A New Year, A New Name And A Fresh Start.

Homily for January 1, 2018

Our first reading this morning contains powerful blessings. And I pray for you this morning that these blessings will surround you, uplift you and catapult you to a higher level in Jesus Name. Amen. They say the beginning shows the end, the morning shows the day, it is how you lay your bed that you lie on it. You have started well already this year by honouring God in coming to begin your New Year in the house of God. In fact, I consider that this year which begins with a Sunday is a special year.

Just yesterday I read about a popular man who made fifty prophecies about the year 2017. He said so many things would happen and I guess this pattern would be followed by others who love to gain popularity among their followers. Please do not go after any man or woman who wants to tell you how tomorrow will be. Everything about the future has already been revealed by God and it is contained in the Bible. You do not need me to tell you anything different from what God himself has already said and if I must prophesy there is only one thing I would say: Just as you saw the end of 2017, you shall see the end of 2018 and everything it brings, the world itself is coming to an end and no one knows when. Are you prepared?

As much we are desire to receive blessing from God this new day, as much we like to hear prophecies of good tidings to kick us off in a happy and joyful mood, as much as we all desire to have a refill of hope and enthusiasm on this day, let us remember that with God, there is always a time for everything. Our second reading today tells us: “When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law.” Galatians 4, 4 to 5. Jesus Christ could not have been born a year earlier or later. There was a specific time under the calendar of God. There is a time for your blessing. There is a set time for your breakthrough. Keep looking up to God. Keep trusting him. Keep being steadfast in your prayer.

Lazarus was already dead four days yet Jesus did not arrive late. The widow of Nain attended the funeral procession of her only son yet it was not too late for Jesus to wake him up. Jairus daughter was sick and by the time he brought Jesus home, he met flute players singing funeral hymns, they asked him not to bother Jesus yet Jesus proved to them that he did not arrive late. He said “Talita cumi” Dear friends, your time is your time. I don’t want you to have any false hope instead I want you to deepen your trust in God because when he wants to act, no one can stop him.

Exactly eight days ago, we celebrated the birthday of Jesus Christ. Although many argue that Jesus was not born exactly on the 25^th of December, the point is that is the day we choose to use for his birthday and anyone who disagrees is free to pick another day for himself or herself so long as the birth of Jesus is celebrated. So, following the tradition and custom of the land, on this day, the newly born baby was given the name, Jesus. As Luke tells us, this was the name given by the Angel before he was conceived in the womb.

Names are not mere means of identity. Names carry a lot of meaning and a name can define the future of a person. The Name Jesus means “Saviour.” In the course of his life, Jesus did exactly what that name meant. He saved the world and even today, he continues his ministry of salvation. 2018 is like a new born baby. It is the name you call it that it will answer. Give this New Year a name and you will be surprised how 2018 will fulfil every single detail of the name you have given to it. Today is not a day to complain at all. Please speak blessing over your 2018. Say everything good and positive about this year. It will listen, it will obey.

On this day that the baby Jesus is named, one happy woman is Mary. Have you ever seen a woman after delivery? Do you know how happy she is? She has just faced the life or death process of giving birth. To eventually carry her baby is her greatest joy. Even the bible acknowledges that the presence of a baby makes a woman forget the pains of nine month pregnancy. In other words, today is a Mary’s day. No wonder on this day, we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God.

In today’s Gospel passage, we are told “She treasured all these things in her heart.” As we begin a New Year, we ought to emulate the outstanding disposition of Mary. She was told she had a great responsibility to carry and she did not complain, she was waiting for it. All she said was “I am the handmaid of God, let it be done according to God’s will.” Mary accepted the plan of God in her life, she took in the highs and the lows, she was ready for the joys as well as the pains involved. She never gave up but continued to look forward gallantly in hope to that day of her reward when all generations would actually start calling her blessed.

