NEVER SAY NEVER

Reclining at table, with his disciples, Jesus was deeply troubled and testified, “Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” – John 13:21

“Lord, I’ll never commit that sin.” Boom. Uh-huh. And at the prime of my leadership in community, I fell to the temptation I swore I’d never succumb to.

       I guess that’s how the disciples must have felt, too. They had journeyed with Jesus for three years, listened to His teachings, spent all that time with Him and were in His “inner circle.” How could they betray Him? And yes, there was only one Judas Iscariot, but didn’t they all betray Him when they disappeared once the going got tough? In the same way, I betrayed Him. Even when I said I’d never do it.

           I also used to say, “God will never forgive me for that,” but He did. I thought I’d never be able to forgive myself, but I did.

      Does God say never? Only when it comes to Him destroying, forsaking or leaving us.

Reflection:When you say never, are you really in full control?

Lord, empower me to follow You all the days of my life.

God has a plan for us. He has created us in love and He leads and guides us along life’s path so we can experience His love. Because He created and formed us, He knows what is best for us. Why is it difficult for us to follow God’s will? Why do we hesitate to ask Him what His will is for us?

1 Hear me, O islands, listen, O distant peoples. The Lord called me from birth, from my mother’s womb he gave me my name. 2 He made of me a sharp-edged sword and concealed me in the shadow of his arm. He made me a polished arrow, in his quiver he hid me. 3 You are my servant, he said to me, Israel, through whom I show my glory. 4 Though I thought I had toiled in vain, and for nothing, uselessly, spent my strength, yet my reward is with the Lord, my recompense is with my God. 5 For now the Lord has spoken who formed me as his servant from the womb, that Jacob may be brought back to him and Israel gathered to him; and I am made glorious in the sight of the Lord, and my God is now my strength! 6 It is too little, he says, for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the survivors of Israel; I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.

R: I will sing of your salvation.

1 In you, O Lord, I take refuge; let me never be put to shame. 2 In your justice rescue me, and deliver me; incline your ear to me, and save me. (R) 3 Be my rock of refuge, a stronghold to give me safety, for you are my rock and my fortress. 4 O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked. (R) 5 For you are my hope, O Lord; my trust, O God, from my youth. 6 On you I depend from birth; from my mother’s womb you are my strength. (R) 15 My mouth shall declare your justice, day by day your salvation. 17 O God, you have taught me from my youth, and till the present I proclaim your wondrous deeds. (R)

Sin is all around us and it affects our life. We will always struggle with it and its effect. Even Jesus dealt with the betrayal of one of His closest companions. Have you ever been betrayed? Let us seek Jesus and His wisdom about how to deal with sin.

Hail to you, our King, obedient to the Father; you were led to your crucifixion like a gentle lamb to the slaughter.

21 Reclining at table, with his disciples, Jesus was deeply troubled and testified, “Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” 22 The disciples looked at one another, at a loss as to whom he meant. 23 One of his disciples, the one whom Jesus loved, was reclining at Jesus’ side. 24 So Simon Peter nodded to him to find out whom he meant. 25 He leaned back against Jesus’ chest and said to him, “Master, who is it?” 26 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I hand the morsel after I have dipped it.” So he dipped the morsel and took it and handed it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot. 27 After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him. So Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” 28 Now none of those reclining at table realized why he said this to him. 29 Some thought that since Judas kept the money bag, Jesus had told him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or to give something to the poor. 30 So Judas took the morsel and left at once. And it was night. 31 When he had left, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and he will glorify him at once. 33 My children, I will be with you only a little while longer. You will look for me, and as I told the Jews, ‘Where I go you cannot come,’ so now I say it to you.” 36 Simon Peter said to him, “Master, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going, you cannot follow me now, though you will follow later.” 37 Peter said to him, “Master, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” 38 Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow before you deny me three times.”

think: If you knew someone was going to betray you, what would you do?

Read the Bible in one year Exodus 37-40

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________________________

MORE THAN JUST SERVANT, LIGHT!

Painters and artists of old mastered the art of contrast called the “chiaroscuro.” It was a matter of putting to good use the inherent power of playing with the twin elements of light and darkness, either to emphasize or play down images on canvas.

       The Gospel of John has a one-liner that has struck readers for more than 2,000 years. “And it was night.” It was night when Judas went out to do what only he and the Lord knew. And what he planned to do bespoke not of light, but of darkness. It was night when the process of glorification of the Lord began. The journey, ironically enough, was kicked off, by a wicked deed, hidden from the light of consciousness of all those who were with the Lord at the Last Supper.

        For one fleeting moment during the sudden departure of Judas, the “chiaro” was supplanted by the “oscuro.” The otherwise beautiful canvas of the Lord, imparting the gifts of the Eucharist and of service in ordained ministry, was overshadowed and besplattered by the darkness of depravity and disloyalty. Jesus went out into the night and showed a bewildered world that the God of freedom — the Light that came into the world — can be rejected and denied, even delivered, to the forces of darkness.

       Like we said yesterday, “There, but for the grace of God, go I!” God’s grace, though, is prevenient, actual and effective. It is always in the works, trying to find welcome cooperation from the depths of everyone’s heart. You and I are quite capable of doing a Judas anytime, anywhere. But by God’s Word and God’s grace, we are called to do better.

       Let us hear it from Isaiah. “He made me a sharp-edged sword…a polished arrow… I am made glorious in the sight of the Lord. My God is now my strength.” We are called to greatness. We are called to holiness — to do as God does. Despite the fact that the world we live in is a world of veritable “chiaroscuro” — a world steeped in both darkness and light — God calls us to be “a light to the nations.” Fr. Chito Dimaranan, SDB

---------- REFLECTION QUESTION ----------

In what way is God calling you to be “light” to those around you?

Lord God, direct my life towards Your bright and wondrous light — to Jesus, Your beloved Son. Amen.