By faith, Martha and Mary witnessed Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead.

Lazarus, come out!

"Now a man was ill, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

"Mary was the one who had anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and dried his feet with her hair; it was her brother Lazarus who was ill. So the sisters (of Lazarus) sent word to Jesus saying, “Master, the one you love is ill.”

"When Jesus heard this he said, “This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

"Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.

 So when he heard that he was ill, he remained for two days in the place where he was. 

"Then after this he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”  (John 11: 1….. 4). 

Sunday March 26th 2023 in the 5th Week of Lent. 

"This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”  (John 11: 4)

Our adversity is always an opportunity for God to be glorified.  Every disappointment is a blessing in disguise. Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary was dead and the sisters sent word to Jesus about it.   Jesus said to Martha:  “Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?”   (John 11:  40).  And He said, “Lazarus, come out!”  (John 11: 43). And commanded:  “Untie him and let him go.” (John 11: 44).

The faith of Martha and Mary in Jesus were deepened by the raising of their brother Lazarus from the dead. 

Are you bound and "tied hand and feet" by Unbelief?  If God can raise Lazarus from the grave after four days, He certainly can restore your marriage, health, finances, job, etc.

Faith is saying YES to God so that He will do what He promises to do.

This Lent 2023, my top prayer is to grow in the belief that God will fulfill His word to me. I want to say with Martha at Easter:

“Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.”

"I trust in the LORD; my soul trusts in his word.

More than sentinels wait for the dawn, let Israel wait for the LORD."  (Psalm 30: 5 - 6)

On this 5th Sunday of Lent 2023, glorify God by trusting in Him. 

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord.

The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. 

"In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary.

"And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

"Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.

"He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his ­father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”

"But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?”

"And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.

"Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.”

"Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her." (Luke 1: 26 - 38).

Saturday 25th March 2023 is the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord.

 The Sacred Scripture focuses on the Call and Mission of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of the Lord. 

Who is Mary of Nazareth and why is she a powerful person in the history and life of the Church?

#1. Mary is the only child of Joachim and Anne. A sweet joy of answered prayer to Joachim and Anne. The couple sensed her uniqueness and destiny and dedicated her to God and after she was weaned brought her to the Temple where she was educated by priests.

#2. The Church draws some of her knowledge of the infancy narrative of Mary from credible non-biblical sources called Apocrypha. Remember that the Church discerns the truth of Revelation from not only Sacred Scripture but also Sacred Tradition and the Magisterium.

#3. The biblical sources of our knowledge of Mary are not voluminous but they contain all we need to know for our devotion and salvation.

#4. The four Mysteries of the Holy Rosary, viz: Annunciation, the Luminous Mysteries, the Sorrowful Mysteries and the Glorious Mysteries tell the whole story of who Mary is. If you do not pray the Rosary every day, you miss the acres of diamonds in your backyard.

#5. The Blessed Virgin Mary is the only human being who knew Jesus Christ from the Visitation of the Angel Gabriel (the Annunciation) to the death of Jesus on the Cross, His burial and Resurrection. Mary was present in the Upper Room waiting and praying for the Holy Spirit to descend on Pentecost Sunday, the Birthday of the Church.

#6. Mary continues to intervene in the lives of simple people in significant apparition events throughout Church history, viz: Guadalupe, Fatima, Lourdes, etc.

We read today of how God sent the Angel Gabriel to a young woman with an astonishing promise. Gabriel told Mary that through the power of God, she will become the Mother of God. Once Mary fully understands the implications of the message, she replies:  "I am the handmaid of the Lord: let what you have said be done to me. (Luke 1: 38).

The Church elaborates:

"To become the mother of the Savior, Mary "was enriched by God with gifts appropriate to such a role." The angel Gabriel at the moment of the annunciation salutes her as "full of grace". In fact, in order for Mary to be able to give the free assent of her faith to the announcement of her vocation, it was necessary that she be wholly borne by God's grace." (CCC 490).

Exactly 9 months from today will be Christmas, the birth of the King of the Universe whose origin is "from ancient times."  (Micah 1: 1).

He is the Lord who is always with us. The Emmanuel. He is the Lord who is Peace.