Mary is so outstanding today because she knew her role in God’s plan and was willing to obey every detail, every command to the letter. When the Child was born, she gave the very name “Jesus” in obedience to the Angel’s instruction. She knew that through her, God was about to fulfil his promise.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, thank you for the gift of a new year. Amen

Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you and Happy New Year. Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. Bible Study: Numbers 6, 22 to 27. Galatians 4, 4 to 7 and Luke 2, 16 to 21.)

Making our Families Holy like that of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

Homily for December 31, 2017.

“And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favour of God was upon him.” Luke 2:40. 

Our celebration of this feast draws our attention to the fact that Jesus wasn’t simply born a child, he was born into a human family. As far as human life is concerned, the family plays an indispensable role so much so that from the very beginning of human life on earth, God himself observed that it is not good for man to be alone.

That is to say, we humans are relational creatures; we were not built to live by ourselves; there is something in us that constantly longs for the company of others. We realize our full potentials only within the context of a family structure; we cannot do without the family.

God himself in whose image and likeness we are made is Family. In one God, there are three persons; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Again in bringing his only Son, Jesus to the world, God had the option of dropping Jesus to us straight from the skies, God could have made Jesus suddenly appear in our midst without a father or mother, without a family but God went out of his way to ensure that Jesus was born into a human family.

Even when Joseph having heard that Mary was pregnant and was planning to divorce her quietly, God sent an Angel to him to instruct him to proceed with the marriage. Mary would have raised Jesus as a single Mother, after all, Joseph did not even contribute in the process (conjugal union) but God insisted that Jesus must have a father and mother and grow up within the circle of a human family. In this way, God shows us his own respect for the indispensable role of the family.

The fact that Jesus was raised in a family not only points to his true humanity, it also highlights the fact that when a family functions properly, it becomes a breeding ground for the best of the best. Except if we agree that Jesus was not truly human, we cannot remove the fact that Joseph and Mary trained him, taught him, spanked him at times; yes, they must have disciplined Jesus; they actually moulded him for solid thirty years quietly before Jesus came out publicly to begin his ministry.

We may want to ask ourselves today: How strong is my family? Is it still a breeding ground for the best of the best? Am I still committed as a parent or a child to showing good example? Or have I given up on my family?

Our Gospel passage today tells us of how Jesus was dedicated in the temple with a pair of turtledoves and two young pigeons and how Simeon and Anna prophesied about the child. It rounds off by saying that Mary and Joseph took the child home to Nazareth and “the child grew and became strong; filled with wisdom…” This was another way of telling us that Mary and Joseph took Jesus home to feed him, to train him, to teach him and nurture him. It must have been challenging for them because Jesus matured in age just like every other child yet Mary and Joseph took him as their own child.

Dear friends, maintaining a family is not easy; living with people under the same roof (people you have come to know their weaknesses and limitations), requires a lot of sacrifices. Do not be deceived, there is no perfect family out there. There is no family that does not have its own unique challenge(s) or its own set of problems.

At times, we get into the thinking that it is better for us to just quit the family and live entirely on our own but the truth is that no matter how bad the family may be, it remains the best place for our human survival. There is no place like home – there is no place like family. If God himself preferred the human family, who are we to try to push the family aside?

Like I have just noted, there is no family without its unique challenges and difficulties. In our first reading this morning, we see that Abraham’s Family was childless. Childlessness is a big issue in families (especially for us Africans). But you see, Abraham took his challenge to God directly, he did not go consulting native doctors, and he continued to love his wife Sarah; Abraham was faithful to God and he believed that God would keep his promise of granting him a child even at old age.

I encourage young couples who are yet to have children; continue to love each other. Let not your childlessness become a source of marital discord; do not envy your mates who are married with kids – they too have their own challenges that you are not aware of. Continue trusting in God, practice kindness and hospitality to everyone. And when you pray, remember Abraham and Sarah, Elkannah and Hannah, Zechariah and Elizabeth, Blessed Virgin Mary, remind yourself that you are praying to a God for whom nothing is impossible. Children are not products of human efforts; they are gifts from God. And to in-laws, uncles and aunties, do not make life difficult for couples because of childlessness. God alone knows why he delays children at times.

