The Gospel according to Matthew Chapter 23

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING 

TO MATTHEW

 CHAPTER

23

1. Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2. "The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat; 3. therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. 4. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 1 to 4)


Oh God this is a warning for all of us, whether we are laity, priests, lawmakers, or politicians or even parents or people such as myself who are praying on the Word of God. We are to pray to You my God not to mislead others by our way of life, by what we do think and even say, for without knowing our actions can both help and hinder other people's lives, especially those who without our being aware of it are looking up on us as being good people. I pray oh God that people reading these chapters will follow Your example, for I am only a human who is prone to sin. Anything that You reveal to me in a spirit of prayer I include in this blog, however the lesson and message is always primarily intended to teach and instruct me in my ways, and then for others who, may happen to be sinners like me.



5. They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. 6. They love to have the place of honour at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, 7. and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 5 to 7)


If we were to stop and think and make an inner observation of ourselves, we might find a reference to a particular sin or sins as found in verses 5 to 7. We can ask our selves regarding the intention of our action, if they are done for their own sake or to obtain social approval. Do we feel proud when we are noticed by people by our good points or achievements and feel better than others because we have a University degree or diploma?


8. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verse 8)


Oh Jesus You teach us that we are to adopt a humble attitude and never become proud, haughty, for we do not know it all, but are in a constant state of learning.


9. And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father-the one in heaven. 10. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 9 to 10)


Oh God my Father its been a long time since I acknowledged You as my one and only true Father. Apart from You I have no other Father, who is truly a loving kind and caring Father. My human father loved me so much that as a consequence of my having had a row on the telephone during which in a fit of anger I called him "Trash" he reported me to the police and wanted to take me to Court. This is the love and care given to me by a human father.



11. The greatest among you will be your servant. 12. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 11 to 12)


Oh God my Father it is better for us to be raised by others than to raise ourselves over others, or better to be raised by You than by the world that, many times promotes the unjust over those who rightfully merit to be promoted.


13. "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you lock people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not go in yourselves, and when others are going in, you stop them.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verse 13 to 14 not given )


As Christians we are also to be careful not to be a stumbling block to others. We might be misguided about what  we believe in and might lead others in error and thus blocking their way to heaven instead of helping them. This verse makes me aware that as much as we strive to be proficient and excel re issues of the world, we cannot afford to be anything less than professionals.



15. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cross sea and land to make a single convert, and you make the new convert twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verse 15)



Oh Jesus it is the same with many people of power who influence the middle person so much that their subjects not only believe all they say but influence to speak and think likewise. This could be the case in many scenarios in many areas of life such as politics and even religion or belief. A case in point is the group ISIS which by means of its use and abuse of religious principles it has recruited many followers making them worse than themselves.



16. "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by sanctuary is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by the oath.' 17. You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that has made the gold sacred? 18. And you say, 'Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gift that is on the altar is bound by the oath.' 19. How blind you are! For which is greater the gift or the altar that makes the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20. So whoever swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it; 21. and whoever swears by the sanctuary, swears by it and by the one who dwells in it; 22. and whoever swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by the one who is seated upon it.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 16 to 22)




Oh Jesus this is a fantastic argument which can be applied on many levels. There are among us many who reason that they believe in You but not in the Church. When applying the teachings found in verses 16 to 22 one can refute this argument by asking the following question. As Christians we believe that the head of Your body on earth is the Holy Spirit, the rest of the body of which we are a part of is the Church. A body without a head is worthless because it has no direction only an existence like a person who is bed ridden and unconscious. Therefore not to believe in either of the parts is not believing in the body as a whole. One simply cannot believe in the head and not in the body when both parts are needed to make the body whole. Therefore it stands that faith is an all or nothing issue that cannot be split into pieces in order to suit our needs.



23. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law; justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practiced without neglecting the others. 24. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 23 to 24)



As parents or ministers or priests in the Church or other religion we are to evaluate our practices in order to see if we are being sticklers to the rules to an extreme and are missing out on the rule of love, which is the cornerstone of Your message that is found throughout the whole Bible. If we act out of the flesh alone, we may not act out of love. If we do not act out of love, our actions may be useless and without value for they may be simply a logical response to another act, without any feeling or emotion or any indication of doing so in order to obey and love God. Therefore we need to question the reasons behind our actions and analyze if what we are doing, the service we are giving is for Your glory or our reputation and social standing!



25. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26. You blind Pharisee! First clean inside of the cup, so that the outside may become clean.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 25 to 26)



Oh Jesus what we have in our hearts and mind, our innermost being also reflects our behviour during our interactions with others and also within ourselves. If we are not at peace internally this is shown by means of our verbal and non verbal behaviour which show our real self. It does not make sense to appear holy by means of our external actions in public and be sinful and corrupt when in private, for at some time or other the truth will be  revealed and all will be aware of our real self. Even though we may try to portray a false impression of ourselves our non verbals get the better of us for they are beyond our control. 



27. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which on the outside look beautiful, but inside they are full of the bones of the dead and of all kinds of filth. 28. So you also on the outside look righteous to others, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 27 to 28)



Oh Jesus this is also a warning for all of us, for the image that we project while in the presence of others does not always reflect our private self. During this time of relationship with You oh Jesus while meditating on Your Word, I realize or You help me to realize that when compared to Your teachings I am still far away from being called a 'good person', for my heart and mind at times are still worldly and not based on the teachings that You give me. AsI have discussed with You many times I am still works in progress, the clay in the hands of the potter that is You. I am on the potter's wheel and at times you shape my form to make it look worthy before You, However at times I hurt and rebel and fail to understand why You are shaping me and my life, in ways contrary to my will. However may Your will be done and not mine.



29. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous, 30. and you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' 31. Thus you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 29 to 31)



Oh God as humans we have a tendency to use the if but reasoning, however according to the laws of probability if we lived in the same time of our ancestors we would have been a bi product of that society and we would have behaved likewise, therefore such reasoning is totally false and irrelevant.



32. Fill up, then, the measure of your ancestors. 33. You snakes, you brood of vipers! How can you escape being sentenced to hell?

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 32 to 33)


Oh Jesus if only we could measure up to the holy people who existed such as Mother Theresa, Saint Frances of Assisi and many others of our times. If only we could consider them as sign posts to follow and imitate instead of a dart board on which to throw our destructive arrows of negative criticism.


34. Therefore I send you prophets, sages, and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town, 35. so that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. 36. Truly I tell you, all this will come upon this generation.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 23 verses 34 to 36)


Oh Jesus You go totally out of Your way to ensure our salvation both on a personal level and both as an earth. However if we persist on shedding blood of innocent people, or shaming people who do not deserve it by verbal and emotional abuse we are responsible for such actions. As much as You are warning the Pharisees and Scribes You are warning all of us, each in our own sphere and walk of life be it at work, home and or during our moments of leisure or pleasure.



37. "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 38. See your house is left to you desolate. 39. For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.'"

(Gospel of Matthew chapter 23 verses 37 to 39)



Oh Jerusalem oh Jesus can be each one of us. With our tongues we can easily kill each other as with a sharp dagger if we are not careful and loving in how we communicate with each other. I understand oh Jesus that You show love, care and pity for humanity and its condition. Many times You try to intervene in our lives but we are not always receptive, because many times we are alienated by the ways of the world.



