Homily
for Tuesday 31st December 2019. Read 1st John 2:18-21,
Psalm 96, and John 1:1-18)_
_“Children,
it is the last hour; and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many
antichrists have come; therefore we know that it is the last hour.” *(1 John
2:18)*_
Finally, this year is set to pack and
go. It is the last hour. Whatever has a beginning must also have an end. As the
year ends, St. John in today’s first reading draws our mind to the end of the
world; the last hour. According to John, a sign of the last hour is the coming
of the antichrist. Who is the antichrist?
In our Gospel passage, John answers this
question: “The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world knew him
not. He came to his own home, and his own people received him not...” (John
1:9-11).
Put simply, the antichrist is anyone
who refuses to receive Christ. Anyone who is opposed to Christ either by word,
deed or thought. Looking around us, there are a lot of antichrists who work
relentlessly day and night to ensure that anything about Christ is totally
removed from our society. As Jesus noted, they are more clever (shrewd, astute)
than the children of light. (Cf. Luke 16:8)
Again in our first reading, St. John
adds: “They (the antichrists) went out from us, but they were not of us; for if
they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out, that
it might be plain that they all are not of us.” (1 John 2:19). In other words, antichrists are within
and outside the church. As Jesus noted, they are wolves in sheep clothing;
pretenders, fake Christians. (Cf. Matthew 7:15).
The greatest blow against the
Christian faith in our land is not coming from outside the faith. It is from within.
Being a fake Christian is just as bad as being a non-Christian. Tonight, our
churches would be packed full with persons who claim to be Christians but are
not willing to live like Christ. They want blessings for the new year, they
want people to tell them exactly what they like to hear. They return home as antichrists.
How have I lived this year? Can I truly
say I have not been an Antichrist myself?
Let us pray: Lord Jesus, into your
hands I commend my spirit. Amen
*Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you. (Seventh Day in the Octave of Christmas.
Bible Study: 1st John 2:18-21, Psalm 96, and John 1:1-18).*
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