Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.
“The Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man
who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.
The slaves of the householder came to him and said,
‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?
Where have the weeds come from?’
He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’
His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
“First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” MT 13:24-30
In this parable Jesus teaches us that, “The refusal of the householder to allow his slaves to separate the wheat from the weeds while they are still growing is a warning to the disciples not to attempt to anticipate the final judgment of God by a definitive exclusion of sinners from the kingdom. In its present stage it is composed of the good and the bad. The judgment of God alone will eliminate the sinful. Until then there must be patience and the preaching of repentance.” Scripture Scholar for the New American Bible
We must allow ourselves to be transformed, not judge, and be patient with others while preaching repentance.
Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
“Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”
He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test.”
And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend
to whom he goes at midnight and says,
‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,
for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey
and I have nothing to offer him,’
and he says in reply from within,
‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked
and my children and I are already in bed.
I cannot get up to give you anything.’
I tell you,
if he does not get up to give the visitor the loaves
because of their friendship,
he will get up to give him whatever he needs
because of his persistence.
“And I tell you, ask and you will receive;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives;
and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
What father among you would hand his son a snake
when he asks for a fish?
Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will the Father in heaven
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?” Lk 11:1-13
Jesus teaches us that God the Father is so gracious to allow us to call Him, “Abba, Father”. God allows us to call Him Father and He calls us son or daughter adopted through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus in Baptism. We die with Jesus in our baptism and have new life. A life with grace to overcome sin and death. Each day we must wake with the Our Father on our lips to remind us that God is our Father, we are called to do His Will (Thy Will be done), thank Him for our physical and spiritual blessings (give us this day our daily bread), and forgive as God has forgiven us. He does not need us or our prayer, but He is merciful and full of love that He wants to share with us. If we trust God and believe in Him with our whole heart and soul, we will be transformed through this prayer. Prayer is a conversation with God, but it is the key to His heart (St. Padre Pio). Prayer allows God to speak to us in silence, in others, and by the Holy Spirit bringing us into His presence and being at peace. Prayer transforms us. Prayer is hard, sometimes boring or repetitious, difficult to focus, and many do nothing to increase their knowledge on how to pray. If we stop praying, we cut God off. And God wants nothing but to, “ask and receive, seek, and find, knock and have the door opened, give to us who ask of Him through the power of the Holy Spirit”.
Today’s challenge: Bring yourself into God’s presence and be at peace with Him. Pray with others. Allow yourself to be transformed by God through prayer. Then, go forth with the guidance of the Holy Spirit and be patient with others and preach repentance.
Be a servant, become a saint!
#Christian YOLO
Recent Comments