Oh Jesus God and Father I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:-



I pray oh Jesus that You free us from the seeds of hypocrisy, so that we will be able to live and behave as genuine Roman Catholics instead of a form of life that is only similar or tailored according to our needs and personal agendas. I pray for a new baptism of our hearts and minds so that both will be consecrated to do Your will Amen.


















































  

The Gospel according to Matthew Chapter 22

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING 

TO MATTHEW

 CHAPTER

  22

1. Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying; "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. 3. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 1 to 3)

Oh Jesus You are still calling on us every day of our lives, to turn away from our ways of life and base our lives according to Your will. You love us so much, that You are always giving, so kind and generous and inviting. When we accept You in our lives, You never send us away or refuse us, even if we make mistakes and go against Your will. You are always ready to accept us back in a spirit of repentance.

4. Again he sent other slaves, saying, "Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.'

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verse 4)


Oh Jesus everything is ready the offering has been sacrificed, for our benefit You took on Yourself a very cruel passion in order to save our skins. Every day You call on us to repent from our sinful ways and come and have fellowship with You in whom we find rest for our soul and happiness for our entire life.


5. But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, 6. while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. 7. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 5 to 7)


Oh God at times we tend to take You for granted and delay our salvation for another day, hoping that our death will never come. This is an illusory attitude but that is how we deal with each other as humans. We take risks hoping that that the situations will always be in our favour and never stop to consider the consequences of our actions. I agree oh God that this attitude is not a responsible one and that it hurts You to the heart, for You are more than aware of the consequences if we reject You from our lives. The evil one will move in to destroy our souls because we closed the door on You and opened the other to evil thus leading to our destruction of both body and soul.


8. Then he said to his slaves, "The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.'

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 8 to 9)



Oh Jesus although you invite us every day to have fellowship with You we do not always accept Your invitation. One day oh Jesus You will turn on others such as protestants and make them Your chosen people and it will be all our fault, for by means of our behaviour we have rejected You in our lives.


10. Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verse 10)


Oh God how faithful You are. You do not reserve the opportunity of salvation for an elite group but offers salvation for all both good people and sinners.


11. "But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, 12. and he said to him, 'Friend how did you get in here without a wedding robe? And he was speechless. 13. Then the king said to the attendants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14. For many are called. but few are chosen."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 11 to 14)


Among the group of believers even the evil ones tend to try and enter by illicit means. Sorry to say even in the Church oh God there are both laity and priests who although are Roman Catholics still are not genuinely wearing the wedding robe. I ask for Your forgiveness oh God for at times I am also a hypocrite and do not always were the robe. Amen


15. Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap him in what he said. 

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verse 15)


Oh God how crooked and sinful are the ways of the world. You taught us to stick to the truth at all costs and this is my motto, even I am condemned by the world. When I was involved in a collision in the presence I said the whole truth, even though it is being used against me with the insurance firm. You taught us that our Yes is to be truly a Yes and likewise our No. This means that there is no occasion for ''but's and if or maybe, even if this means that we are to suffer the consequences of our actions. In Your Gospel You told us oh God to be as wise as the Serpent and and pure as the Dove.


16. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with the truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verse 16)


Oh God in order to try and trap You in Your words flattery was used as a means of impressing you and then they would ask You the fatal question that would be the means by which to find something on which to accuse You. I thank You oh God for raising this awareness of the use of flattery for negative intentions. We are always to be aware of people who might be flattering us in order to trap us.

17. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?"

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verse 17)


Indeed oh God such people make use of social issues  that are open in content and may have both a positive and even negative reply. Therefore when posing such question when answering in either way one could easily be thwarted by having a positive answer manipulated into a negative one. On reflecting it is lawful to pay taxes as in the times of the Roman Emperor, but now as in our cases that the pension age in Malta has increased to the age of 63, will we ever get our pension after such a long time of labour. As in other countries the pension age is already up to the age of 70. When considering that Malta has already an ageing population people will end up dying at the place of work and never reaping the fruit of their taxes.


On the other hand the pension is only one fraction of where the money that we pump into the system goes. Other portions of our taxes are invested in other sectors such as health, finance and even education. Therefore when paying taxes we are investing also in the future of our children and even their children. Therefore it is beneficial to pay our taxes. If the people of the time of Jesus did not pay their taxes to the Emperor, the whole nation would have been wiped out by the Romans.  On the other hand the Romans in turn were protecting the people from the invasion of other nations of their time as found in the archives of history. Therefore the issue of taxes was a two pronged question or even a double barrelled question in order to accuse You by what You would reply.


18. But Jesus aware of their malice, said, "Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? 19. Show me the coin used for the tax." And they brought him a denarius. 20. Then he said to them, "Whose head is this, and whose title?" 21. They answered, "The emperors's." Then he said to them, "Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor's, and to God the things that are God's" 22. When they heard this they were amazed; and they left him and went away.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses  18 to 22)


Oh Jesus how wise You are so much that with one example You refuted the argument of the evil ones who tried to entrap You with their arguments. They are no match for You. I pray that when confronted by similar circumstances I also stop and think and give a reply that is according to Your will, instead of venting out my emotions and becoming angry.

As a means of helping us to refute such arguments and defend the truth please click on the following link which gives us simple but important guidelines that are used in philosophy

How to refute arguments


23. The same day some Sadducees came to him, saying there is no resurrection; and they asked him a question, sayimg, 24. "Teacher, Moses said, 'If a man dies childless, his brother shall marry the widow, and raise up children for his brother.' 23. Now there were seven brothers among us; the first married, and died childless, leaving the widow to his brother. 26. The second did the same, so also the third, down to the seventh. 27. Last of all, the woman herself died. 28. In the resurrection, then, whose wife of the seven will she be? For all of them married her."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 23 to 28)


Oh Satan father of sin and evil doings, how base can you become. You send your spirits to harass us time and time again as in the case of Jesus. I pray oh Jesus that You bless us with Your wisdom by consecrating us again and again with the wisdom of Your Holy Spirit and give us the needed attitude and responses in the right circumstance of our life, especially when we face persecution and tribulation for who and what we believe in. That is our faith in You.


29. Jesus answered them, "You are wrong, because you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God. 30. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.


(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 29 to 30)


Oh God human reasoning is totally different from Your reasoning. We can only use human logic to arrive at certain conclusions but Your vision is wider than ours. You can perceive eternity, while we can only create an imaginary form by means of our imagination. Therefore our logic is not reliable and is subject to being refuted.


31. And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God, 32. I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is God not of the dead, but of the living." 33. And when the crowd heard it, they were astounded at his teaching.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 31 to 33)


Thank You oh God for being the God of the living because as a human I cannot live without You. I also proclaim that You are my God. When I am spiritually alive I am in Your presence, however when I am stained by my sin I feel as if I am dead and Your presence may not bet hat alive in me.


34. When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, 35. and one of them, a lawyer,  asked him a question to test him. 

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 34 to 35)


Oh God when the forces of evil sense Your presence they become  more aggressive and they increase the strength of their oppression.


