by the Mercy of our Father in Heaven. His Everlasting Love for us – He sent His Son Jesus Christ among us in the form of a human in order that we follow His path to victory. Here let us reflect how to succeed in life!

Jesus Christ who is the Truth, without any deceitfulness, defeated the cunning devil before His Mission. Baptized with water and Holy Spirit, from the appointed person, John the Baptist(Matthew 3:13-16). Lord Jesus taught us that no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born of the water and Spirit. (John 3:5). Jesus then decided to fast and pray where the devil was waiting for an opportunity to attack Him. After forty days of fast, when Lord Jesus was hungry, the devil sneaked near Him saying, “O son of God Why don’t you command these stones to become bread?” Lord Jesus confessed and shooting an arrow of appropriate answer conquered the devil. He said, “The Scripture says, ‘Man cannot live on bread alone, but needs every word that God speaks.’ ” Dear devotees of Christ, through this experience our Lord teaches us how to gain control over our temporary desires. When our Father in Heaven led our ancestors He would send them hardships to test their obedience towards His commands. God would make them hungry, but at the right time He gave them Manna, the tastiest food they ever relished. He did this to educate us that man must not depend merely on bodily desires to sustain, but on everything that Lord says. (Deuteronomy 8)  Likewise, Lord Jesus, the Supreme Lord of all lords defeated the satan by quoting the Holy Scriptures from the Old testament – the Life Giving command of our Supreme God and taught us the same. St. Paul on numerous instances reminds that your body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit and  you are to use it for God’s glory. Your body is not to be used for indecent, filthy actions or immoral and adulterous living. Lord Jesus teaches us the importance of gaining self control over temptations and desires of your body by using the suitable Word of God.  The devil again tried his chance by taking Lord Jesus to the highest point of the Temple saying, “Throw yourself down, God will protect you by ordering His angels about it.”  Seeing through the devil’s trick Our Lord once again silences him quoting the Holy Scriptures, “Do not put your God to the test.” (Deuteronomy 6:16) Yes, my dear ones, the Lord time and again through this instance  warns us never to be proud of something that you have received freely. Instead it is your duty to praise and thank your Daily Provider at all times and be loyal to Him.

Again the devil in a final attempt says to the Holy Lord that he would confer all his kingdom to Him only if Lord Jesus would down kneel and worship Him; the devil was well aware this is against the first commandment of our Sovereign God. Our Lord rebukes and banishes the devil by quoting the commandment. With this confrontation our Lord tutors us never to adulterate our worship towards anything or anyone except the Magnificent God. When we bow in submission and worship Him; His power, glory and holiness fills in us and our point of view changes. A true worship signifies that you propose yourself as an offertory a living sacrifice to your Creator, dedicated to His service and to please Him.  Then God will transform you inwardly by a complete change of mind.

(...to be continued)

May the Lord bless you and take care of you. May He be kind and gracious to you. May the Lord look on you with favour and give you peace.

With love filled blessings,

Your Sister in Christ

JESUS CALMS A STORM

On the evening of that same day, Jesus said to His disciples, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they left the crowd; the disciples got into the boat in which Jesus was already sitting, and they took Him with them. Other boats were there too. Suddenly a strong wind blew up, and the waves began to spill over into the boat, so that it was about to fill with water. Jesus was in the back of the boat, sleeping with head on a pillow. The disciples woke Him up and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we are about to die?”

Jesus stood up and commanded the wind, “Be quiet!” and He said to the waves, “Be still!” The wind died down, and there was great calm. Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Why are you frightened? Have you still no faith?”

But they were terribly afraid and said to one another, “Who is this man? Even the wind and waves obey Him!”

(Mark 4:35)

May the Lord bless you and take care of you. May He be kind and gracious to you. May the Lord look on you with favor and give you peace.

With love filled blessings,

Your Sister in Christ

GOD LOVED THE WORLD SO MUCH…..

The Lord says, “I am the vine and you are the branches.  Whoever remains in Me and I in Him will bear much fruit, for you can do nothing without Me.” (John 15:15)

PART II

Click here for the earlier part

After their mission we can see that seventy two of them came back, safely, in great joy shouting, “Lord, even demons obeyed us when we gave them a command in your Name!”  Lord Jesus witnessed their mission saying, “I saw satan fall like lightning from heaven.” 

Again Lord Jesus emphasized, “I have given you the authority so that you can walk on snakes and scorpions and overcome all the power of the enemy and nothing will hurt you.” 

A silent advice speaks to us.  Do not be proud or over-boastful, it is His Name, Power and Authority that performs the transformation in the people for the glory of God, we are mere workers.  The Master commands that we are witnesses. 

