Faithfulness and Love

Category Archives: Year 2

Wednesday of Week 14 Year 2

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As Christians, do we worship God alone? Some of you may think that this sounds like a silly question, but sometimes we come across Christians who appear to worship God, but they have become so attached to the ways of the world, that money, wealth, riches, and popularity have become more important than God, and some have made all these other things of equal importance with God. When we do such things, our hearts become divided and our focus may turn more and more towards other gods in the form of money, wealth, riches, and popularity, instead of the one, true God.

In today’s reading, Hosea cautioned Israel that “their heart is a divided heart and they must pay for it.” This is because the Israelites had focused more and more on other gods, and neglected or even abandoned the one, true God. Could we be in danger of having to pay for it, for abandoning or neglecting the one, true God? Are we risking our eternal future just for the sake of temporary success, wealth and power here on earth?

Tuesday of Week 14 Year 2

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God has given each and every one of us different gifts and talents. We do not have the exact same talent, since each talent is unique. But sometimes, we come across people who are not happy with their gift or talent, and they begin to get very jealous when other people seem to be better than them in a different way. When such people are jealous, they begin to say things or find ways to put other people down, but they sometimes do or say things which only end up making them look silly or stupid. Could some of us be guilty of such things?

In today’s Gospel, we come across the Pharisees who were extremely jealous of Jesus, because of what he said and did. Just because Jesus had cured a dumb demoniac, the Pharisees tried to put Jesus down by saying: “It is through the prince of devils that he casts out devils.” Now if we consider for a moment: isn’t such a statement stupid? Why would the devil cast out another devil? Surely the devil would join up with the other devil and the person would be worse off.

When we become jealous like the Pharisees, we may also end up like them by saying or doing silly or ridiculous things. May we take care not to become so incessantly jealous, since all gifts are from God, and we should rejoice when such gifts are used well for His glory.

Monday of Week 14 Year 2

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Among the many sins a married couple may encounter, one of the most difficult to forgive is unfaithfulness or adultery. This is because the party who committed such a sin has lost the trust of the other party. The situation is even further aggravated if a pregnancy is involved, or if the party who sinned has contracted some disease as a result of such unfaithfulness. It takes a lot of courage, love, mercy and compassion for one to forgive the party who sinned. Forgiving the party that sinned is one thing, but rebuilding the trust that is lost is another thing altogether, and it may take quite some time before some trust is restored. Humanly speaking, it is not easy to rebuild the trust, but with time and with God’s help, perhaps the trust may be somewhat restored.

But when it comes to God, He shows us what it means to forgive and rebuild trust. In the reading, the Israelites had been unfaithful to God, and had been seduced by Baal. But God had not given up on them or abandoned them. Despite their unfaithfulness, God is willing to take them back and make them His own. If God can be so loving, forgiving and merciful to such people, what about us when it comes to broken or unfaithful relationships? Are we willing to follow God’s ways, forgive and rebuild trust? Are we willing to let bygones be bygones, pick up the pieces, and move on, especially if the party who sinned wants to come back to us and remain with us? Or are we going to allow the hurt, anger, pain and disappointment control us and even cause our marriage to fail?

Friday of Week 13 Year 2

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Some of us think that just because we have lots of property, wealth, power or political influence, we can do whatever we like. Because of this, some of us begin to differenciate ourselves from others, by considering ourselves as the “haves” compared to the “have nots.” When this happens, some of us begin to find ways and means to maintain our status, and in the process, we begin to suppress others, trampling and controlling them, even cheating them or witholding what is due to them, all for the sake of protecting our interest, or to show them who is boss. But by doing so, are we aware of the consequence of our actions? Do we not realise that we are sinning and bringing about God’s wrath?