36."Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" 37. He said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38. This is the greatest and first commandment.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 36 to 38)


Oh God loving You is the fulfilment of my life. I would really like to follow You with all my heart and all my mind but at times I tend to loose focus because my emotions get the better side of me and I end up being stressed and angry about situations that come about. Oh GOD I pray for the gift of self control so that I can be a better Christian and human and be worthy of being called as one of Your son. Amen.


39. And a second is like it; 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 40. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 39 to 40)


Oh Jesus this is perfectly true, if we do not love others we cannot have love for You, however it is also true that if we do not love ourselves in a healthy way that is not self-centred we still cannot manifest love for others.


41. Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them this question; 42. "What do you think of the Messiah?" Whose son is he?" They said to him, "The son of David." 43. He said to them, "How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him LORD, saying, 44. 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet"? 45. If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?" 46. No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 22 verses 41 to 46)


Oh God my Father the knowledge and reasoning of the world cannot be compared to the infinite knowledge and wisdom given by Your Holy Spirit. Moreover as in the case of the Pharisees at times You ask us questions by means of situations, that rock the bottom of our foundations. One such question that You may ask us is "Who am I for You?". This may be followed by a second question: "Do you really love me more, than others and even more than yourself?. If we are not giving You oh God the first place in our lives, although we may seem to be doing well we may be in trouble both spiritual and even on a social level. We might be living in a state of chaos without our being aware of it, because our values might be displaced or not there at all any more. This is a great time to stop and think about our greatest issues in life. Amen.


I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:


Oh God I thank You for making me aware that every day I need to deal with my personal issues on many levels. The two most important questions that I truly and sincerely need to ask myself every day of my life are if I truly love You before any other person and with all my mind and all my heart. The second question is what role have You in my life a loving Father or a magician who makes my wishes come true. The third question is in whom do I really believe? The image of God that was given to me when I was a child, or has my faith in you matured to that of a grown up?

















  

The Gospel according to Matthew Chapter 21

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING 

TO MATTHEW

 CHAPTER

 21

1. When they  ha come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2. saying to them, "Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. 3. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, 'The Lord needs them.' And he will send them immediately."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 1 to 3)

It could oh reader of this chapter from the gospel of Matthew that today God is calling you and me for a particular mission. In this world of sin and darkness at times oh God You choose some of us for a particular mission. When choosing the person You also give the person the necessary skills such as leading and riding donkeys, and also the needed resources as in the donkey and the colt in order to fulfil the goals of the task. On the other hand You also choose the appropriate timing to undertake the task. If God is calling you to fulfil a common or special task which does not need to mean a vocation for the priesthood say "Yes" to God and He will do the rest. In the case of the virgin Mary her 'Yes" was strong enough to persuade the angel Gabriel to rush back to heaven with the good news and then the ball started rolling.

4. This took place to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, 5. "Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 4 to 5)


Oh Jesus as the Pharaoh of Egypt said "So it shall be written and so shall it be done!, even in Your case, all that is written had to take place, even that found in the book of revelations that is future oriented this also needs to be fulfilled before Your last visit. Even though the message in this book is not crystal clear still what is written has been written because in time it will be fulfilled. Therefore we are not to take one letter of the bible lightly because it is a drop from Your infinite fountain of knowledge.


6. The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; 7. they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them and he sat on them.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 6 to 7)


Oh what a sight for sore eyes, the Son of God sitting on a donkey on his way to Jerusalem. Oh how humble can You be my Jesus. You could have chosen the best of carriages driven by angels, but no in all humility and simplicity You chose the donkey and a colt. If this had to happen during our times, You would have chosen a mini minor instead of a Lamborghini, Ferrari or maybe a Limousine. Oh Jesus I pray that You help us to imitate You in Your humility.


8. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!"

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 8 to 9)


Oh Jesus what a bunch of hypocrites, You have as Your followers. I am sorry to say that with the same tongue that we bless and worship, we also ridicule Your name and Your Church.  I beg You to forgive us oh Son of God the most High for we really truly do not know what we mean or say. We are alienated and blinded by the ways of the world, so much that our will and brains have become corrupted by sin and the sinful ways of the world.


10.When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, "who is this?" 11. The crowds were saying, "This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verse 10 to 11)


Oh Jesus although the people of Jerusalem had been familiar with Your name, they were still in a state of panic. On seeing You in a state of humility they could not picture You as the Son of David riding on a mule, because in their minds nobility were mounted on horses and chariots as in the case of the Roman Emperor. The proud are muddled by the humble. They live in a world where only the best is accepted and nothing that is second or third best. In our world even potatoes are passed through a grading process and the inferior are thrown away and discarded. In practise we do the same among each other, we praise those who are high and mighty and discriminate against others whom we consider as being inferior to us.


12. Then Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13. He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer': but you are making it a den of robbers."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 12 to 13)


In a matter of seconds oh Jesus You created chaos in the temple. You could not stand the lack of respect shown to Your temple which was to be a place of worship and not a means to earn money. When we go to Church we are to show respect to You and Your presence and not to use Your house as a meeting place or an opportunity to have a chat with whoever is sitting next to me.

In order to picture how hurt You were during such a situation I invite the reader of this chapter to click on the following link:-

Jesus In the temple


14. The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he cured them. 15. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the amazing things that he did, and heard the children crying out in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David," they became angry. 16 and said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?" Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, 'Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise for yourself?" 17. He left them, went out of the city to Bethany and spent the night there.


(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 14 to 17)



Although the people saw You in such a state of anger, they were not afraid of You because they new the other side of You meaning love, mercy and healing. Even though the chief priests and scribes became angry they could not stop children from giving You worship, for even if we Roman Catholics stop giving You worship, You can enable nature as in walls and creatures to give You praise and worship.

18. In the morning, when he returned to the city, he was hungry. 19. And seeing a fig tree by the side of the road, he went to it and found nothing at all on it but leaves. Then he said to it, "May no fruit ever come from you again! And the fig tree withered at one.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 18 to 19)


If you oh fig tree could not serve your master what is the use of your existence? If as humans we are not willing to bear good fruit or service to God and others we are wasting precious time and that is a great sin.

20. When the disciples saw it, they were amazed, saying, "How did the fig tree wither at once?" 31. Jesus answered them, "Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, 'Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' it will be done. 22. Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith you will receive."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 20 to 22)


Oh Jesus today You have taught me a very important lesson. This is the reason why certain things or prayers have not been answered in my life. This is because when I prayed I did not do so in a spirit of faith, but in one of doubt or lack of complete faith and trust in You. While on this subject of true faith I invite you to click on the following link:-

Faith and not fear


23. When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, "By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?" 24. Jesus said to them, "I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?"

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 23 to 25)


Oh Jesus we have arrived at a point in our lives when we remove our diapers as Roman Catholics and Christians and even people of other religions and question our basic roots not to doubt them, but to test if we really are aware of what and whom we believe, or if we have twisted the truth of Your Word and the teachings that You gave to Your Church in order to fit and justify or needs and decisions. At times we may act rationally and even give colours such as white and black to lies in order to justify them, however our twisted logic still does not justify a lie or a corrupted version of Your teachings. We are choosing parts of Your teachings in which to believe and are discarding the most challenging issues as did the chief priests and elders of Your time.


