Thursday of the Second Week of Easter,
April 27, 2017
1st Reading: Acts of the Apostles 5:27-33.
When the court officers had brought the Apostles in and made them stand before the Sanhedrin, the high priest questioned them, “We gave you strict orders (did we not?) to stop teaching in that name. Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and want to bring this man’s blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles said in reply, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our ancestors raised Jesus, though you had him killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as leader and savior to grant Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins. We are witnesses of these things, as is the holy Spirit that God has given to those who obey him.” When they heard this, they became infuriated and wanted to put them to death. The word of the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm: 34(33):2.9.17-18.19-20
R/. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
Gospel: John 3:31-36.
The one who comes from above is above all. The one who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things. But the one who comes from heaven is above all. He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. Whoever does accept his testimony certifies that God is trustworthy. For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. He does not ration his gift of the Spirit. The Father loves the Son and has given everything over to him. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him. The gospel of the Lord.
THURSDAY REFLECTIONS:
At wartime, when soldiers have a scarce amount of food, they have to ration it. They only eat small measured portions each day so that the food will last as long as possible. If they do not, they may run out and starve. What if this were the case with God and His grace? What if the Holy Spirit were to say to us, “Now I’m only going to help you to a limited degree. Once you use up the grace I’m offering you, you’re on your own.” Ouch! That would be problematic. Of course the good news is that God acts in the completely opposite way with us. He commits to a full outpouring of the Holy Spirit and offers all the grace we could ever need or want. The problem is that we often “ration” His grace anyway.
We don’t do this because we believe God is limited. Rather, we often do it because we are afraid to let God unleash His almighty power in our lives. Reflect, today, upon what our lives would look like if we let God do whatever He wanted with us. What would change? How would our daily life, our relationships, our words, our actions and our future be different? Intellectually speaking, we know it’s right to fully embrace the will of God in all things. But when it actually comes to doing it, there is often much hesitancy. It may be fear of the unknown. Or it may be that we do not fully want to change. Whatever the case may be, God is offering us an unlimited amount of grace by the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Pray with me: Lord, I do want to let You do whatever You want in my life. I want to be fully immersed in Your grace. Help me to say “Yes” to You no matter what that leads to and help me to trust in this glorious “Yes” You are calling me to make. Jesus, I trust in You that You alone will heal our sick brethren and set them free. May the souls of our faithful departed brethren rest in perfect peace, amen.
Sourced by Wiezman Eleanya