JESUS IS LORD. ALWAYS!

Monday, April 08, 2024

YOU MUST BE BORN FROM ABOVE.

There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. He came to Jesus at night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless God is with him.”



The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3: 1 - 8). 

TUESDAY 9th April 2024 in the 2nd Week in Easter Season. 

Jesus was born, lived and died to establish the Kingdom of God. The Church is the seed of the Kingdom of God on earth. 


The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3: 1 - 8). 


Tuesday 9th April 2024, in the 2nd Week of Easter.

Jesus was born, lived and died to establish the Kingdom of God. The Church is the seed of the Kingdom of God on earth. 

Jesus was born, lived and died to establish the Kingdom of God. The Church is the seed of the Kingdom of God on earth. 



To have a taste for spiritual things, viz: Prayer, Word of God, Eucharist, Reconciliation, you must be born again. The carnal man is incapable of experiencing spiritual things. He is acquainted only with material carnal things. (Cf Romans 8: 6; 1 Corinthians 2: 14). This is what Jesus teaches Nicodemus. This is also a truth anyone can bear witness to by reflecting on his life and the people he knows. 


Everything is created twice. The first creation is from the earth and unsurprisingly earthy. The second creation is from above and is heavenly. 


It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the second birth. And this  happens when we are baptized. We become born anew and in fact new creation.

Since we died with Christ when we were immersed into the water of Baptism and raised with Christ, let us seek what is above where Jesus is seated at the right hand of God. (Cf Colossians 3: 1).

THE EUCHARIST IS THE CHURCH. THE CHURCH IS THE EUCHARIST. 

The Church learns more and honors the HOLY EUCHARIST in APRIL. 

For Teachings, Prayers and Prayer intentions click the link:

http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-holy-eucharist_31.html?m=1



Sunday, April 07, 2024

THE SOLEMNITY OF THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD.

THE SOLEMNITY OF THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD. 

“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).

MONDAY the 8th of April in the Season of Easter 2024 is the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. 


The Feast of the Annunciation is the 25th of March. It is moved to the 8th of April because the 25th of March 2024 fell on Holy Week. 

Today, 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 of salvation and life of the Church? 

#1. Mary is the only daughter of Joachim and Anne. The little Mary was 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 most of her knowledge of the infancy narrative of Mary from credible non-biblical sources called Apocrypha. This source is collaborated by the writings of Mystics like Blessed Mary of Alagreda, Blessed Catherine Emerich and others. All these are faithful, true and credible sources. 

Remember that the Church discerns the truth of Revelation from not only Sacred Scripture but also Sacred Tradition and Sacred Magisterium. Sensus fidelium (the common faith of the faithful plays a role in the discernment of truth in the Church. 


#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. (Cf Luke, Matthew, Isaiah 7: 14, etc). 

#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 salvation and who Mary is. If you do not pray the Rosary, 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. 

From the writings of Mystics, we learn that Mary continued to teach the Church from Pentecost to her death and Assumption into Heaven.

#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).


"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).


THE EUCHARIST IS THE CHURCH. THE CHURCH IS THE EUCHARIST. 


The Church learns more and honors the HOLY EUCHARIST in APRIL. 


For Teachings, Prayers and Prayer intentions click the link:


http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-holy-eucharist_31.html?m=1

Saturday, April 06, 2024

DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY.

"On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

"When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.

"The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 

"And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”

"Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

"Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said,

“Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”


"Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

"Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name. (John 20: 19 - 31).



The universal Church celebrates today the Solemnity of Divine Mercy. (Always 2nd Sunday of Easter).


Jesus is the Face of Mercy of Abba Father.  Mercy is the name and essence of God the Father revealed to us through His Only Son, Jesus the Christ. The open Heart of Jesus is the symbol and seat of Mercy.  Mercy is promised to all.

To demonstrate that the powerful gift and message of Mercy that Jesus shared in His public ministry will remain in the Church after His Ascension, Jesus instituted the Sacrament of Penance or Reconciliation and gave His Apostles and their successors the power to forgive sins. 


To prepare ourselves to receive and retain Mercy, the ABC OF MERCY is very useful.  It is called  ABC because, it is an acronym that can be remembered easily and secondly it is as simple as ABC.


A:  Ask for Mercy.

B:  Be Merciful.

C:  Completely Trust Jesus for Mercy.


God is rich in mercy and is waiting for us to turn to Him to blot out all our sins and receive us in His merciful love.

Mercy, mercy. Nothing but mercy!


"Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to you for protection.

I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until the danger passes by."  (Psalm 57: 1)


"Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself." (The Diary of St Maria Faustina, #950).


To learn how to recite the Divine Mercy Rosary, click the link below:


"On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

"When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.

"The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 

"And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”

"Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

"Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said,

“Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”


"Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

"Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name. (John 20: 19 - 31).



The universal Church celebrates today the Solemnity of Divine Mercy. (Always 2nd Sunday of Easter).


Jesus is the Face of Mercy of Abba Father.  Mercy is the name and essence of God the Father revealed to us through His Only Son, Jesus the Christ. The open Heart of Jesus is the symbol and seat of Mercy.  Mercy is promised to all.

To demonstrate that the powerful gift and message of Mercy that Jesus shared in His public ministry will remain in the Church after His Ascension, Jesus instituted the Sacrament of Penance or Reconciliation and gave His Apostles and their successors the power to forgive sins. 


To prepare ourselves to receive and retain Mercy, the ABC OF MERCY is very useful.  It is called  ABC because, it is an acronym that can be remembered easily and secondly it is as simple as ABC.


A:  Ask for Mercy.

B:  Be Merciful.

C:  Completely Trust Jesus for Mercy.


God is rich in mercy and is waiting for us to turn to Him to blot out all our sins and receive us in His merciful love.

Mercy, mercy. Nothing but mercy!


"Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to you for protection.

I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until the danger passes by."  (Psalm 57: 1)


"Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself." (The Diary of St Maria Faustina, #950).


To learn how to recite the Divine Mercy Rosary, click the link below:


http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2020/10/how-to-recite-divine-mercy-rosary.html?m=1



THE EUCHARIST IS THE CHURCH. THE CHURCH IS THE EUCHARIST. 


The Church learns more and honors the HOLY EUCHARIST in APRIL. 


For Teachings, Prayers and Prayer intentions click the link:



http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-holy-eucharist_31.html?m=1 



THE EUCHARIST IS THE CHURCH. THE CHURCH IS THE EUCHARIST. 


The Church learns more and honors the HOLY EUCHARIST in APRIL. 


For Teachings, Prayers and Prayer intentions click the link:



http://seekfirst.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-holy-eucharist_31.html?m=1