28. Mt. 5: 43-48

Mt. 5: 43-48: The antitheses of the Sermon on the Mount reach their climax in the last one dealing with the scope of our love. “You must be perfect”(v.48) which means  that God loves his people with a mind of universality and single-mindedness. God loves all of us and each one of us totally. 

27. Lk. 21: 29-36

Lk. 21: 29-36: During winter the figs shed their leaves and anyone will feel it is dead. So is the church which comes to life due to the grace of God from its death like winter (Joel2:22). The kingdom of God is life, fruitfulness of the church in her activities and mission.

26. Mk. 12: 28-34

Mk. 12: 28-34: Although the question is about the first commandment, Jesus adds to it a second: Deut. 6:4-5 and Lev. 19:18. In effect he makes of the two precepts one dual commandment. For him, love of God is to be expressed in the love of human beings.

25. Mt. 20: 17-28

Mt. 20: 17-28: Jesus paid in full as a ransom for us. There is the absolute truth that without Jesus and his life of service and his death of love, we would never have found our way back to the love of God. Jesus gives everything to bring man back to God. And we must walk in the steps of Him who loved to the uttermost.

24. Mt. 11: 16-19

Mt. 11: 16-19: We are asked not to judge people and institutions by our own prejudices’ and perversity. If we are to thank them for bringing people nearer to God, by their methods that often may not fit into ours, we have to do so as a Christian, who must be always crystal-clear in judgments. 

23. Mk. 11: 27-33

Mk. 11: 27-33: The counter question about John the Baptist by Jesus made the religious authorities (who cooked up charges of blasphemy against Jesus) got themselves trapped. The ingenuity and scheming of the human agents of the anti-kingdom serve only to highlight the divine origin of Jesus and his authority. The programme of his kingdom cannot be defeated. 

22. Mt. 5: 33-37

Mt. 5: 33-37: Jesus condemns the use of oaths and religious language for self-centered, manipulative and evasive purposes which are hollow and empty in its results. If we are to become a new creation, the change envisaged will reflect in our conversations, cloth, home and use of our leisure times.

21. Mt. 9: 1-8

Mt. 9: 1-8: V.8 indicates the sacrament of reconciliation in which people “praised God for giving such power to men” It was for this reason that Jesus is accused (Mt. 26:65) The teachers of the law saw in Jesus as an ordinary man (“This man is blaspheming”) The crowd saw in this man God Himself. “The priest is the sign and the instrument of God’s merciful love for the sinner” (v.6 & Jn 5:27 & ccc 1465).

20. Mt. 7: 7-12

Mt. 7: 7-12: God answers our prayers in His way, in His wisdom and in love. We are asked to bring to God an undiscouraged life, of prayer which often tests the rightness of the things we pray for and our sincerity for asking them. In that way we learn to treat others with love and concern for them.

19. Mk. 7: 14-23

Mk. 7: 14-23: Cleanness and uncleanness are affairs of the soul and not of the body. If a person has hate in his heart, a thousand papal blessings will be powerless to help him. If a person is filled with the loves of Jesus, a million curses and spells will be harmless. Nothing can separate us from the love of the Lord.

18. Mt. 7: 21-27

Mt. 7: 21-27: Jesus points out that a prophet’s spiritual pyrotechnics (exorcisms, miracles, charismatic experiences) do not by themselves guarantee the fullness of spiritual life and it comes exclusively from the personal union with God. It comes from the solid base of internal transformation in how we think and act, guided by his teaching.

17. Mt. 6: 9-15

Mt. 6: 9-15: The Lord’s Prayer offers us as a model prayer as what a prayer should be like. It spans the whole human existence. It points to the right priorities that we orient first to God and then teaches us to pray for all our needs – economic (bread), social (forgiveness) and religious (fidelity to God).

16. Mt. 7: 1-6

Mt. 7: 1-6: We are forbidden to condemn people because good or evil is a matter not of external behavior but of the intention of the heart which only God can see (Mt. 5: 21-48) and since all of us are sinners, none of us has the right to condemn, for it makes us unease with ourselves. We discuss the teachings of Jesus among those who can understand the subtlety of what is being expressed.

15. Mt. 6: 25-34

Mt. 6: 25-34: A Christian is the one who trust in God and setting all his hearts on the kingdom of God and His justice. If we truly commit ourselves to God’s cause, all the rest that we need for our happiness will be given to us. 