26. But if we say, 'Of human origin,' we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verse 26)


Oh Jesus at time  I reflect over my reasons for being a Roman Catholic and then You remind me by means of Your word by giving me such a verse, that puts me back on track. I am a Roman Catholic because although I am a sinner You care and have personal interest in me. You love me like never before. Nobody loves me like You do and as much as You do. Some are in the Roman Catholic Church because they are afraid that people will consider them as being outcasts and removed them from their circles. There are some of us who choose to invest in brandish items such as cars or cell phones in order to be accepted by others. However oh Jesus You were not afraid of the crowd. You stood up for what and whom You believed in even this was to lead to Your crucifixion.


I pray oh Jesus that You make me worthy of accepting the cross of persecution for Your name even if this requires requires physical harm or even death for Your name.


27. So they answered Jesus, "We do not know." And he said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verse 27)


In order to avoid answering Your question the chief priests and the elders chose to take the stand of ignorance. At times we choose to opt out of facing the reality and consequences of sins that we had done on the premise that we had no knowledge of such a thing or situation. However according to human standards we might get away with it, but I believe that there will come the time when we will all appear before You and then there will be no buts and excuses. My prayer oh God is that You give me and others the opportunity of not leaving this world empty handed without having ever been of help to others in assisting  in one's daily needs. I pray that we never waste the time that You have lent us as humans on this earth.


28. "What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, 'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.' 29. He answered, 'I will not'; but later he changed his mind and went.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 28 to 29)


Oh Jesus at times I also do like one of the two sons. You tell me many things by means of the messages that You give me each day, however at first I stop and think and then when considering that Your will and not mine is to be done I humbly obey. Although You are showing me that I am not fit to go back to the world of social work for which I have a strong craving and wish to go to, I still keep on hoping that one day You change Your mind and I still visited a site to ask if they were in need of vacancies.


30. The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, 'I go sir; but he did not go. 31. Which of the two did the will of of his father?" They said, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you.  32. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 30 to 32)


The two sons in the parable oh Jesus seem to portray two kinds of people. The first category are the rebellious type who do not accept Your will willingly however after reflecting they realize that You are the only true way to follow in life. A typical example is St. Augustine of Hippo and St Paul who both spent a long time saying no before they in the end said their big yes.


The second category are those of us who are born and bred as Roman Catholics. From the first day of our lives we may be made sick with Your teachings! We may be bombarded by culture and spirituality to believe in You, however if we are not touched by You our Yes may only be lip service and no fruit will ever come from us.


Oh Jesus I humbly confess that I was one of those constipated people, until the day that You touched my heart and relieved me of my symptoms and only then did I become a convinced Roman Catholic. All the things, doctrines and Catechism classes that you had fed me started making sense, because now I had with your help made the great leap of being informed about You to having experienced You in my life on a personal and intimate level. Even though I am still a sinner and those of my inner circles can testify to that our relationship in time has greatly improved, however I am still works in progress and not yet a finished product. Therefore I pray for forgiveness of all whom I interact with for I still have my shortcomings, however You oh God are helping me every day of my life and one day we will reach the goal of holiness as You commanded us to be. Amen.


33. "Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. 34. When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. 35. But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36. Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way. 37. Finally he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' 38. But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, "This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.' 39. So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 33 to 39)


On reflecting oh Jesus it all happened as mentioned in this parable and the history is still repeating itself. When You chose Adam and Eve the human race and especially Your chosen people that through descent we make a part of, You planted the vineyard. During the course of time as according to Your will, the chosen people were led by Your servants Abraham Moses and their descendants. However throughout the course of time, as humans we rebelled and became corrupted by our sins thus leading to a state of personal, and national exile. In order to bring us out of our Egypt, You sent significant people who were to be as prophets to us. These could be teachers, friends and even members of our families or even extended families. However we did not always respond to Your plea, by means of such people to change our ways. On the contrary, we may have ridiculed or broke up our relations with such people, as in the case of the prophets and Your chosen people. Some of the prophets were beaten, and others even killed. Finally You decided to send us Your only son, who was to take the burden of the sins of the world. However even though years have passed, we are still rejecting You in favour of the corrupt ways of the world, without considering that one day we will have to face the music and be accountable for all of our sins and Your rejection from our lives.

I pray oh Jesus that on Your second visit You will find the world in a better state not in a state of alienation and avaricious mentality as we are now experiencing while many others are dying of poverty and suffering the consequences of wars that they had no part of.



40. Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?" 41. They said to him, "He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 40 to 41)


Oh God I feel that verses 40 to 41 is a warning to all Roman Catholics that we should take very seriously. Throughout the course of history the chosen people who did not accept You as the Son of God and God lost their claim as the chosen people. Therefore the New Body of Christ or chosen people are the Roman Catholics of the New Testament. However if we do not obey Your will, this title can easily be transferred by You to the Protestants and their offshoots who proclaim Your name more strongly and have a stronger faith than us Roman Catholics. These groups or offshoots of the Roman Catholic Church are not afraid to proclaim Your name. They have street preachers, ministries which are very active as in the case of Joel Osteen and Joyce Meyer among others, who are bearing many fruit and have many followers!


42. Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the scriptures; "The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone, this was the Lord's doing, and it is amazing to our eyes'?

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verse 42)


Oh Jesus at times we choose what to cite from Your Gospel that fits according to our argument in order to sustain it and negate the rest which makes us aware of our sins and weakness. However the truth will always be the truth and nobody can ever deny it. Amen.


43. Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verse 43)


Oh God this would be the most tragic of all events if the kingdom of God was to be ever taken away from us, not that we deserve it, for as sinners we only deserve the eternal fires of hell, however even though we do not deserve it we cannot live without You Amen.


44. The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls." 45. When the chief and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. 46. They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 21 verses 44 to 45)


Oh Jesus indeed You are the rock of my salvation. Moreover those who seek You find refuge, love and care, however, those who are against You will experience much tribulation for they are waging war against their own source of life which may result negatively on them. I pray that we all find a loving supportive Father in You and not a means of opposition or oppression.


Oh God my Father I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:-

I pray oh God, that we always find our love, care and refuge in You and in Your Holy Word as found in the Bible and not according to the sinful ways of the world. I pray that when the last trumpet of our lives blows that marks the end of our lives we will be on Your side and not on the side that leads to our destruction. I would like to share with you this song which I invite you to sing to:-


Song When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound


 Amen I wish a Happy and Blessed Christmas to all the people of the world especially those who seek to live according to the will of God Amen.

The Gospel according to Matthew Chapter 20

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING 

TO MATTHEW

 CHAPTER

 20

1. "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2. After agreeing with the Laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 3. When he went out about nine o'clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; 4. and he said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' So they went. 5. When he went out again about noon and about three o'clock, he did the same. 6. And about five o'clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, 'Why are you standing here idle all day?' 7. They said to him, 'Because no one has hired us.' He said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard.'

(Matthew Chapter 20 verses 1 to 7)

 Oh Jesus You call us into Your kingdom during different phases of our life. There are those of us whom You have called since the time of our birth meaning since the time of our baptism where we became a member in Your body on earth that is the Roman Catholic Church. However there are others, whom You may call during the time of our adolescence. However there are those of us whom You call at the last phase of their lives that is when they have become of an age or even at the time when they are on death's doorstep! God is always waiting for us to change our ways. He is in no particular hurry. A year or an hour for You oh Father is just like a second, therefore it does not matter when we turn from our ways as long, as we show genuine signs of repentance and change our sinful ways.