Finally, our second reading tells us that Abraham always obedient to God, he willingly left his father’s house when God asked him to, he was willing to sacrifice his only son Isaac trusting that God had the power to give him more children thereby passing the test. How obedient am I to God? As a family, do we listen to God’s voice daily so as to walk in his light? Do we still observe family times in our homes or are we living like strangers under the same roof? Have we allowed our phones divide us such that everyone is now living in his or her own world?

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, renew my family in your grace and power. Amen.

Happy Sunday. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Feast of the Holy Family. Year B. Bible Study: Genesis 15:1-6.21:1-3, Hebrew 11:8-19 and Luke 2:22-40).

Do not Love the World because You Were Made for Something More.

Homily for December 30, 2017.

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father but is of the world.” 1 John 2:15-16. 

If you recall, a few days ago we celebrated the feast of John the Apostle and we rightly observed that he was often referred to as the one who Jesus loved. John knew what it meant to love God and his very life is a practical example of this.

For John to have loved God so deeply, it is clear that he also knew the futility of loving the world and the things of the world. In fact, John summed up everything this world could offer in three boxes:

1. The Lust of the Flesh.
2. The Lust of the Eyes.
3. The Pride of Life.

According to Pope Francis in his message for Lent last year, these three things correspond perfectly to the three temptations of Jesus. First Satan told him to turn stones to bread (lust of the flesh), then Satan told Jesus to bow to him so he could have all the riches and kingdoms of the world (lust of the eyes) and finally that Jesus should throw himself down from the pinnacle of the temple that people may see it and worship him (pride of life).

Even Abraham Maslow would agree that these three things correspond to the needs of every person. They are just what we want in life; bodily satisfaction, (food, comfort, pleasure), riches, (abundant wealth, security) and respect (worship from fellow humans, praises and honour).

The fact remains that as much as these things tend to deliver some form of happiness, they also bring about the highest degree of pain. This is because of the principle of change in created things. The person you once saw as your source joy suddenly becomes a monster, the car you daydreamed about for years before buying now becomes your worst nightmare. In fact, I may go on and on but the point is this: the world does not deserve our love. We are made for more!

Just look around you, consider everything you have in this world, do you know that none of these things would still be there in just a few years (or even days) from now? There is going to be wear and tear, things would break down, they would not look good again, even your face will grow wrinkles, your health would soon begin to deteriorate, just face it, one day you will die and none of these things will go with you. How can we who were created to last forever stoop so low as to love things that don’t last forever?

Dear friends, just as Jesus resisted the three temptations in the wilderness, we must constantly resist the temptation of loving the world and what it contains. We must never get attached to worldly things, they come and go but God alone remains.

There is an inner peace we suddenly acquire when we no longer allow the things of this world determine our joy. We become carefree, we find it easier to give things away, we become more forgiving of others, we become lighter and freer to serve God and keep his commandments; our numerous worries disappear; we are no longer controlled by cravings and desires for worldly achievements and material riches. In fact, the freer we become, the easier it becomes to eliminate sin from our lives.

See how Anna, the prophetess. We are told that Anna spent her entire life in the temple serving God night and day. Didn’t she have anything else to do? Wasn’t she supposed to be pursuing a career? Anna did not need all these because she had found God; she had found Love. She never saw her time in God’s house as wasted because it really gave her Joy to just be there and as we see today, she joined her voice with Simeon in acknowledging the baby Jesus.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, may my love for you be greater than this world and all it contains. Amen.

Merry Christmas. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Sixth Day of Christmas. Bible Study: 1^st John 2:12-17 and Luke 2:36-40).

Knowing God.

Homily for December 29, 2017.

“Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.” Luke 2:34-35. 

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.

It is one thing to acquire knowledge about God but a different thing altogether to really know God. Knowing about God may earn you a Ph.D but knowing God translates directly to living a holy life. There are so many Christians in our world today who know so much about God, our streets are littered with churches but as Jesus would say, by their fruits we shall know them.

