Today at Holy Mass in the Gospel of St Matthew Jesus tells us something that is rather shocking……"I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven”…As we all know, Jesus was constantly addressing the hypocrisy of the Pharisees but here he seems to be complimenting them……..Interesting……The Pharisees took the law seriously and for the most part, lived good lives…Their problem was, the law became a idol in and of itself…In essence, the law replaced God…..What Jesus is telling us here is, we are not to disregard to commands of God, they are to be used as a tool to lead is to God and keep us safe…….And Jesus goes on to say, we must respond to the commands of God, even the “little things” that many seem insignificant…."You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, Raqa, will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift”…….But how do we follow Jesus and the laws of God to the degree we are asked to today in the Gospel?…Seems impossible right?……Well, if we do not cooperate with God’s grace - It is impossible…But with God all things are possible!…..A good priest told me many years ago…”Joe - We do not just float into heaven”….We must allow God to transform us….And that takes time…..Everything we do and everything we are as Catholics comes down to GRACE!….But if we do not avail ourselves to the grace, we will fail…..The “cup of our life” must be “emptied” in order for God to fill it….This is our task - “To empty the cup”…….God will take care of the rest.
“Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed, says the LORD, And make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit”
The famous American President Abraham Lincoln had a saying….."Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe”…..This statement applies directly to our interior life….Most Catholics do the exact opposite of what Lincoln is telling us…They do not spend enough time “sharpening the axe” before they attempt to “chop down the tree”…..What do I mean by that?….They do not prioritize their interior life and attempt to do God’s work before they are ready….A huge mistake…We can not give what we do not have…..Everything we do comes from our interior life…..A Catholic that prays daily, fast weekly, and lives a Sacramental life is prepared to successfully complete whatever task the Lord gives to them…And it is the Lord that chooses the task….However, when we rely upon ourself, when we choose the task and when we attempt to accomplish this self appointed task, odds on we will fail……In the Gospel today - Jesus is telling us that we must follow the commands of God very careful, as did the Pharisees…Far too many Catholics disregard this very direct request from Christ….And the only way we are able to accomplish this “ask” from Jesus is to live in the state of grace……St Paul reminds us….”Where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more”….There is nothing we cannot over come, no temptation we cannot resist and no bad habit we cannot defeat if we radically surrender our will to God and allow his grace to animate our soul…..Again, the mistake made by far too many, they attempt to do this on their own…And that is why they fail.
“Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD; LORD, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to my voice in supplication”
Today Jesus in St Matthew’s Gospel tells us we can not disregard to commands of God….I have heard this time and time again - Especially from our Protestant brothers and sisters - “God freed us from the law”…That is incorrect!….Jesus tells us rather clearly…..“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place”…….And once again today at Mass, Jesus “doubles down”…."I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven”…..These directives by Christ implies we must be completely transformed - That the road to heaven is a road of sanctification, which requires us to cooperate with God’s grace……This concept is completely missed by the vast majority of the Christian world, even many Catholics miss it - Falsely thinking that we just “float into heaven” - Because “I’m a good guy”…….What Jesus tells us today should not discourage us - In fact it should motivate us…..There is nothing that God and his Church asks of us that cannot be done - However, we cannot do it without God’s grace!……This is why Jesus gave us a Church, the Catholic Church, where we can receive the Sacraments…..This is why Jesus gave us his Mother…And if we utilize these “gifts” given to us - We surely will do what is asked of us, no matter what vocation we have been called too and in doing so, we shall be transformed - And as a result of our transformation, we as Catholics will transform the world!…....”So be perfect as your heaven father is perfect”…Sounds impossible right?!? - Well it is - If we attempt to be “perfect” without God’s grace - But with God all things are possible...................God makes saints out of sinners……JMJ
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