Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Matthew 1: 1-17

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Abraham became the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. 
Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah,
whose mother was Tamar. 
Perez became the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram the father of Amminadab. 
Amminadab became the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon the father of Boaz,
whose mother was Rahab. 
Boaz became the father of Obed,
whose mother was Ruth. 
Obed became the father of Jesse,
Jesse the father of David the king.

David became the father of Solomon,
whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. 
Solomon became the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asaph. 
Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Uzziah. 
Uzziah became the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. 
Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amos,
Amos the father of Josiah.
Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers
at the time of the Babylonian exile.

After the Babylonian exile,
Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. 
Abiud became the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor the father of Zadok. 
Zadok became the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud the father of Eleazar. 
Eleazar became the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. 
Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.

Thus the total number of generations
from Abraham to David
is fourteen generations;
from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations;
from the Babylonian exile to the Christ,
fourteen generations.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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There are some pretty scandalous characters mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus – everyone from fools, liars, and con artists, to adulterers, murderers, and prostitutes!

After listing 42 generations from our own family tree, we might find a bad apple or two, as well. 

But this is Jesus’ family tree, not ours.

It would seem God would’ve chosen only men and women of honor – not sinners – to prepare the way for his Son.

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But he didn’t.

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And herein lies a lesson for us.

People often lead messy lives. We make mistakes. We write pages we wish we could erase, just like some of those listed in Jesus’ family tree. 

Though imperfect, God still used them to prepare the way for his Son’s first coming.

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Similarly, God can use anyone to prepare the way for his Son’s second coming.

We don’t have to be perfect to be instruments of God’s grace. We only need to be willing. 

As we reach the end of this season of Advent, how have we been instruments of God’s grace? How might we continue to be today?

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Do some small gesture of love, and you will prepare the way for Christ. 

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Image credits: (1) tektonministries.org (2) Plain Truth Ministries (3) Assumption Church DC

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Gospel: Luke 7: 18-23

At that time,
John summoned two of his disciples and sent them to the Lord to ask,
“Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” 
When the men came to the Lord, they said,
“John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask,
‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?’”
At that time Jesus cured many of their diseases, sufferings, and evil spirits;
he also granted sight to many who were blind. 
And Jesus said to them in reply,
“Go and tell John what you have seen and heard:
the blind regain their sight,
the lame walk,
lepers are cleansed,
the deaf hear, the dead are raised,
the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. 
And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Words have power. 

They can build people up or tear them down.

Both John the Baptist and King Herod remind us of that.

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In today’s Gospel, for example, John the Baptist is locked inside a prison cell deep inside King Herod’s palace, which is why he sends his friends to Jesus.

John told King Herod that his marriage was unlawful. Now he’s paying the price for his words.

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Within a matter of days, King Herod will do the same.

While drunk at a party, Herod will make a foolish promise to a young girl. “Ask of me anything you want and it’s yours.” 

To his surprise, the girl will ask for the head of John the Baptist, causing Herod to spill innocent blood.

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Two men whose lives were changed because of their words.

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Like Herod and John, our words matter. We speak, write, and text thousands of them every day, and they can either hurt or inspire.

If we were to read a transcript of every word we’ll speak by the end of the day, what might it say? Would we speak each of those words again?

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“From the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks,” Jesus says. 

May every word we say build others up, never tearing them down.

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Image credits: (1) Transformative Conversations Consulting (2) National Catholic Reporter (3) Catholic365.com

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Gospel: Mt. 21: 23-27

When Jesus had come into the temple area,
the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him
as he was teaching and said,
“By what authority are you doing these things? 
And who gave you this authority?” 
Jesus said to them in reply,
“I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me,
then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things. 
Where was John’s baptism from?
Was it of heavenly or of human origin?” 
They discussed this among themselves and said,
“If we say ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say to us,
‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 
But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we fear the crowd,
for they all regard John as a prophet.” 
So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.” 
He himself said to them,
“Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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There’s often tension between God’s timing and our timing. While we want things now, sometimes God makes us wait.

Even Jesus had to wait.

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For example, in today’s Gospel the religious authorities are pressuring him to answer, “By whose authority are you doing these things?”

Jesus has been turning over tables in the temple area and telling his followers, “Blessed are you when they persecute you because of me.”

Understandably, the authorities want to know, “Who are you to say and do these things?”

While Jesus may have wanted to reveal his identity as the Son of God, he knew that once he did, the authorities would charge him with blasphemy, an offense punishable by death.

Now is not the time for him to speak. There are other things that his Father wants him to accomplish in his public ministry before being handed over. 

So, Jesus must wait.

He buys time by answering their question with a question of his own.

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So, what does this mean for us?

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There are times when we want God to act. We ask the Lord to remove a grudge, to uproot a habit from our lives, to bring our children back to church, to answer a lingering prayer.

But sometimes we must wait. Our timing isn’t God’s timing.

May the Lord give us the faith and patience we need to trust in his Providential care.

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Image credits: (1) #morningmemo (2) Christ Among the Doctor’s, Paolo Veronese (3) Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope