Rejoice in hope.

"Stay awake and stand ready,
because you do not know the hour
when the Son of Man is coming." (Matthew 24: 42, 44).

Sunday of the 19th week in Ordinary Time. Today's message could be personal. Are you waiting for something to happen? An answer to prayer for example. How do you know when God will deliver the answer? The Church answers the question thus:

"In prayer the disciple keeps watch, attentive to Him Who Is and Him Who Comes...... In communion with their Master, the disciples' prayer is a battle; only by keeping watch in prayer can one avoid falling into temptation." (CCC 2612).

When you keep watch in prayer, you will know the appointed time, the fullness of time. When you do not keep watch in prayer, you will fall into temptation and see your bus speed by while you are not paying attention. In the 1st Reading, we are told:

"The night of the Passover was known before hand to our forefathers." (Wisdom 18: 6). If you keep watch in prayer, God will be pleased to give you the privilege of knowing that the appointed time has come.

Live in hope. Rejoice in hope. God Never Fails!

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The Feast of St Lawrence the Deacon.

"Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit." (John 12: 24).

Saturday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time is the Feast of St Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr. (+Circa 258). St Lawrence was a prominent Roman Deacon who braved roasting by red hot fire to defend the Church and her greatest wealth: the Poor. In this, Lawrence became like Jesus, the grain of wheat that falls to the ground and dies. As a result of the death of Jesus, life sprang up everywhere.

"Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it." (Luke 17: 33).

St Lawrence sowed bountifully and the Lord rewarded him and made him the Doyen of Deacons.
"Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully." (2 Corinthians 9: 6).

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When you remember the wonderful things God has done for you.

"I remember the deeds of the Lord." (Psalm 77: 12).

Friday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Teresa of the  Cross (1891 - 1942). Teresa was born Edith Stein of Jewish parents and converted to the Church. A well established philosopher in the universities in Germany, she was sent to Auschwitz by the Nazis and died in the gas chambers.

What one thing can make you grow in faith, hope and love? "I remember the deeds of the Lord." (Psalm 77: 12). Forgetfulness of what God has done for you is about the greatest harm you can inflict on yourself.
This truth and insight comes to us from the Responsorial Psalm in today's Liturgy:

"I remember the deeds of the Lord, I remember your wonders of old, I muse on all your works and ponder your mighty deeds." (Psalm 77: 12 - 16).

It is a well known axiom that what God has done once, He can always do again. The Israelites in the Desert forgot again and again that it the same God who split the Red Sea in two for them is the same God leading them on their Journey. The same God who fed them with manna feed 7000 people with bread and fish with much leftovers.

"Bless the Lord, my soul; and do not forget all his gifts, Who pardons all your sins, and heals all your ills, Who redeems your life from the pit, and crowns you with mercy and compassion, Who fills your days with good things, so your youth is renewed like the eagles." (Psalm 103: 2 - 5).

Psalm 103: 2 - 5 is the greatest advice you can receive from God's holy word. It is not a coincidence that this Psalm is used most in Responsorial Psalms. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you remember and give thanks.

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Get behind me, you Satan!

"He [Jesus] turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” (Matthew 16: 23).

Thursday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Dominic (1170 - 1221), Priest and Founder of the Order of Preachers, the Dominican Order.

What do you make of the sharp rebuke of Jesus to Peter? Peter opposed the truth that Jesus must suffer and die. Christ's reaction implies that this truth is fundamental and of the highest priority in the hierarchy of truth. Nobody should mess up with this fundamental proposition. Not even Peter.

After His Resurrection, Jesus laid down 4 principles of apostolic witness:

#1 The Death of Jesus.
#2 Testimony of Scripture to the suffering and death of Jesus: (Luke 24: 44 - 46).
#3 The Resurrection of Jesus.
#4 The power of the Name of Jesus.

Deprecation of any of these truths by heresies must not be tolerated in the Church.

"May Saint Dominic come to the help of your Church by his merits and teaching, O Lord, and may he, who was an outstanding preacher of your truth, be a devoted intercessor on our behalf.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever." (Collect on the Feast of St Dominic).

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Faith welcomes unusual challenges to our welfare.

"We felt like mere grasshoppers." (Numbers 13: 33).

Wednesday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time. Have you ever felt like a grasshopper before a giant problem? Think of unanimous verdict of a team of medical expert that your case is simply hopeless. Or condemned to life sentence with no option of appeal by the highest court of the land. Or your only family home with all that you own is washed into the sea by the last hurricane and you have no insurance.

Faith welcomes any of the above scenario with a smile. A student who is prepared for an examination is impatient to see the test begin. One who is not prepared will pray for all the imaginable causes of delay.
In today's Scriptures, we see from the 1st Reading in Numbers 13, a story of No Faith. The men sent to survey the land flowing with milk and honey disparaged the territory. In the Gospel narrative in Matthew 15, we hear Jesus commend a foreign woman for a strong faith:

“O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” (Matthew 15: 28). And the result of strong faith: "And her daughter was healed from that hour."

David must have looked like grasshopper before Goliath. But who won the day? We do not and we can never vanquish the world with arms of flesh. Our faith will overcome this world anytime. We do not walk by sight or feeling but always by faith.

The God of Jesus Christ who is always with us never fails!

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What is the Transfiguration?

"In a resplendent cloud the Holy Spirit appeared.
The Father’s voice was heard: This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him." (Cf Matthew 17: 5).

Tuesday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time is the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord Jesus. What is the Transfiguration and why does it matter?

"On a high mountain, before three witnesses chosen by himself: Peter, John and James. Jesus' face and clothes become dazzling with light, and Moses and Elijah appear, speaking "of his departure, which he was to accomplish at Jerusalem". A cloud covers him and a voice from heaven says: "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" (CCC 554).

The Transfiguration matters because before the presence of three credible witnesses, the glory of Jesus was revealed. These three witnesses Peter, James and John were to become witnesses to the Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus Christ. They were to bear witness to these eye witness events with their lives m. Our faith as Christians is built on solid foundation and not on "cleverly deviced myths." (2 Peter 1: 16 - 19).

"This is my Son, the Beloved: he enjoys my favor. Listen to him." (Matthew 17: 5).

Thank You Father. I listened to Your Son and heard beautiful words. (Matthew 6: 33).

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You have given us O Lord Bread from Heaven.

"Taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds." (Matthew 14: 19).

Monday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time. Our Scripture pick for today reminds us immediately of Eucharistic narrative where at the Last Supper:
Jesus Takes, Blesses, Breaks, Gives the Bread of life.

Is this sequence of action accident or purposeful? The Church has interpreted the Feeding of the Crowd as type and shadow of the Eucharist which is the defining institution of the Kingdom to come. Note that it must have been this same sequence of actions that opened the eyes of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus to recognize Jesus. (See Luke 24).

But what do we learn about the Eucharist from the feeding of the crowd? "They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the fragments left over—twelve wicker baskets full." (Matthew 14: 20).
You shall eat and be satisfied.

Nothing prefigures the Eucharist as closely as this Scripture from Isaiah:
"All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, buy grain and eat; Come, buy grain without money, wine and milk without cost! Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what does not satisfy?" (Isaiah 55: 1 - 2).

The Eucharist is the rich food and rich wine prefigured in Isaiah 55.

"You have given us, O Lord, bread from heaven, endowed with all delights and sweetness in every taste." (Wisdom 16: 20).

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I will tear down my barns and build larger ones.

“Now as for you, you have so many good things stored up for many years, rest, eat, drink, be merry!” (Luke 12: 19).

Sunday of the 18th week in Ordinary Time. The Scriptures invite us in the words of the 2nd Reading from Colossians 3 to seek what is above where Christ is. In the 1st Reading from Ecclesiastes, we hear that all things are vanity. God indeed has created man for Himself and made his heart restless until it rests in God Himself.

"How happy are the poor in spirit:
theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5: 3).

In today's Gospel, Jesus instructs us with the parable of the Rich Fool. When the Fool discovers that his business has succeeded beyond his wildest expectations, his instinct is not to donate to the local charities. "I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones. There I shall store all my grain and other goods." Many Church Fathers commenting on this parable see the consequences of unbridled materialism.

The Scriptures teach that "Man does not live on bread alone" and points to the impossibity of a man trying to drag a camel through the tiny gate of the city. Fool! This very night your soul will be demanded of you.

The Eucharist kills the temptation to greed and materialism.
"I am the bread of life, says the Lord; whoever comes to me will not hunger and whoever believes in me will not thirst." (John 6: 35).

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Herod beheaded John.

[Herod] had John beheaded in the prison." (Matthew 14: 10).

Saturday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time. John the Baptist becomes the first casualty of the ministry of Jesus Christ.

"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew 10: 28). The disciples of Jesus might have thought of this as a hyperbole. Now it has happened. What may follow?

"The Son of Man must suffer many terrible things,” Jesus said. “He will be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead.” (Luke 9: 22).

By the time this happened, the faith and the resolve of the disciples had been shaken to its foundation. The "Promise of the Father" would come to the rescue in the person of the Holy Spirit to instill life into the disciples. By the time Herod laid hands on James, Bishop of Jerusalem and one of the first disciples, the new Church was ready for mission.

"Happy those who are persecuted
in the cause of right, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5: 10).
Lord, grant us the grace to accept all the persecutions You send to us.

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8-3

[Herod] had John beheaded in the prison." (Matthew 14: 10).

Saturday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time. John the Baptist becomes the first casualty of the ministry of Jesus Christ.

"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew 10: 28). The disciples of Jesus might have thought of this as a hyperbole. Now it has happened. What may follow?

"The Son of Man must suffer many terrible things,” Jesus said. “He will be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead.” (Luke 9: 22).

By the time this happened, the faith and the resolve of the disciples had been shaken to its foundation. The "Promise of the Father" would come to the rescue in the person of the Holy Spirit to instill life into the disciples. By the time Herod laid hands on James, Bishop of Jerusalem and one of the first disciples, the new Church was ready for mission.

"Happy those who are persecuted
in the cause of right, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5: 10).
Lord, grant us the grace to accept all the persecutions You send to us.

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Where did the carpenter's son get this education?

"Is he not the carpenter’s son?" (Matthew 13: 55).

Friday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time is First Friday in August. The famous home boy comes home for a weekend. Instead of a rousing welcome, He was subjected to indignities. “Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?  Is he not the carpenter’s son?" If you are familiar with the Gospels, you will recognize that this is the fate of Jesus from birth to death. He was born humble and was despised by even the masses.

But we know better. We know that “Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day." (Luke 24: 46). We understand the implication of the  necessity of the suffering and humiliation of Jesus the Messiah. We too must suffer and endure humiliations.
What is your reaction? Follow Jesus? Or run?

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Honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus this Friday August 2.

August 02, 2019 First Friday in August.

Jesus promised 12 special favors to all those who will honor His Sacred Heart especially on the First Friday of every month.  In the 8th month of the year, we look at Promise #8.

#8.  "Fervent souls shall speedily rise to great perfection."

Who are the fervent souls?
The fervent are souls who hear the word of God and keep it. They place the Kingdom of God and holiness of life above every other thing.

Honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus on Friday, August 2nd.
For the 12 Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, click the link below:

http://sfjweb.com/?q=content/sacred-heart-12-promises

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Feast of St Alphonsus Liguori, a tireless apostle of the Eucharist.

"The kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind.  When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away." (Matthew 13: 47 - 48).

Thursday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Alphonsus Liguori (1696 to 1787), Bishop and Doctor of the Church. Started life as a prominent lawyer before he became a priest. He was distinguished for the following reasons: Founder of the Redemptorist Order. "He was given the title of Doctor of the Church for his writings on Moral Theology. A tireless apostle of the Eucharist and of our Blessed Mother, he worked with great zeal for the poor and sick." (Roman Missal). 

The Church is the seed of the Kingdom of God. (CCC) The Church looks like the collection of fish of every kind. The Church of the living God, the Seed of the Kingdom of God on earth will retain the characteristics of the kingdom of David, a type and shadow of the Kingdom of God on earth. King David himself is the sinner-in-chief. St Peter, Head of the Apostles is also a sinner-in-chief. Sorry Martin Luther, John Calvin and company. There was no Apostasy. At no time was the Church a perfect institution. Everything has happened and is happening according to the design and foreknowledge of God.

At the end of the world "The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth." (Matthew 13: 49 - 50). This is the plan. So far everything is going according to plan because God is Almighty, Sovereign and in Control.

"Open our heart, O Lord, to accept the words of your Son." (Acts 16: 14).

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Feast of St Ignatius Loyola

"The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls.  When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it." (Matthew 13: 45 - 46).

Wednesday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Ignatius Loyola (1491 - 1556) Priest and Founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). The word to live by today appears written for St Ignatius Loyola. A brash and ambitious young man looking for a world to conquer. Search and you shall find, says the Lord. What Ignatius found was a Pearl of Great Price. To purchase this Pearl, Ignatius must sell All he has to buy this Pearl.

This Pearl that demands All Ignatius has is Jesus. Ignatius was willing to pay the price. The Lord embraced him and made him great amongst men. Ignatius founded the Society of Jesus, a religious order that is relevant in the battle for souls and development of the world, making first class contributions in the field of science, art, culture and social studies all over the world.

What did St Ignatius Loyola bequeath the Church of the living God?
#1 Spiritual Exercises
#2 Methods of examination of conscience
#3 Methodology of Education

This prayer of St Ignatius Loyola shows the inner principles that drive him:

"Lord Jesus, grant that I may know Your heart intimately, love You passionately and follow You everywhere." Amen.

Needless to say, it pleased the Lord Jesus to grant St Ignatius Loyola this prayer.
St Ignatius Loyola pray for us.

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God is gracious and merciful?

"So the Lord passed before him and proclaimed: The Lord, the Lord, a God gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love and fidelity, continuing his love for a thousand generations, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin." (Exodus 34: 6 - 7).

Tuesday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Peter Chrysologus (406 - 450), Bishop and Doctor of the Church. Who is Peter Chrysologus? "As Bishop of Ravenna, Italy, he was famous for his outstanding skill in preaching (thus the nickname Chrysologus, or "the golden worded"), for his charities, and for his writings." (Roman Missal).

In our key Scripture for today, we see the self revelation of God as:
"gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love and fidelity, continuing his love for a thousand generations, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin." Is this how you see God? In case we imagine that this is an isolated trait of God's character, this is typical trait of God and continues in the Responsorial Psalm:

"The Lord is compassion and love,
slow to anger and rich in mercy.
His wrath will come to an end; he will not be angry for ever.

"He does not treat us according to our sins nor repay us according to our faults.
For as the heavens are high above the earth so strong is his love for those who fear him." (Cf Psalm 103: 6 - 13).

We have above the true character of God. He is also just. Both our first Reading from Exodus 34 and the Gospel reading from Matthew 13 did not forget that God is  just:

The Lord does not declare the "guilty guiltless" (Exodus 34: 7).

"The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers." (Matthew 13: 41).

"The word of the Lord remains for ever:
What is this word?
It is the Good News that has been brought to you." (1 Peter 1: 25).

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Feast of St Martha, Queen of Hospitality.

"Jesus entered a village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home." (Cf. Luke 10: 38).

Monday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Martha. Martha, the hospitality Queen. Martha's Vineyard, the home of good food appreciated by Jesus. Along with St Mary Magdalene whose feast we celebrated last Monday and St Anne, the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose feast was Friday, July 26th, we have three great women of the Bible and of salvation history. The Bible  teaches that the Church is "the pillar and foundation of truth." The Church of the living God is strong and robust through the ages because of the testimony of women like Martha, Mary Magdalene, Anne, Teresa of Avila, Catherine of Siena, Therese of the Child Jesus, Teresa of Kolkata, etc.