The more God works through you be more humbly submissive at His strong feet.  When He trims you accept and bear its pain, looking at the Master who is on the Holy Cross.  You will regain your strength since He wants you to grow as well as simply walk in the path of Your Master. 

He continued saying, “Don’t bother about what happened to your enemy.  Rejoice because there are greater things happened in you all.  Your name is written in the Living Book by the Father Almighty.  Exalt Him and enjoy for the Father is pleased with your mission.”

Dear readers of KLWC, I should not forget to mention one of the mysteries of our Lord’s mission which is a lesson to all of us.  They all went empty handed.  Did they complain to the Lord about being unwelcomed in homes, what happened to all of them, whether they were given food, water or shelter, where they went, what kind of reception they received, how long it took, the attitude of people. 

Nothing mattered

We are sure that, the disciples behaved as the Master had instructed them.  They went all over and exercised what they learned in their school.  More freely because the Master was not physically present.  The curtains were not put down. 

At that Lord Jesus was filled with joy by the Holy Spirit and said to the Father, “Lord of Heaven and earth! I thank you! Because you have shown to the unlearned what you have hidden from the wise and learned.  Yes Father, this was how you wanted it to happen.

After offering bouquets of gratitude from His joy-filled meek heart, turning to the disciples, He spoke to them in private!

“How fortunate you are to see the things you see.”

Filled with so much love, He continued, “I will tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see but they could not; and to hear what you hear but they did not.”

Lord Jesus remembered all those ancestors who suffered for Salvation.

Yes dear ones, Lord Jesus rejoiced in all fullness.

“There were so many people coming and going that Jesus and His disciples didn’t even have the time to eat. So He said to them, “Let us go off by ourselves to some place where we will be alone and you can rest a while.” (Mark 6:31)

The crowds realizing that He was going, began to follow Jesus. Moved by the requests and demand of the people, Jesus stayed with the crowd, while He sent his disciples to rest.

In our busy schedule, running to capture the crowd of this world, let us not forget the Lord’s word of warning: “I am the vine and you are the branches.  Whoever remains in Me and I in Him will bear much fruit, for you can do nothing without Me.” (John 15:15)

With love filled blessings,

Your Sister in Christ 

GOD LOVED THE WORLD SO MUCH…..

The Lord says, “I am the vine and you are the branches.  Whoever remains in Me and I in Him will bear much fruit, for you can do nothing without Me.” (John 15:15)

The Sovereign Lord chose and preserved Blessed Mary, His beloved daughter to be the Mother of His Son, Jesus Christ.  She conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and gave birth to Jesus in a stable in Bethlehem. Little Jesus lived in Nazareth obedient to His mother and foster father St. Joseph.  He lived a quite life, grew both in body and wisdom gaining favor with God and men.  At the appropriate time of the Almighty Father for His mission, John the Baptist was appointed by God to prepare the straight path for the Lord to introduce Jesus Christ to the people saying, “There is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

In the past God spoke to our ancestors many times and in many ways through prophets, but in these last days He has been vocal to us through His beloved Son Jesus Christ. 

You are acquainted with the message He sent to the people of Israel proclaiming the good news of peace through Jesus Christ who is the Lord of all.  Beginning in Galilee, the great event took place throughout the land of Israel.  He went everywhere doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil. 

The Evangelist St. Luke beautifully narrates that Jesus went through the towns and villages of Jerusalem teaching and preaching the Good News. (Luke 13)

Meanwhile, He called and gathered His disciples and taught them.  The moment they heard the call, they left all their belongings and joined Jesus Christ.  Let us look at the Lord’s academy in the true light of scripture - they were sent two by two to the world ahead of Him to every place and town where He Himself was to go.  Just as mothers instruct their children when sending them to school, so also Jesus gave some instructions and advises to his disciples. 

Dear ones in Christ, I wish to drawn your attention to His instructions. 

Let us imagine seventy two of His disciples marching out two by two in different direction – the sight brings us immense joy which is inexpressible. 

Lord Jesus must have been so content and from the depth of His heart glorified Sovereign God the Father.  Both might have saluted each other and the Father may have applauded His Son’s hands. 

The third person, the innocent Dove must have flapped His wings and danced around Them. 

What a heartfelt vision!

 Truly tears of victory overflows.  May the Name above all names; the Supreme Lord Jesus be praised, honored, glorified by all people from every tribe, language, nation and race.  Alleluia!  Amen!

The Gospel is not describing why He sent His disciples two by two, together.  But as you go through His teachings one of the main reason for this is in line with His Promise, “Whenever two of you on earth agree about anything you pray for, it will be done for you by my Father in Heaven.”  (Matthew 18:19). 

