To the king of ages, incorruptible, invisible, the only God, honor and glory forever and ever. – 1 Timothy 1:17

Our friend’s daughter won in a beauty contest. She looked stately and beautiful with her pageant sash over her red gown. Everyone wanted to take pictures with her and watched her wherever she went.

I said to my husband, “Can you just imagine if you’re Taylor Swift? That kind of attention will be magnified several million times.”

Thinking about it afterwards, I realized that we, Christians, should be eternal fans in our hearts—our eyes always looking God’s way to see what He wants, thinks, and feels. But to be Jesus’ fan is just a starting point. To give glory to Him is another matter. To live out the name Christian, meaning “follower of Christ,” denotes a life of discipline—prayer, reading, listening to the Word and the Church, and living out His ways. It’s a lifetime commitment, not a passing fancy.

And when the curtain that divides will have been drawn, we will stare slack-jawed in wonder, bow in humility, and prostrate in worship at the feet of the King of kings and Lord of lords. 

Joyce Roa (jsosoban@gmail.com)

reflect

Are you an admirer, a fan, or a follower of Jesus?

Dearest Lord, forgive me for saying I’m a Christian but do not follow You. Please help me to live out my calling.  

St. John Chrysostom, bishop and Doctor of the Church, pray for us.

No matter what wrong we may have done, we should never fear coming to Jesus. In today’s reading, Paul reminds Timothy of the purpose of Jesus’ coming into our world: to save us, and not to condemn us. Whenever we fall, we should immediately turn our hearts to Jesus, tell Him that we are sorry, and ask for His mercy. Let us also ask Him to fill us again with the Holy Spirit. Let us not stay in our sin, feeling condemned and rejected by God and ourselves. This only gives sin and the devil more opportunity to keep us defeated. 

¹⁵ Beloved: This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Of these I am the foremost.¹⁶ But for that reason I was mercifully treated, so that in me, as the foremost, Christ Jesus might display all his patience as an example for those who would come to believe in him for everlasting life. ¹⁷ To the king of ages, incorruptible, invisible, the only God, honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 113:1-2, 3-4, 5, 6-7

R: Blessed be the name of the Lord forever.

¹ Praise, you servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord. ² Blessed be the name of the Lord both now and forever. (R) 3 From the rising to the setting of the sun is the name of the Lord to be praised. ⁴ High above all nations is the Lord; above the heavens is his glory. (R) ⁵ Who is like the Lord, our God, 6 and looks upon the heavens and the earth below? ⁷ He raises up the lowly from the dust; from the dunghill he lifts up the poor. (R)

Gospel | Luke 6:43-49

What pleases God is our obedience and humble acceptance of His Word. Here’s how we can train ourselves to become obedient: When someone asks us to do something, we immediately stop what we are doing and do what the person asks us to. Let us train our hearts to be detached from our self-will and always be docile to the movements of the Holy Spirit as He prompts us.

Gospel Acclamation

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

⁴³ Jesus said to his disciples: “A good tree does not bear rotten fruit, nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit. ⁴⁴ For every tree is known by its own fruit. For people do not pick figs from thornbushes, nor do they gather grapes from brambles. ⁴⁵ A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of a store of evil produces evil; for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks. ⁴⁶ “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ but not do what I command? ⁴⁷ I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, listens to my words, and acts on them. ⁴⁸ That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when the flood came, the river burst against that house but could not shake it because it had been well built. ⁴⁹ But the one who listens and does not act is like a person who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, it collapsed at once and was completely destroyed.” 

Reflect:

Are you attuned to the leadings of the Holy Spirit? 

Do you willingly obey His promptings and direction?

Read the Bible in one year! Read JEREMIAH 47 - 49 today.

The late Senator Joker Arroyo shared a story of how the late Jaime Cardinal Sin once asked him if his name was really “Joker,” to which he replied, “Your Eminence, you are Cardinal Sin.” And they both burst into laughter. Imagine, one of the country’s serious lawmakers was named Joker, while an archbishop so faithful to God and the Church was called Cardinal Sin!

In the First Reading, Paul is boasting to Timothy about his being the worst sinner of all. His whole point in telling that to Timothy—and every one of us—is that Jesus came to forgive a sinner like him and us because God loves us so much. If Paul, who persecuted early Christians, was forgiven, we can “fully accept” that we, too, are loved and forgiven.

A sinner is a good person who makes bad choices in his spiritual life. A sinner is a good person because he comes from God who is good Himself. We are all sinners who make bad choices. When our sinful choices multiply and already affect others, that is when our soul deteriorates like the rotten tree that Jesus mentioned in today’s Gospel: “A good tree does not bear rotten fruit, nor does a rotten tree bear a good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit.”

We can stop our deterioration if we follow Christ’s three simple steps of conversion: listening, acting, and deepening. “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ but do not do what I command? I will show you what someone is like who comes to Me, listens to My words, and acts on them. That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid foundation on rock.” 

Fr. Nick Lalog

reflection questions

How do you deal with your sins? Do you look down on yourself, or do you look up to God for His mercy? 

Lord Jesus, I am a sinner. You have long saved me on the cross. Help me immerse myself in Your words to deepen my relationship with You and to bear good fruits in my life. Amen. 

Today, I pray for: _______________________________