BIBLIARASAL –“BETHEL” (8 January 2015 Thursday) “DISCERN WHAT IT IS THAT GOD WANTS TO DO WITH OUR LIVES” BIBLIARASAL –“BETHEL” (8 January 2015 Thursday) “WHEN JESUS CHRIST DIED FOR OUR SINS ON THE CROSS, THE VEIL IN THE TEMPLE THAT SYMBOLIZES OUR SEPARATION FROM GOD WAS SPLIT FROM TOP TO BOTTOM” In Eden, we see God’s ideal relationship with us: Adam and Eve enjoyed an intimate friendship with God. There were no rituals, ceremonies or religion – just a simple loving relationship between God and the people he created. Unhindered by guilt or fear, Adam and Eve delighted in God and He delighted in them. We were made to live in God’s continual presence, but after the Fall, that ideal relationship was lost. Only a few people in Old Testament had the privilege of friendship with God. Moses and Abraham were called “friends of God,” David was called “a man after [God’s] own heart,” and Job, Enoch, and Noah had intimate friendships with God. But fear of God, not friendship was more common in the Old Testament. Then Jesus changed the situation . When he paid for our sins on the cross, the veil in the temple that symbolized our separation from God was split from top to bottom, indicating that direct access to God was once again available. Thank you soooo much Jesus! - The Purpose Driven Life – Rick Warren/ BIBRIARASAL PINOY (“BETHEL” – To worship and enjoy the invitation of friendship and fellowship with the Holy Trinity) Motto: Less than the least of God’s mercies.” (Gen. 32:10); Less for Self More for Others. Bendy P. Martinez: BIBLIARASAL PINOY; a servant of God and friend of the Lord Jesus Christ BIBLIARASAL –“BETHEL” (8 January 2015 Thursday) “THE NEW KING FOR ALL PEOPLES” The Philippines may have the longest Christmas season but now that our celebration is at the tail end, the spirit has somehow started to wane. Ephipany, in which we celebrate God’s manifestation to the pagan people, is seen more as an addendum to the more important feast of Christ’s birth. In other parts of the world, however, Epiphany is felt closer by people from Western Europe and most of Latin America. Today, January 5, 2014, is their day of gift giving. It seems that people who are distant from Bethlehem can better relate to the three magi from the east than to the Jewish shepherds. For, after all, those outside Israel, once considered heathens, have finally received God’s self-manifestation through these three wise foreigners. The magi impress us by their deep yearning for knowledge. They are said to be astronomers, driven by passion and purpose, to search the heavenly bodies and in finding ominous signs, dedicate themselves to connecting their significance to the lives of people. It was on such occasion, after having been struck with the largeness and luminosity of a different star from the east, that they decided to leave home, close shop, and set forth to Israel. It will be simplistic to reduce the retinue of magi to three. They embarked on a long journey, a risky one and a dangerous one, and they could have not made it without the assistance of a loyal staff of followers. One thing that particularly strikes us about these foreigners is their sense of expanding their territories, not in the sense of conquest, nor plunder, but in their sincere and honest search for truth. They extricated themselves from their safe haven of hearth and home. They took the risk of being ridiculed by critics; they took the risk of, well, maybe finding really nothing in Bethlehem. But to Bethlehem they came, and it was not new knowledge that beckoned to them but wisdom, nay, truth itself wrapped in swaddling clothes. These magi used their connections in high society for their purpose and these brought them before King Herod at no time at all. The phony king had felt as though the ground under his feet had shaken, or had gaped open, ready to hurl him to the deepest abyss, upon learning about the birth of the new king of the Jews. He made a pretense of wanting to pay homage to this king, giving specific instruction to the magi to return to the palace once they have located and identified him. The star led the foreigners to Mary whom they found carrying the baby in her arms. These foreigners, men of learning and science, were stupefied but because they were truly wise, their sense of wonder was intact and they allowed themselves to be surprised by joy! The wisdom of the magi was further made manifest in the decision they had taken after they receive a message in a dream: go back home through another route, do not return to Herod. Jesus is born to us on Christmas. We recognize him to be our Redeemer but he will not present himself to us in any other way except in the mold that he had manifested himself to the magi – as a helpless baby wrapped in swaddling clothes. May we continue our yearning for wisdom and for God himself, allow ourselves to be surprised by his simple manifestation , and heed his constant call for us to take an entirely new and different route, and not to return to where Herod is still king. - we celebrate the Solemnity of the Epiphany of our Lord, which manifests that the birth of Jesus is not only meant for the people of Israel, but also for all nations represented by the “Magis” or the “Three Kings” shining forth a revelation that the power of salvation may be shared by all; all of us are important to God, note the parables of the lost: the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son or the prodigal son, He wants all of us, when possible to spend eternity with Him, this is why He created us -”ALL FOR THE GREATER GLORY OF GOD! FOR EVERYTHING COMES FROM HIM, HAS BEEN MADE BY HIM, AND HAS TO RETURN TO HIM.”