8. When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, 'Call the laborers and give them their pay beginning with the last and then going to the first.'

(Matthew Chapter 20 verse 8)


At a time of Your choice oh Father You will call on us to leave this earth in order to give us the gift that we deserved, either a place in heaven with You forever, or a place in the never ending fires of hell. The choice is entirely our own. As in the case of the parable we might be in for a surprise. Those who pretend to be better than others may find themselves at the back of the Que while others whom, they had judged as being bad and unworthy people will go into heaven before them. Oh Father Your criteria of judgement is totally different from that of our selves and I thank You for this with all my heart. Amen.


9. When those hired about five o'clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. 10. Now when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also received the usual daily wage. 11. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, 12. saying, 'These last worked only one hour, any you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.'

(Matthew Chapter 20 verses 9 to 12)

At the point of death oh Jesus or when we are in heaven we may meet people whom we never had a high opinion of and whom we may have even judged as being sinful or whores and paedophiles while on earth. However much to our surprise You may have considered such people more worthy of being in Your presence before us, because Your judgement is more, loving caring, and accurate than that of our selves. Moreover their spiritual conversion was stronger than ours and may have come at an earlier time, however according to our judgement we may have kept on being prejudiced against them and did not recognise the change that took place in them due to our own sinful blindness.


13. But he replied to one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? 14. Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give this last the same as I give to you. 15. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?" 16. So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

(Matthew Chapter 20 verses 13 to 16)


In all Your Justice You explain to us, that You made the same contract with all humanity, in the sense that You promised us a place near You in heaven if we believe in You and try to behave according to Your will. However if there are some whose behaviour than others, or maybe make an experience of You at the very end of their lives and You decide to save them, it is not Your fault oh God, for You are kind and generous and Your wish is that nobody is denied a place in heaven even though we are sinners.


17. While Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside by themselves, and said to them on the way. 18. "See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death; 19. then they will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified; and on the third day he will be raised."

(Matthew Chapter 20 verses 17 to 19)


Oh how true oh Jesus is the reality of our death. It is like a back pack that is always strapped to our shoulders that contains our burial shroud and the tools needed to put us in the ground. The harsh reality that even though the world makes us think that we are indestructible and that we will live forever, the truth is that life on earth will one day come to an end and all the worldly honours and promotions will die with us and in time will be forgotten as if they never even existed. What is more out of all the achievements of this world, what will remain are the good works of love and charity that we did in order to help others and obey Your holy will.   

20. Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked a favor of him.

(Matthew Chapter 20 verse 20)


The mother went kneeling in humility before Jesus asking a favour. Oh God may we come before You with an honest and sincere spirit of humility and adoration in order to praise Your name and not simply to ask grants or favours as we do with our fellow persons from whom we attempt to get any chance to improve our status, even if this means corrupting or bribing others or even seducing them in order to get our ways.


21. And he said to her, "What do you want?" She said to him, "Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left in your kingdom."

(Matthew Chapter 20 verse 21)


As  much as the mother of the two sons of Zebedee wishes nice things for her two sons, our mother in heaven who is also Your mother also wishes that You grant us the greatest gift of all that, is a place near You and heaven which means the salvation of our souls. Amen. I thank You oh Jesus for giving me a second mother. I feel sorry that my relationship with her is not as strong as my relationship with You my God and Father.


22. But Jesus answered, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?" They said to him, "We are able,"

(Matthew Chapter 20 verse 22)


Oh God indeed we do not always know what we are praying for. Many times we pray To You for wishes that are not good for our selves or for others. At times our intentions may be very good as in finding a particular job, but in truth our choice of a job is not healthy for us and as a consequence we might end up hurt or in trouble. Therefore in such cases You would need to deny us of our wish and say "No" to it.



23. He said to them, "You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father."

(Matthew Chapter 20 verse 23)


Oh Jesus by means of verse 23 You teach us a great lesson in humility and obedience. Even though You are one with the Father, You still respect the authority of God, the Father and remain in subjection and obedience to Him. Oh God that we may learn to be subject and loyal to You and even to our superiors and to the norms of our society. If one had to observe the way we drive, the quantity of traffic accidents at times due to the disobedience of speed limits, violation of speed limits, loading capacity, lack of road work maintenance among others all reflect sin at work that is manifested in disobedience or some form of negative act at the cost of many innocent victims of such sinful attitude.


24. When the ten heard it, they were angry with the two brothers. 25. But Jesus called them to him and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. 26. It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant. 27. and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave. 28. just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.

(Matthew Chapter 20 verses 24 to 28)


Oh my Jesus how different You are when compared to others. You rule with love and humility as a loving father and not as a tyrant ruler. The golden rule is that of being a servant, helper to others and not to be dominant over others. This does not mean that we are to let others abuse us or harm us, however we are to be humble and help to promote others instead of only or egoistic self. I am aware oh Jesus that my sinful self will rebel against leading such a lifestyle because it is so proud as a sinful nature bu together we will overcome it and help in my reconstruction according to Your ways. I am aware that this process is already in process, but at times I go back instead of advancing forward. I pray on You my Father to help me overcome my self in order to be humble like You and overcome a total victory over my sinful self.


29.As they were leaving Jericho a large crowd followed him. 30. There were two blind sitting by the roadside. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted, "Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David! 31. The crowd sternly ordered them to be quiet; but they shouted even more loudly, "Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David! 32. Jesus stood still and called them, saying, "What do you want me to do for you?" 33. They said to him, "Lord, let our eyes be opened." 34. Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes. Immediately they regained their sight and followed him.

(Matthew Chapter 20 verses 29 to 34)


On reflecting oh Jesus I am not really sure about who were really blind, in the sense of if it was the two blind men or the crowd of people who were following You my God. The crowd tried to silence the two blind men. Today Society is also trying to silence those who believe in You my God. The media and science are trying to hammer into our heads that we are to live today in luxury and wordily environment that puts You aside and places humans in the centre of control. The world is trying to attribute all good to Science and technology in the name of cliche's such as progress., however the culture promoted is one that drives one away from You. In many areas we are playing God. There was a time oh God when we would turn to You and offer prayers to have a child. Today we use surrogate mothers, test tube babies or make a pre-order of a baby by choosing the colour of ones eyes skin and even the genes and traits. We leave no space for error because all is scientifically and biologically programmed thus eliminating You from the process of creation.


Oh Jesus I  would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:-

Oh Jesus as in the case of the two blind men, the more society attempts to silence us, the more we are to proclaim Your name and give testimony of Your presence in our lives amen.

The Gospel according to Matthew Chapter 19

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING 

TO MATTHEW

 CHAPTER

 19

1. When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2. Large crowds followed him, and he cured them there.

(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 1 to 2)

Oh Jesus different groups of people follow You for different reasons, some to see the signs, however others out of pure and genuine faith along with the need for healing seek You and your ways.

3. Some Pharisees came to him, and to test him they asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause?" 4. He answered, "Have you not read that the one who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' 5. and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? 6. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."