So also God our Father created woman because He found that it was not good for one to be alone.  Two is the minimum number to avoid being unaccompanied and lonely. 

He said to His disciples, “Be wise and careful.  I am sending you like lambs among the wolves.”  Thus it can also be for the protection for each other in case of danger. 

He further warned them, “Don’t take a purse, a beggar’s bag or shoes.  Don’t look here and there or don’t stop to greet anyone on the road.”  The extreme simplicity of His Mission gives us firm confidence of His Word of God. “Seek His Kingdom, rest all will be added!”

Yes, dear ones, little water or some bites in a bag are not a luxury.  It shows the perfect submissiveness and refuge the Teacher has in His Perfect Father and the disciples were to gain the same refuge through obedience.

Lord Jesus permitted them to carry only bare minimum essential things - a pair of sandals to walk,  a staff to defend oneself against dangerous animals, a garment that could be put on at the time of departure. 

Then again the Master advised them, “Listen, whenever you go into a house, first say, “Peace be with this house.”  If a peace loving man lives there let your greeting of peace remain on him.”  Welcoming a person to your home, greeting each other is the entry of Lord Jesus – the King of Peace. 

As per your faith and behavior, His peace will transform your home.  He is the true way to your prosperity.  Lord Jesus did not send His disciples to synagogues, to kings or leaders or to towns.  He sent them to ordinary people’s home – to all homes, none were excluded, except those who rejected them. 

He reminds them about those who reject them, to have the dust from their feet wiped off against them.  What does this mean?

 It emphasizes silently, “We don’t have anything in common with you.” 

God’s chosen disciples are the reflection of Lord Jesus.  Outwardly they may not be attractive or you may find no qualities of this world such as extra smartness, but they are kept separate to get detached of all worldly ways but inwardly they are like sunshine.

As per the instructions of their Master, they were finally sent, after being given authority to heal the sick and drive out the devil.  They went out and preached that people should turn away from their sins.

                                                                                                            ( to be continued…..)

With love filled blessings,

Your Sister in Christ 

TRUE HAPPINESS

After John had been put in prison, Jesus went to Galilee and preached the Good News from God. “The right time has come,” He said, “and the Kingdom of God is near! Turn away from your sins and believe the Good News! ”   

His courteous behavior, humility and a speech filled with knowledge drew every soul to Him except those few whose behavior was laden with jealousy and ego. It’s a genuine truth throughout the Gospel that those who gathered to meet and listen to Jesus, were attracted towards Him.

Let’s take the example of Nathanael.

Nathanael on meeting Jesus for the first time exclaimed, “You are the Son of God.”  Jesus said, “Yes, you believe in Me, and you will see greater things.”  The spark of knowledge from Christ enlightens the one who met Him, encourages them to speak the truth confidently and fearlessly as  Joy of the truth overflows from their heart.

Let us today review how Lord Jesus called His disciples and their response to His call.

“As Lord Jesus walked along the shore of Lake Galilee, He saw two brothers who were fishermen, Simon (Peter) and his brother Andrew, catching fish in the lake with a net.  Jesus said to them, “Come with Me, and I will teach you to catch men.”  At once they left their nets and went with Him.

 He went on and saw two other brothers James and John, the sons of Zebedee.  They were in their boat with their father Zebedee, getting their nets ready.  Jesus called them, and at once they left the boat and their father and went with him.    (Matt 4)

As He walked along, He saw a tax collector, Levi, son of Alphaeus sitting in his office.  Jesus said to him, “Follow me.”  Levi got up and followed him. (Mark 2)

We can observe the great obedience of those poor people. On receiving the call, forgetting themselves, they humbly obeyed Jesus who called them and set out to follow Him. Nothing stopped them; not even the thoughts of their family and future could restrain them.

Jesus went all over Galilee as a great light, comfort and a new life to those who lived in dark land of death.  Soon He became well known by all and large crowds followed Him from different towns.  He sat on a hill top and began to teach them in a friendly way regarding the true joy of the Kingdom.

“Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor;

The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them!

“Happy are those who mourn;

God will comfort them!

“Happy are those who are humble;

They will receive what God has promised!

“Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires;

God will satisfy them fully!

“Happy are those who are merciful to others;

God will be merciful to them!

“Happy are the pure in heart;

They will see God!

“Happy are those who work for peace;

God will call them His children!

“Happy are those who are persecuted because

they do what God requires;

The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them!

Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because you are My followers. Be happy and glad, for a great reward is kept for you in heaven. This is how the prophets who lived before you were persecuted.

