Bible Study: 1st John 2, 3 to 11. Luke 2, 22 to 35.
All over the world, we have this culture of “take-away” after every
party or get-together we attend. In fact, one can say that a party is not
complete if there is nothing to take home at the end of the day. When people
plan for parties, the first thing they think of is: “What souvenir are the
guests to take home with them?” Someone once told me of how he attended an
event and all the guests were told to go home with the very chair on which they
were sitting. In Nigeria, for instance, some even go as far as giving away phones,
ipads, laptops and other luxurious items as souvenirs.
And trust people now, we always know how to make ways where there seem
to be no way, I mean, souvenir or no souvenir, we always find something to take
home with us. Mind you, it is not as if we do not have an abundance of such
items at home, it is just that the FUN of the party is not complete without
something with which to remember it again. At times, it is funny how people
rise out nylon bags, (I mean fine coloured polythene bags) from nowhere, all of
a sudden towards the end of the event. The idea is that whatever is left
unconsumed on the table must go with the guests since the host will not be
happy to see that items he or she bought for the event are retuned. Isn’t it?
Now, having celebrated Christmas, what souvenir are we taking home with
us? What is it that we have to take out of our celebration home and into our
very lives which would not only remind us of Christmas but allow the Christmas
event to become a permanent part of our biography?
The answer lies in today’s first reading and according to John, the only
proof we have to show that we believe that Jesus was born on Christmas Day and
that we really know him is KEEPING HIS COMMANDMENTS. “Beloved, by this we may
be sure that we know Jesus Christ, if we keep his commandments…by this we may
be sure that we are in him; he who says he abides in him ought to walk in the
same way in which he walked…he who says he is in the light and hates his
brother is in the darkness still…”
What other way can we show those who did not attend the party that they
missed something? How can we let the rest of the world who do not believe that
we celebrated Christmas? If our lives do not reflect that of Christ, if people
do not see divine goodness in us, if we do not keep his commandments, we are
walking in darkness and indirectly we are showing to the world that Christ was just
a fairy tale. The souvenir that Christmas gives to us, or to put it this way, the
“toothpick” of the party is OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S COMMANDMENTS, which is another
way of saying WALKING IN THE LIGHT and living solely to LOVE GOD ABOVE ALL ELSE
AND LOVE OUR NEIGHBOURS AS OURSELVES.
We see this same OBEDIENCE in the Gospel passage when Joseph and Mary
following the custom of the time brought the child Jesus to the temple to
consecrate him to God. By this time, Joseph and Mary already knew that their child
was no ordinary creature, they knew they were carrying God. With the visit of
the Angel to Mary and the visit of the appearance of the Angel to Joseph in his
dream, both Mary and Joseph knew that this child was different and special. Yet
they brought him to the temple to do for him exactly what the law required. And
by “law” here, we are referring to the Old Testament.
How obedient are we to the precepts of the Bible? Do we sometimes feel
that we are exempted from obeying certain commandments of God because of the
position we occupy? Do we give excuses to God for not living according to his
laws?
“And his father and mother marvelled at what was said about him.” They did
not utter a word. They simply looked, smiled and pondered within them. They had
done what they were told to do and what was left was to watch and see. When we
take our Christmas souvenir home, when we live out the commandments of God, he
has many things in place for us and we would join Mary and Joseph to sing: “He
has done marvellous things for me, Almighty God, he is used to doing wonderful
things for me.”
Let us Pray:
Lord Jesus, may the celebration of Christmas not end with eating and
drinking for me, but may I take home with me, the true spirit of Christmas that
my life may reflect the light of the new born baby Jesus. Amen.
God bless you. Good Morning. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is
well with you.
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