(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 3 to 6)


Oh Jesus by promulgating laws on divorce and mixed marriages we are making a mess of the framework that in Your Wisdom You made for the world. The devil is in control of the minds of the law makers and has persuaded them to legislate laws in favour of divorce and marriages or unions between people of the same gender. This leprosy is found even among those chosen by You. You strictly told us that the model is to consist of a man and a woman, however the devil is convincing the legislators to accept marriages between couples consisting of men and women. Moreover men who for a long time have been accepted by this gender all of a sudden have become aware that they were not men but women and are behaving accordingly. Oh Jesus we are living in a state of utter chaos.


I pray oh Jesus that You end this reign of chaos and discord that is plaguing our world. Have mercy on us I beg You for we are heading on the road to destruction. Those who will come after us may not find anything to benefit from for although we are advancing in technology we are socially corrupted by our sinful ways. In many spheres of life there exist sinful ways, even in simple matters such as when purchasing appliances or buying an insurance policy, the small letters concerning the terms and conditions may at times of need be used against us instead of in our favour.


7. They said to him, "Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her?" 8. He said to them, "It was because you were so hard-hearted that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery."

(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 7 to 9)


On reflecting one may also stop and reflect why divorce was introduced in Malta and was accepted by the majority of the voters. In the background as in the case of Moses, there may have been those who at all costs really believed and desired divorce for a personal reason and did all they could to be influential in order to persuade the voters to vote in favour of divorce. However all who voted in favour of divorce are not on God's side because they voted in favour of evil that was personified in those who lobbied in favour of divorce. It had to be a negative force such as Satan personified that was strong enough to harden the hearts of the voters to go against the will of God. Therefore those who issued the bill of divorce are as guilty as those who lobbied and voted in favour of divorce and shall all pay for this major act of disobedience against the will of God. They are the cause behind the breakups of many couples because they were instrumental in sowing this negative seed. However it is You oh God who is competent of passing such judgement!


10. His disciples said to him, "If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry." 11. but he said to them, "Not everyone can accept this teaching, but only those to whom it is given. 12. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can."

(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 10 to 12)


Marriage is a commitment. It is a way of life that is very challenging because it implies the sacrifice of one's self for the good of others. It also requires great humility to accept that I am not always right, and that apart from my needs there are those of others. Marriage implies both duties and obligations. It requires more giving than receiving. At times I dread the moment that I decided to marry, however on reflecting oh God I realize that during such moments my focus is no longer on You but on my own sinful self that by nature gives priority to myself above others even family and this is totally selfish, for in order to imitate You oh God I am to find pleasure and satisfaction more in giving than in receiving.


13. Then little children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them; 14. but Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven's belongs."15. And he laid his hands on them and went on his way.


(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 13 to 15)


Oh Jesus by means of children You set us a very good example of what our attitude is to be in our relationship with You. As in the case of children, they are innocent and dependent on their parents in order to cater for their daily needs. They are happy and young in spirit, free from the tensions and anxieties of the world. Oh Jesus how I wish to be like children in the sense that I be totally dependent on You free, from worries, stress and anxiety. I also pray and wish to have a spirit that is not contaminated by the ways of the world but one which is totally focused on You.


16. Then someone came to him and said, "Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?" 17.And he said to him, "Why do you ask me about what is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." 18. He said to him, "Which ones?" And Jesus said, "You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; 19. Honor your father and mother; also, You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 20.  The young man said to him, "I have kept all these; what do I still lack?" 21. Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will treasure in heaven; then come, follow me."

(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 16 to 21)


On reflecting oh Jesus we all wish to be united with You in heaven, however as in the case of the rich young man we may have issues that are blocking us from reaching this goal. As in this youth's case the issue was material possessions. In our cases we may all have sensitive issues that could be anything that we are giving a greater value than necessary such as hobbies, cars, possessions and at times even our families and own self or even our jobs and careers. Oh Jesus You are to be given the first place in our lives. Nothing is able to stand before You, for You always merit the first place in our lives. Amen.


22. When the young man heard this word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

(Matthew Chapter 19 verse 22)


Oh Jesus this may also be our case. We would like to walk in Your ways, however we are already loaded with our cares for the world and have no space for You. Oh God please help us make the right choices and decisions. May You be our number 1 priority above all else.


23. Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Truly I tell you, it will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."

(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 23 to 24)


Oh Jesus when we have many riches the great risk is that we are bound by those same riches, we may think that we are powerful and that we can purchase even death and live forever in our life of luxury and commodity, while others are starving to death. One might say oh God I deserve to be rich for I studied and invested in myself and in my property therefore I deserve to be rich. My friends are these riches more important than the riches of God. Will money, power and prestige save your soul. One thing is certain is that one day we will die and leave all our blogs, riches, careers, behind us and others will take our place and benefit from the fruit of our hard labour and studies. So it is better to invest in the ways of God, for they are ever lasting and do not have an expiry date such as death or retirement or pension age.


25. When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astounded and said, "Then who can be saved?" 26. But Jesus looked at them and said, "For Mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible."

(Matthew Chapter 19 verses 25 to 26) 


Due to the fact that we are humans and prone to sin by our human nature, it is impossible for us according to our own devices to save our selves, however with the help of God all things are possible. For You oh God there is nothing that is impossible to accomplish for You are God of the impossible. 


27. Then Peter said in reply, "Look, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?"

(Matthew Chapter 19 verse 27)


Peter asks You oh Jesus a very interesting question. We all do something for a reason, and generally that reason is for something in reward. The reward greatly encourages the act of giving. It is a great time to ask You oh God as Christians or Roman Catholics or humans at large our reasons for following You and what will be our reward or else we might end up very disappointed as in the case of Peter. Our greatest reward is a place in heaven in Your presence oh God. This present is more precious than all the money in the word. Although I long for this presence I do not wish to come near You by myself but also with others. This is the reason why I wished to share these reflections with others so that by means of the 'Word of God' or the 'Good News' as in the Bible we will be inspired by the Holy Spirit of God to change our lives and experience Your Salvation as one big family.


28. Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man is seated on the throne of his glory, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

(Matthew Chapter 19 verse 28)

I thank You Jesus for the reward of heaven. I need not have such an important place such as that of the apostles, as long as I am with You in Your presence I am happy and fulfilled.


29. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold, and will inherit eternal life. 30. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.

(Matthew Chapter 19 verse 29)


As in the case of Peter one might ask the fatal question what is in it for me? I will try to live a good life and then what if I cannot reach my aim? However oh Jesus You show us the other side of the coin. When we love each other as You do, You will compensate us, when we go out of our egoistic self and reach out for others in order to help them cater for their needs, we make new friends who become new brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.


However, it is the humble who are admitted first into the kingdom of God and not those who are proud and haughty and full of themselves who have such a high self-expectation that they raise themselves above others.

I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:-

Dear Father who loves us so much more than any other in the world. I offer You all the families in the world. Please place them under Your protective caring wing for the evil one is harassing us day and night. I also place intercession for Your priests, bishops and all the fishermen of our time. Protect them from the forces of evil for they are also under the evil one's attack. I pray that you protect the Roman Catholic Church from the plague of homosexuality that is infecting the Church and our society, for many are abusing of this condition in order to harm Your body on earth Amen. 

