Readings:
Romans 1:16-25
Psalm 19:2-5
Luke 11:37-41
It is not enough to say “I love you” to someone. Your actions must match your words. For love to be genuine, those involved must respect and appreciate each other and avoid anything that jeopardizes the happiness of the other. The result of this is a life-long relationship of mutual respect and responsibility—free from selfishness and pretence.
In the letter to the Romans, Saint Paul mentions that our relationship with God places a responsibility on us to be vocal and unashamed of the teachings of Christ. God is not interested in “secret love”. He wants you to flaunt your relationship with Him to others and so receive His special blessings. This is because often when we are quiet about our relationships, we are promoting something or someone else (even silence is a form of endorsement). And those who promote what is evil shall be visited by the evil results of their actions.
Jesus goes to the heart of the issue, in the Gospel, and calls a Pharisee “Fool”. Why? Because of his hypocrisy. He invited Jesus to his house for a dinner under the guise that he recognizes Jesus to be a teacher. But he soon revealed his true intention by pointing out that Jesus did not perform the ritual cleansing before eating. And to this Jesus said, “Oh, you Pharisees! You clean the outside of cup and plate, while inside yourselves you are filled with extortion and wickedness. Fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside too?” Jesus reveals here that no good action is possible when the heart is filled with selfishness and malice. His strong words is not a condemnation of our person but a firm rebuke of our sinful tendencies which we ought to turn away from.
Today, take the following steps to purify your relationship with God:
Focus on what is in your heart – Are you blooming with love for God and others or are you filled with selfishness?
Do what is right not because it is commanded but because you know it is good.
Beware of the sins which cry to heaven for vengeance (murder in any form, homosexuality, oppression of the poor and defrauding others of a just wage). Do not promote any of this either in words or action.
Nurture a habit of prayer by which you ask God to transform your heart and receive the strength to change.
Practice humility – it opens your eyes to see the truth of who you are.
Do not promote anything that is inimical or poisonous to the faith, so that you do not lose integrity as a Christian and receive a curse.
Ask the Lord to grant you the courage to love and honour God in the face of tribulations.
JUDE-MARY OWOH
Prayer:
Praise ye the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments.
Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, who but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy and for thy truth’s sake.
Lord JESUS, thank You for my faith. I am not ashamed to claim You as my Lord.
Dear Lord Jesus Christ, I love you. Give me the grace and humility to be open to Your firm rebukes of love.
Help me to sincerely see the ways in which I need to change my life so that Your grace will transform my heart, flowing over into my actions. Help me to love You more. Lord Jesus, I trust in You.
Father, visit Christian marriages with your love, mercy and reconciliation; let there be deep, great and mighty deliverance, in Jesus' name.
Father, grant unto our children, youths, and young adults the boldness and courage to say No! to evil practices, in the midst of fierce peer pressure, and opposition, in Jesus' name.
Father, in Your mercy and love, unite the body of Christ to boldly preach the Gospel of truth in the harmony of purpose, in Jesus' name.
Lord, intervene in the war-torn nations of the world, heal wounds, and comfort the sorrowful, in Jesus' name.
Father, use the situations of nations of the world to populate Your kingdom, to the glory of Your name, in Jesus' name.