"O Key of David,

opening the gates of God’s eternal Kingdom:

come and free the prisoners of darkness!"

"I am your Mother, the Mother given you by my Son Jesus, from the Cross, in the solemn hour of His sacrifice. And you are my son, dear to my Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart, precious to me, and ever under the mantle of my protection. Let me live with you as I lived with John, the second son of my Heart and the model for all my priest sons down through the ages. Speak to me simply and with complete trust in the compassion of my maternal Heart and in the power given to my maternal intercession." (IN SINU JESU, Wednesday, March 25, 2009

The Annunciation).

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

Jesus chose His time for going to Jerusalem.

Let us destroy this Jesus. 

"Jesus moved about within Galilee; he did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him. But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near.

"But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, he himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret.

"Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, “Is he not the one they are trying to kill? And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him. Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ? But we know where he is from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from.” 

"So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, “You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.”

"So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come." (John7:1-2, 10, 25-30).

Friday 24th March 2023 in the 4th week of Lent. Why did the enemies of Christ tried to arrest Him during the Jewish festival of Tabernacles? The answer is laid out clearly in the first Reading from the 2nd Chapter of Wisdom:

"The wicked said among themselves, thinking not aright: “Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us; he sets himself against our doings, Reproaches us for transgressions of the law and charges us with violations of our training. He professes to have knowledge of God and styles himself a child of the Lord." ( Cf Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22). 

The enemies of Jesus could not stand His probity and integrity. They considered Him a reproach to their transgressions. Like the high court judge who takes bribes, their conscience would give them no peace especially when they come in contact with Jesus. Therefore, Jesus must die. But Jesus' antagonists were ignorant of the prophecies about the Messiah. They said: "For if the just one be the son of God, he will defend him and deliver him from the hand of his foes."

In the fullness of time, Jesus would hand over Himself to be glorified on the Cross. For the Cross is the appointed means of the glorification of the Son of Man. Before that hour, nothing can happen to Jesus.

As followers of Jesus, our lives are hemmed in by God's loving and powerful Providence. If we make the Kingdom of God and His holiness the top priority of our life. God's promise of provision and protection for us is unbreakable. 

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

Prayer of Intercession moves the Heart of God.

Moses intercedes for the sinful Israelites. 

"The Lord said to Moses, “Go down at once to your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, for they have become depraved. They have soon turned aside from the way I pointed out to them, making for themselves a molten calf and worshiping it, sacrificing to it and crying out, ‘This is your God, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt!’”

"The Lord said to Moses, “I see how stiff-necked this people is. Let me alone, then, that my wrath may blaze up against them to consume them. Then I will make of you a great nation.”

"But Moses implored the Lord, his God, saying, “Why, O Lord, should your wrath blaze up against your own people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with such great power and with so strong a hand? 

"Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent he brought them out, that he might kill them in the mountains and exterminate them from the face of the earth’? Let your blazing wrath die down; relent in punishing your people. 

"Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, and how you swore to them by your own self, saying, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land that I promised, I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.’” 

"So the Lord relented in the punishment he had threatened to inflict on his people." (Exodus 32: 7 - 14).

Thursday 23rd March 2023 in the 4th Week of Lent.  We ask, what is Intercession? Intercession looms so high in the doctrine of salvation that few topics are more important. What is intercession? Intercession is beseeching God earnestly on behalf of someone in dire need of mercy.

In our Scripture today from Exodus 32, let us see what Moses did as intercessor on behalf of Israel when they apostasized by worshiping the golden calf.

"But Moses implored the Lord, his God, saying, “Why, O Lord, should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand?" (Exodus 32: 11).

Who else is intercessor in the Bible?

Abraham, Jacob, David, Elijah, Jeremiah, Isaiah. Intercession is a key aspect of the job description of a prophet. It is also a key part of the ministry of the Aaronic priesthood and the Christian priesthood.

One of the principal titles of Jesus Christ is our Able and Eternal High Priest. Jesus Christ in Heaven is continually interceding for us besides the throne of grace and mercy of God. 

When we intercede for people, we do so through Jesus Christ and in His name. We do not ask God to remember Abraham, Isaac and Jacob but to remember the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ. The Church intercedes for her children day and night through Jesus and in His name. What are the saints doing in Heaven now? Interceding for the Church and for the family and friends of the saints.