The Gospel according to Matthew Chapter 18

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING 

TO MATTHEW

 CHAPTER

 18

1. At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verse 1)

Oh Jesus we are so different from each other. We operate on two different wavelengths. This makes communication so challenging but never impossible. While You based Your life on humility as humans we seek honours and grandeur and high status manifesting many signs of our status by means of our property and even the stylish language that we may use when in public. 

Oh Jesus this is all vanity because what is really and truly of value, is all that has to do with Your Kingdom. It is of value to take care of our physical welfare and to have enough resources to cater for our own needs oh Jesus. You are aware of this and shower us with Your bounty of providence, however what is really important is our spiritual welfare because this is our greatest investment on leaving this world. You are our treasure oh Jesus and all that has to do with You. I pray that I always give You the first place in my life and encourage others to do likewise. Amen.

2. He called a child, whom he put among them, 3. and said, "Truly I tell you change and become like children,, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verses 2 to 4)


On observing my daughter oh Jesus I observe that as a child she highly depends on me as a parent to provide for her needs. When in need she comes to me or her mother and asks us for this and for that. At times we accept her request but at other times we have to say no. With You it is the same oh Jesus. We are to be humble and offer our issues to You in a spirit of humility instead of keep on relying on our own resources and when we have exhausted all our options, only then do we refer to You. We may think that we are living a good life, praying on the bible attending mass or prayer meetings, however if we are not humble with ourselves and with others we are still not on the right track. In order to assess our progress with God in humility it is helpful to assess how humble we are in our relationships with others, because how can we love the God whom we do not see and hate the persons with whom we relate both at home and at work in other environments?.

It is a proper time to stop and reflect on this issue and then offer to You my God those issues and or people or situations that are blocking our humility valve from functioning. In order to make an assessment of our humility it is helpful to refer to the ten commandments and make a checklist. The following may be of help:-


Commandment Number 1: I am to be Your only God.


On reflecting on my life, is God the only God or are there others who are sitting in the God seat? On the other hand it can be that I am sitting on the God seat and I think that I am in control of my life. If so my humility marker is flashing red. I am proud. I have made plans to control every aspect of my life or at least I think I have. Nobody on earth or in heaven can violate those plans! I have become God of my life!


Commandment Number 2: Do not worship or serve idols.


On reflecting do I have time to pray and worship You oh God or have I placed myself in the centre and have a great desire to receive praise from others. At the present time who I am worshipping; my work, on line games, my family, my car or maybe my friends.


Commandment Number 3: Do not misuse God's name


When I speak of You my God, what are my feelings; am I ashamed of talking about my faith in public. Do I refer to You by another name such as deity or concept in order to shadow the fact that I am a Christian. Do I proclaim Your name in the presence of believers and ridicule it by placing science, psychology or other religions in the centre instead of Your name.


Commandment Number 4: Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.


Do I show respect to the days of God such as Sunday and make it holy by going to mass with my family, friends or others or is this day as common as other days of the week. Is Independence day, New Year or maybe Christmas more important than Saturday which is the day of God? Am I humble in the observance of such important moments in our spiritual life or is my life centred on myself and my successes?


Commandment Number 5: Honour your Father and your Mother.


Do we still share the hurts of the past that we acquired on behalf of our parents? Are we still angry and hurt by the grievances that we received. Are we humble to admit that such people may not have had the tools in order to behave better and thus they behaved as they did? Are we still harbouring a grudge because our brother or sister was treated differently and you ended up being the underdog? If so we need to forgive in a spirit of humility in order to be able to receive God's forgiveness. Forgiveness gives us both physical and even psychological healing. I am a witness of such healing. I am 43 years old and for a long time I had had my self esteem crushed by my father who was always criticising me. To make a long story short my life became a life of misery. I was living my past but never the present. By means of a group of people who attend a prayer group I was helped to become aware that I was focusing on the blame and not on the fact that by holding back my forgiveness I was blocking my spiritual development.


Commandment Number 6:  Do not commit murder


Do not commit murder. This form of murder may be attributed to the destruction of the body, however this can also imply the murder or destruction of the soul. This is a device that can be commonly found in the married life. The weapon used is silence. As humans we are social beings created to communicate with both God and our fellow persons, however when we shut each other out of our lives this is very painful and frustrating to the spirit that is yearning to communicate and love although we are sinners and prone to sin and hurt each other. Therefore instead of being proud and haughty it is best to get down off our high horse and admit that we all make mistakes and instead of passing judgement on each other it is more fruitful to pray and try to establish the road to love and reconciliation, with ourselves and others especially those in the married life.


Commandment Number 7: Keep Your marriage promises

Oh Jesus this is one of the most challenging commandments especially when considering that during our times the family structure is in a radical state of change. Our change of values and worldly choices are placing the family under alot of stress and this is causing many problems. I am sorry to say that we are violating the concept of marriage that is a union between You and humanity and am resorting to partners that means female and male counterparts that are taking place of the wives and husbands. To make matters worse the evil powers of Satan are convincing people in powerful places to promulgate laws that encourage and support such a union or partnerships.



Commandment Number 8: Do not steal

Do not steal has a wider connotation than that of material goods. When we are spending excessive time in worldly activities such as work and the least time for prayer or with our family we are stealing the family and God of the time that is duly theirs. When we speak falsely about our colleagues we are stealing their good name and reputation and doing at times harm that may be irreparable. Humility compels us to consider others before ourselves and not above others.


Commandment Number 9:  Do not lie.

Oh God when You commanded us to be humble and pure in spirit You also meant that the truth is to be present in us and that what we declare is to be the truth and nothing but the truth. This means that we are never to say lies whatever the circumstances. Moreover You never made a distinction of colour in relation to lies, whether they are white black or red lies. These categories have been created by humans in order to justify one form of lies over the other.


Commandment Number 10: Do not want what others have


In the name of humility oh God I am to be happy with all that You have given me and not be envious of the benefits and gifts that You have given to others. Instead of being jealous for people with different gifts in talents it is better that we pray for such people so that Your Holy Spirit will continue to give them even more gifts to share with others.

In order to refer to the ten commandments please refer to the following link:-


The Ten Commandments

5. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verse 5)


All the good works that we do in order to be of help and support to others is greatly appreciated by You oh God and Father. When doing so we are continuing the unfolding the plan both for our salvation and even for that of others.


6. "If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea. 7. Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks! Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to the one by whom the stumbling block comes!

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verses 6 to 7)


Oh Jesus when reading and praying on these verses one may easily be tempted to refer to the many cases of child abuse that have taken place in the Roman Catholic Church. Moreover we may even feel happy to find somebody to use as a scapegoat in order to cover our own misgivings towards our children. Due to the fact that You permitted me to work with such cases of children who had experienced different forms of abuse, I am more than familiar with the harm that takes place in such cases. Moreover oh Jesus I thank You for permitting me to experience abuse for I now have a better idea of what such children may have experienced.


However oh Jesus there is more to the term abuse than the physical aspect. When we deny our children of our time and prefer to spend our time in hobby time, prayer time or at work this is also abuse of our children who after a day's work would like nothing better than to spend time with their mothers and fathers. Therefore before passing judgement on others it is best to stop and analyse our own behaviour in order to see if it is being abusive in some way or another.


