When I was young, I was so scared to do anything that would offend God. I pictured the Father as someone who was so stern that if I sinned, He would give me a spanking. This fear, rather than love, fueled my attempts to be good. I walked a tightrope of obedience, scared of the consequences of falling short.

But time, and a deepening relationship with God, reshaped my understanding. My image of a stern disciplinarian began to soften, revealing the loving Father beneath. I now perceived His commandments as the gentle guidance of a parent who only desires the best for his child. It dawned on me that He never challenges us with a dismissive, “Go your own way and see what happens.” Instead, He offers a path of love and invites us to walk it with Him.

Obedience isn’t about avoiding punishment—it’s about responding to God’s  love with our love. Thus, our obedience becomes an expression of love rather than fear. 

Reng D. Morelos (norinamorelos@gmail.com)

reflect

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment, and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.” (1 John 4:18)

Lord, please help me to obey You out of love, not fear. Fill me with the Holy Spirit and lead me along the path You have prepared for me.

St. John of Avila, pray for us.

First Reading | Acts 8:5-8, 14-17

I will never forget the coming of the Holy Spirit into my life—it was an experiential moment of faith. The clarity of the truth of the Gospel was unbelievable. I have yet to be tempted to doubt the truth of the Gospel after almost thirty years of discipleship, twenty of which I have lived as a priest. This is God’s grace at work. I thank Him for giving me such a profound knowledge of the truth.

⁵ Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them. ⁶ With one accord, the crowds paid attention to what was said by Philip when they heard it and saw the signs he was doing. ⁷ For unclean spirits, crying out in a loud voice, came out of many possessed people, and many paralyzed and crippled people were cured. ⁸ There was great joy in that city. ¹⁴ Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, ¹⁵ who went down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit, ¹⁶ for it had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ¹⁷ Then they laid hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20

R: Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.

¹ Shout joyfully to God, all you on earth, ² sing praise to the glory of his name; proclaim his glorious praise. ³ Say to God, “How tremendous are your deeds! (R) ⁴ Let all on earth worship and sing praise to you, sing praise to your name!” ⁵ Come and see the works of God, his tremendous deeds among the children of Adam. (R) ⁶ He has changed the sea into dry land; through the river they passed on foot; therefore, let us rejoice in him. ⁷ He rules by his might forever. (R) ¹⁶ Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare what he has done for me. ²⁰ Blessed be God who refused me not my prayer or his kindness! (R) 

Second Reading | 1 Peter 3:15-18

Be ready to proclaim the Gospel at every opportunity. This is the cry of the Early Church and of every evangelist since then. A true evangelist can direct a conversation toward matters of faith and introduce a line here and there that invites a faith response from the other person. This is a gift that is both a grace from God and a skill we can develop with practice.

¹⁵ Beloved: Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, ¹⁶ but do it with gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who defame your good conduct in Christ may themselves be put to shame. ¹⁷ For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that be the will of God, than for doing evil. ¹⁸ For Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the Spirit. 

Gospel | John 14:15-21

Being a Gospel orphan is an oxymoron—a contradiction of terms. It is not possible for our God of love to abandon us. He is always with us, and He will never leave us alone to face the trials and difficulties we encounter in life. Let this console us as we face the challenges of living the Gospel in the modern world. Let us avail ourselves of God’s grace each day and be empowered to overcome all temptations.

Gospel Acclamation

Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord, and my Father will love him and we will come to him.

¹⁵ Jesus said to his disciples: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. ¹⁶ And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, ¹⁷ the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows him. But you know him, because it remains with you, and will be in you. ¹⁸ I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. ¹⁹ In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live and you will live. ²⁰ On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me and I in you. ²¹ Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him, and reveal myself to him.”

Read the Bible in one year! Read JOSHUA 5 - 8 today.

The Greatest Love of All

Jesus today assured His disciples of another helper who stands as an advocate and, with Him, helps us endure the pains of following Him and of resisting the temptations that come our way. The Spirit is also Jesus’ assurance of His abiding presence in us. We will never be orphans. He is “Emmanuel,” the God with us. 

Through His words and miracles, Jesus gave us all the teachings and the reasons to believe and live our faith. His whole life is the testimony of God’s love for us. Jesus is both the Messenger and the Message. He came to personally deliver the Good News of salvation. In Jesus, God is heard, seen, and felt.

As an advocate, the Spirit, whose feast we will celebrate come Pentecost, is expected to give us wisdom, courage, knowledge, and everything we need to live and proclaim the message of salvation. But we have to summon it and be open to it to take advantage of its gifts. The Spirit will not violate our free will. Ironically, we will be most free when we allow the Spirit to take control of us.

We can see and feel here the perfect and complete love and care of God. This is how much He wants us to be with Him. He provided everything for us to have a meaningful and fruitful life. When we reject Him, He patiently and lovingly forgives us. He is faithful to His part of the covenant. And at the proper time, He sent His only beloved Son to be one like us in everything but sin.

Throughout Jesus’ ministry, He preached repentance in order to provide us the way to God’s Kingdom. It did not end there. He offered His life by dying on the cross, an excruciating and humiliating death only given to the worst of criminals. 

God’s love is, indeed, the greatest love of all. 

Fr. Benny Tuazon

reflection questions

How has God expressed His love for you? Can you count the ways?

Drown us, Lord Jesus, in and with Your love! We ache for Your kind of love. True and everlasting love is rare to find. We are very graced to be a part of Your greatest love. Amen.

Today, I pray for: ____________________________________________