Saturday 27th June 2020. Read Lamentations 2:2-19,
Psalm 74:1-7, 20-21, Matthew 8:5-17)_
“Truly I
tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith…. Go; let it be done for
you according to your faith. And the servant was healed in that hour.” (Matthew
8:10-13).
Our first reading today, taken from the book of Lamentations
expresses the pain, sorrow and frustration of a people taken from their
homeland and made to live like slaves in a strange place. By displacing the
Israelites, the Babylonians sought to make them forget their history but more
important to make them forget the living God. Many Israelites actually lost
faith in God.
Years before the Babylonian deportation, God had sent so many
prophets to warn the people to repent of their sinfulness but they persecuted and
killed these prophets. Even their kings gave themselves over to the worship of foreign
gods. As the saying goes, the grass always looks greener on your neighbour’s
lawn. It is a fact of history that people do not value what belongs to them
until it is taken away from them.
Just as the Israelites fancied foreign gods made of wood, iron
and stone, many of us Christians believe more in charms, occultic powers and
forces of darkness. Some of us even try to combine our worship of God with
active participation in such circles. We are neither here nor there. Dear
friends, where exactly do you belong?
The irony of life is that while we look down on what is ours,
others value it more. While many were struggling to believe in Jesus, a Centurion;
that is, a Roman Soldier in charge of a hundred soldiers had enough faith to
see that Jesus is God; that He only needs to speak the word and the whole world
would obey. Even Jesus was amazed at his great faith: “in no one in Israel have
I found such faith.” Can Jesus say this of you too? Do you believe there is power
in prayer?
The lesson we learn today comes from the statement of Jesus to
the Centurion: “Let it be done for you according to your faith.” If my faith
was money, how much would it worth? Before you start asking God for anything, ask
sincerely: “Am I expecting it to happen?” Just as He touched the leper, Jesus touched
Peter’s mother-in-law and she was cured instantly of her fever. We have an
opportunity to touch Jesus today when we receive Holy Communion but the
question is: “Do I believe that Jesus would heal me when I touch him?”
Dear friends, we cannot deceive God, we cannot pretend when it
comes to faith. As one great man said: Faith is the assurance of things not
seen but the reward of faith is to see those things we hoped for. Do I believe
in the power of God?
Let us pray: Lord Jesus, deepen
my faith in you that I may never disappoint you by going after false gods. Amen.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you. (Saturday of the 12th Week
in ordinary time. Bible Study: Lamentations 2:2-19,
Psalm 74:1-7, 20-21, Matthew 8:5-17).
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