Bible
Study: 1st John 2, 3 to 11 and Luke 2, 22 to 25.
When the
Angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would be a mother, recall that the
question Mary asked was “How can this happen since I do not know man?” There
are certain kinds of knowledge that we don’t get by reading books. Mary knew
Joseph’s name but she still did not know him. If she had, she wouldn’t have
remained a virgin. Knowledge is not a matter of intellectual activity.
Knowledge transforms. Knowledge changes a person.
One can
acquire a Ph.D in the study of God yet all he succeed in getting is mere
intellectual proficiency. To claim you know God, there must be an encounter and
the fruit of such an encounter must show in the kind of life you live. In
today’s first reading, St. John tells us precisely what it means to know God
which is: KEEPING HIS COMMANDMENTS.
One who
claims to know God and yet disobeys God’s commandments is a LIAR deceiving
himself. You may know so much about God but if you are not keeping his
commandments, then it means that you are still locked up in darkness. If you
find it difficult to keep God’s commandments and consider it a struggle to obey
them, then it means God has not yet had an impact in your life. To know God is
to walk in the light. To know God is to do the right thing regardless of who is
watching. To know God is to serve him wholeheartedly keeping his commandments
out of pure love for him not out of fear of punishment or desire to appear holy
before others.
The
summary of the entire commandments is to Love God above all else and to love
one’s neighbour as oneself. Hence, if you harbour hatred for your neighbour in
your heart, it is a clear sign that you do not know God. “Whoever says he is in
the light, yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his
brother remains in the light, and there is nothing in him to cause a fall.
Whoever hates his brother is in darkness; he walks in darkness and does not
know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”
Simeon
simply saw the baby Jesus yet knew immediately that this child was God. Simeon
did not see Jesus work any miracle, yet he had more faith than those who saw
Jesus perform countless miracles. To know God is to be in the spirit. When you
reach that point where the Holy Spirit speaks in your heart like Simeon, then
you can claim to know God.
Let us pray:
Lord Jesus Christ, open my hearts to that deep encounter with God that I may be
changed forever. Amen
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you and Merry Christmas
Fr. Abu.
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