14. Mt. 6: 5-8

Mt. 6: 5-8: Prayer is not merely reciting formulas but entering into a relationship with God. It is not the quantity of words we utter but the attitude of faith and love we develop. To pray is not to talk a lot, but to surrender our lives into God’s loving hands. 

13. Mt. 5: 38-42

Mt. 5: 38-42: Against the backdrop of the Old Testament saying (Leviticus 24:19: Exodus 21:22 ‘tooth for tooth’), Jesus gives the new rule not simply to avoid retaliation but to forgive. Forgiveness is the only way to interrupt the endless and destructive recycling of hatred and revenge.

12. Mt. 5: 17-26

Mt. 5: 17-26: Jesus is proposing a new spirituality of love which fulfils the teachings of the Old Testament and the prophets. His teachings never intend to reform or improve but offer us a new way of life which will do all that the law intends to do in a far superior way. Love for Jesus has the absolute value to which all else is subordinate. 

11. Mt. 4: 1-11

Mt. 4: 1-11: Filled and guided by the spirit is what one feels in prayer life. Not by giving bread but by giving the ‘word’ that he is going to prove himself to be the Son of God. Not by testing God but by trusting in God that one must reach God. To obey God till death and to give himself as expiation for sin is his way – the cross. Divine Sonship is not for compromising to the world but is a way of service to save the world.

10. Mt. 23: 1-12

Mt. 23: 1-12: The message of Jesus’ word is not to be followed in life with fanfare. It is not the title or position that marks out the true believers and followers of Jesus. It is the attitude of heart that makes us children of God in the deepest and most enduring sense. What we should have is to have openness to God’s word which make truly brothers and sisters in the world.

9. Mt. 25: 31-40

1  Mt. 25: 31-40: The purpose of the passage is to tell us what we must do in order to be saved. The passage is as much a parable of separation (the sheep and the goats) like the wheat and the weeds in 13: 24-30 or the net and the fish in 13: 47-50. It is also a description of judgment.

8. Mk. 9: 33-37

Mk. 9: 33-37: A disciple is to serve the powerless and the needy, just like a ‘child’ who is not acknowledged or had no rights at that times. The ‘children’ are to be welcomed who are in need and helpless. By this one will ultimately welcomes God in his or her life.  

7. Mt. 12: 15b-21

Mt. 12: 15b-21:       By quoting Isaiah 42: 1-4 Mathew pictures Jesus as the servant of God, who filled with holy spirit, worked silently with the oppressed, weak, wounded and the poor who believed in Jesus. Thereby he fulfilled the law. The gentiles believed in Him while the Jews rejected Him. This is a prophecy of Hope. 

6. Mk. 3: 7-12

1.       Mk. 3: 7-12: Mark mention the seven geographical areas from which crowds came and followed Jesus. The universal aspect of Jesus’ mission is indicated. From the backdrop of these crowds Jesus calls the 12 disciples again Jesus’ ministry is universal in nature. The crowds are poor and from every walk of life and Jesus heal them from their maladies – now the same mission followed by the universal church.

5. Jn. 5: 41-47

1  Jn. 5: 41-47: To recognize the true messengers of God we must be people who do not look for praise from one another and shod not be enslaved by false values. Jesus wants everybody to honour the son just as his Father does. By believing in His Son, we show ourselves worthy of his trust and thereby become children of God and being open to his life. 

4. Jn. 3: 14-21

Jn. 3: 14-21: Jesus reveals what will happen to him referring Numbers 21 from the Old Testament. Incarnation and crucifixion are God’s plan to save humanity and leads them in the way to eternal life. 

3. Lk 11: 14-23

Lk 11: 14-23: The cosmic dimension of that ultimate battle took local form in the ministry of Jesus. Jesus is accused of destroying the kingdom of God! So he experiences another form of poverty – misunderstanding, misinterpretation and his words or intentions distorted. In this controversy Jesus stresses the importance of unity. Division leads to failure and destruction. So Jesus, who establishes unity and destroy the failure of everyone who has faith in Him. 

2. Lk. 2: 22-38

Lk. 2: 22-38: Simeon foretells the rejection of Jesus by his own people. So salvation is extended to all in the world. St.  Luke ascribes new motifs concerning new identity and mission of Jesus. 

1. Jn. 1: 35-42

Jn. 1: 35-42: Jesus asked the first disciples ‘what are you looking for?” – wealth, fame or power? All these will perish. If one wants the imperishable and everlasting happiness, one should desire to submit oneself fully to Jesus, who can give this to him. As they stayed with Jesus, they progressed in the knowledge of Jesus.