Prayer moves God.

"Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!

Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life; you have the message of eternal life.

Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!" (Cf. John 6 :63, 68).

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

The Lord is faithful and merciful. You can trust Him.

Can a mother forget her infant? 

"Thus says the Lord: In a time of favor I answer you, on the day of salvation I help you; and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people, To restore the land and allot the desolate heritages, Saying to the prisoners: 

"Come out! To those in darkness: Show yourselves! Along the ways they shall find pasture, on every bare height shall their pastures be. 

"They shall not hunger or thirst, nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them; For he who pities them leads them and guides them beside springs of water....

"But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” 

"Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you." (Isaiah 49: 8... 15).

Wednesday 22nd of March in the 4th week of Lent 2023.

The kindness and mercy of God is in full display in our first Reading. The People broke the Covenant with God and suffered as a result. The suffering was crushing. They must have muttered thus: "We are convinced now that God has utterly forsaken and forgotten us."

How close have you been to despair? You pray for recovery from illness but no sign of healing. For the mending of a broken family but things get worse. For financial improvement but slide into bankruptcy. Or any one of the conditions that befalls man on earth.

If you or your loved ones is in any of the above situation, God has a special good news for you in His word today.

"Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you." (Isaiah 49: 15).

"But in case you still have some doubts, "See, upon the palms of my hands I have engraved you." The Lord God assures us. (Isaiah 49: 16).

Now, the ball is in your court:

To believe or not to believe. It is a choice. If you believe, appropriate the Scripture, write it down, memorize it and repeat it until it is yours.

"The LORD is faithful in all his words and holy in all his works.

The LORD lifts up all who are falling

and raises up all who are bowed down." (Psalm 145: 13 - 14).

The Lord is gracious and merciful. His mercies never fail.

"Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son: everyone who believes in him has eternal life.

Glory and praise to you, O Christ!" (John 3: 16).

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

The Paralytic restored to health by a word of command.

A man crippled for 38 years is healed by Jesus. 

"There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes. In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled. 

"One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.

"When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be well?”

"The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.” 

"Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.” Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.

"Now that day was a sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who was cured, “It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.”

"He answered them, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Take up your mat and walk.’” 

"They asked him, “Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?” 

"The man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there. 

"After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him, “Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you.” 

"The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was the one who had made him well. Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath." (John 5: 1 - 16).

Tuesday March 21st 2023 in the 4th Week of Lent. 

Our Gospel of today records the encounter of Jesus with a crippled man. Jesus knew he had been in this condition for 38 years. What the man did not know was that Jesus was not there by chance or accident. Jesus had a divine appointment with the crippled man on that day and place and time. Happily the crippled man was ready and received his healing.

We are saved by grace through faith. Where do you need healing in your life this Lent? Jesus is always passing by. Are you ready for to receive your healing? 

"My Mother is the agent of all healing, the chosen instrument of the Holy Spirit for the restoration of life, of light, and of unity in every place or instance where these are lacking. Not until this sovereign disposition of My Father is recognized and confessed will there be the healing, purification, and sanctification of the priesthood and of the Church for which so many souls labour and offer themselves. None of these objectives can be obtained by human means, or even by spiritual ones, apart from the role that belongs to My Mother and to none other, because she alone is the Immaculate and, so, is alone the human instrument fit for the workings of the Holy Spirit." (IN SINU JESU, Thursday, January 29, 2009).

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

The Solemnity of St Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Solemnity of St Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. 

"Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.

"Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. 

"Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, 

“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 

"When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home."

Who is Joseph? 

St Joseph is the man chosen by God to be the foster father and guardian of Jesus. 

God communicates with us through a variety of ways, viz:

#1. Inspiration

#2. Locution

#3. Sacred Scripture

#4.  Prophetic person /message

#5.  Dream

St Joseph is a man of dreams.  Matthew recorded 4 Dreams of Joseph in the Infancy Narrative:

1. Matthew 1: 24

2. Matthew 2: 13

3. Matthew 2: 19

4. Matthew 2:  22

"When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home."  (Matthew 1: 24).

Joseph is a docile and obedient man. 

