Jesus' Presence: An Assurance and A Mission

Solemnity of the Lord's Ascension
May 24, 2009 (Mk 16:15-20)

Jesus said to his disciples: "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."

So then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.

As we celebrate the Solemnity of the Lord's Ascension, we remember two things that the Lord said before He was brought up to the Father. He told us to proclaim the Gospel to every creature (cf. Mk 16:15). He also told us that He is always with us, until the end of time (cf. Mt 28:20).

The words Jesus spoke during His Ascension are usually referred to as the "Great Commission". He commissioned His disciples to make the whole world his followers, to baptize and to teach them to obey His commandments. In our Gospel today, we read many signs that shall accompany those who believe. Indeed, these signs confirm that the disciples' mission was mandated by heaven, God's own work.

These signs are also God's gifts in order to help the growth of His Church. Indeed, Jesus does not just command His disciples, He also equips them with things they would need in their mission. As was said in our Second Reading today, "Grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.... And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ..." (Eph 4:7, 11-12).

The greatest assurance He gave His disciples was His own presence. Yes, just before He was taken up into heaven, Jesus said He is with us always. It's quite ironic, if we think about it. But this is true. When He ascended, He became more present than ever.

Saying that He is always with His disciples is not just an assurance. It is also part of the commission. Jesus is now commissioning His disciples to make Him present all over the world. They are given the task to repeat Jesus' great wonders. Most importantly, they are charged to become "Jesus" for others.

We, as disciples of Christ, also receive this commission. By virtue of our baptism, we take part in this heavenly mandate. We may not be able to reach many places and preach as theologians do. But Jesus is with us. And He challenges us to live our lives as a testimony to His greatness. He wants us to drive out demons, speak in different languages, and to heal the sick (cf. Mk 16:17-18). We may not be able to do these literally. But since Jesus is with us, we have the power to drive away sin, to speak about God's love and to heal those who are spiritually ill. Jesus is with us, and He will protect us from any harm. So we need not be afraid to preach by words and by the witness of our lives that Jesus is with us always, even to the end of time!

Loving God in Loving One Another

6th Sunday of Easter May 17, 2009 (Jn 15:9-17)

"As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love.

I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give you. This I command you: love one another."

Love is the very essence of Christianity. It is the very essence of Christ's life and teaching. Everything began in love. Man was created by God in his great love. God has shown His constant love even when man turned away from him. Finally, the story of God's love for man reached it's climax on Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. Truly, no one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends (Jn 15:13).

God's love is so great that He laid down His life, not just for His friends, but for everyone. He died for us while we were yet sinners (Rom 5:8). He even died for His enemies, for the Gentiles, for everyone! God's love and salvation is for all men. God shows no favoritism (Acts 10:34).

In His great love for man, God has always sought after man's love in return. This is epitomized by Jesus on the cross when He said, "I thirst" (Jn 19:28). By that He meant that He thirsts for love. And we are the ones who should be loving Him.

It is imperative for us Christians to love. It is God who first loved us, and that love we have received from Him is so overwhelming that we ought to share it to others. We ought to love one another just us Jesus loved us.

Maybe we would wonder, "Why do we need to love others? Can't we just love Jesus back?" Jesus Himself answered this when He said that whatever we did to the least of our brothers and sisters, we did to Him (Mt 25:40). If we love our neighbor, we are loving God, for they are created in God's image, just like we are. St. John also explains: If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. (1 Jn 4:20).

If we love Christ, we should obey His commandments. We should remain in the path He pointed out for us. We should love God and love our neighbor.

This is how we know that we are Christians. If we don't have love, how dare we call ourselves Christians?

To Grow and Bear the Choicest of Grapes

5th Sunday of Easter May 10, 2009 (Jn 15:1-8)

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and everyone that does, he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.

I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them into a fire and they will be burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you. By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples."