No one can deny how great is the secret of our religion:

He appeared in human form,

Was shown to be right by the Spirit,

and was seen by angels.

He was preached among the nations,

was believed in throughout the world,

and was taken up to Heaven.

(1 Timothy 3:16)

TREASURE IN CLAY POTS

The Holy Bible says, “You are like salt for all mankind.”

 A lady once approached me with something that was bothering her from a long time. “In my young age, I was courteous and kind with everyone and I could help them selflessly. But as years passed on I truly realize that I changed. Some sort of fear, insecurity obstructs me from communicating with them. Scarcity of love, famine of words and compassion arise within me as I try to approach them. I am aware that there is an urge to run away from all my loved ones and to escape from them all.”

Dear ones, let us imagine ourselves at the onset of a journey we look forward to.  We find ourselves active, enthusiastic and all bubbled up at the start of it. As our journey advances, moments of tiredness and boredom seep in and influence us.

God created us pure and holy. We can witness the activeness and eagerness in a child as he/ she grows up. God enriched us with all His skills and surrounded us with parents, teachers etc to teach and guide us. As we grow up some of us are attracted towards certain individuals who have devoted themselves to the service of God.  Through them, we imbibe the knowledge and discipline of God.

But also in order to achieve the basics of life such education, career, family and in our race to outrun from one another, we end up in turmoil  losing  our good taste towards life. Gradually our interest changes but the turmoil becomes a part of our daily life.

A recipe however tasty, delicious or exotic it may be, the chef recommends that we add salt as per our taste. How many of us would be able to enjoy a delicious meal, however grand it may be, if the cook has forgotten to sprinkle some salt in it? A dust of salt changes our moods. Thanks be to God who blessed us with taste buds that enhance and add joy to our life.

Let’s meditate a verse from the Holy Scriptures, “You are like salt for all mankind. But if salt loses its saltiness, there is no way to make it salty again. It has become worthless and people trample on it.” (Matthew 5:13)

Just as how salt changes the bland taste, similarly you too can change the bland taste of your life.

Being with God who resides in you, listening to His voice, correcting your path using the salt of repentance, you can regain the saltiness (virtues of life).

One who is specially chosen to be His disciple needs to examine themselves whether the saltiness is within them or not because when they mingle with the common people God wants that they spread the divine taste of life and His qualities.

An apostle of God is always under the process of forgiveness and reconciliation so that he/she may be worthy enough to grant God’s mercy and serve it to those who approach them.  Gift of discernment and awakeness holds an important role in a disciple’s life.  

Everyone will be purified by fire just as a sacrifice is purified with salt. Salt acts as an cleansing and purifying agent. Here, salt is a symbol of holy fire that is the Spirit of God. Holy Spirit cleanses and purifies our soul, mind and every organ in our body and prevents us from damaging the saltiness of True Faith that can lead us to a righteous life.

St. Paul instructs us that the one who is under God’s grace has to remember that the spiritual treasures are like a common clay pot and if good care is not taken then it can be broken and cannot be remolded.  He further says to humble oneself to show that the supreme power belongs to God and not to us. 

Life of a disciple may be full of troubles, doubts, oppositions, badly hurt at times, etc.  But the spiritual grace of God’s love never allows a true disciple to be crushed, despised or destroyed by the enemies, if good care is taken.  His faith, serenity and hope will be high if he properly maintains it.  If you neglect it, St. Paul says, “For there is no longer any sacrifice that will take away sins, if you purposely go on sinning after the truth has been made known to us.”  (Hebrews 10) The one who truly accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior received the grace to forbid sin and to lead a righteous hopeful life.

“When the kindness and love of God our Savior was revealed, He saved us.  It was not because of any good deeds that we ourselves had done, but because of His own mercy that He saved us through the Holy Spirit, who gives us new birth and new life by washing us.”  (Titus 3 :3-5)

When we are exposed to the worldly and bodily lusts and desires, the saltiness of virtues diminishes and gradually we will be good for nothing and thrown into hell where the worms that eat them never die and the fire that burns them is never put out.

