Tuesday 2nd June 2020. Read 2nd Peter 3:12-18, Psalm 90:2-16,
Mark 12:13-17
“And they
tried to arrest him, but feared the multitude, for they perceived that he had
told the parable against them; so they left him and went away. And they sent to
him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to entrap him in his
talk.” (Mark 12:12-13)
For
cleansing the temple, Jesus had obviously attracted a lot of enemies to
himself. Jesus did the right thing but it didn’t go down well with those who
had replaced God with money; those who had turned the Temple into a den of
robbers.
Anyone who
does what is right in a world that does not know God cannot escape enemies.
Jesus himself said in John 15:18-20: “If the world hates you, know that it has
hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love
its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the
world, therefore the world hates you. … If they persecuted me, they will
persecute you.”
How can we
survive in a world that hates us so much? Jesus said: “Be wise as serpents and
innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16). At the heart of this wisdom is Discernment.
Jesus knew that people had come to catch him by his words. He knew the question
about paying taxes was a way of setting him up against the Roman authorities.
Jesus also knew that the Jews hated paying these taxes because it meant that
somehow God had failed the people.
The
Herodians were truly crafty. They came pretending to be friends but were foes.
May God deliver from people who come seeking to find words in our mouths to use
against us. There are Herodians everywhere; frenemies who bring all the juicy
gossips only to trap you. St. Peter warns us in today’s first reading: “Beware,
lest you be carried away with the error of lawless men and lose your own
stability.” (2 Peter 3:17).
Just like
Jesus did with the woman caught in the act of Adultery, He must have reflected
and prayed deeply before responding. The Holy Spirit gave him discernment and
when he spoke, his enemies were put to shame: “Give to Caesar what is his and
to God what is His.” What better way could anyone have responded?
Let us
pray: Lord Jesus, give that wisdom which no man can rival that I may discern
properly before speaking. Amen.
Be Happy.
Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Tuesday of the
9th Week in Ordinary Time. Bible Study: 2nd Peter 3:12-18, Psalm 90:2-16, Mark
12:13-17)
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