To help us understand what it means to know God, let’s take our minds to the scene of the annunciation. When the Angel told Mary she would have a child, she said, “How can this be since I do not know man.” To know God is to be in a relationship with God and one cannot be in a relationship with God without it reflecting in his or her life.

Unless I am keeping God’s commandments, I cannot say I know God. In short, as long as hatred lurks in my heart, I cannot claim knowledge of God. John tells us, “Whoever says he is in the light, yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness. … 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.”

Hatred blinds our eyes. It not only shuts people out of our lives, it also pushes us away from God who is Love.

In our Gospel passage today, Jesus is brought to the temple in accordance with the traditions of the Jews. Just at that moment, there was a man called Simeon whose closeness to God was so outstanding that God promised him that he would see the face of the Messiah before his death.

Simeon is a shining example of what it means to know God; to be a relationship with God. As soon as he saw the child, he knew immediately that this was the child spoken about by the prophets; the expected Messiah. I don’t think anyone told him anything about this particular child, the Holy Spirit helped him identify the child Jesus. The closer we get to God by living a holy life, the more we get revelations from God.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, may my knowledge of you affect my very life. Amen.

Merry Christmas. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Fifth Day of Christmas. Bible Study: 1^st John 2:3-11 and Luke 2:22-35).

The Holy Innocents: The Bitter Side of Christmas.

Homily for December 28, 2017.

“Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem.” Matthew 2:16.

Somehow, our readings for the last two days took us away from the whole Christmas scenario far away to the stoning of Stephen and the resurrection scene but today’s readings suddenly bring us back again to the baby Jesus. But then, coming back is not so funny in that we are reminded today of much pain, tears and sorrow that followed the whole birth narrative of Jesus.

The story of the Holy Innocents not only tells us much about human nature, it also shows us that nothing happens in this life without a reason.

There is a Herod that lives in every human being; it is called “ego”, it wants to reign, to dominate, to be worshipped by all means by others, it does not believe there can or should be room for anyone else to shine, it does not accept second fiddle. The dark side about the ego is that it is always under threat and it is ever ready kill if that would help reinforce its false self-esteem.

Herod only heard that the new born baby is a king but he failed to realize that this king was not an earthly king. How often have I felt so threatened by the success of others that I have directly and indirectly sought to pull them down? How often have I sought for security in the passing things of this world? Herod felt killing those children would secure his kingdom but the question is: “Did his kingdom last forever?”

I must come to terms with the fact that the Herod in me must be tamed. I must remind myself each day that naked I came to this world and naked I shall return; that everything I consider mine today were given to me and none of them really belongs to me. This life is not a competition. We all have our own race to run! And trust me, nothing is worth the head of a fellow human being.

The second lesson we learn today is that bad things happen for a reason. Imagine yourself holding and playing with your child who is just a year and half. He or she is now learning how to crawl and talk and at times the child smiles to you. You feel so happy just being with this precious little child of yours. Then one day, soldiers just emerge out of the blues, they take you child and yank its head of in your presence.

Unthinkable. But that is exactly what our Gospel passage today relates. Put yourself in the shoes of the mothers of these children, imagine the pain you must have felt and even the anger you may have had towards God for not preventing this horrible thing from happening. Mind you, none of these mothers and fathers knew about the birth of Jesus Christ at that time, none of them had the privilege of seeing the big picture as we now see today; none of them knew there was a reason for the death of their precious little kids.

 The way and manner in which the Holy Innocents died teaches us that no matter how bad things may be, no matter our circumstances in life, it is for a reason. At times, in the midst of my pain, I find myself acting as if I am wiser than God, I find myself asking God questions and telling him what ought to have happened and what shouldn’t have happened.

However, no matter how I try, the fact remains that I don’t know better than God, I cannot give him advice, I cannot be wiser than my creator. And so, no matter the amount of pain I face, I must constantly tell myself that God is still on the throne; that God still cares about me, that God never sleeps and that everything God permits to happen is ultimately for my good.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, grant me the grace of humility and power to see beyond my circumstances in life. Amen.

