Love one another After Judas left at the Last Supper, Jesus said to His disciples: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35) What does this commandment mean and what are the implications of this bible verse? In the Pentateuch, only God gave commandments; therefore, giving a…
God’s appointed Shepherd It was the Feast of the Dedication and the Jews gathered around Jesus in Jerusalem. They confronted Jesus and said, “If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” (John 10:24) Jesus replied, “I told you and you do not believe… You do not believe, because you are not among my sheep.” (cf. John 10:25-26) Is there a connection between the Feast of the Dedication and Jesus as the Good Shepherd? The Feast of the Dedication (Hanukkah) is…
A love so great Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?” Three times Peter responded, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” (John 21:15-17) And three times Jesus told Peter to care for His sheep. The three-fold affirmation of Peter’s love for Christ counteracts his previous three-fold denial of Christ. The Peter after the Resurrection of Christ was no longer the same Peter just a few days ago. Peter, who once feared being pointed out as a…
Testimony and Mercy Just because Thomas said, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe,” some people may quickly conclude that his faith was not as great as the other disciples. However, the story of the doubting Thomas (John 20:24-29) provides testimony to the Resurrection of Christ. Other stories of testimony include the story of Mary Magdalene and…
Have you ever wished that you have more faith? John’s Gospel tells us that at the Resurrection, the disciples “did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead” (John 20:9). At the time of Jesus’ Resurrection, the disciples had not yet understood what Jesus was all about, nor had they put all the pieces together about Him. What was that scripture passage that had to do with the Resurrection? There are 3: Psalm 16:10: “You…
The Perfect Sacrifice Does good come out of suffering? The short answer is – it really depends. The Gospel reading for Palm Sunday is the account of the Passion of the Lord. Jesus entered Jerusalem in order to carry out the final phase of His mission on earth, where ultimately, He was to suffer and die on the Cross and in three days rise again. In Jesus’ case, God made something really bad and turned it to something immeasurably good.…
Casting stones The story of the woman caught in adultery brings to mind a similar trap through which the Pharisees and Herodians attempted to ensnare Jesus; they asked Jesus: “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?” (Matthew 22:17) In the case of the woman brought before Jesus by the scribes and the Pharisees, they asked Jesus: “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us…
The return of the son One of the things that makes it quite obvious that the father in the parable of the prodigal son is not any ordinary father, but a metaphor about God, is the abundance of love and mercy that the father had for his son. When the son asked for his share of inheritance, the father did not object nor force the son to stay. That is a testament to the free will that God gives to…
So many chances Some people told Jesus about the Galileanswhose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices.Jesus said to them in reply,“Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this waythey were greater sinners than all other Galileans?By no means!But I tell you, if you do not repent,you will all perish as they did!Or those eighteen people who were killedwhen the tower at Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guiltythan everyone else who…
Jesus Transfigured Some Bible readers tend to regard the Transfiguration account in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke as an independent story where the glory of Jesus was manifested to three chosen disciples. However, a closer look at Luke chapter nine reveals that the evangelist placed it together with other incidents in order to focus on the identity of Jesus. It begins with Herod asking: “Who is this about whom I hear such things?” (Lk 9:9) From there, Luke’s…