Jesus introduces Himself in the Gospel today as the vine, to which we, the branches, are attached. A branch not attached to the vine will surely die. In the same way, if we do not remain in Jesus, we shall die.

Our mission as branches is to produce fruit. The Father, the vine grower, will cut off every branch that does not bear fruit. If we let sin hinder us from bearing fruit, we will be cut off from God. We will feel that God is not with us. But it is our own fault because it was our choice not to bear fruit. We are the ones fleeing from God because of our sins. This is the effect of sin. Sin separates us from God, our vine, and from our neighbor, our fellow branches.

We should let God prune us. We should let Him cut off those in us which hinder our growth - sin, anger, pride and any other evil. Everyday, the Father tries to prune us. We just have to submit ourselves to Him. We need to listen to the Word of God and let His words transform us.

The events in our lives are also God's pruning. Regardless of how joyful or how bitter the events in our lives make us feel, they are willed or allowed by God in order to prune us. It is up to us to pick up the lessons that God is trying to teach us through these events.

But regardless of what happens in our lives, we should remain in Jesus, for He is our source of life. We should stay in the path of righteousness, the way of love. God created us out of nothing, and we return to nothingness without Him. Our lives should be dedicated to God and we should have a harmonious relationship with Him and with each other.

To produce fruit means to be faithful to our mission as branches. We, as Christians, are given an active faith. It empowers us to reach out and evangelize by word and deed, to touch lives and make other people feel God's presence. Through this, the Church grows and develops new branches; and we ourselves grow and bear the choicest of grapes.

A Shepherd's Love

4th Sunday of Easter May 3, 2009 (Jn 10:11-18)

"I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. A hired man, who is not the shepherd and whose sheep are not his own, sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away, and the wolf catches and scatters them. This is because he works for pay and has no concern for the sheep.

I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd. This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again. This command I have received from my Father."

By using the image of a good shepherd, Jesus speaks of how He cares for His followers. He speaks of laying down His life for His sheep, something other hired men won't care enough to do. Jesus says He knows His sheep and His sheep know Him. He has a very special relationship with each member of His flock. He knows them each by name.

The symbolism of the Good Shepherd explains to us Jesus' magnificent love. Imagine a shepherd, giving his life to save his sheep; a man, voluntarily dying to save animals! Indeed, God's love is something very great. It's a mystery that only God, in His wisdom, can understand. It will leave us asking, "What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?" (Ps 8:4).

Yes, what are we that Jesus would lay down His life for us? Who are we that God would care to know our name? We are sinners, unworthy of God. Nevertheless, He loved us, so much so that He laid down his life for us.

Jesus also speaks about other sheep that are not yet into His fold. This symbolizes the universality of God's love. God loves everyone and treats us all as His children. Nevertheless, we are given the freedom to choose whether or not we will be His faithful sheep. Of course, even if we choose not to follow Him, we would still be His sheep, and our Shepherd will never stop calling us into His fold.

The Good Shepherd is also an image of a perfect leader. We, too, have little flocks of which we are shepherds. We could be leading a small group, an organization, or maybe raising children, perhaps. The Good Shepherd should be our model of genuine love and concern for our flocks. Like Jesus, we are invited to be good shepherds, ready to sacrifice for our sheep, ready to help our neighbor even if we shall lose something for it, ready to love more even if it will hurt. We must follow Jesus' example.

Today's celebration invites us to heed the call of our Shepherd, for even if we walk through the dark valley, we will not fear, as long as we follow Jesus (cf. Ps 23:4). Like a shepherd leading his flock towards verdant pastures and restful waters, Jesus will surely lead us from this dark valley we call earth, to the repose of heaven (cf. v.3).

The Church also invites us today to pray that more young men follow Jesus and serve him, reflecting the goodness of the Shepherd in priestly ministry.

Like Jesus, may we be filled with ardent love for our neighbor and be shepherds of each other, helping one another and listening to the voice of the One Shepherd - Jesus.