Merry Christmas. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Feast of the Holy Innocents. Bible Study: 1^st John 1:5-2:2 and Matthew 2:13-18).

St. John: The One whom Jesus Loved.

Homily for December 27, 2017.

“Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved.” John 20:1-2. 

Yesterday, we celebrated the heavenly birthday of a man whose very life teaches us what it means to love as Jesus loved. Today, we are celebrating another man who was so close to Jesus that even the Gospels acknowledged that Jesus loved him more than the other disciples.

Dear friends, the very life of St. John the Apostle contains one message: that Jesus Christ actually took our human flesh; that he was really born like one of us. That a man like St. John existed who was considered to be the beloved of Jesus shows us that the birth of Jesus is not just a figment of imagination; Jesus lived a real human life – he ate human food – he had human feelings – he had friends – he loved people.

Unless we love, we cannot claim to have lived. The defining characteristic of being human is the ability to open one’s heart in love to another. Jesus was everything human and he so displayed his humanity through his friendship with his disciples and with John in particular who we may rightly call his best friend.

Was it necessary for Jesus to have had a best friend? Wasn’t he supposed to love everybody equally? Of course, our human experience already shows us that no matter how we try to love people, there would always be a special one. It wasn’t like Jesus had a choice; as a real human being, he just couldn’t help it. He must have tried to love everybody equally but among the crowd that flocked around him, there were twelve he drew closer, and among the twelve, there were three who made up the inner caucus (Peter, James and John) and even among the three, there was a special one; John.  

Even today, many scholars and even atheists are still baffled about the kind of closeness that existed between Jesus and John the Apostle. Leonardo Da Vinci in his favourite painting of the Lord’s Supper tried to portray John as a woman wearing the same pattern of dress with Jesus and leaning beside Jesus.

Recall that when Jesus revealed that someone was about to betray him, Peter beckoned on John to ask Jesus because Peter knew how close John was to Jesus. Jesus then whispered that it was the person who he shall give the morsel of bread after dipping it in wine. Lo and behold, Jesus dipped the bread and gave it to Judas Iscariot. John 13:23-26. For Jesus to have revealed this secret to John right at table, it again tells us how close Jesus was to him.

In fact, as the Gospel of John tells us, some of Jesus’ disciples assumed that John will live forever. In John 21:21-23, we read: “When Peter saw him (John), he said to Jesus, ‘Lord, what about this man?’ Jesus said to him, ‘If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? Follow me!’ The saying spread abroad among the brethren that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, ‘If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?’”

No wonder, when later on, John was writing his letters, he started by saying that this Jesus he is talking about is a Jesus he had personal contact with. In other words, Jesus is not simply a figment of imagination. John said: “that which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our hands…”

Indeed, as our Gospel passage today shows, John ran faster than Peter to the tomb when Mary Magdalene delivered the message that the body of Jesus was no longer there. The speed of John was not a matter of age or strength, it was a matter of love and devotion for a dear friend. He got there first but waited for Peter as a mark of respect before going in and reporting for himself, John said: “he saw and believed.”

Now, where does all these lead to? As part of our Christmas celebrations, the story of John the beloved draws us to open our hearts to love Jesus. And you know, the more we love Jesus, the more Jesus draws us closer and closer to himself. The more we get close to Jesus, the more we get to know many things that we did not know before and our lives become living examples to others of what loving Jesus can be.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, you have a heart capable of love, make me open my heart to you just like John did. Amen.

Merry Christmas. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Feast of St. John the Apostle. Bible Study: 1^st John 1:1-4 and John 20:2-8).

St. Stephen and the Christmas Story.

Homily for December 26, 2017.

“Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 10:21-22.

Year after year, I never cease to wonder why the feast of St. Stephen is placed side by side with Christmas. What a sharp contrast! Just hours after celebrating the birth of Jesus, here we are talking about the stoning of a man to death by his fellow “church” people – synagogue officials in the name of blasphemy.

However, our opening prayer at mass this morning justifies our celebration by showing us that just as we celebrated Christ’s birthday yesterday, today’s feast is another birthday; a birth not to earthly life but to eternal life in heaven.