In today’s reading, the prophet Amos warned about trampling and cheating the poor and the lower class. He warned that this not only destroyed the bond and fabric of society, it also stirs up God’s anger. God does hear the cry of the poor, and when we neglect, mistreat or abuse them, we are only going against God. Some of us may ask: “Where is the poor? Do we need to go to a certain place to find them?” Actually, we don’t need to go far looking for the poor, since they are already in our midst. They could even be working for you, or serving you in different ways. We just need to open our eyes and identify them. May we come to realise what we are doing, and do what is right and just for the poor, so that we may grow closer in relationship with God.

Thursday of Week 13 Year 2

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Most people do not like to hear or experience bad news. Those who do are often ridiculed and people would ask them whether they are crazy, or are “gluttons for punishment” which basically means to “willfully take on disagreeable or uncomfortable tasks.” However, sometimes it is necessary for us to hear and experience bad news, since such bad news could help us learn to be humble, to learn from our mistakes and become better persons, to be more dependent on God, not to be complacent, and not to be too confident or proud of one’s wealth, achievements and success.

In today’s reading, the prophet Amos had been warning the Israelites of the impending doom which would happen to them if they did not change their ways and return to the Lord’s path. But Amaziah the priest of Bethel, tried to curry favour with the king of Israel and tried to chase away the prophet Amos, saying that “this is the royal sanctuary, the national temple.” By saying so, Amaziah thought that God would not allow the temple to be desecrated or destroyed, since he believed that God was present in the temple. But what Amaziah failed to realise is that God is not confined only to the temple, and that the prophet Amos had been sent by God to warn the Israelites. Sometimes, pride, as in the case of Amaziah, could lead persons to think that God is on their side, when in reality, that is not the case.

What about us? Could some of us have become like Amaziah, refusing to listen to God’s warning? Are we fooling ourselves into thinking that nothing would happen to us? May we take heed and change our ways, and return to God’s ways, before it is too late.

Tuesday of Week 13 Year 2

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Some of us may have heard of or used early warning devices, so that in case there is a serious problem or disaster emerging, we would be prepared and ready to either make a run for it, or take action to deal with the problem before it happens. For example, when a fire is detected, the sprinkers would activate to put out the fire before it gets worse. Also, if you live in a flood prone area, and the weather is showing signs of getting worse, you would likely make preparations to flee before the floods come. However, sometimes we get people who refuse to take notice of such early warnings, and they do so at their peril.

In today’s reading, the Israelites had an early warning system in the form of the prophets. In the reading, the prophet Amos had warned the Israelites to change their ways or face disaster, but the Israelites took no notice of the prophet Amos. As a result, the Israelites were in grave danger of being confronted with disaster and doom, as the prophet Amos said: “Israel, prepare to meet your God!”

What about us? Are we ignoring the signs around us? Have we allowed sin and the ways of the world to blind us and give us a false sense of security? May we not get caught off-guard when we are suddenly called to face the Lord, and risk losing our eternal reward.

Monday of Week 13 Year 2

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It is interesting to observe how people behave when times are good and when times are bad. When people are experiencing prosperity, wealth, success, popularity, riches and many other seemingly good things the world has to offer, how many of such people would still be rooted or grounded with God in their lives? But when disaster strikes, when the going gets tough, when there is trouble and suffering, how many of such people will remain faithful to God, and how many would give in to other forms of help, only to find out that they have gotten into an even bigger mess?

In today’s reading, God had a covenantal relationship between Israel and Himself. If the Israelites chose to break the covenantal relationship with God, they do so at their own peril, since God was not obligated to guide them or protect them. Throughout the Old Testament, we have seen how disaster had struck when the Israelites chose to turn their backs on God, and despite trying to find their own way and their own solutions, the Israelites ended up getting into even more serious trouble. The reading even reminds us that flight will not save even the swift, the strong man will find his strength useless, the mighty man will be powerless to save himself. In other words, without God, we are nothing and we cannot save ourselves.

So what does this mean to us today? It means that we must learn to constantly grow in relationship with God. We cannot depend on what the world offers, because what the world offers is only temporary. We too are temporary, we are weak, if we try to block God out of our lives. May we come to a realisation of what is really important, what really matters, and take measures to prepare for our eternal future, before it is too late.