Jesus honored Martha by coming to her house as a guest. Do you realize that Jesus wants to honor you today by coming to your heart in Holy Communion?

"Martha said to Jesus:
You are the Christ, the Son of God,
who is coming into this world." (John 11: 27). Great act of faith!

Do you believe this? Faith in Jesus as God is eternal life here and now.

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Ask for the Holy Spirit and keep asking for Him.

"If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the holy Spirit to those who ask him?” (Luke 11: 13).

Sunday of the 17th week in Ordinary Time. Luke gives us Jesus' delightful teaching on prayer. Let us recap the main points:

#1 Each day, ask the Father for what to eat.
#2 Always remember to ask for forgiveness for your sins. He who says I have no sin is a liar.
#3 The Father is committed to forgiving you all your sins. You must likewise forgive your neighbor.
#4 Pray with perseverance. Ask and keep asking.
#5 Believe me if I tell you this: The best thing to pray for is the Holy Spirit.

"Prayer is an indispensable condition for being able to obey God's commandments. "[We] ought always to pray and not lose heart." (CCC 2098). This is a teaching we can use.

"On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
you have heard the words of my mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless you. I will adore before your holy temple." (Psalm 138: 1 - 2)

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Where have the weeds come from?

“The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field.  While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off." (Matthew 13: 24 - 25).

Saturday of the 16th week in Ordinary Time. The Lord Jesus proposes a parable of the weeds growing with the wheat. The night before He died, Jesus prayed that His disciples would remain one as the Father and Himself remains one. This was not to be because in every age, there arise people who judge the Church as compromised by apostasy. This parable and the Genealogy of Jesus Christ shout that God is not a fool. He knows what He is doing. No apostasy can stop His design for the world He created and loves dearly.

"The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’  He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’  He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them.  Let them grow together until harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.” (Matthew 13: 27 - 30).

Summary: It is the plan of God that the weeds will live side by side with the wheat till the end of the world.

“Gather my loyal ones to me, those who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” (Psalm 50: 5).

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Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of Mary and Grandparents of Jesus.

"Honor your father and your mother, that you may have a long life in the land the Lord your God is giving you." (Exodus 20: 12).

Friday of the 16th week in Ordinary Time is the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary and grandparents of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is what the Church says about Anne and Joachim:

"It was in the house of Joachim and Anne that the Virgin Mary received her training to be the Mother of God. Thus, devotion to Anne and Joachim is an extension of the affection Christians have always shown toward our Blessed Mother. We, too, owe a debt of gratitude to our parents for their help in our Christain formation." (Roman Missal).
Our 1st Reading today gives us a commandment with a promise:

"Honor your father and your mother, that you may have a long life in the land the Lord your God is giving you."

Jesus obeyed Joseph and Mary:
"He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them." (Luke 2: 51).

"O Lord, God of our Fathers,
who bestowed on Saints Joachim and Anne this grace, that of them should be born the Mother of your incarnate Son, grant, through the prayers of both, that we may attain the salvation you have promised to your people.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever." (Collect, Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne).

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Feast of St James, Apostle.

"As he walked by the Sea of Galilee,
Jesus saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother
mending their nets and he called them." (Cf. Matthew 4: 18, 21).

Thursday of the 16th week in Ordinary Time, feast of St James, Apostle. James and John were sons of Zebedee. James was one of the Apostles with Peter and John who witnessed the Transfiguration of Jesus on the Mountain and the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was condemned to death under King Agrippa I and beheaded in 42 AD.

James like the other Apostles held the treasure of God's calling and ministry in earthen vessels. When we look at the human weaknesses of the Apostles, we see how the enormous power of God can work even in us.

"I chose you from the world to go out and bear fruit, fruit that will last, says the Lord." (Cf. John 15:16).

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