(Romans 12:36)”and so for the second coming of Christ, we must all be prepared like the master of the house prepared for the eventuality in the hour of night when the thief of the night could breaking into his house as nobody knows when Jesus will come again, for not even Jesus , himself, knows of the time of His coming to earth again, only the Father knows. We must be prepared for His coming, because when He comes there will be no more time for “shifting minds” or “repentance”, like in a test in school, when the allotted time ends, all papers will have to be passed in front to the teacher whether we like it or not; when Jesus comes back, its time for the “final review”, for us to stand before God for “judgment.”The gifts offered by the Three Kings to the infant Jesus: gold symbolizes our offering to God of our pure love to Him, frankinsence symbolizes our offering to God of our praise and worship of Him and myrrh represents our offering to God of ourselves including all of our weaknesses, cross, sufferings, problems, difficulties, everything – meaning our surrender to God. Fr. Paul J. Marquez, SSP/ BIBRIARASAL PINOY (“BETHEL”) Motto: Less than the least of God’s mercies.” (Gen. 32:10); Less for Self More for Others. Bendy P. Martinez: BIBLIARASAL PINOY; a servant of God and friend of the Lord Jesus Christ BIBLIARASAL –“BETHEL” (8 January 2015 Thursday) “FROM THE WAYSIDE TO JESUS’ SIDE” The disciples. For Jesus’ disciples and the bystanders, Bartimaeus of the Gospel of Mark 10:46-52 is a nuisance. As he calls out to Jesus, they berate him and command him to keep quiet. For the disciples, Jesus is not to be inconvenienced by the desperate need of a poor blind man. However, no one is too insignificant to Jesus. He stops on his tracks and commands Bartimaeus to come to him. Only then do the disciples, embarrassed bt Jesus’ compassion for Bartimaeus, assist and bring him to the Lord. Jesus. Though he foresees he is to be rejected and put to death, Jesus, on his last journey to Jerusalem, passes through the city of Jericho. Perhaps lost in his thoughts about his imminent death that not even his disciples could foresee or comprehend, he then notices Bartimaeus. In the face of death, Jesus, who would later be scorned and scourged, remains attentive to those in need, Jesus sets aside his thoughts about his death and attend to a man scorned by everyone else. Bartimaeus. Having heard of the miracles Jesus had performed, Bartimaeus desperate for a cure, excitedly calls out to Jesus, “Son of David”. No one else in Mark’s Gospel addresses Jesus with this royal title. For Bartimaeus, Jesus is not merely a Rabbi, a prophet, or a miracleworker. He is the Messiah, God’s anointed who will redeem Israel from her sufferings and misfortunes. Ironically, though blind, Bartimaeus recognizes the true identity of Jesus, which his disciples did not yet grasp. He declares his faith in Jesus as the messianic son of David as he respond to Jesus’ question, “What is it you want” “I want to see,” he replies, affirming his faith in Jesus, the Christos or Messiah, who has power and authority to reverse infirmity and confer God’s mercy. By his faith, he is healed. He does not mind being ridiculed by the crowds, as long as he is able to profess his faith in Jesus. Totally confident in Jesus, he surrenders himself, his woes and hopes to the Lord. For our reflection. Bartimaeus teaches us that God cannot impose his salvation upon us. God offers fullness of life and communion with him, but awaits our free response. Dowe believe that we are important enough to the Lord, that Jesus will stop along the way in order to attend to our individual needs? Indeed, many of us have freely placed our faith and trust in the Lord. And indeed, like the psalmist, “The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy (Psalm 126:3).” Often indeed has the Lord granted our prayers and petitions. On the other hand, despite placing our faith in Jesus, despite making known to him our desperate needs, often have our cries been unheeded seemingly by the Lord? We need to revisit our conception of the Lord. With regard our sufferings and needs, what do we expect of him as our Lord and Redeemer? Will God be worthy only of our worship if he fulfills our petitions? Will God cease to be God for us if he disappoints us during our time of need? Can our faith in the Lord allow room for unanswered prayers? Can we surrender ourselves to a God who intervenes in our lives in ways beyond, or even contrary, to our expectations? Can our experience of unheeded petetions, in fact, lead us deeper into the mystery of our existence and of our world which we experience as both meaningful and absurd? Can our recognition of our poverty and inability to redeem our yearning for God, so that with Bartimaeus, we cry out to the Lord, “Son of David, I want to see.” We want to see you, Lord. We want to see ourselves as you see us – each of us infinitely valuable to you. We want to hear you call us from the wayside of our self-misery to the road of life with you. Like Bartimaeus, we will arise; by your healing touch, we will see; and by your invitation we will walk by your side, proclaiming your redemptive interventions in our lives, “When the Lord brought back the captives OF Zion, we were like men dreaming.