Thursday of Week 12 Year 2

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When we do something wrong or displeasing towards our parents, what happens? Quite likely some of us may get a scolding, some of us may even get smacked. When we do something wrong or commit a traffic violation, what happens? We may be fined for the offence committed. But what if we do something wrong or sin against God? God may be merciful and patient with us, but some of us may have taken for granted God’s mercy and patience, and sometimes we may be caught off-guard when we are called to face Him for judgement. Then what would happen to us then?

In today’s reading, king Jehoiachin did what is displeasing to the Lord, just as his father had done. Already many of his ancestors had committed offences against God, and God had been so merciful and kind towards them. But king Jehoaichin failed to change his ways and make amends with God. Then what happened? Because of the infidelity of the Israelites, because of the continuous displeasing acts committed, king Jehoaichin and the Israelites ended up in exile, a humiliating and painful consequence of not taking action in making amends with God while they had plenty of opportunities to do so.

What about us? Some of us seem to think that we have plenty of time to change our ways and return to God’s path. But we forget that God can call us any time to give an account of our lives. Are we going to jeopadise our eternal future through our own inaction and false sense of security?

Wednesday of Week 12 Year 2

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Every once in a while, we come across certain persons who claim to be preaching the Good News, but what they preach is more often than not their version or interpretation of the Good News. We see such persons making outrageous claims, such as being able to heal most persons in a crowd, and they even have the gall to say that if a person is not healed, then it is because the person did not put his or her faith in the so called healer. Sometimes such persons would encourage the crowd to give more of their wealth, so that they would get more wealth and success from God, making it sound as if God would do our bidding if we give more.

But let us consider a moment: who is actually doing the healing? God, isn’t it? The preacher or healer is not the one that heals, but it is through God’s grace and mercy that a person is healed. Also, since when God could be bribed or forced to give us wealth? The strange thing is, some people are so gullible into thinking that they can get what they want, be it healing and wealth, by following such persons. But quite often, such persons do such things only for their own benefit. Once they have reached a certain goal, or when they find that support is dwindling, such persons would quite likely disappear and go some other place to ply their trade.

That is why, in today’s Gospel, we are warned: “Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves. You will be able to tell them by their fruits.” Sometimes it does not take much to weed out a fake, and we should warn others about such persons, since such persons are there to try and create trouble and confusion for their own ends. Sometimes it may not be so easy to spot such persons, and this is where we need to watch carefully and be discerning as to whether such persons are genuine or not. Whatever it is, may we be diligent and careful, so that our Christian community would not be led astray or taken for a ride.

Tuesday of Week 12 Year 2

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There are times in life where we are threatened by certain persons or groups who say that if we do not join them or follow their ways, we would be persecuted or even exterminated, and according to them, there is nothing we can do to stop them. They seem to be so confident that we would give in or kow tow to their demands, just because they think that they have the power and strength to carry out their evil designs. But as we recall in many instances in Scripture, God has helped and intervened, and such persons end up eating humble pie.

In today’s reading, we come across one such person, the Assyrian king Sennacherib. He thought that, just because he had quite easily defeated the other nations, Jerusalem would have no chance to escape from imminent destruction at his hand. This is because Sennacherib thought that the God of the Israelites was worthless, just like the other gods who had failed to prevent other nations from being destroyed. But what Sennacherib failed to realise is that the other gods were idols, and that the God of the Israelites is the one, true God. In the end, it was Sennacherib who suffered a crushing and humiliating defeat, and the Israelites were saved, because the Israelites had put their faith and trust in God Almighty, the one true God.

What about us? Would we do the same as the Israelites did? Sometimes the situation seems hopeless and we appear to be on the verge of being wiped out. But let us not be disheartened or even despair, because God can help us if we trust Him and let Him do what is best. No matter what happens, may we remain steadfast and faithful to God, and give Him the glory.