It says: “Grant Lord, we pray that we may imitate what we worship, and so learn to love even our enemies, for we celebrate the heavenly birthday of a man who knew how to pray for his persecutors.”

What is so unique about St. Stephen is even while he was being stoned to death, he refused to allow bitterness and hatred becloud his mind. By the example of his death, St. Stephen imitated Jesus Christ who while on the cross prayed for his persecutors: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke 23, 34.

Christmas will not be complete if we do not remind ourselves that the birth of Jesus is not all about eating and drinking. The feast of St. Stephen coming up immediately teaches us that Christmas is actually a celebration of love. Beyond the whole fun-fair, Christmas teaches us to love (as Christ loved us) and not just our friends but even our enemies.

We may have spent time yesterday with the special persons in our lives. We have invited our close friends and family members, we have shared food, clothes, drinks and even money with our loved ones. Today, still in the spirit of Christmas, we are invited to toe the line of Stephen. Let this day be dedicated to our enemies; yes, as part of our celebration of Christ’s birth, let us now show love to those who hate us.

And I assure you that the best gift you can give your enemy today is the gift of forgiveness. Not only will forgiveness free that person from your mental prison of hatred, it also frees you from prolonged pain and unnecessary suffering.

Are there persons who have seriously wronged you in the past? Do something nice for them today. Send them a gift. Imitate God who sent his Son Jesus to die for us even while we were still God’s enemies by virtue of our sinfulness. (Cf. Romans 5:8).

In our Gospel passage today Jesus says: “Beware of men…” Does this mean we should run away from people? No. Rather, Jesus wants us to realize that people are capable of doing us much harm or better put, we should not be surprised when they treat us very badly. It is in our human nature to be wicked to one another but let us not forget that Jesus also tells in Matthew 5:44, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

Christmas is a story of how God so loved the world (his enemies). Saint Stephen made enemies for himself by showing his talent and for this, he was put to death. No matter how good we are, we cannot avoid enemies, yet like Stephen who prayed for his persecutors, we are called to love even those who hate us in the spirit of Christmas.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, teach me to imitate you just like Stephen did. Amen.

Merry Christmas. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Feast of St. Stephen. Bible Study: Acts 6:8-10 and Matthew 10:17-22).

Meeting Christ on His Birthday.

Homily for Christmas Day, December 25, 2017.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.” John 1:1-3.

Can we be celebrating someone’s birthday when the person is not there? Can the ceremony begin without the celebrant? Impossible. It is either we wait for the celebrant to arrive or we cancel the birthday party. Isn’t it?

Dear friends, until we meet Jesus, until we allow Jesus to be present in our minds, until we realize that Jesus is the reason for the season, our celebration is null and void. A lot of people celebrate Christmas without even giving a single thought to the celebrant, all they are really concerned about is how to catch fun. Such celebrations are not Christmas but Fun-mass.

So, how and where do we meet Jesus so that we can really celebrate a worthy birthday for him? This is where our readings at mass this morning come in. In the Gospel passage, John explains:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being... He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him…

But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God… And the Word became flesh and lived among us…” John 1:1-14

Today we are celebrating that Word of God, which has been born in our midst. The best Christmas treat we can ever give ourselves is to spend time with the Word, digest it and allow it to take flesh in our heart and lives.

The Bible is not an ordinary book, the words is contains as John tells us is God himself. No wonder the book of Hebrews in our second reading today tells us that the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword.

When next you hold the Bible, don’t play with it, know that you are holding Jesus himself and as you celebrate today, let the Bible be present in the midst of all the food and drinks. Your Christmas would not be complete if you do not gather with your family to share the Word of God this very day.

There is great power in the word of God. No wonder the prophet Isaiah announces in our first reading: “How beautiful are the feet of him who brings good news, (that is, good words), proclaiming peace, good tidings and salvation. We are celebrating today because Christ, the word of God took flesh and dwelt among us.

When we reflect daily on the Bible and pattern our lives according to the written words it contains, the Bible becomes flesh in our lives and we then begin to experience Jesus in a personal way.

