“ALTHOUGH YOU CLEANSE THE OUTSIDE OF THE CUP AND THE DISH, INSIDE YOU ARE FILLED WITH PLUNDER AND EVIL.” LK 11:37-41
Humbly submit your will to God (Thy Will be done) and consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through Mary and Joseph.
Prayer Prompt before reading LK 11:37-41: Come, Holy Spirit, teach me how to pray, interpret the Scriptures for me so that I may know the Truth about who God the Father and God the Son are so that I may know who I am.
Today, Luke’s Gospel will be focusing on Jesus denouncing the Pharisees and scholar’s of the law. Jesus states something about the actions and worship of the Pharisees that we see in ourselves until we have a conversion of heart and mind, acting Christian on the outside or in some places but fake in our hearts, the inside.
The Pharisees followed the 613 laws of their Jewish faith, but often worshiped God with no heart and were not taking care of their neighbor. Jesus, being God, cannot allow this to continue. “God is love straight through”-Bishop Barron. Therefore, God continually wills the good of the other and does something about it. In doing so, He is in continuous joy. So, He speaks out about it. We, too, are called to cleanse the inside and strive for pure hearts and holiness. We, too, are called through our baptism to not be fake or love half-heartedly or for selfish reasons.
In middle school, I remember some people who would act one way at school around their friends then differently at home or one-on-one. They were being fake to fit in. I’m sure I did it sometimes, too. This is an easy temptation that all of us have fallen into at one point in our lives. We can wear a Catholic school uniform and go to Church on Sundays, but never love.
We are called through our baptism to love God with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength and our neighbor as our self. This is true love. It is a gift of self. It is a love that sacrifices. It is a love that can produce new life. As St. Mother Teresa said, “Love until it hurts.” Our identity is wrapped up in Jesus dying on the cross and resurrecting giving us baptism with water and the Spirit. Our identity as Christians is to love. We are created for love.
Today’s challenge: Love with your heart. Stop being fake. Be yourself, an original is better than a copy.
“If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world ablaze!” St. Pope John Paul II quoting St. Catherine of Siena
Be a servant, be a saint today!
#Christian YOLO
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