Joseph is a just and considerate man.  Consider what he did faced with the evidence that Mary was carrying a child not his own:

"Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly."  (Matthew 1:  19).

Joseph is a man of high purity and chastity. God chose him to be the husband of Mary because God had fitted him with the appropriate graces to protect the perpetual virginity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Joseph the humble carpenter is the patron saint of workers.  He understands that genuine labor is collaborating with God where, what and when you are assigned.

The Church considers St Joseph the greatest Saint after the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Joseph is so fittingly named the Patron of the Universal Church.  Remember that he was the Guardian of Jesus and in his intercessory role, you can believe that Jesus will deny nothing to Joseph.

Joseph is a docile and obedient man. 

Joseph the humble carpenter is the patron saint of workers.  He understands that genuine labor is collaborating with God where, what and when you are assigned.

The Church considers St Joseph the greatest Saint after the Blessed Virgin Mary. Joseph is so fittingly named the Patron of the Universal Church.  

Remember that he was the Guardian of Jesus and in his intercessory role, you can believe that Jesus will deny nothing to Joseph.

“To other saints our Lord has given power to help in one sort of need, but this glorious saint, as I know by experience, helps us in every need.” (St Teresa of Avila). 

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

The man born blind.

This man was born blind. 

"As Jesus passed by he saw a man blind from birth.

His disciples asked him,

“Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

Jesus answered, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him."  (John 9: 1 - 3).

Sunday, March 19th 2023, 4th Week in Lent. This Sunday is called Laetare Sunday, that is: Rejoice Sunday! We have made it to the mid point of Lent. It is a good reason to be joyful.

Many adverse human conditions are not associated with sin.  Of the poor, sick, homeless, refugees, lonesome, Jesus says:  "It is so that the works of God might be made visible through him."  (John 9: 3).

St Francis of Assisi said:  "Alms are an inheritance and a justice which is due to the poor and which Jesus has levied upon us."

"Wealth … is like a snake; it will twist around the hand and bite unless one knows how to use it properly."  (St Clement of Alexandria.“).

"The rich man who gives to the poor does not bestow alms but pays a debt."  ( St. Ambrose of Milan).

"Our prayers and fastings are of less avail, unless they are aided by almsgiving."  (St Cyprian).

Jesus gave back sight to the man born blind. He gave him much more besides. He gave him wisdom and the courage to be a witness to God's marvelous works. So the man became better off than those who were born with sight but in fact are blind spiritually. Every disadvantage is a blessing.

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com

Feast of St Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church.

Feast of Cyril of Jerusalem, the Master Catechist. 

"Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else. 

“Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. 

The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity—greedy, dishonest, adulterous—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’ 

"But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’ 

"I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18: 9 - 14).

Saturday March 18th 2023 in the 3rd Week of Lent  is the feast of St Cyril of Jerusalem. Bishop and Doctor of the Church. (315 - 386). St Cyril was the Archbishop of Jerusalem when the Arian heresy disturbed the peace of the Church all over the Roman Empire.

Cyril vigorously defended the unchangeable teachings of the Church. For this, he suffered multiple exiles from the See of Jerusalem. St Cyril is recognized in history by his catechetical works. He prepared multitudes of Catechumens to receive Baptism and helped the Neophytes after Easter to grow in the faith. What is really providential in the work and legacy of St Cyril is that he documented his teachings which have come to us. His writings of over 1600 years ago prove that the Catholic Church is the same in teachings and beliefs in the late 300s as she is today. Nothing has changed.

Our takeaway from today's well-known Gospel sounds simple enough:

"For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

How does one exalt himself? You exalt yourself when you overrate yourself. You exalt yourself when you consider yourself superior to your neighbors based on the color of your skin. You exalt yourself when you consider yourself the knowall in any area of knowledge. 

How does one humble himself? Simply, be like Jesus. Be like the Virgin Mary. Be like the saints. An example, our saint of today: St Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church. Cyril was a very humble man. Although one of the most learned in his epoch, he was a very humble man. 

Examination of Conscience and the Sacrament of Reconciliation is one of the most effective tools in acquiring humility teaches St Philip Neri. 

Daily Bible Verse @ SeekFirstcommunity.com