As John proclaims, Jesus “was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God.”

Do not be surprised that many people will never read the Bible, they would even do the opposite of what the Word of God says in the name of celebrating Christmas. But for us who have heard this message, let us be the ones to make a difference. Let us be the ones to receive Him through the Word that we may have power to claim the position of Children of God.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, may your birth multiply my joy. Amen.

Merry Christmas. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Christmas Mass during the Day. Bible Study: Isaiah 52:7-10, Hebrews 1:1-6 and John 1:1-18).

God Always Favours the Humble.

Homily for December 24, 2017.

“He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:32-33.

In the course of the last one week, our readings have tactically brought out certain persons who played very indispensable roles in the story of the birth of Jesus Christ and there have been very great lessons to learn from each of these persons. We have looked at Joseph, Zechariah, Elizabeth and Mary.

Today, we are looking at one Old Testament Character without whom there might not have been Christmas at all – King David. Here is a man who so pleased God as king that God personally promised him an everlasting kingdom. “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before me, your throne shall be established forever.” 2^nd Samuel 7:16.

Does it occur to you that the coming of Jesus Christ, God made flesh is a direct fulfillment of the promise God made to one man: David? When God told David his kingdom would last forever, God already had in mind how he would send Jesus Christ to the world as a direct descendant of the house of David.

What is it about David that made him so pleasing to God? Was he a saint? Was he spotless and sinless? Not at all. However, one thing that endeared David to the heart of God was David’s humility. Despite being king of Israel, David never forgot his roots, David never forgot how he used to be an ordinary shepherd boy before God made him King of Israel. David never saw himself as some self-made man.

As we read in today’s first reading, David felt so embarrassed that the Ark of God was dwelling a tent while he was living in a house of cedar. For David, this was not right at all. How can I be living in a house of affluence while the Ark of God who made me what I am is just there in a tent? How can I be living in a house of gold while the Blessed Sacrament is out there under a canopy?

You see, if there is one characteristic that David had in common with Mary as we read in today’s Gospel passage, it is this sense of humility and lowliness. Like David, Mary never saw herself as some First Lady rather she was able to say to the Angel: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; Let it be to me according to your word.” In other words, “I am nothing before God, let God use me as he pleases.” While David opted to build a house for God, Mary agreed to become a living tabernacle for God.

Both David and Mary would become instrumental to the coming of the Messiah yet neither David nor Mary ever became proud and arrogant as a result.

Consider David, he had all the money to build the greatest temple for God, he had everything he needed and he was the commander in chief of the entire nation of Israel. Everyone obeyed him and people fell at his feet, yet, when Nathan told him what God had said regarding building the temple, David did not argue or insist in his decision. Here is a man obeyed by all of Israel, but he chooses to obey the voice of Nathan as the voice of God.

Dear friends, David today teaches us a great lesson in humility. Never forget your root. Never forget that before God, you are nothing. As James teaches us: “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6. Even St. Peter admonishes us with similar words: “Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that in due time he may exalt you.” 1 Peter 5:5-6.

The second lesson we learn from our readings today is that Building for God is a privilege. Dear friends, we should always consider ourselves lucky when we have the opportunity to invest our resources towards the growth and development of the house of God. The truth is that there is nothing we have that was not given to us by God. As the Isaiah teaches us:

“Thus says the LORD: ‘Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool; what is the house which you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest? All these things my hand has made, and so all these things are mine, says the LORD. But this is the man to whom I will look, he that is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word.’” Isaiah 66:1-2.

Once again, Isaiah draws our attention to humility. In the end, Christmas itself is a story of humility; a story of how God stooped so low as to take on the human flesh. There is no better way to conclude this homily than to quote the words of St. Paul: “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death. Philippians 2:5-8.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, may my celebration of your birth increase my humility. Amen.

Happy Sunday. Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Fourth Sunday of Advent. Year B. Bible Study: 2^nd Samuel 7:1-16, Romans 16:25-27 and Luke 1:26-38).