So let us examine our lives and ask God for a contrite heart to return to Him.  Whoever wishes to follow Christ and serve Him must try to correct oneself  from even minute bad habits and  be careful to practice good virtues over and again.  Your bad thoughts and secret sins are also are visible to God.  Your good characters can be often ruined by bad companions, books and films and become a victim of foolishness.  Stop your sinful ways and turn back to the right sense.  The Bible says “Do not commit same sins repeatedly because the punishment you get the first time ought to be enough.” (Sir 7: 8)

The one who is faithful to God must not deceive himself by misusing his tongue.  Try to be truthful and sincere with everyone.  The Holy Bible teaches that let no one become like a bitter plant that grows up and causes many troubles with its poison. (Heb 12:15)

Let’s be moral and spiritual.  Bitter plant can grow inside and outside.  You may be able to speak and behave softly and mannerly keeping all grudge and jealousy inside.  Sometimes you may show forgiveness outwardly, still the bitter plant of pain and hatredness will destroy inwardly and make you a victim of many mental and physical sicknesses.  And slowly it totally takes away the good taste of your faith and love of God.  Avoid arguments, quarrels and fights as they are useless and worthless but will only bring divisions.  Keep away from foolish and ignorant arguments; you know that they end up only in quarrels. 

St. Paul advises that “The Lord’s servant must not quarrel. He must be kind towards all to bring them to the repentance and to come to know the truth. Keep away from those godless legends which are not worth telling.”         (1Tim. 4:7). 

A disciple’s duty is not to please people, but to seek the will of God. 

St. Paul says, “I am not worried about man’s approval, if I were I would not be a servant of Christ.”  (Gal. 1: 10)

Lord Jesus said, “I am not looking for human praise.”  

“To love one another is the only obligation for a disciple.” (Rom 13:8) 

“Do not take any unwanted obligation which may lead you to darkness.  Where there is jealousy and selfishness, there is also disorder and every kind of evil.” (James 3:16). 

“No liar will live in my palace, no hypocrites will remain in my presence.” (Psalms 101). 

“Rebellion against God is as bad as witchcraft and arrogance is as bad as idolatry because you rejected the Lord’s commands” (1 Samuel 15:23)

“For the love of money is a source of all kinds of evil.  Some have been so eager to have it that they have wandered away from the faith and have broken their hearts with many sorrows.”  (1 Tim. 6:10)

These are the few characters which can remove the saltiness of a disciple to whom God said, “You are like the salt of the earth”.  So if you have lost the saltiness of your life return to God of mercy with a contrite heart who can still forgive you. He will cleanse and purify you by the Blood of Jesus His Son and bestow His Holy Spirit to remould you.

GOSPEL OF ST.JOHN

“Holy Father! Keep them safe by the power of Your name, the name You gave Me, so that they may be one just as You and I are one.” (John 17:11)

JESUS PRAYS FOR HIS DISCIPLES

After Jesus finished saying this, he looked up to Heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Give glory to your Son, so that the Son may give glory to You. For you gave Him authority over all mankind, so that He might give eternal life to all those You gave Him. And eternal life means knowing You, the only true God, and knowing Jesus Christ whom you sent. I have shown your glory on earth; I have finished the work you gave me to do. Father! Give me glory in your presence now, the same glory I had with You before the world was made.

“I have made You known to those You gave me out of the world. They belonged to You, and You gave them to Me. They have obeyed Your word, and now they know that everything You gave me comes from You. I gave them the message that You gave Me, and they received it; they know that it is true that I came from You, and they believe that You sent Me.”

“I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those you gave me, for they belong to You. All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine; and my glory is shown through them. And now I am coming to You; I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world. Holy Father! Keep them safe by the power of  Your name, the name You gave Me, so that they may be one just as You and I are one. While I was with them, I kept them safe by the power of Your name, the name You gave Me. I protected them, and not one of them was lost except the man who was bound to be lost---so that the scripture might come true. And now I am coming to You, and I say these things in the world so that they might have My joy in their hearts in all its fullness. I gave them Your message, and the world hated them, because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world.  I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but I do ask You to keep them safe from the Evil One. Just as I do not belong to the world, they do not belong to the world. Dedicate them to Yourself by means of the truth; Your word is truth. I sent them into the world, just as You sent me into the world. And for their sake I dedicate myself to You, in order that they, too, may be truly dedicated to You.”

“I pray not only for them, but also for those who believe in Me because of their message. I pray that they may all be one. Father! May they be in Us, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they be one, so that the world will believe that You sent Me. I gave them the same glory , You gave Me, so that they may be one, just as You and I are one: I in them and You in Me, so that they may be completely one , in order that the world may know that You sent Me and that You love them as You love Me.

Father! You have given them to Me and I want them to be with Me where I am, so that they may see my glory, the glory You gave Me; for You loved Me  before the world was made. The world does not know You, but I know You, and these know that You sent Me. I made you known to them, and I will continue to do so, in order that the love You have for Me, maybe in them and so that I also may be in them.” (John 17)

This is the Word of the Lord

Thanks be to Lord Jesus Christ! Amen