In light of this issue oh Jesus I would like to refer the readers of this blog to an article that gives statistics of cases of child abuse in the United States and other places in the world


Statistics of Child abuse cases


8. "If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than to have two hands or two feet and to be thrown into eternal fire. 9. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it away; it is better fir you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into the hell of fire.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verses 8 to 9)


Oh Jesus your counsel is wise. It is better for me to avoid all that is of spiritual and physical harm than to lead an alienated life of sin and end up in the fires of hell. I thank You again and again for raising in me this morbid awareness.


10. "Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven. What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountain and go in search of the one that went away? 13. And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. 14. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verse 10 to 13)


Oh Jesus thank You for assigning guardian angels to our little children. I thank for doing so even in the spiritual life. I believe that even when we mature and grow of an age Your guardian angels are still with us standing on alert to help protect us against the forces of evil. Oh Jesus although we grow up in truth we are still frail and prone to sin as much as little children. Although we grow up we are still at the risk of becoming lost, for at heart we are still children. I pray oh God that You keep on protecting our children. I also pray for all the social workers who work in the area of child abuse around the world especially those working in Malta for their task is becoming ever so challenging throughout each day of our lives. Give them the wisdom, courage and faith to act at the proper time according to Your Holy Will Amen.


14. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verse 14)


Therefore oh God as adults and as Christians it is our responsibility to take care of our children and protect them from both physical and spiritual harm. We are to go against the ways of the world that promote ways of aborting children. We need to be pro life and not in favour of a culture that promotes death and destruction. God did not create death, it was only, the consequence of our sins that death was introduced and not according to the will of God.


15. "If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member  listens to you, you have regained that one. 16. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verses 15 to 17)


Oh Jesus had this process been applied in particular cases of abuse and in other cases the consequences may have been more positive than in fact were. For as a consequence of simply accusing the persons involved and exposing them to the media mud was thrown at the Roman Catholic Church regardless of the integrity of many priests, nuns and monks whose lives are so exemplary that they out stand among those who blemish Your body on earth that is the Church. I believe that if these persons were confronted face to face in the presence of others as You explained the outcome may have been totally different and less harm would have been done.


18. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 19. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. 20. for when two or three are gathered in my name, I am among them."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verse 18 to 20)


Oh Jesus You love us so much that You are so close to us. In fact as You said You are only one prayer away from us. It takes only two or three people to express their prayers and You respect or needs and respond to them. However one may ask "Why are there moments when my prayers seem to be unanswered?"  Oh Jesus You strictly said when we pray "In Your Name". Do I invoke the name of God or are my prayers simply give me this or that? This is something that we always have to keep in mind because without knowing I may be praying in 'my name' and not in 'Your Name'.


21. Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?" 22. Jesus said to him, "Not seven times, but, I tell you seventy-seven times.

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verses 21 to 22)


This Issue of forgiveness is very important. I had personal issues with it my God, and if it was not for your love and intervention I would have remained a slave of my emotions and self-pity forever. When we decide not to forgive a person oh God we close the doors on our spiritual, social and psychological well-being. We cannot reach others due to our hurt feelings and in turn we cannot be reached by others because any attempt may be associated as an intrusion or a lack of understanding even if the person offering help has good intentions of helping us. Our relationship with God is also blocked. God is love, love results in forgiveness. Therefore if we have closed the doors on forgiveness we have closed the doors on receiving God's love. Moreover if we have our hearts full of our hurts and feelings of anger how can we receive Your forgiveness without first letting go of our sinful selves and forgive those who trespass against us. Unforgiveness and forgiveness are like to polarities of which one is negative and the other is positive. They both have a force that is very strong however one empowers us and switches us on that is forgiveness and the other is strong enough to shut us down on all levels of being and function.

In light of the issue of forgiveness I would like to share the following prayer on which we can all stop, pray, reflect on our sins for we are also sinners and are all in need of Your forgiveness oh God.

Prayer for forgiveness



23. "For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves, 24. When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; 25. and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. 26. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.' 27. And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. 28. But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii and seizing him by the throat, he said, 'Pay what you owe.' 29. Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you. 30. But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. 31. When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. 32. Ten his lord summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33. Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?" 34. And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. 35. So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart."

(Gospel of Matthew Chapter 18 verses 23 to 34)


Oh Jesus with a heart full of joy and gratitude I thank You for this parable, for by means of this parable and by means of three special persons in my life You showed me what a big mistake I was doing when I was holding back my forgiveness for almost 43 years towards my father who had hurt my feelings so much at the time of my childhood that scars had developed in me and I could not function as human. I was so hurt that when anybody mentioned the word father tears would come from my eyes. Even though I was the injured party due to the fact that I was holding back my forgiveness I was the one who was suffering.

In order to make a long story short I grew up and graduated as a social worker and when I was put to the test by You oh Jesus in the area of abuse I broke down emotionally during the evaluation after my first care order where we had taken a child who was being abused from her grandparent from a school. During this evaluation the issue of my past surfaced and because of it I lost my job because the agency said that if they were aware of my past they would not have employed me because this issue had caused a great blockage in me so much that I could not function.

Even though I have stopped working in this profession ever since this episode I thank You God for in the meantime You started the process of my inner healing. While attending a prayer group called "Kommunita' Gesu Salvatur" which means "Community of Jesus Christ our Saviour" the group leader was talking about the issue of non forgiveness. Among the list of many scriptures that the leader gave us on which to reflect was this parable on forgiveness. While in groups in tears I shared my experience with the group leaders and tears flowed again and again. However the group leaders Marion and Clyde Attard explained to me that if I was to be healed I was to forgive my father 'from the heart' and not only from the lips.  

As in the case of the slave I was strangling my father and insisting that he forgives me, however I was not willing to forgive him. However in truth I was the one in an emotional prison, When browsing on the issue of forgiveness among the many sources You gave me a video clip showing the reality that as humans  due to our upbringing or level of education we simply do not always have the necessary tools needed to express ourselves in a healthy way and we end up using our selves but instead of expressing our selves in a healthy way we end up hurting each other and this even lead to hurting and or abusing the others emotions.

In a spirit of prayer oh God You made me aware that my father had endured a very difficult childhood. At an early age his mother with whom he was close had died and this was a great loss and caused a great emptiness in him that nobody could fill in humanly speaking. Throughout the days of his life my father had not received healing from this loss and these feelings turned to anger. His development as human became stunted and blocked so much that he could not even make rational and responsible decisions as in the case of marriage. In fact the marriage between him and my mother was annulled in relation to a lack of discretion during the time of consent. He simply did not have the tools to carry out this role. He was in need of a carer, somebody to love him, somebody who9 may some day replace the love and care that he had received from his mother. However like an abandoned creature in the wild instead of love and care he received bites and scratches which added to his hurt and already damaged state of development.

So before passing judgement on each other and deciding not to forgive somebody please stop and reflect. It could be the case that the person concerned does not know better due to issues that you and even the person are not aware of!


I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:-

Oh Jesus I would like to place before You the hearts of many people who have been or are still being hurt by others. I pray that as You healed me, You also heal these people for it is a living hell to live such a life. I would like to thank You for many people by which You enlightened me and led me to my healing such as Clyde Attard, Marion Attard and Josette among others whom You used in order to help me realise that by not forgiving my father I could not receive forgiveness from You oh Jesus for I am also a sinner who hurts other people.

Thank You Jesus.