(Psalm 126:1).” Fr. Manoling V. Francisco, SJ/ BIBRIARASAL PINOY (“BETHEL”) Motto: Less than the least of God’s mercies.” (Gen. 32:10); Less for Self More for Others. Bendy P. Martinez: BIBLIARASAL PINOY; a servant of God and friend of the Lord Jesus Christ BIBLIARASAL –“BETHEL” (8 January 2015 Thursday) “DISCERN WHAT IT IS THAT GOD WANTS TO DO WITH OUR LIVES” Prayer: Prayer: Father, speak to me. I wish to receive your Word into my heart. Send forth your spirit to me. Reveal your face to me today. Amen. 1ST READING: 1 JOHN 4:19,5:4 “Beloved, we love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God”, but hates his brother, he is a liar; for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. This is the commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother 5: Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God, and everyone who loves the Father, also loves the one begotten by him. In this way we know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments. For the love of God is this, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world. And the victory that conquers the world is our faith. ” “The only reason we are able to love anyone at all is that we first have been loved by God. The Fathers of the Church constantly remind us that without God’s love for us, we would simply cease to exist. The sin within us would literally shred our being to pieces and we would be destroyed. What a wonderful thought to contemplate! However, we should reflect on it a little as it will help to give us the inspiration necessary to surrender all to the grace of God and His love.” . PSALM 72:1-17 Lord, every nation on earth will adore you. “O God, with your judgment endow the king, and with your justice, the king’s son; he shall govern your people with justice and your afflicted ones with judgment.Fro fraud and violence he shall redeem them, and precious shall their blood be in his sight May they be prayed for continually; day by day shall they bless him. May his name be blessed forever; as long as the sun his name shall remain. In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed; all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.” GOSPEL LUKE 4:14-22 “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news of him spread throughout the whole region. He taught in their synagogues and were praised by all. He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up, and went according to his custom in the synagogue on the Sabbath day. He stood up and handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today, this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing. And all spoke highly of him and were amazedat the gracious words that came from his mouth.” .” “Jesus begins His ministry in Luke’s Gospel with a firm statement of intent as to His own understanding of what He is called to do. Nothing can substitute for belief in what a person is doing as the firm basis upon which to live one’s life. This is why it is so i8mportant for us to discern what it is that God wants to do with our lives. If we can discover this truth, so many questions will be answered. ” READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: God’s special verse/thought for me today- MATTHEW 22-24 MY REFLECTIONS- THINK: “The only reason we are able to love anyone at all is that we first have been loved by God..” PRAY AGAIN-Thank the Lord for His message to you and pray that you may be able to live it out in your daily life. PRAYER: Father, I thank you. Your word is manna to my spirit. May your Word that I received today transform my soul. Make me more like you. Amen. BIBLIARASAL –“BETHEL” (8 January 2015 Thursday) “PUT JESUS CHRIST IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT OF YOUR LIFE AND TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF THE STEERINGWHEEL.” If God is going to do His deepest works in you, it will begin with this. So give it all to God: your past regrets, your present problems, your future ambitions, your fears, your dreams, weaknesses, habits, hurts, hang ups. Put Jesus Christ in the driver’s seat of your life and take your hands off the steering wheel . Don’t be afraid; nothing under His control can be ever out of control. Mastered by Christ, you can handle anything. You will be like Paul, “I am ready for anything and equal to anything through him who infuses inner strength into me , that is, I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency.” Paul’s moment of surrender occurred on the Damascus road after he was knocked down by a blinding light. For others, God gets our attention with less drastic methods. Regardless, surrendering is not just a one-time event. Paul said, “I die daily.” There is a moment of surrender and the practice of surrender which is moment-by-moment and lifelong. The problem with living sacrifice is that it can crawl off the altar, so you may have to surrender your life fifty times a day. You must make it a daily habit. Jesus said, “If people want to follow me, they must give up the things they want. They must be willing to give up their lives daily to follow me.” ”ALL FOR THE GREATER GLORY OF GOD! FOR EVERYTHING COMES FROM HIM, HAS BEEN MADE BY HIM, AND HAS TO RETURN TO HIM.”(Romans 12:36)” The Purpose Driven Life – Rick Warren/ BIBRIARASAL PINOY (“BETHEL”) Motto: Less than the least of God’s mercies.” (Gen. 32:10); Less for Self More for Others. Bendy P. Martinez: BIBLIARASAL PINOY; a servant of God and friend of the Lord Jesus Christ
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 02:39:11 +0000